Tips · 6 tips

Turns on inline skates: from the crossover to the one-foot spin

Six short tips: crossover, toe-heel spin, stunami, stunado and the lion 360 on one foot.

1. 

   Tip 1 · Beginner

   Crossover: cross, recover and turn with your torso

   Key points

   • —The crossover gives you acceleration and makes turns easier. Without skates, from your scissor stance with your weight back, cross your leg in front and recover your position.
   • —Add the torso: first rotate your torso, then bring your leg and your hips line up with your shoulders; that's already a turning action.
   • —With skates, same drill with your hands up; when you bring the leg back, make sure it doesn't hit the heel of the front one. Switch feet and walk it.
   • —Then do it in a circle around a reference point (in the video, a sneaker), with your torso toward that point; in both directions and also fakie.
2. 

   Tip 2 · Intermediate

   Toe-heel spin in place, with a spot

   Key points

   • —Master the base position: one foot on the toe and the other on the heel, until it feels natural.
   • —With small pushes, do quarter turns using your torso and hips; then half turns without losing the position.
   • —For the 360, the key is your gaze: pick a fixed point in front of you, turn your head decisively and find it again on every turn.
   • —Once you land a clean 360, increase the push little by little to chain several spins.
3. 

   Tip 3 · Intermediate

   Stunami and stunado: 180 and 360 spins with crossed legs

   Key points

   • —Both spin on the same axis with crossed legs: the stunami at 180 and the stunado at 360.
   • —First hold a firm crossed position.
   • —Practice quarter turns (90 degrees), then half turns (180) and finally full turns (360).
   • —Keep your trunk straight and your gaze forward throughout the whole process.
4. 

   Tip 4 · Advanced

   The stunado in depth: lock your shins and connect two 180s

   Key points

   • —Start standing still: cross your feet, locking at shin height, in a comfortable posture to cushion.
   • —Turn in quarters always toward the leg you have in front; feel how the cushioning generates the push.
   • —For the 180, start the rotation with your torso; once you have it, connect two in a row for the 360.
   • —Then enter with momentum from a front cross and, when you're comfortable, from a back cross.

   Common mistake

   This short doesn't repeat the previous one: that one gives you the progression of the two spins; this one refines the stunado (shin lock, spin direction and entering while moving).

5. 

   Tip 5 · Advanced

   Spinning on one foot: from the front open lion to the spin

   Key points

   • —First learn the front open lion: a transition from forward to fakie on a single foot.
   • —Enter on the inside edge; at the turning point you switch to the outside edge of the skate, drawing a three.
   • —To spin, bring your knee up over your hip and use the inertia of the push to spin on your own axis.
   • —Practice on a smooth floor that isn't too rough, which makes spinning easier.
6. 

   Tip 6 · Advanced

   Open lion 360: chain two open lions

   Key points

   • —Beforehand, make sure you've mastered the open lion.
   • —Think of the spin as two open lions chained together.
   • —The key is the knee of your guide leg: throw it up over your hip, as if it were orbiting around you.

   Common mistake

   If you do it right, you can chain more than one consecutive spin.