Figure Skating: The basics (Part 2, spins)

So we've covered the jumps-let's move on to spins. This one will be a little harder since, while yes there are general groups/kinds of spins, skaters are encouraged to innovate with positions of free legs, arms, and combinations. In fact under the current point system, it would be incredibly rare to see a layback spin on its own without any kind of change of position or variation. Which is honestly kind of a shame! A layback spin, done perfectly used to be one of the hallmark moves in figure skating-the one they put on magazine covers and what-not. Why do skaters change position so much? The points darling, the points! By changing position, Gumby-ing yourself around etc. a skater can increase the level of difficulty and thereby the base value awarded. In jumps we didn't have to talk about this, because jumps essentially tell you their difficulty level, i.e. a single axel would be (sort of) a level 1 and get a corresponding base value. Well for spins it's a little more subjective, and difficulty depends on the number of positions and the exact variations, speed etc. Skaters can achieve levels 1 through 4 for spins, with 4 being the hardest and getting the highest number of points. 

You'll see these spins in singles and in pairs as well and even ice dance to an extent (we will get to pairs and ice dance in their own "Basics" posts, don't you worry). 

Before we start, let's talk basics. A good spin should be fast and centered and have clear, well-controlled beautiful positions. If it seems like the skater is going through molasses or slowly drifting to the left, or if it just looks awkward and ugly-red flag. Skaters also need to do 2 revolutions (in singles) before changing position-to demonstrate control. Most skaters spin and jump in one direction, however some skaters may choose to spin in both directions (clockwise and counter clockwise)-it's really difficult. Some skaters liken it to writing with your non-dominant hand. It's unusual to see but can increase the level of difficulty. I won't cover entry and exit like I did for jumps because they can really vary. In fact difficult entries and exits is another difficulty-booster and points-getter.

I've done my best below to list the most common spin variations and flying spins as well, so let's go.

Scratch spin

We begin with the easiest spin. Basically stand up and cross your legs. That's the basic position for a scratch spin-congratulations you can figure skate now (just kidding kids, for legal purposes do not try this at home or on a rink). Most skaters will clasp their hands in front or overhead-for the same reason they do in jumps-it helps them spin faster. The best scratch spins go so fast the skater is just a blur. In today's judging system, this spin is basically worthless, and you don't see it very often. You may at the end of a combination spin for a bit of wow factor, but in the old days a lot of skaters would end their programs with it because. Well. It was cool! See below (guys I made this gif!!)

Not a lot of variations with this one-generally any variations come with the arms. One notable variation is when the skater leans the head back during the fastest part of the spin, making it look like the skater doesn't have a head. It's called, shockingly, the headless scratch spin (unfortunately I can't find an example for you so you'll have to trust how cool it is). 

Camel spin

This spin is basically if you stood up and then leaned forward and let your free leg come up behind you. Now your trunk and leg are parallel to the floor (for yoga folks, think half moon position). A nicely done camel spin will also show the skater's free foot turned out at the ankle, so the toes are not pointing down. See figure:

To make this more difficult, a skater might twist around a little so their chest is facing away from the ice more (as a general rule if it changes the skater's center of gravity, it's harder). Another common variation would be where the skater bends the knee of the free leg and catches it with their hand. I thought I was the only one who referred to that as the donut spin, but no! Apparently that is its name!  Love this journey for us-see figure:

    Flying Camel

    A flying camel spin (or any flying spin really) is a jump into the spin. As a bonus, it also gives the skater some extra power to spin faster. In the case of a flying camel it means basically hopping from one foot to the other and immediately spinning. Obviously, this makes the spin much harder. 

You can see in this particular example, the skater has already pretty much centered herself to begin the spin before doing the jump but some skaters may make it harder on themselves by kicking into the flying camel-see gif:

    Death drop
    I really debated where to put the death drop, in camel spins or in sit spins. But since it is basically a flying camel spin on steroids it makes sense for it to go here. The flying camel above done by Yuzuru Hanyu is a hint at what's to come. The death drop is notable for how much air the skater gets and how flared out their legs are while they're in the air. Basically it's metal as hell and that's why it has a metal as hell name.

You can see Boitano here is really propelling himself upwards with his arms before he gets airborne, to the point where it looks like he's about to do an Axel jump. That's a key difference between a camel spin and a death drop. A regular flying camel doesn't require any height. 

