This drill is designed to help you measure your movement as you step out of a chaines turn. Before practicing this drill, make sure that your chaines mechanics are solid. If you want to get some extra practice on your basic chaines first, look at the basic chaines drill. The Drill: Without a partner, you… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: spinning
Taking Off for the Pot-Stir
This entry is part 4 of 4 in the series Pot-StirsThe next step in learning the pot-stir is for the follower to learn how to take off from the setup position. This drill will focus on the moment between compressing into the leader’s right hand and when the leader takes over in powering the turn.… Continue Reading
Setting Up the Pot-Stir
This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series Pot-StirsLeaders, you have several responsibilities during a pot-stir. The first responsibility is to let the follower start the spin on balance. This drill will help with that part of the spin. The Drill: With a partner, lead the follower to begin a pot stir. Leaders,… Continue Reading
Balancing the Pot Stir
This entry is part 2 of 4 in the series Pot-StirsFor the follower, a pot-stir is fundamentally a pirouette. The mistake most followers make is trying to power their own pot-stir. Instead, you should aim for just enough juice to make it between a half and a full turn around from your starting point; from… Continue Reading
Troubleshooting Pirouettes
This entry is part 11 of 11 in the series Spin TechniqueThe previous post in this series covered the fundamentals of pirouette turns. This post will look at a number of common ways that a pirouette turn can go wrong, along with suggestions for troubleshooting the issue. You are throwing yourself onto your supporting leg.… Continue Reading
Pirouette Fundamentals
This entry is part 10 of 11 in the series Spin TechniquePirouettes are spins that occur entirely on one leg. In WCS, the famous pot-stir spin is a pirouette in which the turn is started by the follower and then powered by the leader. Both leaders and followers use pirouettes for stationary turns, such as… Continue Reading
Spotting in Chaines Turns
This entry is part 9 of 11 in the series Spin TechniqueSpotting is useful in all turns, and chaines are no exception. This drill is designed to integrate spotting into the timing of your chaines turns. The Drill: Prep for your chaines turn by stepping forward onto the supporting leg. Begin the rotation by gathering… Continue Reading
Chaines Turns
This entry is part 8 of 11 in the series Spin TechniqueChaines turns are a method to do a quick series of turns (hence the name chaines, French for “chains”). In WCS, chaines turns are preferred for any extended series of turns, such as a barrel roll down the line, because they can be linked… Continue Reading
Spotting in Spins
This entry is part 7 of 11 in the series Spin TechniqueSpotting is a technique used in spins to improve your balance, keep spins in a line, and create a pulse to the spin. The basic idea is to focus on a single point with your head as your body rotates. When you can no… Continue Reading
Spin, Then Travel
This entry is part 6 of 11 in the series Spin TechniqueNow that we’re practiced both forward and backward pivot turns, it’s time to put them together in a sequence. For this drill, we will use the follower’s inside roll, which contains three pivot turns on counts 3, the & of 3, and 4. The… Continue Reading