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The Scooter drill is an excellent way to improve the push-off, or kick portion of the diagonal ski stride (see PE Update artice, “Scooter Drills Teach Pushoff & Glide Skills.”).
It’s also an excellent drill for teaching beginners how to balance on their skis.
How to Perform
To perform the drill, have your students remove one ski–this leg becomes the push-off leg. Without using poles, they push off with this foot while gliding as far as possible with the other. They’ll quickly learn that they can maximize their glide by shifting their weight onto the glide ski, but that balancing on that ski can be tricky.
They should attempt to coordinate their arms — using them as if they held poles. For example, when the glide leg moves forward, the opposite arm drives ahead and holds its forward position for the duration of the glide.
Variations
Begin on a slight uphill. This will make it easier to balance by reducing the distance of the glide and the amount of time students must maintain their balance.
As your students improve their balance abilities, add progression to the drill by performing it on a slight downhill. This will increase the duration of the glide.
You can also increase the difficulty of the drill by hopping on the kick-off leg before pushing off.
Video
Below is a link to a video illustrating the Scooter drill from Keith Nicol. Go to 56 seconds for the Scooter Drill segment.
https://youtu.be/brGZlZkCwyk?si=YbQaQDRribPqnLUR
References:
1. Keith Nicol, Classic Ski Tips. http://www2.swgc.mun.ca/~knicol/nordic%20classic.htm
2. Dick Moss, “Scooters Teaches Pushoff and Glide Skills,” PE Update.com?//www.physicaleducationupdate.com/members/programs/fileinfo.cfm?id=158
© 2022, Physical Education Update, www.peUpdate.com
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