Halloween Classic/ Skate San Francisco Support Group

[Terri C]

We're down to a matter of days now before these competitions begin.


While I didn't skate this weekend (there is no freestyle ice at my rink on weekends) I went shopping for whatever toiletries I need, as well as bottled water and ice for the cooler- Aston is a 5 hour drive for me and I'll be pulling out on my driveway at 11:30 Thursday morning!

So, how are everyone else's preparations going for these competitions???

[Debbie S]

Aston is a 5 hour drive for me and I'll be pulling out on my driveway at 11:30 Thursday morning!


Aston is about a 1 1/2 to 2 hour drive for me and I'll be pulling out of my driveway at 6:00 Saturday morning. :( I'm hoping to wake up by the time I skate.

I went skating today (but only for the first session, as I needed to get home by 1 to watch SA :) ). I did what was probably the best camel-sit I've ever done - unfortunately that was only 1 out of about 5 tries. I landed several good loops, although I still don't think I'm completely rotating them, and they were probably only about 1/2 inch off the ice, but hey, at least they were on 1 foot. Sit-attitude is getting a little better - I still have a tendency to spin on my toe.

Of course, the question is which version of my elements will actually show up at the competition. :roll:

Good luck, everyone! Can't wait to see everyone's programs!

[jazzpants]

Saturday was a really bad day for training b/c of the crowd and the ice was just GAWD awful after about a half hour. No concentration. The "kiddie alert" kept going on. Lost my "zone." :frus:

This afternoon's session wasn't as bad though. I concentrated on the transitions to my program and on the new ending to my program. Essentially it's trying to work out landing my loop correctly and then doing RFO3 spin entry from another waltz-3 instead of the ol' back crossover windup. And of course, the other thing I had to work on is this long footwork sequence I have to do across the ice lengthwise... EEEEK!!! 8O

In any case, I'm so NOT ready for this program!!! And in addition to that, I've been having a bit of a congestion problem, though I suspect it's just an allergy and not the flu. In any case, I just pray and hope that I'll stay healthy the next few days...

I still haven't made an appt. to see my regular hairdresser/makeup artist. Lucky for me, they have a hairdresser/makeup artist at Skate SF, so I should be covered there too. As for my weight... I'm still maintaining my weight but I still look like a sack of potatoes... albeit a lot smaller sack but...oh dear...:oops:

Thank goodness, my event is at around Noon... so I don't have to worry about waking up too early. But I have to take a day off my job to compete... but it's a small price to pay considering that my boss owes me a lot of comp time...

So... I'm as ready as I'll ever be... Good luck to everyone that is competing at either the Halloween Classic or Skate SF!!! If you're competing at Skate SF, I look forward to meeting you and seeing you skate!!! :mrgreen:

[Mrs Redboots]

Good luck, all of you!

Now, checklist time. Have you got:

Your music, plus a spare copy (that's the most important thing; you can cadge everything else, even skates, if you have to! One copy of the music IN YOUR HAND-LUGGAGE, if you're flying.)
Skates
Blade guards
Spare laces
All the costumes you will need
For costumes that are not dresses, check you have all the bits (men: all the shirts you want? Bow-tie? Cummerbund?)
At least one pair of tights (for ladies)
If over-boot tights, or if you are a man, at least one pair of socks to wear in your skates
Brush and comb
At least 1/2 litre of water, and probably more.
Rescue Remedy
Blister plasters
Aspirin or similar NSAIDs
Your mobile, programmed with all the numbers you're likely to want
Any teddies, soap, flowers, drinks miniatures, whatever, to throw at your friends
A noise-maker, like a cow-bell, clapper or even rubber chicken! (Do take one, even if you don't think you'll use it - I had no voice at all at my last competition and felt as though I wasn't there when I couldn't cheer loudly for all my friends!).
Men can probably ignore the rest of this list!


Any hair ornaments or scrunchies you use
Hair gel or spray
Glitter
Make-Up - check contents of bag one more time, please
Jewellery - necklaces, earrings, etc.
Small mirror in case there isn't one in the changing-room

[Terri C]

At the rink today, I felt like I was wearing a sign that said "Hey, I'm competing this week, please get in my way or put your student in front of me during my runthrough" :frus: :frus:

Ice was not cut and was crap by mid session!

Only a hour tommorrow, since I've used my punchcard up for the month and have to pay walk on ($$)

[NoVa Sk8r]

Despite the horrible past two weeks I've been having, which includes problems at work, immense hip and lower back pain suffered from skating and weight training (Loops, did you know this? and maybe that's why I'm even more spaced out than normal, because of medications :?? ), feeling like I can't spin worth a damn anymore, regression in some pair elements that I thought were rock solid, plus a weird loss of appetite that has soon come back, the skating gods smiled favorably on me this morning.

I am fortune's fool: Skated for more than an hour this morning, and on the 7AM session, there were only 2 other skaters. :)

Worked on silver moves--ALL OF THEM!--and did them all decently. 8-)

Learned how to spin again :D and completed 3 different spin combinations: camel/cannonball sit spin/catch camel/back sit (or back scratch), flying camel/back sit, and stars into sit/grab camel! Spins, oh, spins where have you been hiding? But thank you for coming back a week before the competition. Don't leave me now.

Landed lutz/loop/toe loop and a 'tano lutz in my 2 program runthroughs.

Reworked my choreography for the gazillionth time (Loops, I swear, no more versions! :) ).

Can't wait to see if I can pull it together.

I have an incredibly long and tedious 3-day board/staff meeting Wed.-Fri. Upon asking if I could leave the meeting early for this competition (my first event is ~2PM on Friday), I was summarily told by my managing editor, "No." Harrumph. Some diplomatic office maneuvering has allowed me to slip out--undetected, I hope. Thank God there are a few people who are on my side.

Anyway, can't wait to see everyone (Terri, it's been since JUNE!).

Good luck training, folks!!! :)

[Terri C]

Despite the horrible past two weeks I've been having, which includes problems at work, immense hip and lower back pain suffered from skating and weight training

Uh,um, Nova, you better be careful and take it easy this week!

[NoVa Sk8r]

Good advice! ... But that's what chiropractors, ibuprofen, and muscle relaxants are for!!! ;)

Uh,um, Nova, you better be careful and take it easy this week!

[jazzpants]

Took part of today off from work to get in a lesson with my coach at a public session that wasn't as crowded...well at least not 'til the end of my lesson when all the kids are out from school. Anyway, I did two runthroughs and it miraculously came out pretty much on time. 8O 8O 8O I even landed a couple of loops not two footed. Of course, the majority of the time I'm still doing the two footed landings... :frus:

And of course, the usual comments about my wearing a skating dress to practice. Hey! I gotta get used to wearing a dress for this competition, 'ya know... (No, I'm not wearing jazzpants to this competition!!! My coaches would NOT be too happy with that... uh huh....) :roll:

Nova Sk8r: Careful with those muscle relaxant! You want to still be able to hold that edge. You don't want your muscles to be too relaxed, 'ya know...

