Growling or Purring (Practices September 17 - 23) [Archive]

jskater49

09-17-2007, 09:53 AM

Okay I've never started a practice thread and my cat is purring next to me here....then I remembered that a growling edge is a good thing, but just think of a cat not your edges...

Purring...

Power class and I really worked...tried to catch up with one of the girls, never did, but she didn't get too far ahead of me.

Growling ...Then she had us run on our toe picks to the line and then run in place on our toe picks. Nope. There's just some things I won't push myself to do. I did side toe hops instead

Purring - I CAN STILL DO MOHAWKS . I think I've turned the corner on these. I did the five step mohawks and the mohawk in the swing dance. I even played the music, but I didn't like the music I chose, the beat was too hard to hear and I freaked out and rushed the mohawk with the music. We have a competition coming up in November. I think I will do the swing. Along with a freestyle and my artistic to Master of the House.

And I got a co-chair for the Spring Ice Show who actually knows what she is doing. YAY!

j

Rusty Blades

09-17-2007, 10:14 AM

Thank you JS!

Growling: I haven't skated yet this week and this isn't skating related but chuckled at the title about "growling" since Saturday afternoon I had to shoot a bear, a 450 pound Black bear who was getting WAY too pushy with my neighbors. I didn't want to do it but the situation was getting way too dangerous. I love the wildlife but one must draw a line.....

Isk8NYC

09-17-2007, 11:10 AM

Gee, I wonder if I can change your user title to "Great Bear Hunter?" Hmmm...

After being turned away at one rink (hockey clinic) I skated at Woodbridge yesterday. Is it me or does that ice surface seem smallish?

Made the guards push out the middle cones with the comment "My insurance doesn't cover this." Got nailed for doing back spirals (empty end of the ice) outside of the middle. The hockey player-guard couldn't explain what I did wrong, just kept repeating "Figure Skating In The Middle." Guess it's like porn - he can't describe it, but he knows it when he sees it. LOL

Spins were so-so. Got frustrated and removed my right blade, took out the lift leather, and reattached the blade. Much better. I think several people were in awe. LOL

Moves were pretty good - I even stayed on target with my axis. Yay me!

Jumps were weak - haven't really skated in a while. Ice was mediocre.

Sessy

09-17-2007, 12:23 PM

growling:
ankle still very sensitive
backward inside edges still not improving much

GROWLING:
the rest of the class got to practice axels under my favourite coach and I can't jump for like a year, ugh! although practically everybody in our group has now one injury or other that impairs some of what they're doing, with ankle injuries being the most popular ones seemingly, so I'm not feeling too bad. Besides I got some private MIF-instruction so it's all good.

purring:
rittberger-3turns (not sure if that's the English name for them or just the Dutch one) are working in both directions and pretty steadfast, hydroblade on right is working, camel spin is there. I'm falling a lot on the sit spin but I think it's still closer to "there" than it ever was. I'm sitting down now, I'm just falling after that.
Forward out- and inside edges are working fine, but I need to make them larger, since I'm expected to skate larger ones cuz I'm an adult and supposed to have more power than the kids to pass. Doesn't really help to practice in group class with the kids to achieve this, but in october there'll be public ice again.

Sessy

09-17-2007, 12:24 PM

Gee, I wonder if I can change your user title to "Great Bear Hunter?" Hmmm...

:bow: :bow: :bow: :bow:

Helen88

09-17-2007, 12:54 PM

I feel I have the right to enter these now I have an official private coach :D.

Growling -
Coach has to have a knee operation (after one lesson!!) - something about a cartilage I think :?? - so she's gonne be off the ice for about a month, and I'm gonna be coachless. =[

Purring -
I have a coach!! Lol - we were just learning basic level 8 and 9 stuff (drags, mohawks, inside 3-turns, etc), but it was nice to be able to ask questions and not have to go at the pace of the rest of the group.

Bill_S

09-17-2007, 01:25 PM

Growling: The rink cut back morning ice time by 1/2 hour. Instead of starting at 6 am, this year it starts at 6:30.

Purring: Because the rink starts later, I get to sleep in the extra 1/2 hour. It's a wash overall I guess.

