New skater needs advise!

[lulubug]

Hi everyone. This is my first post. After watching the Olympics I’ve been inspired to take up figure skating. I am really too old for the Olympics, I still want to try and compete. I am 14 but have only skated at public rinks. I’ve never taken lessons, but I can skate better than most of my friends. I can skate backwards and turn without a problem. That’s about all I’ve mastered. I can’t spin. Everytime I try, I dig my toe pick into the ice and stop.

So I have some questions….what kind of lessons should I start with? My rink offers group lessons, but do you really learn how to skate? What about private lessons? Any suggestions for me?

[Isk8NYC]

what kind of lessons should I start with?
At the "moving skater" level, it really depends on your budget and time.

Privates, which are more expensive, help accelerate super-newbies that can barely stand up and advanced skaters who need to learn spins and jumps. Both of those situations are tough in a group lesson setting.

In your case, you will learn faster in privates because of the one-on-one attention, but group lessons would suffice at first. You could do group, private, or even both.

My rink offers group lessons, but do you really learn how to skate? Yes, you do learn to skate otherwise the skating school wouldn't be in business. Will you be able to enter competitions using ONLY group lessons? Doubtful at best. But, group lessons are an economical way to learn the basics.

Why don't you go and watch a group lesson session at your rink to get a better idea of what the students learn?

What about private lessons? Any suggestions for me?
If you know skaters at the rink, ask them which coaches they like and why. Watch those coaches while they're teaching, to see if you like their style. You can also ask the Skating Director to recommend an instructor and try a few "trial lessons."

[NickiT]

I agree that group lessons are a great way to get started. They are much more economical than private lessons which tend to be quite pricey. Of course you don't get the one-to-one attention in a group lesson but I think they are a pretty good way to start off, even if you only do one or two courses before moving onto private lessons. If money isn't an issue and you are eager to get going fast, then by all means go for private lessons. Most people generally start off in a group situation and move onto privates as they progress, but it's really down to you.

Nicki

[Kristin]

Welcome to skating! Group lessons are perfect for when you first start learning skating because it will help save you money until you learn to balance properly & not feel awkward.

Don't rush into private lessons right away because it can get really expensive really fast. Private lessons in my area cost $40-$120/hour depending on your instructor's qualifications. Joining a skating club gives you choice of practice ice, but the yearly membership fee can cost $75-$300/year just to join and that doesn't include any ice time. Ice time is $7-$12/hour. So if you practice 3 hours/week (~$8/hour), get two 20-min. private lessons/week (~ $50/hour for the coach), that can cost you approx. $57/week or $230/month. OUCH. So working out a budget on how much you can afford will really keep your priorities in check. And someone who is just starting out may not want to spend that much just on ice time and lessons which is why group lessons are a very cheap way to start since you may only spend about $90 for 2-3 months of lessons.

Another thing I will tell you is that just because something "feels" a certain way on the ice doesn't mean it actually "looks" that way. Having someone videotape you periodically is not a bad idea and will help you be able to see how you are improving.

[doubletoe]

I agree that group lessons are a great way to start, at least for the first year. I would say I learned 1/2 as much in each group lesson as I learn in a private lesson, but it was only 1/3 or 1/4 the price so it was a good deal! And ultimately, what determines how quickly you progress is how much you practice outside of your lessons, not how much your instructor shows you in the lesson. :)

[DressageChica]

Please don't rule out group lessons all together. It makes me so sad that a lot of rinks don't utilize the benefits of group lessons.

My rink focuses on the group lessons. We work on uncaptured moves, footwork patterns, interesting spin variations, jump combinations, etc. If we want to take privates we have to take group lessons. I love group lessons because my friends help to teach me and it makes me work that much harder. When you don't "get" a skill right off the bat and your friends do, then you want to work harder to get it too! Plus, you make more friends and skating becomes a team sport rather than an individual sport..which is helpful when you're just skating for fun.

Good luck!

[cassarilda]

Hi everyone. This is my first post. After watching the Olympics I’ve been inspired to take up figure skating. I am really too old for the Olympics, I still want to try and compete. I am 14 but have only skated at public rinks.

You could always still do ice dancing :D and nothing can stop you from doing competitions if thats what you want to do :)

Group lessons are good, because you do pick up some useful things, and like everyone else has said, it is more economical to start off with...

Another good thing about group lessons is that you meet people! Ive got about 2 skating buddies who I train with after the group lessons, and its nice because they are people who you can muck around with, and who you can chat to when you get to the rink... and you can learn off each other (unfortunately my good skating buddy is in a lower class than me now, but she will come up soon.... I cant help but feel slightly bad because she started skating lessons before me... .. but ANYWAY! :roll: :P )

Group lessons are good, and once you get to a confident level, take a look into ice dancing ;)

[stardust skies]

Hi everyone. This is my first post. After watching the Olympics I’ve been inspired to take up figure skating. I am really too old for the Olympics, I still want to try and compete. I am 14 but have only skated at public rinks. I’ve never taken lessons, but I can skate better than most of my friends. I can skate backwards and turn without a problem. That’s about all I’ve mastered. I can’t spin. Everytime I try, I dig my toe pick into the ice and stop.