Keep it up, everyone!!!

[NoVa Sk8r]

Nova Sk8r: Careful with those muscle relaxant! You want to still be able to hold that edge. You don't want your muscles to be too relaxed, 'ya know...

Well, that's what coffee is for. J/K.

After this morning, no more skating/gym for me this week, so I should be healed and ready to go!

And after watching the Tatiana fall on ESPN this morning (I taped it last night on ESPN2), I'm not in the mood to do any pair skating! 8O

[Mrs Redboots]

And after watching the Tatiana fall on ESPN this morning (I taped it last night on ESPN2), I'm not in the mood to do any pair skating! 8OI wish you hadn't said that - I'm about to restart serious work on our Interpretive Pairs piece! We don't have skating shown on any channel I'm able to receive - what happened, exactly?

I do hope you feel massively better in time for the competition! Don't forget the first rule of pairs skating and ice dancing: The Lady is Always Right. Rule no 2 is: Even if the Lady is Obviously Wrong, Rule No 1 applies. :halo:

[NoVa Sk8r]

So I'm constantly being told. It has yet to sink in! ;)

Don't forget the first rule of pairs skating and ice dancing: The Lady is Always Right. Rule no 2 is: Even if the Lady is Obviously Wrong, Rule No 1 applies. :halo:

[LoopLoop]

Don't forget the first rule of pairs skating and ice dancing: The Lady is Always Right. Rule no 2 is: Even if the Lady is Obviously Wrong, Rule No 1 applies. :halo:

Yeah, what she said! :P

[NoVa Sk8r]

I wish you hadn't said that - I'm about to restart serious work on our Interpretive Pairs piece! We don't have skating shown on any channel I'm able to receive - what happened, exactly?

About halfway through their "Sheherazade" program, Maxim was hoisting Tatiana in the air in a lasso lift with an axel entry (the hardest entry according to Peter Carruthers) when he lost his footing and she came crashing down onto the ice--head first! It looked like he had a wide step on the lift entry, almost like he did a spread eagle. Appaarently, there was a rut in the ice? The fall was blamed on a "technical error."

Pic and info here:
http://www.iceskatingintnl.com/index.htm

[LoopLoop]

Luckily, Tatiana didn't actually hit the ice head-first. Her shoulder and elbow took the initial impact, then her head hit. According to their coach and to Max, he made a mistake (i.e., his footing wasn't secure on the turn) which caused the fall.

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/international/cs-0410260249oct26,1,7720595.story?coll=cs-international-print

"This was the first time Totmianina and Marinin had done the axel lasso lift in competition, but they had practiced it hundreds of times.

It is the most difficult lift in pairs skating," Vasiliev said, "but this did not happen because the lift is difficult. It happened because he made a mistake even before he lifted her.

Three years ago, when Max had trouble with lifts, I could think this might happen, but not now."

[NoVa Sk8r]

Did 2 good program runthroughs this morning, despite back problems.
An exchange on the ice:

Me: "Coach, my back really hurts. I can't do any sit spins or spirals, etc."
Holly: "Ok, let's work on axel."

But coach fixed my flying camel/back sit (THAT move doesn't hurt my right side), and we reworked some of the beginning choreography in my program. I'm still uncertain about particular parts, but the program should be OK for Saturday.

Oh, how 'bout this:
My rink is changing its freestyle schedule in November to accommodate hockey (blech). So my singles coach wants to move my lesson to Friday--um, that's when I have my pair lesson at a different rink. :frus:

[skaternum]

And after watching the Tatiana fall on ESPN this morning (I taped it last night on ESPN2), I'm not in the mood to do any pair skating! 8O

I've been getting a lot of "you're crazy" comments from friends and co-workers who know I skate adult pairs. I shrug and tell them it's hard to get too injured when my partner only lifts me 4 feet off the ground. ;) We don't do overheads on ice too often (okay, only 3 times ever), but I'm sure we'll be a little more careful on the ice tomorrow! I figured it out, and in a fully extended lutz lift, my head is about 8 feet off the ice. And that's a "low" lift. 8O

[NoVa Sk8r]

Yes, *careful* is the buzz word.

I'm not known for my edges or footwork or heck, even crossovers, and I always chuckle when Loops says, "Wow, that loop lift or axel lift was really good." I'm thinking, "Dear GOD, woman, do you know how close I came to dropping you???!!!"

Good thing overhead lifts are not allowed in silver pairs. 8-)

[dcden]

Me: "Coach, my back really hurts. I can't do any sit spins or spirals, etc."
Holly: "Ok, let's work on axel."


HA HA!!!! I've certainly had those days, so I know where you're coming from.

My workouts have been somewhat consistent. I'm not expecting to be spectacular this weekend. I'm just glad I'm getting through reasonably clean run throughs. I'm getting over a cold, but I feel fine otherwise and have plenty of energy.

[flo]

I have our team sign ready, and will work on my costume tonight!
Skating's been ok. The new boots are still a pain, and I'm trying to get in as much time in them as possible before my feet fall off. The program is ok, but spins are still a bit difficult.

I've been dropped from an overhead lift before - in a show no less. I still remember the sound of hundreds of people gasping. Fortunately I was just bruised. It's not the worst pairs fall. I had one (with another more avanced partner) were I was going backwards, he forwards and a kid skated into us. I fell backwards and my partner sailed over me like a giant frog and avoided hitting me or the kid. He got the partner of the year award. It's a part of pairs. The sore part.

[PattyP]

I was on the ice at 5:30 this morning so I could run through my new interp without killing someone with my prop. It went very well, I think I'm ready! Joanna, you'll just have to wait and see. My event is 1:20 after yours!

I landed 1 of 2 axels in my new Gold FS program, which is an improvement from last week when I couldn't even land one at all. The double is out...whew.

They gave me 5:00am practice ice on Friday...what's up with that?? 8O Oh well, I guess I can go back to sleep afterwards and get back in time to watch Joanna. :)

I will be making the 6 hour drive on Thursday night.

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone!

Patty

[skatergirlva]

I skated pretty good today. I only worked on spins with my coach, but he told me a bunch of tricks to help me with them last week, so he wanted to see if I practiced them. :) The layback was good as long as I remember all the parts of how he said to do it. It's the coolest feeling when you have your center and you are laying back staring at the ceiling.

Also the camel was so on (Yippee!) The sit/back sit was good. (He's been really making me think about going as low on the back as the forward sit.

Helpful hint...Flying camel (mine was really good today), but I was having trouble teaching one of my students. He said to do a camel change camel. The second time you do it, try a camel, then hop over to the back camel. He made me try it, so I could show my student and it works.

Happy skating! :)

[NoVa Sk8r]

I want to see this new layback--perhaps I'll see it on Friday?! ;)

Also, great to hear about your camel!

The layback was good as long as I remember all the parts of how he said to do it. It's the coolest feeling when you have your center and you are laying back staring at the ceiling.

