New Skater!!!! Am I good???

I am 12 and turning 13 in a few months. I started ice skating in the beginning of April and have been doing it since. Usually, I would skate 1-2 times a week depending on my mom. In 2 1/2 months, I was able to learn different things like the 2-foot spin, waltz jump, crossovers, one-foot spin (barely) without my group lessons(since I am in Pre-Alpha). I think I have made rapid growth as a skater and I want to start competing. Do you think I can do it? My mom is thinking about getting me private lessons but she also is in a budget and she only wants this to be a hobby. I want to pursue this a little bit more. Should I start trying to get a private coach to teach me and for me to compete?

P.S.
My teacher let me skipped all the way to Beta. I also can do other things and i wanted to see if I have natural ability or something like that.

I can't tell if your good without seeing the quality of those elements you've named. Did you learn those from a coach? Or from YouTube? I honestly don't recommend new skaters teaching themselves it will grow into a bad habit and takes even longer for a coach to fix it for you.
Did you start from scratch? Not knowing how to stand on ice at all?
For right now, take a few private lessons (if you are just starting you don't have to go for an old coach I think younger coaches are fine for basic techniques and it can help your mom saves a few bucks I've seen young coaches ask for 35$ for half an hour)
I don't know how serious you want but tbh 13 is a little too late too get in the field and you will feel some sort of discomfort and pitiful for yourself because 5~8 years old kid are in your level. ( don't get too discouraged tho I've been through that before)
I think you need a few lessons like I mentioned above to figure out how you want to compete. Do you want to go all the way to senior level and compete at nationals?
Since you're just starting you probably are enjoying it a lot and you just find it fun but when you get too deep into it you will find that it is equally physically and mentally challenging. If you mental is not strong enough it's really hard to keep this up.
If you've decided what your goal is then you need to talk to your mom because figure skating is, indeed VERY EXPENSIVE. You need to pay for freestyle sessions (10~12$ per 45 mins or an hour), lessons with coach (say 35$ for now and you take like 2 lessons per week is 70$, not mentioning that you will need a more experienced coach later on that will cost as much as 70$ per half an hour), skates and blades (~300$ for where you're at to I'd say freestyle 4/5, then expect 500~600 or even more than 700$ when you start landing doubles, triples and flying jumps , double that because you will need new skates almost every year), competition fees, test fees, apparel (dresses are very expensive expect more than $100), traveling etc.

babsseed341 said:

and i wanted to see if I have natural ability or something like that.

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Johnny Weir started at twelve. He landed an Axel in his second week. That's natural ability.

I started at ten years older than you. In two and a half months I was doing waltz jumps and one-foot spins. I am not naturally talented, I just did what I was told.

babsseed341 said:

I think I have made rapid growth as a skater and I want to start competing. Do you think I can do it? My mom is thinking about getting me private lessons but she also is in a budget and she only wants this to be a hobby. I want to pursue this a little bit more. Should I start trying to get a private coach to teach me and for me to compete?

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If by "competing" you mean you want to be one of those skaters you see on TV? No, that's not going to happen for you, especially if your mother can't afford regular private lessons.

If by competing you mean local comps and maybe Adult one day, then absolutely you can.


Also, skipping levels is not good, it's bad. You really shouldn't skip them.

if your mom is on a budget I would not start private lessons until you've finished all the levels on learn to skate. They are great to supplement the group classes if you can afford them, but I feel at the introductory levels it's mostly just supervised practice as the skater gets used to making corrections.

Thank you and my coach has let me taken the Alpha test and had said I past. My mom also had said that I am able to get a half an hour per week or 2 weeks.

Thank you, I was self taught for most of the things but not things like cross over. I use to go ice skating ever once in a while but when I started lessons I had to learn how to glide. I think my overall goal is to go to Regionals or Nationals if that is possible. Thank you, and my parents do know how expensive it is and are willing to do it, but they do not know my goal yet.

You should do all the levels. Be patient.

My coach for Pre Alpha has let me take the Alpha test and she had said I past. When we were in Pre Alpha we had a substitute coach that taught us things in Alpha.

babsseed341 said:

Thank you, I was self taught for most of the things but not things like cross over. I use to go ice skating ever once in a while but when I started lessons I had to learn how to glide. I think my overall goal is to go to Regionals or Nationals if that is possible. Thank you, and my parents do know how expensive it is and are willing to do it, but they do not know my goal yet.

