Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Minefield

Objective: This is a drill we use for our jammers to help them switch quickly between flat-out skating, and quick feet for moving and juking through a pack. 
Typical length of drill: 15 minutes or so. 
Materials needed: Track outline, whistle 
Skill level required: Intermediate 
Description: The entire team will skate out as a pack at moderate speed. Two volunteers will be chosen, and they drop 10 feet behind the pack.  On the whistle, the pack will take a knee and remain on one knee. The jammers will then race one another. They attack the pack, slowing their speed, and without rolling, they must use quick steps, hops, jumps, toe-stop steps and footwork to step their way cleanly through the kneeling pack without bumping or back-blocking.  When they emerge at the front of the pack, they will then accelerate, skate a lap, and approach the pack again, repeating the above drill by stepping through the kneeling pack. The first jammer through the pack for a 2nd time is declared the winner.  2 new volunteers are then chosen, and the drill is repeated until everyone has had a chance to jam.

To make the drill extra challenging, the kneeling skaters can be instructed to "sway" from side to side to make the pass a little harder for the jammers.

It's a simple drill, but it's one we've found to be particularly effective in teaching our skaters how to go from a sprint, to a stop, to depending solely on their agility, and then back to sprinting again. It has also really helped our newer skaters to understand the importance of the stepping drills we do during their freshmeat training!

Enjoy!
-Violent Bob-

2 comments:

  1. Oooh I really like the way this one sounds! Hope I get to try it soon :)

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  2. Thanks for sharing! Ill be trying this one at our Back to basics session wednesday night!

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