Outside edge setdown#

Fri, 15 Sep 2006 00:45:56 +0000

I keep coming back to this subject, so here is a page describing everything I think I know about outside edge setdown, which I can update as my opinions change.

(If you arrived here from a search engine: I am not a coach or an instructor or anyone who knows about this stuff, please do not believe anything you read here without applying your own critical reasoning skills. Thanks)

• most people agree it's part of good technique at the top level
• however, at anything below the top level, concentrating on it will often have a detrimental effect on the toe-out angle during the push - most of us are better to settle for a straight setdown

The second point is probably the controversial one, and the reasoning goes like this: most skaters will get their outside edge setdown by setting their foot "across the line" instead of underneath their body. But this is not a good place to start a push from: they will need to steer the foot back to slightly outside of their CoM so that they can start the fall. Either they do this very slowly (and have a long glide in which no work is being done) or they steer quite a wide angle, and then when they cross the centreline they often fail to steer back again ("close the foot") early enough that they can get a good push and carve. Even if they do, who's to say that the advantage of an outside edge setdown (whatever that might be; see below) isn't lost to the disadvantage of friction from all that steering. In summary, you're better off starting with your foot under your body, and if your shins and frames are in line, that means (approximately) centre edge.

So, what is the advantage of an outside edge setdown?

Dunno. Suggestions mooted include

• "it helps the pendulum effect"; ack, a timing issue. Timing issues are really hard to think about
• it's actually about setting down very slightly inside the line and using hip flexors to get a bit of push before we're into the fall where the regular leg muscles can be used. I don't think this is the case
• it's about setting down with the ankle slightly flexed sideways, then unflexing it during the push ("rolling over the edge") to get some extra push from the ankle muscles. I suspect this needs to be done with care and attention to avoid having the ankle collapse during the push.
• I don't like this one, but I've heard it: outside edge will cause the skate to steer slightly to the outside so that the fall can begin. I don't like it because it's by no means uncontroversial that the effect exists

At the moment I'm favouring the third option, but that's a hunch with no data to support it. I am reminded of the controversy surrounding "ankling" on bicycles - here's what Jobst Brandt says