So I have some questions….what kind of lessons should I start with? My rink offers group lessons, but do you really learn how to skate? What about private lessons? Any suggestions for me?

Well, you have three "tracks" to consider as far as your competitive future.

The hardest would be the standard track. It's a lot of tests, and people your age would have to compete in the Intermediate division (they can do so until they're 18, and then must move onto Novice which doesn't have age restrictions. Novice, Junior, and Senior which is the level you see at the Olympics, you can be as old as you want to compete in) and people in the Intermediate division have double axels and one or two triple jumps. There's pretty much no way you could become competitive at Intermediate in 3 years, so IF you wanted to go the standard track route you'd have to shoot at not being able to compete until you reach Novice (no age limits), and by that point they've got double axel and 3-4 triples. Obviously in order to catch up you'd need an hour or two of private instruction everyday and you'd need to skate at leatst 3 hours a day and do ballet and everything that comes with being an elite. You'd basically have to have as much training as an elite does, just to catch up. An hour of coaching can go as high as $150 an hour, though depending on your area and especially at first, you can hire a younger coach for much less. It's still very expensive, though.

You can also do ISI, which has no age restrictions in any level. The tests are done by your coach or another coach (unlike the standard track above which is done formally by judges from the Figure Skating Federation), and they are generally much less difficult, especially because they don't have a Moves in the Field (footwork) requirement. Moves in the field is what holds a lot of people back, and you wouldn't have to deal with that. They're good to take anyway because they make you a MUCH better skater, but you wouldn't have to with ISI. In competitions they put you by level, and there are people of all ages, so you'd be with kids who are 7 and women in their 40's and up. And a few teens here and there, too. The level of competition is much easier and you can earn a lot more medals, competiting in a lot of events like "artistic" "interpretive" and so forth. It's mainly recreational, so it's if you wanna do it "for fun". It's all around the least expensive to do, from the prices of tests to the prices of membership to the association and such. ISI skaters also *usually* don't train as much since it's recreational skating, so you wouldn't have to skate 3 hours a day to stay on top of it like you would in the standard track where kids usually even skate on weekends and are lucky to have one day off.

The last option is to start training NOW for adult track (USFS, same federation as standard track). You will not be able to compete until you are (I believe?) 21. You'll have to take moves in the field tests there too, but there are much fewer of them, and you won't be trying to play catch up with girls who have had triples since they were 7. Actually, I believe the highest jump ever landed in adult LADIES competition was a double axel, and that's in the very highest level of competition. You could fit anywhere in the lower levels, although by the time you're 21, you'll have had all the time to learn a double axel if you want to.

The two latter options are more economical because ISI coaches are usually cheaper and you don't have to spend much time on moves in the field, plus you can compete right away instead of trying to take 8-10 tests just to be allowed to enter a competition. The adult track can also be cheaper because you don't have to have 20 lessons a day (figuratively speaking..) to catch up, you can take it slow and even go in group lessons and by the time you're old enough to compete with them, you'll be a great skater even if you only have one or two lessons a week. The downside is that you'd have to wait til you're 21 to compete. The only track in which you wouldn't have to wait is ISI.

So, those are your choices. It really depends what you want out of this and how much money you can invest in the sport.

[Mrs Redboots]

Hi everyone. This is my first post. After watching the Olympics I’ve been inspired to take up figure skating. I am really too old for the Olympics, I still want to try and compete. I am 14 but have only skated at public rinks. I’ve never taken lessons, but I can skate better than most of my friends. I can skate backwards and turn without a problem. That’s about all I’ve mastered. I can’t spin. Everytime I try, I dig my toe pick into the ice and stop.

So I have some questions….what kind of lessons should I start with? My rink offers group lessons, but do you really learn how to skate? What about private lessons? Any suggestions for me?As others have suggested, start with group lessons, and move on to private lessons as and when you're ready - you'll know when that is. It differs for all of us.

And you will compete! Not, probably, at the Olympics (but how many people do?!) but certainly against other skaters of your age group and skill level. Why, there are skaters in their 70s and 80s still competing, so you've many years ahead of you! It doesn't matter how good you get, or don't get - it's not about that! It's about skating to your maximum potential and having the most fun you can get out of it!

[icedancer2]

The last option is to start training NOW for adult track (USFS, same federation as standard track). You will not be able to compete until you are (I believe?) 21. You'll have to take moves in the field tests there too, but there are much fewer of them, and you won't be trying to play catch up with girls who have had triples since they were 7. Actually, I believe the highest jump ever landed in adult LADIES competition was a double axel, and that's in the very highest level of competition. You could fit anywhere in the lower levels, although by the time you're 21, you'll have had all the time to learn a double axel if you want to.

So, those are your choices. It really depends what you want out of this and how much money you can invest in the sport.

The only "flaw" in this thinking is that you can't take the Adult track tests until you are at least 21, and the age may actually still be 25 -- so you would have to take STandard track tests in Moves and Freestyle until you are that age.

The most important thing for right now is to learn to skate and have fun -- if you want to compete, that will come later as you progress. Of course there are always local club and other competitions where you might get to try your hand at it, just to see if it suits you.