Getting back into things (Pairs question too)

[Ice.Time]

Hello there everybody I used to skate when I was little, maybe 4-6 years old, but it was rather unenjoyable. My mother had me skating between 4 and 5 hours a week and something about my boots or the strain on my legs gave me the worse growing pains imaginable, in fact I remember very little skating as compared to the times afterward when I was miserable. So naturally, I was little and un-enthused so I quit and my mother let me do so because she realized just how badly my legs did hurt after the sessions. I'm now 15 and want to get back into skating, though I highly doubt that it's even possible for someone as old as me to get too far along. (Aka you have something like a 98% chance of never seeing moi in the olympics or something) Plus I am now standing at around 5'6". Perhaps if I had kept skating when I was younger I would be one of the tiny, miniature women that we see skating all the time, but unfortunately I am not. Now for my questions:

1) I know that for most people start skating at between 4 and 8 years old, and that those are generally the only people able to make it to worlds and Olympics. However, I do want to advance as comefortably yet as quickly as possible, because the idea of competing, even in small competitions, appeals to me. How many sessions per week would you advise for me to start with? I was thinking two to begin with and then work up to three and four.

2) I am well aware that generally pairs skaters are very small and dainty with the women not being taller than 5'3" and not weight more than 110 lb. Is there any chance that someone as tall as I am could get into pairs skating? And if so, how tall would my partner need to be? (I was thinking somewhere between 5'11" and 6'3"). I know that this would be a very far away thing for me to do, but I am curious. Pairs skating is what I grew up watching, and the idea of it gives me a smile.

3)To be a good pairs skater in the near or distant future, what would you say is the maximum weight for a female to be for proper lifts and throws? (For someone tall like myself, not the weight of the general pixie-sized young lady)

[Mathman]

Hi, Ice.time. Welcome to the forum! Thanks for joining us.

I am going to move your post to the Lutz Cormer folder, where the actual skaters on this board congregate (as opposed to us armchair experts, LOL). You will get more responses there.

Mathman

[jp1andonly]

If you really want to skate then you will improve as you go along. Chances are godo that you'll be able to obtain all your singles in a short amount of time (less than a year..kids/teens tend to pick them up faster) and as for the axel and doubles, it might come naturally or you might struggle for a while. Again, it depends.

I would think of skating 3-4 times a week for at least an hour a day. I'd also have a coach give you one 15 min lesson on each of those sessions. Don't start doing things yourself otherwise you'll end up learning bad habits.

As for pairs skating, my guess is that you are too tall. In Canada we did have a pairs team where the girl was quite tall and they did well, but he was also tall. It is quite rare and with the amount of guys in skating, chances are good it won't happen anytime soon.

But...when you get a little older, you'll be able to do adult events and it might be easier to find a guy there as the guys bodies have matured and the level of lifts and throws can be a little lower. As for weight..I have no idea. I would guess you must be quite slender however. Probably on the low end of the weight for your height, if not lower.

Hello there everybody I used to skate when I was little, maybe 4-6 years old, but it was rather unenjoyable. My mother had me skating between 4 and 5 hours a week and something about my boots or the strain on my legs gave me the worse growing pains imaginable, in fact I remember very little skating as compared to the times afterward when I was miserable. So naturally, I was little and un-enthused so I quit and my mother let me do so because she realized just how badly my legs did hurt after the sessions. I'm now 15 and want to get back into skating, though I highly doubt that it's even possible for someone as old as me to get too far along. (Aka you have something like a 98% chance of never seeing moi in the olympics or something) Plus I am now standing at around 5'6". Perhaps if I had kept skating when I was younger I would be one of the tiny, miniature women that we see skating all the time, but unfortunately I am not. Now for my questions:

1) I know that for most people start skating at between 4 and 8 years old, and that those are generally the only people able to make it to worlds and Olympics. However, I do want to advance as comefortably yet as quickly as possible, because the idea of competing, even in small competitions, appeals to me. How many sessions per week would you advise for me to start with? I was thinking two to begin with and then work up to three and four.

2) I am well aware that generally pairs skaters are very small and dainty with the women not being taller than 5'3" and not weight more than 110 lb. Is there any chance that someone as tall as I am could get into pairs skating? And if so, how tall would my partner need to be? (I was thinking somewhere between 5'11" and 6'3"). I know that this would be a very far away thing for me to do, but I am curious. Pairs skating is what I grew up watching, and the idea of it gives me a smile.