Also the camel was so on (Yippee!) The sit/back sit was good. (He's been really making me think about going as low on the back as the forward sit.

[Mrs Redboots]

I've been dropped from an overhead lift before - in a show no less. I still remember the sound of hundreds of people gasping. Fortunately I was just bruised. It's not the worst pairs fall. I had one (with another more avanced partner) were I was going backwards, he forwards and a kid skated into us. I fell backwards and my partner sailed over me like a giant frog and avoided hitting me or the kid. He got the partner of the year award. It's a part of pairs. The sore part.I had to do the leapfrog bit today when Husband suddenly prostrated himself at my feet in the middle of our pivot-spiral......

[Terri C]

The "cut me off during my program runthrough " sign was on me again today!
But I did some awesome sitspins that will hopefully show up this weekend.
I made a final, unsucessful appeal to Coach to take out the scratch spin that's in the middle of my program. I kind of understand why she wants to keep it in, because the scratch spin is a required element on the Bronze freestyle test, but it's a sad state of affairs when your sitspin and backscratch spin are more reliable than a basic forward scratch. :??

I have to go to AAA tommorrow for traveler's checks and have a 5pm appointment with my hairdresser for a wax. Then home to pack, with a lesson with Coach and a runthrough for the road on Thursday morning!

[doubletoe]

The "cut me off during my program runthrough " sign was on me again today!
But I did some awesome sitspins that will hopefully show up this weekend.
I made a final, unsucessful appeal to Coach to take out the scratch spin that's in the middle of my program. I kind of understand why she wants to keep it in, because the scratch spin is a required element on the Bronze freestyle test, but it's a sad state of affairs when your sitspin and backscratch spin are more reliable than a basic forward scratch. :??

That's not actually as strange as you think! I've got several combination spins, an axel and two double jumps and I STILL can't do a good forward scratch spin, LOL! I have one at the end of my program but I do it as a sit-scratch because the sitspin centers me and my free leg is already in front, which eliminates the stuff that always screws me up on the scratch spin entrance. I just stand up about 2/3 of the way from the sitspin, open a little and re-set, then bring it all into a scratch spin! You might want to try it next time! :)

[jazzpants]

I was on the ice at 5:30 this morning so I could run through my new interp without killing someone with my prop. It went very well, I think I'm ready! Joanna, you'll just have to wait and see. My event is 1:20 after yours!

I landed 1 of 2 axels in my new Gold FS program, which is an improvement from last week when I couldn't even land one at all. The double is out...whew.

They gave me 5:00am practice ice on Friday...what's up with that?? 8O Oh well, I guess I can go back to sleep afterwards and get back in time to watch Joanna. :)

I will be making the 6 hour drive on Thursday night.

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone!

PattyPattyP with new Interp and prompts??? 8O I'm sooooo there!!! :mrgreen: Nice to hear that your axel decided to come back. Meanwhile, I've blessed the ice for you yesterday, so hopefully you'll skate well while you're here. :P

I'll leave with a comment that my primary coach would tell all his students: "Skate pretty!" :D

[phillyskater]

So, the cat is out of the bag. I mentioned before that we were planning to have a few celebrity guests at the Halloween Classic. Here is the "official" announcement that Don Jackson (of Don Jackson skates, the 1st man to land a triple lutz in competition, 1962 World Champion, etc.) will be there and will be giving a presentation for the competitors (at no charge) at 6:00 on Saturday. Uschi Keszler (Elvis Stojko's former coach) and Liz Manley will also be around, so hopefully anyone whose interested will have a chance to meet and chat with them.

http://www.iceworks.net/figure_clinics.shtml#jackson

Can't wait to see everyone this weekend! :)

philly

[PattyP]

PattyP, Meanwhile, I've blessed the ice for you yesterday, so hopefully you'll skate well while you're here. :P

Now I KNOW that I will skate well, with a Joanna "ice blessing" in place! :)

Thanks!

Patty

ps Why am I on-line...I should be packing!

[jazzpants]

Uh oh! NOOOOOW I'm nervous... I just saw the update list of skaters and there are actually now FIVE people in my group!!! Pressure!!! Pressure!!!

I better hope now that I continue my Silver medal winning streak... since winning a medal now would be a miracle. 8O (My program was quite SUCKY this morning...why can't I skate well in a FS session but can do quite well in a slightly more crowded public session???) :frus:

[dani]

Hi all! I am here and dropped by Ice Works yesterday. I am going to be around this afternoon!

Hugs!
Danielle

[skatergirlva]

Good luck to everyone at the Halloween Classic! See you Friday. Are we excited yet?

:)

[LoopLoop]

Are we excited yet?

Excited? Not sure. I don't feel ready for this!

[NoVa Sk8r]

Um, that makes two of us! :cry:

Excited? Not sure. I don't feel ready for this!

[NoVa Sk8r]

Anyway, I hope everyone has a safe trip up/down/across to Philly--can't wait for everyone to get their skate on!
8-)

[skatingatty]

Good luck to all of you going to PA/SF for the competitions! Wish I could be there too, but I'll be spending my weekend dodging kids on the public sessions. :)

[skatergirlva]

LoopLoop...Please....You'll do magnificent. :)
NoVaSK8r...You'll do awesome. :)

Just think of how good you two skated at your last competition or when we went to Hackensack?

Catch you on the flip side. :)

[mskater]

Good luck to everyone competing this weekend!

[NoVa Sk8r]

Have a great practice tomorrow morning with Loops--sorry I can't be there (stupid #$%*& staff meeting!).

LoopLoop...Please....You'll do magnificent. :)
NoVaSK8r...You'll do awesome. :)

Um, last time, I almost DROPPED Loops during a lift. :oops: Here's hoping for a better program this time around! 8-)

Just think of how good you two skated at your last competition or when we went to Hackensack?

[MQSeries]

Um, last time, I almost DROPPED Loops during a lift. :oops: Here's hoping for a better program this time around! 8-)

Try not to do a Totmianina on your partner. Good luck!

[NoVa Sk8r]

Gulp; I hope not. Actually, she's quite good at falling on top of ME.
As our coach used to say, "Just don't fall." We've taken that to heart.

Try not to do a Totmianina on your partner. Good luck!

[Mrs Redboots]

Everybody have a simply glorious weekend!

Now, all of you remember that you can't control what the other skaters do, and you can't control what the judges think. If you come off the ice pleased with how you skated, you're a winner, whether you place first or last. Have fun, skate great, and tell us all about it afterwards!

[jazzpants]

I got a Bronze this year for my artistic. Not too shabby, but I am a bit disappointed that I didn't skate my best this year. I definitely deserved the Bronze this year given the other skaters!

