basket tips

[ballplayer12]

Does anyone have any advice on arching during the descent on basket tosses? I think it makes the tosses look a lot better, but I am having trouble on piking after I arch. Any ideas?

[eaglefan8]

If you're doing straight ride baskets make sure not to throw your head back when you arch your body. This makes you ride backwards. You're wanting to ride straight up. Keeping your chin to your neck makes this happen easier. Also, as soon as you get to the peak of the basket(when you feel that you're starting to fall), hit whatever you're hitting, be it a kick, t-touch, or pike. Once you've hit your motion in the air, go back to the riding position as you come down until you're almost in your bases' hands. Then, pull your legs up into a basket position.

[ballplayer12]

Thanks! Another question: How can I make my kick basket toss look more like a kick and less like a hurdler? I keep wanting to bend my lower leg instead of keeping both of them straight. Does anyone have anything that would help?

[Flipn4OHS]

When I do baskets...which I do them quite a bit...i ride to the top hit my trick then throw my head back and stretch my body out to make for a harder arch. You have to be really aggressive about it and stay real tight. Then once you feel your bases about to catch you kinda just relax your body and fall into a pike position. As for making that back leg straight on the kick-arch...just stay really tight and point both your toes. It is really hard to make the back leg perfectly striaght but that should help.

[ballplayer12]

Thanks Flipn. You sound experienced. Do you know any other tips for better baskets? More height? Loading techniques? Different tricks besides kicks and toe touches?

[Flipn4OHS]

Well the only thing the flyer can really do to make the basket higher is to load in correctly and keep a nice hollow body position on the ride. As for loading in I always try to remember the following...stand on your toes not your heels, keep your weight in your arms until the toss, and look down your front spots back...continue to look down their back throughout the toss. This helps keep that hollow body position. Other tricks...you can try pike-arches, half up toe thouches, half up birds...etc.

[eaglefan8]

It's illegal at high school level to throw your head back in a basket toss. Your chin should be almost touching your chest. You should try scissors, ball. They're tough to execute and require a lot of leg strength from the flyer but they are beautiful when they're done correctly. We recently started doing them wiht my basket group. The other base and I work really well together so it wasn't that difficult for us. Our flyer is also very experienced in baskets.

[ballplayer12]

What exactly is a scissors basket toss?

[eaglefan8]

It's like a kick but you switch your legs in the air. You ride up to the top, kick one leg up and then bring it down as you kick the other up...it looks awesome.

[Flipn4OHS]

It is not illegal at all competitions to throw your head back in a basket. Maybe at a couple competitions, but I know for sure that it is not illegal at any of the competitions my squad has competed at this year, because we throw our heads back in our baskets. We have not been disqualified or had points taken off at any competition. This includes the TSSAA State Championship.

Edited February 6, 2004 by Flipn4OHS

[eaglefan8]

She didn't specify when asking about basket tosses where she would be doing them. I said at high school level, and that is correct. You cannot perform them at games. I don't know about competitions but I would check before you do them there. Just depends on whether or not you want to take the chance.

[Flipn4OHS]

I realize she did not specify, but I don't think anyone is really looking that closely. lol. At games, for instance, most people don't even pay attention to the cheerleaders unless of course they do something that is noticibly unsafe or wrong. But eagle is correct, you might wanna check on that. That is just the way I was always taught to do baskets for both my high school and allstar team and what has worked best for me.