Hot/Cold skating practice/lessons

[dlkksk8fan]

A new week is upon us and I thought I would start another thread here.
I've been off the ice for a week due to trying to get my thyroid regulated under new medicaton. I feel rather tired and had a infection too, but I'm better this week so today was my first day back.

Cold-Well I couldn't really skate that long because I feel so out of shape with no energy. Very slow, but I did manage to try all my jumps and spins.

Hot-lukewarm really but I did manage to do some nice camel spins and loop jumps.

So how is everyone else's skating going?

 

[Glacierskater]

Ugh...what skating? I have been helping with skate camp the last week at our rink. I did manage to get in a practice or two. The lutz is slowly coming....I look like a very bad version of the Chevy Stromotion jump analyizer when I do the lutz because it is so slow. But it is getting easier. No axel yet. That thing will be my nemesis.

My loop is getting higher and faster, and I am in love with the flip. The flip about killled me...I bust my head on it and struggled with it for a long time. All spinds are crazy, and the camel is out in the desert somewhere, and it has not followed me to the ice. My backsping is getting better. OIYE!!! I really need to get back to daily practice. We just bought a house, and I am hoping that after we move in, I can get back to obssessing about my skating.

The bright spot: In less than 2 weeks, I will be headig to St. Louis, MO to attend a seminar with Audrey Weisiger and Paula Wagener, and hopefully get private lesson with both. I am excited and nervious at the same time. I will keep you posted on the trip! Hope everyone is having a great skate week.

 

[ice cold]

Paula Wagener is great coach, but be careful. dont let her touch your toe loop. A friend of mine took from Paula for a week. Paula made her relearn the jump. She had a competition a month later and she lost alot of points cuz she cheated every toe loop.( Paula Wagener taught her incorrectly) But her other coach fixed it back. regardless, Paula Wagener is a great coach and let her fix everything else.

 

[Glacierskater]

My toe loop is really weak anyway. I actually have a coach in Tulsa that had to teach it to me correctly after doing it wrong for 2 years. I will be careful.

 

[Yazmeen]

Today was a hot, hot, hot day, both outside and on my blades!!

We worked more on stroking and crossovers. I'm really starting to get deep into my knees with the stroking, and coach taught a neat trick with back crossovers on the circle: Keep the non crossing foot on the red line as much as possible. I was tending to sweep it toward the crossing foot too much, ending up on my inside instead of outside edge. Flow is greatly improved and the toepick scratches are disappearing--S-L-O-W-L-Y, but still, disappearing.


Also worked on spins. Two foot spin is now finally solid with at least five revs, and she has me back on one foot spins, trying to keep my free foot out as long as possible, then just setting it down into a two foot spin when I need to. This is a great exercise for me. I have far more "fear factor" with spins than jumps, and this is allowing me to try for more revs, knowing the foot will just go down when it needs to. A great skating morning!!!!

Glacier: We want a full report on that camp you attend. Lucky you!

 

[Glacierskater]

Yaz, you are doing so well! I remember when you started. I love hearing about your progress and hope that we end up at a competition somwhere! Keep up the great work!

 

[PrincessLeppard]

Hot: Um, not much. The weather? The humidity? Gads, it was so, I didn't even wear my sweater in the rink, just a cotton shirt. This, from the person who is usually freezing to death. My waltz jump is slowly coming back.

Cold: AAARRRGG. Spins are gone. I used to do a really nice two foot spin and a decent one foot spin, and I can't do either of them right now. Urg. Getting on my right outside edge has never been my strong point, and with my new skates, I can't get on it all. Had the blade moved, but no help. Coach wants me to practice more before moving it again. *sigh*

Have fun at camp!

Laura

 

[Glacierskater]

Hey Princess...if you are on a right outside edge....THEN YOU SPIN CLOCKWISE LIKE ME!!! Cool! Am I on the right track?

The more you skate the better the break in. What kind of skates did you get?

 

[PrincessLeppard]

Yes, I do spin clockwise, much to my coach's consternation. He has to struggle to me stuff "my" way.

I have a pair of Jackson's. They're pretty cool, but breaking them in has been painful....

Laura

 

[Glacierskater]

I do not know many people that have Jackson's. I have a very high level coach at one of my rinks, and he told me that if I had not learned my jumps the opposition way, then he would insist that I learn them the way everyone else does them. He said that it is dangerous to have everyone skate one way, and one person skate another. I am glad that Ihad those jumps. My other coach is cool about it. She does sometimes have to rethink the moves when she explains them.

