skatingforums

Thank you everyone for book recommendations in the book and video thread (http://skatingforums.com/index.php/topic,586.0.html). I will post some cross-comparison book reviews here from time to time, focusing on freestyle technique. Your opinions will be much appreciated as always!

Books being compared:

Quote from: jjane45 on March 14, 2011, 02:51:13 PM
- Figure Skating Championship Techniques by John Misha Petkevich
- The Complete Book of Figure Skating by Carole Schulman
- Skate Your Personal Best by Sandra Foster and Tracy Prussack
- Figure Skating with Carlo Fassi
- Basic Ice Skating Skills by Robert S. Ogilvie
- Figure Skating School by Peter Morrissey and James Young

These books cover different topics (Fassi book goes over figures extensively, Ogilvie book covers some step-by-step pointers for the beginner dances) and have different highlights (I liked the jumping patterns / setup for jumps from Foster and Prussack).

Here is a QUICK comparison chart of elements covered in each book. If an element is covered in detail (not just mentioned) but I failed to mark it, please let me know so I could fix it, sorry it was done in a quick manner :P I did not list crossovers, 3 turns, basic spins and jumps as all books more or less cover those.

		Petkevich	Schulman	Foster/Prussack	Fassi	Ogilvie	Morrissey/Young
	Stroking	x				x
	Edges	x			x	x
	Body positions	x				x
	Bracket	x	x		x
	Rocker	x	x		x
	Counter	x	x		x
	Choctaw	x	x				x
	Open/closed mohawk		x			x
	Spread Eagle		x				x
	Ina Bauer		x
	Lunge		x
	Shoot-the-Duck		x
	Waltz three					x
	Drop three		x
	Drop mohawk					x
	Pivot		x			x
	Chasse		x			x	x
	Roll		x			x	x
Spins	Crossfoot spin
	Beillmann Spin		x	x
	Combination spin	x		x
	Flying spin	x		x
	Death drop			x
	Butterfly	x			x
	Illusion		x
	Star		x
Jumps	Bunny hop		x
	Mazurka		x
	Ballet jump		x
	Half flip		x
	Half loop		x
	Half lutz		x
	Falling leaf		x
	Walley		x		x
	Reverse double lutz	x
	Split	x	x
	Stag	x	x
	Russian Split	x		x
	Russian Split Flip	x
	Russian Split Lutz	x
	Bourkey	x
	Butterfly jump			x
	Backward Somersault			x
Pairs	Lifts	x	x	x
	Death spirals	x	x	x
Dance						x
Figures	Eight				x	x
	Double 3				x
	Loop				x
	Paragraph				x

I ordered the Ogilvie book. For a beginner like myself, with some bad habits, I found it particularly illuminating. The illustrations are clear, and the explanations make more sense than any other skating book. Unlike some, he actually spends time on details of very basic fundamentals, that other books brush over.

I liked the turns and mohawks in the Ogilvie book - there were a lot of variations.  My first, and favorite, is the "Swing Mohawk."  It was easy to learn, but alas, everyone does what he calls "Spreadeagle Mohawks" now.  (Heel to heel)

Ack! I have the Ogilve book I need to review it (might help my mohawks lol) .... slinking of to the bookshelf... :-[