Secondary coach was quite surprised with my skating dress and makeup and all. She said "WOOO!!! You really cleaned up this time!!! You look like a.... WOMAN!!!" (Geez, thanks, coach... I think...) :roll: :lol: :P

As for PattyP, she also got the Bronze in her artistic program too. She unfortunately had to compete against a couple of competitive MASTERS level ladies, but she held her own with her FANTASTIC new Survivor's theme program, complete with a wooden spear for "fishing." WOO HOO!!! :mrgreen:

I believe Patty is skating tomorrow as well in Gold II FS, so I'm looking forward to see her make her Gold II FS program. But from what I've seen in her artistic program today, she is totally ready to be a Gold II FS skater!!! :mrgreen: And the ice is definitely blessed for this event. She will at least be proud of her skating tomorrow... I hope... (Crossing fingers that the blessing of the ice works...)

[Debbie S]

Woohoo! Congrats to jazzpants and PattyP! :D :bow:

Good luck in FS tomorrow, Patty!

[skaternum]

Yay to both jazzpants and PattyP! :bow: We want to see pictures.

[NoVa Sk8r]

The Halloween Classic is going well so far--Phillyskater, you rock! :bow:

I just have to say before I head to bed (got a 7:15am practice session with Loops!) that flo is my new hero. She taught Loops and me how to do a star lift in the Marriot Hotel lobby! :P

Plus a bunch of us had some fun by the jacuzzi. Nothing like sneaking in some alcohol to the spa (thanks to flo!) ... I cannot NOT have vodka at a skating competition, right? ;)

Amazingly, I won a co-gold in the improv event. And I didn't even use any jazz hands moves.

More later ....

[skaternum]

And I didn't even use any jazz hands moves.
8O How can that be? :)

[NoVa Sk8r]

Don't know...but I'll take it.
One more event left for me ... silver men FS. There are SEVEN men in this event! 8O

8O How can that be? :)

[Mrs Redboots]

Congratulations to our medallists, good luck to those who have yet to skate, and hope everybody else skated really well, too.

[skaternum]

So, looploop and NoVa Sk8r, how did the pairs event go??

[NoVa Sk8r]

So, looploop and NoVa Sk8r, how did the pairs event go??

I'm very tired now, having driven back from Philly a while ago. Loops can/will add more later, but I can say here that we were only given a 3-minute warmup! :evil:

Since we skated first (and since Loops missed the earlier practice session; she wasn't feeling well), we had to take the full 3 minutes. After they called our names, I decided to pull a Sasha Cohen and just skate around for a minute or two--to catch my breath, mind you. (I also pulled this stunt in the silver men's freestyle event.) I loved seeing Loops waiting for me in our starting position.

Our lifts went very well. I didn't even come close to dropping Loops this time on the axel lift. And we now have 2 revolutions in our loop lift. Progress ... gotta love it.

This competition was very good to me. All I can say is: Michael Phelps, eat your heart out!!!

AND ... WAY TO GO SUPERNOVAS!

[jazzpants]

PattyP made her debut as a Gold II lady skater and did an admirable job. Unfortunately she was faced with an even stronger group of skaters and settled for the pewter prize.

On the bright side -- one of the judges had placed her first! I'll bet she likes that one judge now!!! :mrgreen:

In any case...PattyP kicked some ice butts this afternoon and definitely give some Gold ladies a run for their money too.

[mdvask8r]

Loops & NoVA were fabulous! rock steady with GOOD unison. There were so many wonderful performances at this event. NoVa, your spins, as always, were to die for. KUDOS to Phillyskater & her competition production crew!! I'm looking forward to entering this cool competition every year. They even had ice sweepers -- sooo cute in their Halloween get-ups -- Loops was that you that tossed me the cute little goblin? thanks so much. I was thrilled to get through my Silver III debut with a fairly steady performance, though the Lutz & backspin did not happen & I unexpectedly rechoreographed the ending move when a** met ice.

[Mrs Redboots]

I unexpectedly rechoreographed the ending move when a** met ice.Husband and I think this is one of the nicest ways of expressing it! :)

[2salch0w]

Congrats to Loops and Nova on a solid performance, again! Yeah, the warmup sucked and I felt bad for them having to go first. Pulling a Sasha -- LOL. I felt bad for us, too. We had worked out our warm-up so diligently and then didn't even get to half of it. Then in my next 2 events I felt like I had too much warmup time.

The big improvement I noticed from Hershey w/ Steve & Marna's program was the ice coverage on the lifts. Very nice! And damn you and that unison. And could you maybe make one little mistake one of these days? :)

One of these days we'll skate clean again. We got our harder elements this time and blew the easy stuff. I was happy to pull off the lutz lift ... that was the best one we've done in weeks.

Great event all around!

Tim (of Tim & Debbie)

PS Love the new raggage on your outfit, Steve.

[Terri C]

IIfSkaternum is readig this thread.....
There's another spokesperson for the "yes, you can win Silver without a axel campaign!!!"

[Beccapoo2003]

Love the updates!! Now, does anyone have pics?
Becca from Alabama

[jazzpants]

IIfSkaternum is readig this thread.....
There's another spokesperson for the "yes, you can win Silver without a axel campaign!!!"WHOO HOO!!! NoVa Sk8r!!! WAY TO GO!!! And everyone else too at the Halloween classic!!! GO Supernovas!!! SUPERNOVA POWER!!!

Skate SF is still going on. There are a few more adult technicals left, but all the artistics and the majority of the technicals are done and have already celebrated... :halo: Davin Grinstaff from Atlanta was just GORGEOUS to watch, as usual!!! Just about all the Masters were gorgeous to watch, in fact!

The Senior Mens/Ladies are also done late last night! (It was close to 10:30pm when Joan did her freeskate...EEEEK!!!) Justin Dillon pulled off the big W in Senior Mens last night! Keep an eye out for Jordan Wilson too!!! Gorgeous line and HUGE HUGE jumps!!! 8O And I'm so envious of Joan Cristobal's grace and elegance on the ice!!!

[NoVa Sk8r]

Thanks for the props, T. Your program was *definitely* one of the highlights of the event--congrats on your debut!

As someone so aptly said about your expression: "There is a competition smile, and then there's an honest-to-God REAL smile." Thanks for reminding some of us how joyful and fun skating and competing can and should be! 8-)

My spins were mostly good, except when, a minute before I skated my silver FS, I decided to take out my flying camel and put in the tried-and-true camel spin. I ended up catching a toe pick on the 3-turn entrance and almost ended up catapulting onto the ice. :oops: Luckily, I saved it!

Wow, skating last in a group of seven was quite something. This time, I actually watched all of my competitors' programs. And this being my 5th event of the competition, I was too tired to be nervous. :P

No clean axel landed, but I thought I made a decent attempt...
There's always next time.

Great job, everyone.

(And those who rag on the adult skaters can just piss off!!!)