 

[sk8pics]

Hot: Had a good lesson yesterday and okay practice. Like Yaz, my back crossovers are considerably quieter now. I can really do both directions silently if I try, although my coach complains that I'm not generating enough power! Also we did several run throughs of my interpretive program and worked on exaggerating all the positions and extensions. Also the outside-inside edge spiral sequence was good and I was able to hold the inside edge spiral pretty well and finish it in control. (The sequence runs about a third of the length of the rink and is all done on one foot, which is cool!)

Cold Nothing really, although my salchow is still just okay. It could be improved, as could everything! It will probably stay about the same until my competition.

Yaz-- Are you coming down to watch Skate Wilmington? They have pre-bronze and bronze free skating events. I will probably not be at the competition in October.

Happy skating,
Pat

 

[icer]

Hi everyone-

Not skating much because of work travel/pressure and lack of summer ice time due to camps etc. I've been doing off-ice work (mostly Pilates) that is helping with alignment and posture, but sometimes leaves me too sore to skate well- a real physical transition is taking place. But even with my minimal ice time, I'm seeing the results in interesting places!

For example: the alternating FI 3's that I've struggled with, gotten, lost, gotten back again are MUCH more secure with very little practice (working hard off-ice on knee alignment and working with my hip muscles more effectively). Spirals are better and more controlled because of work on my stomach muscles.

My jumps are going nowhere (waiting until fall to start working with a new coach, and I really do need help and encouragement in this area).

My spins are getting faster. Every once in a while in a sit spin I am going fast enough to really feel the air and to feel that I can sit ON it, getting much lower in my spin. And I am getting into a real camel spin more often- I have lots of fun attempting them, which is good because lots of attempts are needed (success rate- to me 2 real revs or more and a nice scratch spin out of it- has gone from about 1 in 20 to about 1 in 8!).

 

[Yazmeen]

Pat: You know what? I think I may come down on Sunday to cheer you on!!! I've never been to an adult USFS event, and I think it would be a good idea to see one--it certainly would be a learning experience. What events are you competing and when?

Glacier: Thanks for the kind words. You are also really growing as a skater, too. Little by little, we all do it!!!!

Beth

 

[sk8pics]

Yaz-- The competition isn't this weekend, but next. My event is at 1 pm on Sunday, August 1. All the adult events are on Sunday, starting at something like 10:45. The pre-bronze and bronze free skating events are after the Interpretive (which is the one at 1). It's always a fun event with lots of support from the other skaters and folks around. I'll probably go to the rink around 11 or 11:30, since they do sometimes run early.

Pat

 

[Yazmeen]

I meant next Sunday--I was looking at the schedule as I wrote my post. As of right now, I plan to be there. Gee, should I make a banner for you????

 

[sk8pics]

LOL!! A banner would be funny! But I don't think that's necessary! I'm glad to have any support I can get, though! I hope you won't be disappointed!

Pat

 

[Yazmeen]

No way could you disappoint me--I look forward to seeing you skate!!!

 

[Yazmeen]

Pat: I told my coach I'm planning to come see you skate, and she thinks its a great idea for me to see a competition like this before I do one. The only other adult skating I've ever seen was at the Princeton Open in 98, where our "Sewing Mom" from costume repair at Nationals that year enticed me into coming to see the adults compete. It had the desired effect: I looked at them and said "I think I could do that" and the rest is history.

Hot, hot, hot ONE FOOT SPINS today!!! My coach keeps using the analogy of the push off for a left power 3 when I do salchows, and it helps me keep my free foot back and checked properly before I jump. Today I applied it to one foot spins, and presto!!!! The foot and arms came around together and I didn't "smush" and lean to the right and was actually able to bring the free foot in for a few revs. I think I hit four of five revs with one. Hopefully, this is a "light bulb moment" that will stay with me. It helped again with sal, too---I'm probably going to be the only competitor in history who will go for my scratch spin and my sal thinking "Think power 3--think power 3!!!!"

We also worked on entering subsenquent waltz jumps from the first one without twisting the shoulders and hips, and there was good improvement here, too. I can't WAIT to practice some of this stuff on Saturday!!! WHOO HOO BABY!!!!!

 

[sk8pics]

Hi Yaz -- So is it a compliment or not that your coach wants you to come see me skate? Actually, you should definitely also watch the pre-bronze free skating and the bronze free skating. Interpretive can be quite a mixed bag! I know 2 of the other skaters in the event, and one skated extensively as a kid and should be skating silver (all levels are combined for interpretive, though) and the other won adult nationals in Bronze ladies in her age group a few years ago. I'm always the lowest level skater but that's okay. I like the challenge of learning new choreography and of going out and skating my best under pressure!

Anyway, I'll look forward to seeing you in around 10 days! I may not be too social before the event, though, just to warn you...

Pat

 

[dlkksk8fan]

Hot- finally landed my loop jump on ONE foot!

Cold-the ice rink and my back spins