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Didn't your original post say your parents are on a budget? The expense of lessons is one thing. The expense of competing is a whole different level. You need to pay for choreography, entry fees, travel (for you, your parents and your coach), extra lessons and ice time if necessary. It's definitely something to discuss with your parents, lest you get to the stage where you're ready to compete and they realize they can't afford any of it.

However, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Make sure to learn the basics diligently now.

cl2 said:

Didn't your original post say your parents are on a budget? The expense of lessons is one thing. The expense of competing is a whole different level. You need to pay for choreography, entry fees, travel (for you, your parents and your coach), extra lessons and ice time if necessary. It's definitely something to discuss with your parents, lest you get to the stage where you're ready to compete and they realize they can't afford any of it.

However, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Make sure to learn the basics diligently now.

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^^^^ Agree with all of this. :agree:

babsseed341 said:

Thank you, I was self taught for most of the things but not things like cross over. I use to go ice skating ever once in a while but when I started lessons I had to learn how to glide. I think my overall goal is to go to Regionals or Nationals if that is possible. Thank you, and my parents do know how expensive it is and are willing to do it, but they do not know my goal yet.

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Try to enjoy the process and see where it leads. To skate at the competitions we talk about on this forum you may find it a bit more challenging. Remember Michelle Kwan wa at your age was doing all the triples but the axel. i am no sure if you skate whole programs yet but that is challenging. Skating in its purest form was meant to be fun. So enjoy.

I'm going to be 100% honest, I think you are getting ahead of yourself. I think you're most likely to end up happy and feel good about skating if you take a step back and just try to enjoy the process and see where it leads.

It's great you're enjoying skating but given your age, your progress so far, and your parents financial situation, it is bluntly not realistic to think you'll be able to go to Nationals ever, or even honestly to Sectionals. At your age virtually all skaters who will ever go to Nationals are already competing as Novices and some may be competing at least sometimes as Juniors; many if not all of them have at least some triple jumps. You are way way behind and honestly, I don't think there's any chance of you being able to catch up. Literally the only skater I know of who started as late as you and had any real success in this way was Johnny Wier and as karne noted above he was really unnaturally talented. There's currently no one comparable out there.

I'm not trying to be harsh but I think it's important for you to understand what is and isn't realistic. For now I'd continue group lessons and focus on advancing at a reasonable pace through the levels. Long term realistic goals might be local and adult competitions, all your single jumps including axel, and if you have the right body type and ability maaaaaybe a few doubles.

Sorry because I know this isn't what you want to hear.

I believe Johnny Weir also had some years of gymnastics or something prior to skating, so he was already athletic as well.

Anyone can sign up for Regionals as long as they have passed the prerequesite tests for their proposed level.

Most Regions hold 2 - non-qualifying and qualifying. Non-qualifying (all levels up to pre-juvenile) tends to be bigger than a normal summer competition but for all practical purposes, it is like any other competition. Qualifying Regionals (juvenile levels and higher) is what most people mean when they say Regionals. Since you will be 14 next year (age cut off was 14 and is being lowered to 13 for 18-19), you will no longer make the Juvenile age cut off so you would need to enter as an Intermediate.

That means you will need to have passed all your Moves in the Field tests and Free Skate tests up to Intermediate. I believe your free skate "test" intermediate program would need to include at least a double Salchow and double toe loop and 2 spins - one must have flying entry and the other must include 1 change foot and 1 change of position.

The age cut off for Intermediates is 18 so that gives you a couple of years to reach your goal. On yeah, if you do skate at Intermediate with just those double jumps listed above, expect to get last place. Most skaters at level will have all their double jumps in combination. A good handful will also have a double axel, and the very top will have a couple of triples.

Sorry to sound harsh but that reality. Is it doable? Probably not for the majority of people.

My recommendation -- continue to sign up for group lessons and enjoy ice skating. If you rink offers summer camps, ask what the requirements are to be a camp counselor (if you like kids). Ay guess is being a camp councelor at your rink may be a super realistic goal.

