Stupid Question on Backward Crosscuts

I am a skater in freestyle 4 and I have a really dumb problem. when I do backward cross- cuts right over left, I am nervous that the blade will hit my other skate( this has happened on many occasions leading to falls). Now I am so scared that I am reluctant to even really cross my foot. I know backward crosscuts are really important, but my silly fear of falling has overcome me. Can someone give tips on how to not hit my other foot when crossing? Thanks!

Hi !

I think it's all a matter of feeling. At the beginning, try not to cross your feet so close, and take care of the synch, you may hit your blades if the crossing foot comes too fast, and your other has not started the thrust. At this point, never forget that a proper knee bend will help you a lot. Practice the crossovers slowly first, confidence will come with time, you will find and reduce by instinct the right distance between your feet and then you will not think about it anymore!

I have the same fear, and the coaches said the cure to that is to bend your knees more (but notice -- don't bend your body at the waist); the bend at the knees will naturally keep the skates apart.

Vanshilar is absolutely right. Whenever you experience the Click of Death on crossovers, it means your knee bend isn't deep enough. The trick is to KEEP YOUR BUTT LOW the whole time. Don't rise up as you cross over because the less bent your knees are, the closer your feet will come to each other as you cross over. Instead of a rising and falling motion as you do crossovers, your hips should stay at the same low level the entire time. If you are skating backward lobes (right crossover, power push, left crossover), the same thing applies, and it should feel like a side-to-side motion.

One more helpful tip on back crossovers: If you are crossing right over left (clockwise back crossovers), Keep your left shoulder pulled way back and look to the left, in the direction you're going. Your shoulders and arms should be aligned right over the circle you're skating on. That will help keep you from falling into the circle and allow you to stay low.