Loops & NoVA were fabulous! rock steady with GOOD unison. There were so many wonderful performances at this event. NoVa, your spins, as always, were to die for. KUDOS to Phillyskater & her competition production crew!! I'm looking forward to entering this cool competition every year. They even had ice sweepers -- sooo cute in their Halloween get-ups -- Loops was that you that tossed me the cute little goblin? thanks so much. I was thrilled to get through my Silver III debut with a fairly steady performance, though the Lutz & backspin did not happen & I unexpectedly rechoreographed the ending move when a** met ice.

[Debbie S]

Congrats, NoVa! And congrats to you and Loops, too! I wish I had seen your performance, but I was up in the snack bar area at the medal ceremony. Not that I needed to be there after my performance, but it was nice to see my friends and training mates get their medals. My coach's other students all skated very well.

In retrospect, it was probably a bad idea for me to commit to a competition right in the middle of the semester (I'm in my second year of b-school). I had a crazy week, and I just wasn't in the right frame of mind for the competition. Plus, I didn't get much sleep the night before - not due to nerves, but due to thinking about all the other stuff I had to do. And waking up at 5:30 and driving almost an hour and a half before sunrise probably didn't help. And then there was the abbreviated warm-up (What was up with that anyway? At least the ice monitor could have warned us.).

But I am feeling really discouraged after this. I'm still working on the same jumps I was almost 2 years ago, and I'm still struggling with them. My camel-sit had gotten pretty good (well, for me anyway) over the past 2 weeks but then went to pieces in the comp (did anyone else think the ice was really hard? or maybe I'm just overrreacting b/c it wasn't what I'm used to?). Nonetheless, I really expected to skate better.

On the drive home, I started thinking about whether I want to keep skating, or maybe just skate and not compete or test, but I think that if I didn't have a goal to work toward, I wouldn't be as motivated. It's possible that I don't practice enough, but I feel like I'm devoting the max amount of time I have available, which admittedly is not a lot - 3-4 sessions a week.

[dani]

Hi all!! I am back home too.

I am excited to report that I exceeded my goal of 9th in Silver II - I got 7th!! (I owe the judge who put me 2nd a case of something ;-) I also had another first, I fell during my interp. However, that seemed to work and wasn't too out of character ;-)

The team event was a lot of fun - GO TRICK OR TREAT!! InsideAxels's axel was incredible and Flo's spiral sequence was beautiful and the costumes were wonderful! ;-)

I enjoyed watching Debby and Terri in their FS as well as Nova's triumphs and everyone else that I know from here!

This competition was a lot of fun, I second the comment that PhillySkater rocks!! (but then I knew that before this ;-)

It was weird being at a competition without skaternum though. :-(

Hugs all - I think I am going to go back to sleep now ;-)

[skaternum]

I am excited to report that I exceeded my goal of 9th in Silver II - I got 7th!!Yay! It's always nice to not be last on your first time out in a level.
I also had another first, I fell during my interp. However, that seemed to work and wasn't too out of character.That's weird. But with that music and character (and you're sense of theatrics), I'm sure you made it look like it was part of the choreography.
It was weird being at a competition without skaternum though.Weird for me too. I feel like I missed out on some serious fun and good skating! I'm pleased everyone had a good time.

Debbie, I know what you're going through right now. Been there, done that. As frustrated as you are now with not making any progress, just keep in mind that everybody plateaus in skating. Some of those plateaus last for YEARS. Maybe you should take a break from testing or competing, but do little rink or club shows. That would give you a goal, especially if you put in some of your plateau elements. But don't give up! As adult skaters, our pace of improvement can seem positively glacial at times, but it'll get better.

[dani]

Yay! It's always nice to not be last on your first time out in a level.


Oh, but I did come in last at the Peach ;-) Anyone who has seen me skate is going to love this one - the picture of me that came out during my freestyle was, believe it or not, MY SPIRAL! Weird, eh? Oh, and I actually had (sort of) a camel-sit!! That is maybe the 4th time ever I have succesfully done one, but I decided if the camel was solid, I would go for it!

[Terri C]

Well, I'm finally home!!! :)

As far my skate went, other than my sit and backscratch spins going south, I felt wonderful about my new program.
Debbie, IRRC, I don't think we had a full warmup. Poor Kev was ready to give me my water for a sip as they called the one minute mark and I had to warm up my loop or else!

Other than some frustrating mishaps(manuever event- I won't discuss that here) no gas stations taking traveler's checks and my hotel alarm clock being set 2 hours ahead of regular time without me realizing it on Saturday morning (gee it's almost 8:00 why is still dark??), I had a blast and hope to get to Ashburn in February!

[skaternum]

Oh, but I did come in last at the PeachOh, yeah. I forgot about that. Sorry. :oops: But congrats on the camel-sit!

[NoVa Sk8r]

Love the new raggage on your outfit, Steve.
Ha! See skaternum, someone appreciates my sleeve-flutter-fringe-ruffle fabric accoutrement! :P

[doubletoe]

Congratulations to everyone who skated! Sounds like it was a blast!

Sounds like PattyP made a good Gold debut! Congratulations, Patty! :D
But nobody said whether she managed to land that axel she was so worried about? How about an axel report? ;)

[Mrs Redboots]

On the drive home, I started thinking about whether I want to keep skating, or maybe just skate and not compete or test, but I think that if I didn't have a goal to work toward, I wouldn't be as motivated. It's possible that I don't practice enough, but I feel like I'm devoting the max amount of time I have available, which admittedly is not a lot - 3-4 sessions a week.Debbie, I'm really sorry to learn you're discouraged. Please don't be - some of us make far slower progress, even than you! And we all have bad skate days. But you were there, and you skated, and you'd worked hard for it, and even if you did come off the ice thinking "Damn, could I do that again, please!" - well, that happens even to elite skaters.

Maybe you could take a break from testing and competing, say for six months, and just work on your basic edges, turns, jumps, spins? Or would you find that dull, and not get to the rink so much? If you knew that your next competition was, say, in six months time, would it make it easier to decide exactly when you were going to start serious work towards it?

Only a few thoughts.

And by the way: "abbreviated warm-ups" - you guys simply don't know how lucky you are to get 6-minute warm-ups as a matter of routine. Here, the rule is 1 minute longer than your programme, whether you are an elite skater with a 4-minute long programme, or a beginner with a 1.5 minute free skate! Never, ever, do you get more than 1 minute longer than your programme.....

[NoVa Sk8r]

And by the way: "abbreviated warm-ups" - you guys simply don't know how lucky you are to get 6-minute warm-ups as a matter of routine. Here, the rule is 1 minute longer than your programme, whether you are an elite skater with a 4-minute long programme, or a beginner with a 1.5 minute free skate! Never, ever, do you get more than 1 minute longer than your programme.....

That sounds good, but it is assumed here that you are going to get a 6-minute warmup. And some events did, but some didn't. The ice monitors could have told us, so we wouldn't be surprised by the "one-minute warning" announcement. :??

[LoopLoop]

Loops was that you that tossed me the cute little goblin? thanks so much. I was thrilled to get through my Silver III debut with a fairly steady performance, though the Lutz & backspin did not happen & I unexpectedly rechoreographed the ending move when a** met ice.

