Inline Figure Skating

Here is the first group of "tricks" that have been taken from ice figure skating & translated into inline skating moves. I will do one of each rating. The ratings are:

Beginner = *
Intermediate = **
Intermediate/Advanced = ***
Advanced = ****

Swizzles *
Spiral **
3 Turn ***
Two-Foot Spin ****
Waltz Jump ***
Axels ****
Loop Jump ****

Swizzles *: This is a move that can be used to skate forward or later to skate backwards. (Backwards requires your weight to be towards the toe & going forward requires weight toward the heels.) It is good for building up groin muscles & the inside of your thighs. In swizzles, your feet do not leave the ground. Start by gliding on two feet about 7 to 8 inches apart. Then allow your feet to slide out while moving until they are about 24 to 28 inches apart. Here comes the harder part where your groin muscles come in. Without lifting your feet off the ground, glide & pull your feet back in until they are again 7 to 8 inches apart. Repeat the move over & over. You will soon gain momentum & the move will become easier to do with speed.
Spiral **: This is a graceful move that you see figure skaters doing often. This will be easier for more flexible people to do. It requires good balance, so you should be able to skate on one foot with ease before you try this. Gliding on one foot, point your toe of your free skate & slowly lift your leg behind you. Arch your back & bend at the waist only. Do not throw your body weight forward or you will loose your balance. You should try to balance all of your weight on your skating leg. A good spiral form is when you can get your free leg up higher than your head.
3 Turn ***: This is a move that allows you to turn backwards by skating on one foot. This will require you to go almost onto one wheel only for a split second. You will fall trying to learn this, so be prepared. Once you get it, your friends will be impressed. Use whatever foot you feel most comfortable skating on one foot. Most people feel that this move is easiest if your skating leg is your left one.; There are many types of 3 turns that deal with the "edge" (direction), but right now I will just describe it generically. Try holding onto something likes a fence or bench when you first try this & watch your chin if you fall. I had a friend who bumped her chin on a bench when she fell. Gliding on one foot, allow your free foot to hang behind you. Swing the free leg around slowly & shift your hips at the same time. Let your foot rock up towards your toe & swing it backwards at the same time as your leg & hips go. You should now be skating backwards on one foot.
Two-foot Spin ****: This is so fun to do but be prepared to get dizzy. This requires you to be on only two wheels. You can do it on your heels, on your toes, or the easiest on one toe & one heel. Most people feel comfortable spinning counter-clockwise. This is the common direction to spin in figure skating unless you are left handed & do everything in the opposite direction. I will explain a right handed, toe-heel two foot spin like would be done on ice.; You will be on the toe of your left foot & the heel of your right & will spin counter clockwise. Start with your arms out to your side & feet slightly apart. "Wind up" by swinging your arms 90 degrees in the clockwise direction. This will turn your body a little but do not let your feet move. All at the same time swing your arms back the other way & pop up onto your toe heel position. Pull your arms into your body like your are trying to hug yourself. This will make you spin faster. Let your arms out to slow down & drop back to all your wheels.
Waltz Jump ***: You should be able to do 180's before you try this one. I will explain first how to do just the moves, with no grace attached. However, this is a very graceful jump & when done properly almost gives the illusion of doing splits in the air. While skating forward, glide on your left foot (if you are left handed or feel more comfortable skating on your right foot, do the exact opposite as I describe). Begin rotating your body counter clockwise. Allow your free leg to come forward. When your body is 90 degrees & your foot is still forward, jump off of your left skate. While in the air, rotate you body the last 90 degrees, change feet in the air & land on your right skate backwards.; To add some more grace, let your right leg swing forward to help you take off. Try this a few times holding onto a wall or bench or crouch, with your skates on or off. Getting your body used to jumping off one leg & landing on the other is the hard part of this trick. Once you get this jump down, then more advanced figure skating jumps become easier to understand.
Axels: I have heard some people asking about axels on inline skates. Although I mentioned before that I would only discuss those figured skating moves that I can do on inlines properly, I will talk about axels anyway. My main problem is landing on one foot, so I two foot the landing. I tend to land with my weight a little forward so that on inline skates, I roll up to my toe & fall. I know that I can correct if only I would keep my body straight, but old habits die hard.; An AXEL is a **** manoeuvre on my scale. It requires excellent balance & a lot of strength to pull off on inlines. This jump takes off forward off your left foot (outside edge), rotates one & a half times (540 degrees) & lands on your right foot (outside edge) going backwards. An important part of the take off is using your free right leg to "kick" forward helping you to take off. If you are new to trying this manoeuvre, try doing it on carpet or grass without your skates on. If you cannot get the rotation without your skates on, you will not be able to do it with the extra weight of your skates. Another tip for the takeoff is that most ice skaters like to skate into the jump going backward & then stepping forward onto your left foot an immediately taking off. You can do it this way, or from skating forward depending on your comfort. I have noticed that most roller skaters do axels from a forward skating position. Try both & use the one that allows you to get the most height & control.
Loop Jump: Here is a new figure skating manoeuvre, it is called a loop jump. I would consider this & advance jump to try. You must already be able to do a 360 jump starting backwards & landing backwards.; LOOP JUMP: is a jump where you take off backwards on two feet, but land backwards on one foot. Skating backwards, scissor your feet so that your left foot is slightly in front of your right. Bend your knees deeply & glide in a counter clockwise circle. Take off on an outside edge on your right foot still with your left foot trailing in front & use your knee bend to "pop" yourself into the air.; Turn your body in the air in a counter clockwise direction & pull your arms into your body (grabbing your left shoulder with your right hand sometimes helps in the rotation). Also, while taking off, lift your left leg up slightly higher than your right ankle.; When you have completed the 360 rotation, land on your right leg skating backwards on an outside edge & allow your free leg to extend behind you. (Like the way you see ice figure skaters land) Remember to try this only when you can do a 360 in the counter clockwise direction on two feet from backwards skating to a backwards landing.; You will fall many times learning how to do this so please wear protective gear including a helmet. The most common fall for this jump is in the landing. If you lean forward, you will roll up on your toe & do a face plant. Make sure that you bend only at your knees & not at your waist! Keep your back straight.; 3 TURN***
This is a move that allows you to turn backwards by skating on one foot. This will require you to go almost onto one wheel only for a split second. You will fall trying to learn this, so be prepared.
Once you get it, your friends will be impressed. Use whatever foot you feel most comfortable skating on one foot. Most people feel that this move is easiest if your skating leg is your left one. There are many.

