AuroraBorealis
04-30-2005, 03:54 PM
I'm looking for input with regards to the following:
- whether to test or not and if yes, then what to test (I'm in Canada)
- whether to take my skates when I go abroad for a year
I've been skating and learning tricks for the past 4.5 years - first I took fun classes at my university, then I joined a club the coach who ran them teaches at and became her student. I only did freestyle, never tested or competed and never worked on a solo.
In September I'll be going abroad for a year, and I'm not sure whether to take my skates (here I'm looking for general recommendations of the "take them!" and "leave them" type - I'll be looking into actual possibilities of skating there later).
I'm guessing that if I opt to take them, I will need something to prove my skills and qualifications in order to skate abroad. That's the first reason why I'm thinking of testing. The second, and more important, reason, is that when I come back, I will be moving to a different city and won't be able to train at my present club and with my present coach. A new club might require me to have passed some tests and etc.
When I started taking lessons, I skated twice per week (about 1.5 hrs each day), but the past two years it was once per week only, and this year I missed quite a few sessions. For this reason, I haven't made much progress. This summer, I have the chance of skating two to three times per week, so I would get much more practice time and that should be enough to prepare for a test in mid-August.
But... what to test? What test to take?
I heard that Skate Canada introduced a new testing stream, mainly for adults, in which the skater is not required to do a solo or dance patterns. So I guess it's skills and/or elements.
I'll appreciate any hints and suggestions.
Here is a breakdown of what I currently can do:
- jumps: all singles but axel (still underrotating lutz, working towards axel), including combinations
- spins: have backspin, sit, camel (sometimes wacky), upright, including combinations and changes of foot, but not enough revolutions on camel and back camel; don't have corkscrew
- MITF: all spirals ok, but my backward 3-turns and all mohawks suck big time
- whether to test or not and if yes, then what to test (I'm in Canada)
- whether to take my skates when I go abroad for a year
I've been skating and learning tricks for the past 4.5 years - first I took fun classes at my university, then I joined a club the coach who ran them teaches at and became her student. I only did freestyle, never tested or competed and never worked on a solo.
In September I'll be going abroad for a year, and I'm not sure whether to take my skates (here I'm looking for general recommendations of the "take them!" and "leave them" type - I'll be looking into actual possibilities of skating there later).
I'm guessing that if I opt to take them, I will need something to prove my skills and qualifications in order to skate abroad. That's the first reason why I'm thinking of testing. The second, and more important, reason, is that when I come back, I will be moving to a different city and won't be able to train at my present club and with my present coach. A new club might require me to have passed some tests and etc.
When I started taking lessons, I skated twice per week (about 1.5 hrs each day), but the past two years it was once per week only, and this year I missed quite a few sessions. For this reason, I haven't made much progress. This summer, I have the chance of skating two to three times per week, so I would get much more practice time and that should be enough to prepare for a test in mid-August.
But... what to test? What test to take?
I heard that Skate Canada introduced a new testing stream, mainly for adults, in which the skater is not required to do a solo or dance patterns. So I guess it's skills and/or elements.
I'll appreciate any hints and suggestions.
Here is a breakdown of what I currently can do:
- jumps: all singles but axel (still underrotating lutz, working towards axel), including combinations
- spins: have backspin, sit, camel (sometimes wacky), upright, including combinations and changes of foot, but not enough revolutions on camel and back camel; don't have corkscrew
- MITF: all spirals ok, but my backward 3-turns and all mohawks suck big time