Yep, that was me. You deserved it with that skate! It was an awesome Silver debut, and like I said then, you clearly belonged in that group. Time to schedule a silver FS test!

[Mrs Redboots]

That sounds good, but it is assumed here that you are going to get a 6-minute warmup. And some events did, but some didn't. The ice monitors could have told us, so we wouldn't be surprised by the "one-minute warning" announcement. :??Yes, I woudl have thought the announcer would say "Please welcome the following skaters on to the ice for their 3-minute warm-up", or whatever length it is.

[LoopLoop]

Congrats to Loops and Nova on a solid performance, again!

The big improvement I noticed from Hershey w/ Steve & Marna's program was the ice coverage on the lifts. Very nice! And damn you and that unison. And could you maybe make one little mistake one of these days? :)

One of these days we'll skate clean again. We got our harder elements this time and blew the easy stuff. I was happy to pull off the lutz lift ... that was the best one we've done in weeks.

Great event all around!

Tim (of Tim & Debbie)

PS Love the new raggage on your outfit, Steve.

Thanks, Tim!
You missed our mistake in Atlanta... the one where Stephen almost dropped me out of the axel lift.

Our first goal after Hershey was the ice coverage during lifts, and the second goal was the throw loop.

Unfortunately I missed the first half of your program; I was so relieved to get through ours after the abbreviated warmup that it took me a couple of minutes to catch my breath.

See you at Ashburn?

[LoopLoop]

Phillyskater, thanks from all of us who competed. :bow: The whole event was great (with the already-noted exception of seemingly random warmup times) and everyone was friendly and helpful. And the sweepers capped it!

The story of my weekend...
The team event was fun, and Trick or Treat did a great job to finish ahead of us (SuperNovas). After dinner, as NoVa mentioned earlier, we had an impromptu pairs lesson in the hotel lobby with flo, and I'm sure we amused the other hotel guests who wandered by.

Later that night things went bad, though. I couldn't sleep and wasn't feeling well, so I literally got less than two hours of sleep. So I decided to skip early-morning practice on Saturday and try to get some more rest, if not sleep. :cry:

Then I decided to scratch from interpretive; I was so tired that I didn't want to stay the extra hour or so; it seemed like a better plan to get on the road and get home earlier.

Our pair event went well; this was the first time I got nervous to compete pairs, but I'm pretty sure it was because I'd skipped practice and we had the short warmup. I was thinking "I have to do this program and I've only been on the ice for three minutes today!" Yikes! But we managed it and did a pretty good program anyway, so that will help our confidence in the future.

Props to everyone who competed, whether you think you did well or not... everyone who goes out there and skates in front of judges and an audience deserves applause and credit for bravery.

[dcden]

Congratulations to all who competed, and a big thanks to the organizers of the event. It ran very smoothly, the ice felt good, the medals were nice and creatively designed. Y'all deserve a big thumbs up for this, the latest addition to the adult "Grand Prix" circuit.

But the best part of the competition for me had to be getting my team medal on Friday from Liz Manley, and my FS medal on Saturday from Don Jackson. THAT WAS COOL!!!!!

By the way, does anyone have a report from the adult figure skating discussion or the party? I couldn't stay for either.

[dcden]

Also, can anyone post the results from the last few events of Saturday (Silver Men, interps) for those who had to leave? Or any results from the adult events in Skate San Fran?

[NoVa Sk8r]

Also, can anyone post the results from the last few events of Saturday (Silver Men, interps) for those who had to leave? Or any results from the adult events in Skate San Fran?Here are the results.

(Ordinals followed by Majority)

1. Stephen Trzaska, Washington FSC 2 1 2 2 5 4/2 8-)
2. Tim Fisher, Washington FSC 4 3 1 3 1 4/3
3. Jeremy Balcom, SC of Central NY 1 4 3 4 2 3/3
4. Dennis Glorioso, Granite State FSC 5 2 4 1 6 3/4
5. Tim Mizerak, Glissad Academy 3 5 6 5 4 4/5
6. Mark Adams, Washington FSC 6 6 7 6 7 3/6
7. William Papineau, Ann Arbor 7 7 5 7 3 5/7

[mdvask8r]

Y'all deserve a big thumbs up for this, the latest addition to the adult "Grand Prix" circuit.

Ooo, I like that -- Adult Grand Prix circuit


But the best part of the competition for me had to be getting my team medal on Friday from Liz Manley, and my FS medal on Saturday from Don Jackson. THAT WAS COOL!!!!!

YES, it was VERY COOL. Who do you have lined up for next year???

Will all the results be posted?

[flo]

What a great time! Congratulations to all. The team event was really fun. We were all out the there together and it was more like a party than a competition. Philly and the LOC did a great job. We all felt very welcome and it was great that the local coaches were around and so supportive. Insideaxel and I were there early and had a chance to skate together - that was quite a treat! The local kids on the ice were very polite and friendly.

Nova and loops were great, and have the most important element - when they are on the ice they look like they really enjoy it, worth more than a tripple any day. The lift session in the lobby was fun, and Nova was even brave enough to lift me! You two will have the star in no time (just no pancakes before you lift!)

I was last in spins - rightfully so. I had blisters on my ankle from the new boots and decided to tape them. Wrong - couldn't bend. I was thinking of wearing my old boot on the right foot, but decided to go with the new one. Oh well. This weekend helped to break them in! Congrats to Dani! I thought I skated ok in interp - the judges either really liked it (1,2) or didn't (6,7). That's interp. It is frustrating, but the person I went up to skate for loved it. Everyone made her feel very welcome, and she loved being with the adults again.
Debbie - I'm looking forward to your next performance. Your program was ok-just not what you usually do. It was under a difficult set of circumstances, and yet you were out there with all of us!

Congrats to all!

[Terri C]

Congratulations to all who competed, and a big thanks to the organizers of the event. It ran very smoothly, the ice felt good, the medals were nice and creatively designed. Y'all deserve a big thumbs up for this, the latest addition to the adult "Grand Prix" circuit

By the way, does anyone have a report from the adult figure skating discussion or the party? I couldn't stay for either


Den,
That's a idea for the Adult Skating Committee to consider a "Adult Champions Series" perhaps??

I didn't go to the Don Jackson talk- I was too busy celbrating with NoVa on his win in Silver Men!! Party was,eh, okay, considering that most skaters had left!

[skatingatty]

Congrats to everyone on your performances! Pictures, anyone? :) See you at the Ashburn, VA competition!

[NoVa Sk8r]

I have a photo of Loops and me doing an axel lift. I can post it if you'd like to see it. (I have to scan it first, though.)

Oh, TerriC, Loops, flo, et al.,

I'm happy to report that I did not lose my job--I had missed half of an all-important board/staff meeting that occurred Wed.-Fri. of last week. I left early on Thursday to go skating with Loops, and I didn't even show up on Friday. Nothing was said. Pheewwww. 8-)

[Debbie S]

Thanks for the encouraging words. I'm not really sure what I want to do about skating/competing/testing. I guess I just need to think about what I want to get out of skating to begin with.

flo, I hope your blisters heal quickly! You did a great job of continuing on with the sit spin after the problem with the camel. And your layback was awesome!