Layback spin

I mentioned above how iconic this move is. It's also incredibly difficult and most men do not have the flexibility to do it so most likely you'll only see this in the ladies' competition. To do it, stand up. Now lean back as far as you can. Ideally, your upper back would be parallel with the floor. It's harder on dry land-spinning on ice actually helps a lot for this particular position. We're not done yet, bend backwards again. Now lift up one of your legs behind you. This also would ideally be parallel with the floor with your ankle turned outword. Your toes should not be pointing down. The example below is the ideal position, though most skaters don't have this level of flexibility. 

A skater with less flexibility might look like the below, and that difference in position would be reflected in a lower GOE as there is a note in the ISU guidance for GOE ranging from -1 to -3 for "Poor/awkward or unaesthetic positions."

Notably, there are no flying versions of the layback spin, possibly because it would crush all the disks in your spine to do one, so below are some common variations. 

    Catch-foot spin
    Technically catch-foot is a category of spins which includes the Biellman. Basically any spin where you hold your blade with your hand is a catch-foot. In this specific example you can see the skater has taken the layback and just brought that foot up to her face. This is why these kinds of spins are variations on the layback.

    Biellman spin

    Ah the Biellman. It was made popular by Denisse Biellman, a swiss skater, though who exactly invented it I think is murkier (at least from a read through of Wikipedia). If you were the skater in the above catch-foot spin, what you'd do is take the free leg and stretch it overhead until the leg is bent and the foot is essentially right above your hip bone. It requires extreme flexibility and strength.

And as I sort of alluded to above, all Biellmans are catch-foots, but not all catch-foots are Biellmans. So for example, the spin below is NOT a Biellman. 

If you identified the reason-kudos! You've come far young Padawan. If you haven't-it's the position of that free leg. In the figure above the free leg is not high enough to be a Biellman. What's the difference? Well-in terms of points maybe not a lot. Since most spins are combo spins nowadays, a skater can get by without doing a spin in such a difficult position, but as always-it's cool! It adds spice and the audience loves it. 

Sit spin

Ok the last spin we'll talk about is the sit spin. For those following along at home, stand up. Ok now, with your feet close together but not touching (maybe 1-3 inches of space), squat down so your butt is resting on your ankles (if your heels come off the ground a little that's ok, remember-skates have a bit of a heel). Now shift your weight to one foot and stick the other one out in front of you. Oh you fell? Don't worry-you're a normal human. Abnormal humans look like this:

Now Tara (above) did it with what I would call perfect form. But this position requires a lot of flexibility and strength in the hip flexors, which is a super difficult place to build up flexibility, especially when skaters are building up strength in that same spot to rotate quicker in the air for jumps. Generally speaking flexibility and strength do not go hand in hand-just walk up to any ripped gym bro and ask him to scratch his own back-9 times out of 10 they can't do it.

So that means by and large you'll see skaters do sit spins by lifting up their butt a little, like this:

There's lots of sit spin variations with the leg at different angles and positions. For example this one, where Plushenko bends that free leg under him and holds the blade. 

    Flying sit spin

    And last but not least, the flying sit spin. This is generally the ugly stepchild of the spin world. It looks a little funny and were it not for requirements about it in the code, I highly suspect skaters would skip it altogether. And a shame that would be! I like flying sit spins myself. Basically, on entry to the spin, the skater does a little hop. Now get in your sit spin position from before-don't fall this time-and hop on that support leg. Easy peezy. Some skaters may also do a flying sit spin when switching legs in the middle of a spin (switching legs and demonstrating strength and flexibility on both sides is another way to boost difficulty). 

And that's pretty much it for spins! We covered the basics and now you can go forth and identify the main groups of spins and notice particularly textbook positions. It's really an underappreciated aspect to figure skating. 

Honorable mention for spins go to the I-spin (below) and also the Y-spin

If you're interested in watching programs with great spinners-Lucinda Ruh is a fine choice, funnily enough I clicked on this one at random and the announcer begins her program by saying she's maybe the best spinner of all time. She snaps right into the positions, and centers them perfectly, showing great variety and control. 

Alissa Czisny is another great spinner (maybe it's something about their long limbs?) and this is a great routine.