I started skating just as I turned 12. I started private lessons when I was still in Basic Skills because I was very clear that I wanted to be serious about it. I had danced (mostly ballet) since I was 5, so that was a good foundation. By the time I graduated from high school, I was competing intermediate and had landed all my doubles apart from Axel. I could do double lutz-double toe. I struggled with consistency in competition, but was pretty strong artistically and skated well enough to medal at non-qualifying competitions and get nice comments on jump quality in my tests. On my first 2-3 years of skating, I covered a lot of ground, but I hit a bit of a wall with the higher MIF tests and I think it's safe to say the late start had a bit to do with this, along with the fact that I picked up jumps and spins fairly easily and was musical and expressive, so some of the less-than-stellar skating skills squeaked past. That said, by the time I peaked, my skating didn't look markedly different than my age peers who had started younger and I even did a freestyle team event with a group of people who started at more "normal" ages. I skated on average 4 days week for 90 mins each and had 45-75 minutes of privates. I did about 4-5 competitions and 3-4 shows per year. When I went to university, I kept training and taught learn to skate at a good rink for the first year and then got back into theatrical dance. If I skate now, I can still land Axels and - if I keep it up for a few days - double salchows.

In retrospect, I wish I had paid a bit more attention to the non-jump/spin elements and started working with a dance coach earlier, as the MIF issue prevented me from progressing in freestyle, as a result of which my FS test record doesn't correspond to what I was able to do. So I guess the take away is to pay attention to basics, work hard - including off ice, have fun, set goals in the short term and then continually reevaluate as you see how it's going. And get a good coach - you don't have time to have problematic technique!

Thank you for the suggestions and everything.

People are telling you what you can't do, which is depressing, but realistic and true. I will tell you what you probably would be able to do. If you practice at least 4 days a week and take at least one private lesson a week, you will probably get good enough in 2 or 3 years to be on a synchro team with other skaters, and good enough by adulthood that you might be able to teach group learn-to-skate lessons as a side job to make money to pay for your own skating. There are competitions for all levels of skating, even for beginners, so do not be discouraged from competing just because it isn't sectionals or nationals or on television! They are non-qualifying, meaning that winning them will not give you a ranking on the competition circuit, but that is ok. Most rinks have annual non-competition skating shows in which you will be able to participate (our rink puts the learn-to-skate kids in group numbers, and the freestyle kids can also do solo programs). Given that your references are to Greek letters, I am going to assume that you are at a rink with an ISI program. If that is the case, you will be able to compete even at your current level in ISI competitions at whichever rinks are hosting them, even out of state, and ISI membership and competition fees are much less expensive than USFS. I didn't start until I was 12, and skated where everything locally was ISI until I was in high school. I was teaching group and low-level private lessons in my mid 20's and ran the lesson program at an outdoor rink for a couple of winters. I didn't skate for a couple decades, so I lost all my skills, but now that I am skating again, I am a teaching assistant for special needs skaters. I am also an ice rink guard. One way you can help pay for your skating, is that when you are old enough you can get a job part time at the ice rink, or volunteer, to get free ice time and money to pay for lessons (I got a part time rink job, because my full time job doesn't pay enough to afford skating in my budget).

Hey so I was thinking about ice dancing. Do you think I can compete for ice dancing instead? My mom said I can get one private lesson a week.

babsseed341 said:

Hey so I was thinking about ice dancing. Do you think I can compete for ice dancing instead? My mom said I can get one private lesson a week.

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Ice dance is even harder. So, no. Sorry.

One private lesson a week plus several hours (more than 1 or 2) of practice on your own each week should allow you to get single jumps (probably not including single axel) and pass the first one or two levels of standard tests within the USFS structure. It might take a couple years to get to that point.

There are competitions at those levels, if you like the idea of competing.

If, by that point, you're able to find a way to afford maybe double the lesson and practice time, axels and more advanced moves in the field tests and maybe at least beginning double jumps might be possible.

It's impossible to predict for sure -- everybody has different strong points and weak points in their skating, and it's impossible to know what yours will be as you advance.

Being a recreational competitor at nonqualifying levels, or in the Test Track competition stream, or synchronized skating, or artistic skating (showcase) if that interests you, might be a realistic goal for you.

But getting to qualifying levels (intermediate, since you'll be too old for juvenile) after starting late and with limited lesson an practice time, is not in the cards.

Most of the skaters you'll see at practice sessions will probably be in a similar boat. The ones who are serious about competing will skate more often, so you'll see them on the ice more often, but that doesn't mean there are more of them.

See if you can make friends with other skaters who test and compete at a recreational level. That could give you a better sense of what options are available to you in your area.