Are you ready for some offense? Today you're going to learn your first offensive shot, the Cross-Straight. This is one of the easiest shots to execute, especially with the drift that I just taught you in the last lesson. This is the first step in building your offensive arsenal. There are many steps to go, but the Cross-Straight is one of the most consistant goal-scorers in Air Hockey, and one of my personal favorites. To execute the cross-straight, you hit the puck when it's near the centerline and aim straight towards the side of your opponent's goal, as in Figure 4. The main motion your arm has to take is in the elbow. Before the shot, bring your forearm back like you're about to hit a backhand in tennis. When you're ready to hit the puck, you'll sweep your arm across so that the mallet hits the back half of the puck. If you hit too much of the puck, the puck will probably hit the side rail before it gets to the goal (that's a shot we'll learn later). Here's the exercise for you to practice: Get control of the puck near your goal, and execute the simple drift that we learned in Lesson 3. When the puck gets close to the centerline, shoot a Cross-Straight. Don't worry about hitting it hard, just get familiar with the technique. Keep practicing this combination until you feel comfortable with it and you are able to score most of the time. As you become more consistant, try putting some extra power in your shot, and try aiming the shot as close to the corner of the goal as possible. The further the shot is from the center of the goal, the less likely your opponent will be able to block it.
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