Outside brackets

Forward and backward outside brackets, four to six of them, on a figure of eight or a circle.

BIS Skills 7exercise 5In the syllabus both before and after 01/10/2026

Not checked yet. The requirements on this page are a first draft by a non-expert, and no coach has seen them yet. Read them as a starting point and check them with a coach. Corrections are very welcome.

The same exercise as Skills 5’s inside brackets with the edge swapped, and the swap is worth more than it looks. An outside edge carries more speed and rotates more willingly. A bracket has to turn against the lobe, so the extra momentum is momentum in the wrong direction.

The backward outside bracket is the hardest single turn in the first seven tests. The entry is a crossover, the edge behind the skater gives the least to check against, it turns against everything the lobe is doing, and it changes edge on the way through. There is nowhere in it to hide a correction.

The shape is left open, figure of eight or circular, and the choice says something about the skater. A figure of eight closes and therefore keeps a record of whether the lobes matched; a circular pattern is more forgiving and looks better skated fast. Four to six brackets either way, on both feet, with equal quality named in the objectives as the thing being looked for.

Elements

Left forward outside bracketLFO to LBI: half a turn against the circle, changing edge and staying on the same lobe.
Right forward outside bracketRFO to RBI: half a turn against the circle, changing edge and staying on the same lobe.
Right backward outside bracketRBO to RFI: half a turn against the circle, changing edge and staying on the same lobe.
Left backward outside bracketLBO to LFI: half a turn against the circle, changing edge and staying on the same lobe.
Left forward outside crossoverLFO to RFI: the free foot crosses in front of the skating foot onto the same lobe, still travelling forwards.
Right forward outside crossoverRFO to LFI: the free foot crosses in front of the skating foot onto the same lobe, still travelling forwards.
Right backward outside crossoverRBO to LBI: the free foot crosses in front of the skating foot onto the same lobe, still travelling backwards.
Left backward outside crossoverLBO to RBI: the free foot crosses in front of the skating foot onto the same lobe, still travelling backwards.

This page lists which elements the exercise calls for and what it is working on. It does not reproduce British Ice Skating's sequence, pattern or wording. For the exercise as published, go to their own document.