Beginner roller skating
The Stride Is Three Parts: Push, Glide, Set Down
ICP-certified coach Asha Kirkby takes the inline stride apart into three components, each with its own drill: a powerful push out to the side, a glide on a centre or outside edge, and a set-down that does not land in a V. A session on the stride is a session on one move, and the drills are simply its three parts, taken one at a time and then put back together.
The stride is the move every inline skater does most and studies least. A certified coach takes it apart into three components, and each one gets its own drill.
One: the push, powerful and out to the side. Not backwards, not down: sideways, so that the whole leg drives the skate and the wheels have something to push against.
Two: the glide, on a centre or outside edge. The skate you are rolling on stays upright or tips slightly out, never in. Everything this site has said about edges lives in this second component.
Three: the set-down, which does not land in a V. The returning skate comes down pointing where you are going, not splayed out, so the next push starts from a straight roll instead of a wedge.
A session on the stride is a session on one move. The drills are simply its three parts, taken one at a time and then put back together, which is exactly what the one-move rule asks for.
Technique from Asha Kirkby of Skatefresh, an instructor certified by the Inline Certification Program. She teaches inline skating, and that is the discipline this page is about.
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