28 Adult Male Skating for 4 Months Skating

[rf3ray]

Hey I'm new to this board and I have been skating for 4 months only and can do all the basics, and I have a private coach, and wanting to see if I can get to Australian National Level within 2 years

I can do these
Back/Front Inside and outside 3's
Mowhawks
And Spins (which are centered 90% most of the time, the spins I got down within 1 week)

Do you think it is possible for me to get to Australian National Level within 2 - 3 Years? 8O 8O 8O

And is this a good progress for a beginner ADULT skater to get this far in 4 months, without prior skating before?

[Anita18]

Yes, no, maybe so? ;) Everyone progresses at their own speed, and I don't think it's really necessary to be comparing yourself to others, UNLESS you're a competitive skater with Olympic aspirations. That's another thing entirely. I think you're progressing fairly well, personally, but I'd have to see you skate. You would be better off asking your coach, I think. Obviously a lot of things can be learned in 4 months but I personally can tell a beginning skater from a more experienced one by the quality of their stroking and edges rather than the moves, spins, and jumps that they can do.

Like, what is the quality of your back outside and inside 3's? I think mine suck, personally, and I don't think I can do them just yet but I get around on them. I will consider myself "capable of doing them" after I can turn in all of the directions and sides without fear and with good runout and power. Everyone's personal opinion of "having" an element will differ. I once saw an adult skater practicing the crappiest flips and lutzes I had ever seen (barely getting around on either of them) and she told a friend later, "Oh, I have the flip down, but the lutz still needs a little bit of work.." 8O Not in my book, lady! :lol: I seem to be more picky than others...

Also, you have to elaborate on "spins." Two-foot? One-foot? Backspins? Camels? Deathdrops? :P Although, if you could do a backspin, you would surely have some single jumps by now since the two go hand-in-hand.

What do you mean by "National Level?" Senior? The Australian version of US Jr Nationals? (I think intermediate and novice-levels skaters compete there.) Or Adult Nationals?

IMHO I have nooo idea what the Australian skating scene is like, but you'd be hard-pressed to get to Nationals in anything except the adult level in 2-3 years. First there are the barrage of tests to contend with. Again, I have no idea what the tests are like in Australia, but you'll probably to take the time to train for the tests before you can even compete.

Johnny Weir started skating when he was 12, and landed the axel in one week after taking up lessons. He placed at Nationals as a Novice two years later, which meant that he had to have most of his triples then. And we're talking "I'm too talented for you" Johnny Weir! By that time he had surely given up everything else for hardcore training, which I think as a 28-year-old, you'd be unlikely to do unless you have familial connections with very very rich people and don't have to work for your money.

Some of the other people on this board have talked about Adult Nationals. I'm not old enough to compete at the adult level, but it's quite feasible for someone your age just starting out. I have no idea if Australia has an adult skating program, but you should really look into it. Ask your coach! :)

[aussieskater]

I am an aussie skater as my screen name implies - also adult-onset (sounds like a disease!). As a beginner myself, I can't comment on your speed at picking things up (but I will say it's one heck of a lot faster than me...), but I can tell you that the "Australian skating scene" is pretty small.

I don't know where you skate or what discipline you want to do (singles, pairs, dance, synchro), but with the exception of synchro, there are sadly no Adult divisions at Aussie Nationals. (Note, however, that smaller competitions do sometimes have adult levels - the MIRA artistic comp springs to mind as one example.) Therefore I *think* you'll need to test and pass standard track if you want to compete at Nationals - you might want to have a look at the ISA site to get the details there.

I *think* that the lowest Nationals division is primary, which means you need to pass Prelim, Elementary I and II (both pattern and free) and (I think) pre-primary, before you get to primary. As Anita said, your coach would be a wealth of information on all this.

Something you might also want to be aware of is that all these levels are full of kids. I don't know how you'd feel competing against 8-12 year olds, and also I have no idea how the judges view adults competing at these levels. (Heck, I haven't even passed prelim yet - I'm not competing any time soon!)

Best of luck - this sport needs all the adults it can get!

[phoenix]

I don't know how it works in Australia, but in the U.S. there are age limits on levels until you get to novice--so you may not be eligible to compete at the lower levels (at least in qualifying competitions). Here in the States to be competitive at novice (in freestyle), you need a double axel & a couple of triples.

I'd focus on learning quality skating, get the best coach you can afford/take as many lessons as you can afford, & see what comes. Senior nationals in freestyle here for an adult start skater would be nearly impossible, but I don't know what's being done in Australia. I think a couple of years wouldn't be long enough--quality skating takes time to develop--like Anita said--being able to "do" an element, and being able to do it with the speed, dexterity, and security of an elite skater are two drastically different things. Not to mention being able to put it into the context of a program with good artistic grace & flow, etc. Take it test by test & see how far you get!

[Mrs Redboots]

You're certainly not too old to compete, and do very well indeed, in the adult skating scene - but as others have said, that is very small in Australia. But even if you didn't become competitive, there's no reason not to have enormous fun with the sport.

[skatemum]

Don't know much about the test levels but maybe dance could be a good option too. I don't think there is an adult dedicated competition circuit. Ice skating is quite a small sport in Australia.

[pennybeagle]

I am not Australian, but I have a friend who used to skate in the US and is now skating as an adult in Melbourne...

IIRC, there is a competition coming up in June in Australia (presumably near Melbourne) called the Masters, which she said was sort of like Nationals in the US. She is skating at the silver level, with all her single jumps sans axel and some decent spins and very good basic stroking and edging. She claims that the silver level in Australia is more like the bronze level in the US, but that there is no formal test structure.

Have you talked to your coach about competing? Usually coaches like to know what your future aspirations are, both short term and long term. Then, you can develop some kind of game plan together on how you will get there.

Good luck!