[phillyskater]

Hello everyone!! I really want to thank all of you who competed in the Halloween Classic for making our first year so successful. Thanks to everyone who traveled for the event, competed, volunteered, supported other skaters, and most of all for your feedback (both positive and constructive). We are aware of the situations with the warm-ups and ladies locker room and will make sure neither of those problems happen again next year. But most of all, thanks for your patience during our first year as we learned what works well and what areas need improvement.

Congrats to EVERYONE who skated!! Well done!! I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to see all of the performances -- I was insanely busy with running registration and overseeing everything else (on about 3 hours sleep). But I did see some of you (Loops & NoVa, Dani, Flo, etc.) and you all did great. Flo - your interp literally got me choked up (Dani can verify) -- just beautiful! The Maneuver Team event was a blast. Go Ice Workaholics!! (And thanks to everyone for not mentioning my disasterous spins program - I shouldn't have tried to skate under the circumstances....lesson learned).

So, to sum it up from my perspective....THANK YOU!!!! You all rock.

Hope to see you all there next year.

philly

[dani]

Flo - your interp literally got me choked up (Dani can verify) -- just beautiful!

I can verify! I have seen Flo's program many times and have rewatched it many more on my tapes. It is quite good and I was also surprised at how the judging was on that. Especially for us competitive skaters, that program is incredible! Of course, as one of her teammates, I am a huge Flo fan!! Besides anchoring our team, she also made our costumes!

Special thanks to Philly! I couldn't have done this competition without her and would have missed a wonderful time. Mr. Philly is really nice also! I echo the sentiments that this was a wonderful time and I will take many things away from it.

And for everyone that remember's Diana's space alien interp from a couple of years ago - all I can say is wait until you see her new one!! WOW! Philly and I mentioned this board to her, so hopefully she will find us soon.

Hugs!
Dani

ps) I will likely miss Ashburn this year :-(

[PattyP]

Sounds like PattyP made a good Gold debut! Congratulations, Patty! :D
But nobody said whether she managed to land that axel she was so worried about? How about an axel report? ;)

Joanna was too kind! I two-footed both axels :roll: and forgot my program in one section, but picked it up again before most people noticed that I was lost. I had that momentary feeling of absolute panic, what do I do next. 8O Then it came to me in time for my footwork section. My coach was cracking up. At least I landed an axel in the warm up! That was an accomplishment for me...

I came in last in the artistic event and last in the FS event, but I got two medals! Oh well, I knew this was going to be a "developmental" year. It was a fun event, great to see everyone. BTW, Joanna looked great and skated very well. Congrats on the bronze medal!

After the 7.5 hour (1.5 hour detour to Camarillo to get my dog) drive home, I'm a walking zombie today.

Patty

[Careygram]

Wow, I haven't posted or read in an long time but this is a nice thread. I'll re-iterate what my partner said and congratulate Loops and Nova on a solid performance. Given the shortened warm up and the fact that they had to go first they were in unison and made not one itty bitty mistake. I probably would have been more of a disaster than I was. We were happy to do the hard stuff well but the fall on the flip rattled me, then I tripped poor Timmy and had to muffle a fit of giggles. We had a really good time after we woke up and calmed down. I watched many events and enjoyed every minute of it. Silver men was great and I called it for Nova but he didn't believe me. And interpretive was really good. Watching Ross Luxton was a treat. I didn't get to meet many posters though so perhaps at Ashburn Loops and Nova can do introductions. Tim and I are going to keep at it until we skate clean then we'll retire! haha.

Here's to finishing my gold program and actually passing the &*^$%$# 8O moves.

Great job everyone and kudos to Andrea Rea!
Carey of C&M

[NoVa Sk8r]

OK, as promised. I'm sorry I don't have any other photos. I got these pics from the official photographer.
(Actually, my mom really liked them, so I broke down and purchased them--anything for you, ma! :) )

http://www.chem.duke.edu/~stephen/Aston04.htm

I have a photo of Loops and me doing an axel lift. I can post it if you'd like to see it. (I have to scan it first, though.)

[InsideAxel]

I just wanted to commend Phillyskater and everyone else involved on a fantastic job. I was very impressed with the facilities and the staff, everything was, as Mr. Button would say, “first rate!” If the programs had not said “1st Annual IceWorks Halloween Classic,” you wouldn’t have known it was their first. The 14-hour round trip was well worth it!

Special thanks to Flo who assembled a great maneuver team, I was very pleased to have been a part of it. Everyone really contributed with each of their elements, so it was truly a team effort. Although I must single out Flo’s spiral sequence, it was absolutely spectacular.

As for my other event, Men’s Gold Free…wow. I simply can’t believe how competitive it was, as everyone brought something special to their programs. From Dennis’ wonderful flow and choreography, to Ross’ energy and audience connectivity and Christopher’s unique elements and magnificent ice presence, it was just a great event. I am very, very humbled by my finish.

Congrats to NoVa and Loops on an excellent pairs program, and NoVa again on what looked to have been a very competitive freeskate. :bow:

Looking forward to next year!

Kelton

[Terri C]

OK, as promised. I'm sorry I don't have any other photos. I got these pics from the official photographer.


Good, you didn't get the one that make you look stressed out lifting Loops!
This was one of the reasons I missed the Don Jackson presentation, I was too busy helping NoVa pick out pictures.
I showed the one picture of me in my final freeskate pose to the gang at work today and they were impressed!
NoVa, glad to hear that all is well at your workplace!! :D

[NoVa Sk8r]

Yes, working 4 blocks from the White House, working in a journalism field, and it being the day before Election Day, managers' minds were on other issues! :P

NoVa, glad to hear that all is well at your workplace!! :D

[NoVa Sk8r]

Yes, thanx so much for your help. I am the most indecisive person!

Good, you didn't get the one that make you look stressed out lifting Loops!
This was one of the reasons I missed the Don Jackson presentation, I was too busy helping NoVa pick out pictures.

[NoVa Sk8r]

K,
I, again, was impressed with your performance (and your spins keep getting better! grrr :P ). Congrats on skating up to gold and winning! [Stay in gold! Stay in gold! Pass the gold MIF and FS tests--soon! I quiver at the thought of you 'skating down' to silver. ;) ]

The gold FS was one of the marquee events. I did NOT envy those judges. It was great to see all the different styles in that event. I learned a lot about how to approach future programs.

As for my other event, Men’s Gold Free…wow. I simply can’t believe how competitive it was, as everyone brought something special to their programs. From Dennis’ wonderful flow and choreography, to Ross’ energy and audience connectivity and Christopher’s unique elements and magnificent ice presence, it was just a great event. I am very, very humbled by my finish.

