Toothsome / Gruesome Lessons & Practices 12-29 to 1-4

Yep, we know a new year is rolling on in, but that shouldn't stop you from letting us know whether your lessons and practices are wonderful (toothsome) or not-so-hot (gruesome).

And have fun out there!

YOU CAN SEE ALL MY TOOFIES: Well, for all my "whining" about how the a.m. is not my fave time of day, I WILL say that my competitive skating goals are just the trick to get me out of my toasty bed in the morning. I'm so excited about the progress I'm making (and still need to make!), that I hardly hesitate at all when the alarm goes off. And once I'm out on the rink, well just try to get me off! Today I skated for 2 hours because I was just so joyous about working on my double jumps.

Today was my lesson and my coach decided we were going to start revamping my program to prepare it for competing in adult gold. Eaka freaka, the woman has gone insane! Everywhere she can, she is ramping up the difficulty level until (right now) I feel like this is Michelle Kwan's program. Instead of a camel, we're doing a flying camel/back sit spin. Instead of a lutz jump, it's a lutz/loop combo. Instead of the axel, it's a double salchow. Instead of the salchow, it's an axel/toe loop. Instead of the sit spin, it's a camel/sit/back sit. We're throwing a double toe loop in there somewhere. And so on.

The cool part is she's also ramping up the connecting steps and footwork, so my Tigger-ness will really be challenged. As will my apoplectic arm movements.

Again, I'm not really "whining" because I'm so excited about this that I could burst. It's scary to think that I will be competing in mid-March and that all of this has to be mastered by then. But then, she wouldn't be giving it to me if she didn't think I could do it. So it's great to have her confidence.

One of the greatest things about skating is that working HARD is so much fun (possible personal exception with forward inside 3 turns)!

TOOTHSOME: I've been taking as many private lessons as I can over the holidays when there's more ice time and work is a little more flexible. Ice is crowded, but great progress. The list of new things I'm working on is wildly impressive to me- salchows, toe loops, sit spins- so far mostly just getting the coordination and going through the motions (would not be recognizable moves yet to any of my friends who watch skating on TV- but bit by bit they are coming). And I'm getting better! At the end of the summer, I could barely do a 2-foot spin- but now I'm more and more comfortable with the forward scratch spin- and yesterday tried my first combination spin (sit spin rising into a scratch spin)- so awkward I had to laugh, but I got 9 revolutions! And I love the coach I am working with, and really look forward to setting goals for next year.

GRUESOME: Just that the ice is crowded. Someday I'll be good enough to get off the public sessions and onto the free style sessions (good goal for the new year).

Happy New Year everyone!

Icer - congrats on the awesome progress you have made! Smart cookie, you are using the holidays to make great headway. Hope your wish for non-public ice comes true many times in 2004!

Toothsome - you can't help but smile after two solid hours of public adult skate! Today I focused on the "new" elements my coach has added to my program: axel/toe loop, lutz/loop, flying camel/back sit, as well as the remaining elements like camel/sit/back sit and scratch spin. My biggest challenge with the jumps is maintaining my speed and flow coming out of the jumps, especially the combos. I still feel like they're a little scratchy and I'm slowing down on the landings. Any hints/tips are appreciated.

Gruesome - it was fairly crowded because so many people had the day off. I don't mind newcomers (in fact, they're lots of fun), but I DO dread those one or two people who are so unpredictable in what they are doing and where they are going. Twice the same woman just cut in front of me while I was up in the air for my axel. There is not a lot you can do to change your direction when you are up in the air! Also, I've been fighting off a cold and so decided not to do any doubles today because my head was pretty stuffy.

Back to Toothsome: Spins were very centered today, and consequently got a lot of speed and revolutions. The jumps are coming along, just need more repetition. And this guy who I haven't seen for a month must have told me 15 times that I had gotten so much better than the last time he saw me (which may just mean that I was "THAT" bad a month ago!! )

Gruesome: Lost a lesson and ice time on Tuesday because my coach was tied up and hubby and his coach agreed that they needed rest so no early morning opening. It was just as well. We were tired from traveling over Christmas, and he got an awful cold.

Toothsome: Had my lesson on Saturday, and edging and weight (which side to put it on!!! ) breakthroughs continue. Progress with perimeter stroking, forward and back, and this led to improved crossovers, too. I seem to be feeling the edge changes and where my upper body should be better than before, and as a result, the moves are smoother and faster, too. I also joined my coach's Sat. morning footwork class at the park rink at her suggestion. I'm there anyway for ice time and to assist later with groups, so why not. Hubby might try it too.

I'm a glutton for punishment, I guess, since these changes to my basics are working so well, I've actually ASKED for my coach to re-work all my forward 3's. 3's are my nemesis, so hopefully the good changes will continue. Wanna hear a great one?--hubby's coach decided to try him on backward outside threes, and he got them pretty well on the first tries!!! I'm a little jealous, but good for him!!!! He's much more natural on edging than me--of course, he skated for a few years as a child, too. He's doing really well.

I'm going to have a haphazard schedule this month--a good proportion of our club is traveling to Lake Placid for the annual ISI competition. I'm off to my usual conferences next week and the following week, with a few days of skating and lessons in between. Luckily, things calm down in Feb so I can get ready for the annual ISI competition at the park rink. I'll be doing my artistic program and possibly a footwork one if we can get it ready in time. That's it, because this year is my judging debut. I want to do Elements and Freestyle programs especially to get a good feel for proper execution of elements. It should be fun!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!!!!!

Really Gruesome: Was going to hit the ice yesterday but the ole gallstones had a say.


Going to try again Thursday before I go to the doc and find out what the deal is.

Bummer, Figureskates. Those stones sure have some gall! (Sorry, really poor joke.) Hope you get some relief soon.