3)To be a good pairs skater in the near or distant future, what would you say is the maximum weight for a female to be for proper lifts and throws? (For someone tall like myself, not the weight of the general pixie-sized young lady)

[icy fresh]

That's great that you're getting back to skating. Good luck! To answer your questions as best as I could:

1) I would say skate about 3 or 4 days a week. I'm not sure how long your sessions are, but try to do at least an hour to an hour and a half. Like you said, you can always work your way up! Also, it definitely would be helpful to have a coach. You might want a lesson in moves in the field and one in freestyle, so I would suggest having a 30 minute lesson in moves and another one in freestyle. My mom is a coach and she has a student who skates at most 2 days a week, but she has come a long way in just a couple of months. My mom got her right out of Learn to Skate Freestyle I think. Anyway, she just passed in pre-pre moves and freestyle and she's only been working on them for a few months and she has beautiful spirals. So the sky's the limit!

2) I'm not a pairs skater, but it is possible for you to be a pairs skater! That is as long as you find a male partner whom can lift you and is, as you said, taller than you!

3) I don't think that there's a *maximum* weight for pairs skaters. I think that as long as your partner can lift you fairly easily without breaking his back, then you're fine!

Good luck!

[dlkksk8fan]

Ice.Time-
Hello and welcome to GS! You are never too old to start skating again. I am 45 yrs old and started skating over a year ago. I have got my single jumps back and can do a scratch, sit, camel, layback, spins (of course they all need work )
I am also working on my adult pre-bronze test MIF/Freestyle.

The best thing to do is get a good pair of skates and spend some time at the rink getting back into it. If you decide that you want to continue skating find a good coach that you can work with. As for me, taking lessons has improved my skating.

Plus I am now standing at around 5'6". Perhaps if I had kept skating when I was younger I would be one of the tiny, miniature women that we see skating all the time, but unfortunately I am not.

I wouldn't say your height is unfortunate. Why would you want to be a miniature women? You can still skate at 5'6" tall.

Pair skating might not be the thing for you but perhaps ice dancing might be a better choice if you want to skate with a partner.

Good luck.

[Ice.Time]

Thank you very much for your replies So far I've got two clubs in mind, one is farther away but seems to have a better set up and and a pretty professional website, plus alot of summer skating camps/programs that I would attend if I joined that club. I was basically thinking of taking three lessons a week and then going in for any free ice time I could find. There is a rink within walking distance of me (the "other" skate club) which is mostly used for hockey, but it does have a day each week where theres an hour of free skate for the public.

My mothers close friend has a daughter who has been skating since she was little, so talking to her would help too, as she would probably know all about some of the local clubs.

And thank you for the advice on pair skating, I figure I'll spend the next few years learning the basics up through to the advanced and then decide if I want to be a singles or a pairs skater.

[Mrs Redboots]

Hi, Ice Time, and welcome.

Yes, do get back into skating - it's great exercise, and the best fun ever. And you're never too old - okay, so you probably won't make the Olympics, but then, how many skaters do? You probably wouldn't have done so even if you started when you were 4....

But you can certainly learn to skate really well, become a good club skater, and have enormous fun with it. There is a huge adult skating scene, both people who started skating when they were grown up (I was in my 40s when I started!) and those who started as children, gave it up for a greater or lesser period of time, and then came back to it.

Enjoy!

[Ice.Time]

Thanks ms. Redboots =) I'm going to tlak to my mother about all of this as soon as she gets home today, it's starting to tie me up in knots for some reason. I've decided to go with four times a week with a coach. What would you recomend, group lessons, private lessons, or a mix of both? I'm also looking into the clubs summer program of canskate/learn to skate, but they also have something called XLR8 that doesn't require anything but an interest in figure skating and works at a more advanced pace.

Also, totally different question: The attire for the classes where I'm hoping to go says

"For girls proper skating attire consists of body suit, skating skirt, skating dresses and skating tights. Tight leggings may be worn however they must be tight fitting on the legs, hips, and allow for movement. Baggy track suits, jeans, and shorts are not allowed."

So I'm supposing that this means that pants are frowned upon. I know that in ballet generally they don't wear underwear because their wearing the tights and a leotard- do skaters do the same? Or in the cases of dresses, do they come with the 'bottoms' attached or are those some kind of leotard/underwear thing? Just curious.

[jeujeulovesme]

Hi IceTime!

