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Trampoline Drills: Building Air Sense for Dismounts & Landings

by Kelly Crumley, Buffalo Grove Gymnastics Center in Buffalo Grove, Illinois

The following drills will not only enhance your gymnast's ability to perform multiple flipping and twisting dismounts, but will also help your gymnasts stick them.

Forward and Backward Salto Airsense Drills

Simple skills such as back and front saltos can be used to develop this ability. The process of anticipating the landing and placing the feet beneath the center of mass allows the gymnast to stick his landing. Doing a series of back saltos requires the gymnast to anticipate and place his feet beneath his center of mass. He needs to do this in order to successfully continue the sequence. The ability to complete the sequence in the center and with control indicates that the gymnast has the ability to stick the landing. Any feet sequences will enhance this visual cue ability. Here are a few that can be used.

SIMPLE SEQUENCES	VARIATIONS
3 front tucks	1. Change tuck to pike and layout
3 back tucks	2. Change from 3 saltos to 5
back, front, back	3. Change combinations (create and challenge) back, back, front, front

After the gymnast has demonstrated his ability with the above drills, he may be introduced to more challenging sequences and games. These drills need to be supplemented with standing backs and punch fronts on floor for sticking as well.

ADD-ON—Using only back and front saltos, this drill is practicing the anticipation of the landing and placing the feet directly under the body. This increases the ability to stick as well as gives the gymnast some confidence in dismounting.

FRONT AND BACK PYRAMID—Starting with either a back or front salto, the gymnast alternates forward with backward flipping by adding one additional front or back each time they switch from forward or backward flipping. The sequence would be as follows: 1 back, 2 fronts, 3 backs, 4 fronts, and 5 backs or the reverse. This can be done up to 5 and back down to 1.

IN THE BOX—Draw a box (2 feet x 2 feet) in the center of the trampoline bed using chalk or tape. Gymnasts play for points. One point is given for each back or front out of a sequence of five that lands in the box. This drill teaches the gymnast to adjust his position back to the center in order to gain points. More advanced gymnasts can simply use the cross marks and land in the center for points.

Forward and Backward Twisting Air Sense Drills

INTERMEDIATE SEQUENCES
Brani
Back, Brani, back
Brani, back, Brani
3 Branis
Full
Back, full, back
Full, back, full
3 fulls
Back, Brani, full
Back, full, Brani

VARIATIONS
1. Change combinations (create and challenge)
2. Change from 3 skills to 5

ADD-ON—Using backs, fulls, and Branis. This drill helps the anticipation of the landing using very basic twisting skills. This will increase the ability to stick, as well as give the gymnast some confidence in performing twisting dismounts.

To accommodate different ability levels, placing a straight bounce or single salto between twisting skills is sometimes easier until the performer is ready.

Dismount Building Blocks

Although some of these skills are very advanced, it's important to develop these skills on the trampoline to be used in later development. In the case of floor exercise, it is conceivable for a gymnast to do such skills as whip to back with 2½ twist, punch Rudy or Randy. I would recommend that a large percentage of these twisting skills be learned by age 12-13.

Multiple Flipping and Twisting Dismounts

The term WITHIN can describe twisting that occurs within the middle flip of a triple salto. In the case of a Brani Within Triffus, the performer does three flips. In his first flip he does a forward flip, in the second flip he does a ½ twist (or Brani), or, and in the third flip he does a back. A good way to learn the visual cues for this skill in the air is to perform the component parts in sequence. For example: front, Brani, back.

Developing The Double Twisting, Double Back

Before this can be done the double back must first be developed. These are a few drills that will help develop the double back. When developing the double back an open tuck position should be used with the drills listed. This position, along with the pike and layout, are important developmental stages. Equally important is the development of the double front, for awareness and learning forward Fliffus work.

DOUBLE BACK	DOUBLE FRONT
Stomach drop, back drop, stomach drop, back drop	Stomach drop, back drop, stomach drop, back drop
Back pull over	Ball out
Stomach drop, back drop, back pull over	Stomach drop, back drop, ball out
Back salto	Front salto
Back pull over to back drop, back pull over	Front ¾ to back drop and ball out
Back to back drop	Front 1¼ to stomach drop
Back to back drop, back pull over	Front 1¾ to back drop
Double back	Double front
Open tuck double back	Open tuck/pike double front
Transition Phase (between backward saltos)	Transition Phase (between forward saltos)
Stomach drop, back drop	Back drop, stomach drop
Stomach drop, reverse cradle to stomach drop	Back drop, ball out to feet
Back ¾ to stomach, reverse cradle to duck under	Front ¾ to back drop, ball out ½ twist to feet
Full In Timer	Backward 1¼ with 1/1 twist to Backward 1¼ with 1/1 twist to back drop back drop, pull over
Full Out Timer	Backward 1¼ with, ½ twist to Backward 1¾ with, ½ stomach drop twist to back drop (duck under)
Full-In,	Backward 1¼ with, 1½ twist Backward 1¾ with, 1½ Full-Out Timer to stomach drop twist to back drop (duck under)

This article appears in the July 1998 issue of Technique, Vol. 18, No. 7.