Minimum Air Times
Last week, during a public session, one of my skating friends shared that she was working on the axel during her Learn to Skate group class. Out of curiosity, I asked her what types of exercises she has been trying in order to prepare for the jump. She showed me a few, and then I asked her to do a waltz jump for me.
When I watched her jump, I noticed that she barely got any air time on her waltz jump, and I knew that any attempts at an axel would surely result in a fall (or worse, injury). She was taking off her bottom toe pick and hardly getting off the ice. After I videoed a waltz jump attempt, I measured her air time at 0.10 seconds. For a successful axel, one needs at least 0.30 seconds in the air, so she was definitely below the minimum air time needed.
I believe I’ve shared this before, but it’s worth repeating. Please take a look at this article by Trevor Laak that lays out the minimum air time required for successful jumps. As a general rule of thumb, my coach likes to say that you need about 0.40 seconds of air time for a successful double jump (minus the double axel, which requires more), 0.50 for triples, and 0.60 for quads. Trevor’s chart shows the bare minimum that needed. Fun fact: My coach measure Ilia Malinin’s quad axel at over 0.80 seconds!
I told my friend that she should work on increasing her air time on the waltz jump before attempting an axel. I showed her how to lead with her right hip and to jump off her top toe pick.
Hope the chart I linked above is helpful for some of you!