I'm in Edmonton too! If you're 15, would you like to come to the summer "adult" ice program I've set up? It will run out of the Millwoods Arena because Gateway Skating Club is sponsoring it. You can get a brochure (yellow colored) from United Cycle or ProSkate or I can email it to you.

The program will run three times a week from July 4 to August 10, 6:00 - 7:30 PM usually (I can send you the updated schedule if you're interested). It's open to anyone 15 and up, beginner to gold. Freeskate, dance, skills. An edge class is included each session. I chose to allow all three disciplines because we're adults and are considerate of each other. There are no group classes though (except the edge class) so you'll need to contact one of the coaches to set up lessons. You can come one, two, or all three days a week.

So it's an option for you to consider along with all the regular summer schools. Otherwise, which summer skate school are you considering? I can't do any of the regular ones because I work during the day. But I will pick up an extra day a week from the Stony Plain club, they have an evening summer school.

Cheers,
Jeujeulovesme

[jeujeulovesme]

Also, totally different question: The attire for the classes where I'm hoping to go says

"For girls proper skating attire consists of body suit, skating skirt, skating dresses and skating tights. Tight leggings may be worn however they must be tight fitting on the legs, hips, and allow for movement. Baggy track suits, jeans, and shorts are not allowed."

So I'm supposing that this means that pants are frowned upon. I know that in ballet generally they don't wear underwear because their wearing the tights and a leotard- do skaters do the same? Or in the cases of dresses, do they come with the 'bottoms' attached or are those some kind of leotard/underwear thing? Just curious.

Hi again,

Sorry, I missed this. Which club did you get this from? I started skating about three summers ago in Adult Canskate in stretchy pants and a sweater. When I switched into private lessons after the first summer, I opted for the thicker skating tights, a practice skirt (not dress) -- skating skirts come with the panty part attached, and a t-shirt with a removable sweater on top. When I started testing and competing a year later, I got a fairly generic skating dress just for those occasions so it would go with most programs and dances. This year I switched to practicing in the tights, a pair of shorts (exercise shorts, not the skintight biker shorts), and still a t-shirt and sweater. No one has ever said I can't wear these clothes. In fact, many skaters wear stretch pants or shorts for practice.

Why am I wearing shorts and t-shirts instead of skating dresses? Because I have to pay for all my skating expenses and it's expensive! Regular shorts and t-shirts are much cheaper. Also, I still look acceptable if I walk out of the rink in my shorts and tights over to Booster Juice, but if I don't change out of my skating skirt/dress before heading to Superstore.....

Oh, and whether you wear underwear underneath is up to you. Most of the little kids do, I think a lot of the older ones don't. Just like in ballet.

You're never too old to (re)start anything! You're only 15! You might not make it to the Olympics, but exactly how many out of the thousands and thousands of skaters who start as tiny tykes do? Trust me, if you stick with it, if you're motivated by your own passion, you will go very far. "Ask, and ye shall get!"

Jeujeulovesme

[Ice.Time]

Thanks very much jeu! I was considering going to the Extreme Edge Skating Clubs program, since I live in castledowns. I also have the option of going to the castledowns arena, but there isn't much online information or an actual site, and I know that during the summer a great deal of hockey is played, so I'm not sure about ice times. And actually, one of the ladies working there responded to an email, saying that something along the lines of yoga pants are also acceptable. She also talked about what kind of program would be best for me to participate in. I'm going to head over the the casteldowns rink next week during free ice time and make the final decision on which rink I'd rather go to, seeing as how castledowns would be *much* more convenient for me to get to on my own, rather than spending 30-60 minutes on a bus two-four times a week

As for the Millwoods program, that's a bit too far for me to head off to, I don't think my mother could stand the driving >.< but thank you very much!

[jeujeulovesme]

Hi Ice Time,

You're in Castledowns? Me too! What are the odds, hey I don't go to the Fliteway Club in Castledowns because their times don't fit my schedule. But I did start out in their Canskate program before switching to my current club.

Right now all the clubs are in between Spring and Summer Schools. I'm suffering from skating withdrawal... I gave in today and went to the free public skate at Castledowns. It was actually quiet enough today to practice some elements for once. To my chagrin I'm already wobbly after just one week of not skating -- sigh, the bane of adult skaters :sheesh: I'm planning to go to the free session at Clareview this Friday...

I'm going to the Ice Palace's Bootbreakers Camp in June before starting up summer skating in July. I thought about the Extreme Edge camp but the Ice Palace one is longer and limited to skaters with at least the preliminary test.

Jeujeulovesme