Customer Reviews

Kids' Book of Figure Skating

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I got this book for my daughter and myself. We are both beginner skaters, my daughter has just turned 7. I found this book to be extremely helpful for the beginner. I found some very good advise on warm up exercises as well as what to look for in skates and correct body positions on skates. It is very easy to read and understand, although I have done the reading. I am sure we will both benefit from the information. There is also information for the intermediate level and advance level skater which I am sure we will benefit from once we get to that level. I highly reccommend this book.

This book is fantastic for KIDS, but as a skating PARENT, I preferred FS for Dummies.

This book has its good qualities and its confusing qualities. When I first read it, I loved it. It presented figure skating in a clear, easy to understand way--or so I thought. As I kept reading, I started getting confused.

First, the good stuff. It tells a little about the history of ice rinks and the Zamboni, and how rinks dealt with cleaning the ice before the Zamboni was invented, which I found interesting. It has a good section on choosing skates that fit, and how to lace your skates properly. It's the only skating book I've found that goes into warming up before you skate, so in that regard, it's invaluable, although some illustrations of these stretches would have been even nicer.

Now, the not-so-good stuff. The way it teaches you to get up off the ice after a fall is NOT the right way. It has you push up with your hands on the ice, which puts you at risk of having your fingers skated over by other skaters. It also teaches crossovers and swing rolls as beginning moves, right after you've learned the snowplow stop. I've been in classes for almost four months now, learned the snowplow stop in week two, and I still haven't learned crossovers or swing rolls.

Another error is the numbers it gives for having your blades sharpened. According to the book, beginners should start with 1/2" radius and more advanced skaters should use 3/8". Therefore the more advanced you are, the shallower you want your radius. According to the professional who sharpens my skates, the opposite is true: the more advanced you are, the deeper you want your radius. Therefore, beginners should start with 3/4", and only very advanced skaters should use a radius of 1/2".

This book is also confusing with what it considers beginner, intermediate, and advanced. If you only skate occasionally, it has you learning techniques that are for advanced students. If you are committed to skating once a week, this book considers you an intermediate skater and teaches you even more advanced techniques, things like spins and jumps!

Overall, I give this book three stars. I'd recommend it for its advice on choosing skates, lacing skates, and its warm-up exercises. If you happen to be learning any of the techniques it teaches, you can use its advice on those moves to supplement your lessons. But don't try to teach yourself the skating moves it says are for your level, because it's very confused about what constitutes a beginner versus an intermediate or advanced skater. And definitely don't listen to its advice on sharpening your blades, because you'll end up with a radius that's too advanced for your skill level!

I've never found books to be too terribly useful until I came across this one. I work at an ice rink in my local town where I teach basic figure skating and coach hockey. My boss had a copy of this book and I started to look through it just for tips. I found so many things that I had wanted to learn - the mohawk, three-turn, and waltz jump - as well as things I hadn't thought of. If you want to advance your skating skills, no matter what your goal, this is the book for you. There is everything from stretches and balanced diets, turns, skating techniques, and even pairs skating. It's a wonderful learning tool for all ages (definitely not just kids!!)

Every skating parent should buy this book - even before you buy skates. You will refer to it again and again, as will the developing skater of any age. Rikki Samuels is a fountain of useful information, and she has written it down to make a book we have needed for a long time. There is helpful advice for every sapect of skating, from how to lace your boots to how to choose a coach and beyond. I have seen my skating friends young and old devouring it like a rich (organic!) chocolate cake. :)

This book was not quite what I expected. My daughter is still a beginning skater (Freestyle 1), yet after paging through it, I found 3/4 of the book to be irrelevant to her level. The small portion of the book that would be helpful to her begins on page 161. I would only recommend this book for parents/children who are thinking about beginning skating, or have just begun to take group lessons.