Congrats to NoVa and Loops on an excellent pairs program, and NoVa again on what looked to have been a very competitive freeskate. :bow:

[Terri C]

! [Stay in gold! Stay in gold! Pass the gold MIF and FS tests--soon! I quiver a tthe thought of you 'skating down' to silver. ;) ]

My club here in Chesapeake may be having a test session in early December. ;) If we can get the appropriate judges, then some of you can visit me and get those tests passed- NoVa- ready for round three on Silver MIF???

[doubletoe]

Joanna was too kind! I two-footed both axels :roll: and forgot my program in one section, but picked it up again before most people noticed that I was lost. I had that momentary feeling of absolute panic, what do I do next. 8O Then it came to me in time for my footwork section. My coach was cracking up. At least I landed an axel in the warm up! That was an accomplishment for me...

I came in last in the artistic event and last in the FS event, but I got two medals! Oh well, I knew this was going to be a "developmental" year.
Patty

Can't blame you for being nervous your first time at Gold! 8O
But you're right; at least you landed an axel in warmup so nobody walked out of there thinking you couldn't land one, LOL! I like to think that coming in 4th out of 4 means the 5th-10th place people just didn't have the confidence to show up. ;) So congratulations on your first Gold competition! What a milestone! :D

[TimDsk879]

so what's the detailed result?

[TimDsk879]

congrats NOVA. You go boy!

Does anybody have any reports on the Gold Men, what stuff did they attempt.

[NoVa Sk8r]

My club here in Chesapeake may be having a test session in early December. ;) If we can get the appropriate judges, then some of you can visit me and get those tests passed- NoVa- ready for round three on Silver MIF???

Ughh, after last weekend, I don't want to even think about skating, especially testing.

Looks like I might be testing on Nov. 27. So I'm stuck in the adult-unfriendly Washington Figure Skating Club, home of the "let's judge the adult tests using the standard track mentality." Grrr. :evil:

Nah, I think I should be ready. And there's another test session here on Jan. 3, I believe.
If nothing else, I still qualify for adult silver pairs at Adult Nationals. 8-)
(And no, I am NOT skating in bronze level at AN--silver level or bust!)

[Mrs Redboots]

Lovely photo of NoVa and Loops - so are we going to see you both at the European competitions next summer????

[NoVa Sk8r]

Lovely photo of NoVa and Loops - so are we going to see you both at the European competitions next summer????

Haha. I would *love* to go to Europe (haven't been there yet). But I don't think that is going to happen next year.
And I won't be old enough to do the ISU Adult International in Oberstdorf, Germany in June (the announcement says the competition will be limited to skaters from 30 to 60 years old).

Maybe 2006? :)

[dcden]

InsideAxel, thanks for the kind words. I certainly did not expect the event to be as close as it was either. I unfortunately did not get to see your program since you were on right before me, but I ordered the DVD, so I'm looking forward to watching your program. Congratulations on your win!

I also wanted to mention that the sweepers at the event did a really great job. I was quite surprised to see the kids handing me stuffed animals when I was done skating... what a nice touch! To those who can pass along the message, please thank them for their hard work this past weekend.

[flo]

Wow! Thanks to all. It was really a great event, and makes me want to get out there and practice! I hope we can get together again soon. As soon as I scan the team awards photo, I'll post it!

[Terri C]

I also wanted to mention that the sweepers at the event did a really great job. I was quite surprised to see the kids handing me stuffed animals when I was done skating... what a nice touch! To those who can pass along the message, please thank them for their hard work this past weekend.



To think of it, thank goodness that it was stuffed animals being tossed and not underwear or vodka nips- we wouln't want to corrupt the young skaters now, would we?

[LoopLoop]

And I won't be old enough to do the ISU Adult International in Oberstdorf, Germany in June (the announcement says the competition will be limited to skaters from 30 to 60 years old).

Yeah, he's just a baby! If the competition were just a few weeks later he'd be old enough, but we wouldn't be able to go next year anyway. Perhaps in the future...

[dani]

Hey Skaternum, you missed a good fundraising opportunity, my goon services were discussed by I had to decline since I am already committed. (should be committed? ;-) Maybe we should have had a sub-goon agreement out there ;-)

[skaternum]

Hee hee. I like the idea of subcontracting! If you don't go to Ashburn, I'll definitely need a sub-goon.

[phillyskater]

I think I may have inadvertently given some of you bad information about the name of the photographer/videographer. The REAL photographer/videographer at the Halloween Classic was Vision Productions (www.visionproductions.com). As of earlier today, the pictures were not on the website yet (but can be purchased by contacting them directly). However, they will be added shortly. Videos are also available.

Sorry for the confusion! :oops:

philly

[Terri C]

Hey Skaternum, you missed a good fundraising opportunity, my goon services were discussed by I had to decline since I am already committed. (should be committed? ;-)

Hey Dani, you're the one that offered!!! :lol:

[starskate6.0]

g-day all

I just joined the forum and wanted to say Hello. I think I already know some of you from the Halloween skate. I too had a great time and wanted to say how much I enjoyed the event as well as skating with you all.
The group Photo at the end was great, I hope it makes to skating mag.
I realy enjoyed the interp events because adults are much better with imaginative ideas, and that was obvious at this event.

I skated gold levels at the halloween skate and I just passed my gold Free
so now they will have to let me do doubles along with some of the other crazy things I do out there. I must be off today but Ill look in again when I get the time.

see ya :)

[starskate6.0]

Hi Everyone

Well I now have time to introduce my self to your forum. I have been reading some of the letters posted after the Nationals in Lake Placid and because I was one of the new skaters in the silver men I see there was a lot of questions regarding my double toe loop warm up jump during the event, so for those of you who have a need to know, here it is.

Because of my home location in Australia the nearest ice rink was hundreds of miles away. so my first step on the ice was when I was 23. I had this grand idea that I would join the big ice shows , I was tired of my job in Australia and wanted some adventure. I was lucky enough to get a start in a small show in Australia ( standing on a 30ft tank ice introducing a girl ), I skated out and skated off.
After several years of traveling around the world for several years by my self and being rejected by all the big shows. I had gained enough experience to join Disney on Ice in 1987. "Its a long story"

I skated with the show in Chorus and comedy till 1993 and then retired.
During that time I had become quite good on my feet as most chorus skaters do but was still not a great skater when it came to freestyle .
The skaters in the show would show me things from time to time and I would spend time between shows trying to jump and spin.

As one of the show dirctor once told me , "don't skate, your terrible, do comedy"
It was the best advise I ever got. I took up adult skating in 2002 and started to test for the first time, it has taken some time to get past the test levels and spining has never been easy for me. But entertaining is what I like to do best and I love the interp events. Iv now passed my gold levels and I look forward to seeing you all at Nationals next year.

My advise to all adult skaters is "skate for applause " and the public will make its own desition ( as well as the judges ). " The greatest risk in life, is not taking one".
:)