Most people are right handed & prefer to rotate counter clockwise, so that very critical with 3 turns. You will want to find your strongest direction & stick with it until you have that mastered, then start learning the other way.
Types of 3 turns that deal with the "edge" (direction), but right now I will just describe it generically. Try holding onto something like a fence or what really made the difference to my three turn was to really stress the edge. My first 3 turn was the right outside & once I realised that was what I was trying to do, it started to come much easier. I had always been holding a straight line & finding it so difficult. So, think about drawing that 3 when you do this move & it will help.

Gliding on one foot, allow your free foot to hang behind you. Swing the free leg around slowly & shift your hips at the same time. Let your foot rock up towards your toe & swing it backwards at the same time as your leg & hips go. You should now be skating backwards on one foot.
This is basically it, but I can picture a lot of over rotated turns. The key is to set your arms & shoulders first, then to let the rest of your body & foot complete the turn. I would not stress the swing on the free leg either as it would also seem to over rotate or pull the whole thing off balance. It is in the shoulders first, the hips second, then the foot.; I advise to practice these with two feet at first is very good. If you realise it or not, you have actually taught yourself two 3 turns that way, one outside & one inside!
I tend to do the slow, "graceful" move with my body turning & at the last second when my body is almost backwards I "snap" my foot. I use my arms too, but that is mostly from my figure skating training when I had a coach yell at me to keep my head up & my arms out to the side. I even position my hands the way she used to make me.