- Joined
- Jun 21, 2003
How many different ways can one skater get into a double axel?
95 Jr Worlds SP spread eagle with knee bend, straight into 2A
1996 Worlds SP back outside counter (1A); double but not perfect at Centennial on Ice
96 Euros FS forward outside threes in both directions, step up from back inside edge
97 Worlds SP clockwise back crossovers, edge change to basic back outside edge approach (what I call the question mark approach; just slightly more complicated than the typical same-direction back crossovers)
97 Worlds LP bunny hop, bunny hop, half-inside axel, half-inside axel, opposite-direction half axel into lunge, directly up into 2A (failed, but wow on the difficulty!)
successful with much simpler approach at 97 Euros
That's a very interesting collection. Thanks for the research.
Hey, this lady was pretty good!
Well, this is 6.0, so the variety of entrances to the double Axel does not get x number of CoP points. Still, I can easily see that the judges would reward the fancy approaches in both the technical and the performance marks. It seems pretty clear in these examples that the more challenging the entrance the more likely the jump is to be unsuccessful. I suppose this is obvious. Every senior skater can do a double Axel. But can you do one preceded by elaborate steps, turns and moves in the field?
That said, I am not a big fan of difficulty for difficulty's sake. I don't think a 'Tano position adds anything of value to a jump, for instance. To me, it is like jumping with a chicken tied to your leg. Difficult, yes, but it takes away from the beauty of the jump done properly, with a long, flowing exit edge.
I will give the skater in these videos a +1 costume bonus in her first performance, though. Elly May Clampett meets Daisy Mae Yokum (nee Scraggs).