Still Growling: Skated like the old man that I am. Three of us this morning each stated that we hadn't skated more than once or twice during the summer, but one young woman started out fast and then started doing double loops and salchows. Come on now, how can someone not skate all summer and immediately do doubles when starting back!?

Is it the enviable ability of YOUTH?

Sigh, ...where's my cane?

Rusty Blades

09-17-2007, 01:38 PM

Come on now, how can someone not skate all summer and immediately do doubles when starting back!?

Come on Bill! I can still do a full set of doubles and combinations (in my head)

peanutskates

09-17-2007, 02:30 PM

purring
got a new coach
landed loop (4 times!!!!)
scratch spin feels pretty near perfect
sitspin is way better
backspin is ok-ish, 2 revs, 3 at a big push...

growling
nothing because the purring is so loud it blocks everything out!! teehee. I'm HAPPY can't ya tell?

Bill_S

09-17-2007, 02:47 PM

Come on Bill! I can still do a full set of doubles and combinations (in my head)

(Sounds like you have the double-barrel part down pat (from your earlier post!) :) )

I'm also an optimist when I've been off the ice for a while, but reality sunk in hard today. It's going to take a while for me to regain what I had when I left the ice in late March.

I've done a double sal once though - in a lesson with my coach about two years ago. Got VERY lucky for a guy my age with that one. She had been pestering me to pull my arms in closer during the jump. However I believed that the arms were where they should be for a single rotation and pulling them in closer would speed things up too much. Still she MADE me do it, and when I did pull them in, I really pulled them in tight in a kind of 'grrrr' moment. I went around twice. Coach looked on in disbelief when it happened and said "you just did a... DOUBLE!"

I guess it's things like that keep you going. It's fun to remember.

doubletoe

09-17-2007, 05:12 PM

I almost spewed the coffee out of my mouth when I saw the title of this week's thread! My friggin' CATS are the reason I didn't skate this morning, making it the 6th day in a row that something or other has interfered.

10:00pm - Went to bed just in time to get my minimum 7 hours of sleep
10:30pm - Amber wants out of the bedroom. I get up and let her out.
11:00pm - Amber wants back in the bedroom. I get up and let her in.
11:30pm - Mia meows and scratches under the door and I ignore it because Mia and Sasha are not allowed in the bedroom at night. Blast it! She somehow managed to open the door! Boy is she proud of herself. I must not have closed it all the way when I let Amber back in. But I'm too tired to try to chase Mia out of the room so I get up and close the door and before long she joins us on the bed.
12:00 midnight - Sasha starts crying outside the bedroom door because she's separated from her sister Mia. I get up, pick Mia up off the bed and dump her outside the bedroom, closing the door firmly behind her.
1:00am - Mia starts meowing and scratching under the door, certain that she can open it again if she just keeps at it. This repeats at least once an hour for the next 4 hours until my alarm goes off at 5:00am.
5:00am - Alarm goes off. I debate with myself for 10 minutes, curse the cats and go back to sleep.

Gee, the BEAR story is MUCH better!! Can I borrow that one? ;)

jazzpants

09-17-2007, 07:19 PM

Oh, GREAT BEAR HUNTER, Rusty Blades. Don't shoot me... but I think doubletoe's cat story is better!!! http://www.cosgan.de/images/kao/frech/d015.gif http://www.cosgan.de/images/kao/frech/d030.gif

Isk8NYC

09-17-2007, 07:21 PM

Oh, GREAT BEAR HUNTER, Rusty Blades. Don't shoot me... but I think doubletoe's cat story is better!!! http://www.cosgan.de/images/kao/frech/d015.gif http://www.cosgan.de/images/kao/frech/d030.gif
Or, we could just let Rusty Blades end doubletoe's story her way.
(Sorry, DBNY - she hates cat-violence remarks.)

ROTFLOL!!!

jazzpants

09-17-2007, 07:41 PM

Or, we could just let Rusty Blades end doubletoe's story her way.
(Sorry, DBNY - she hates cat-violence remarks.)

ROTFLOL!!!OOOOOH!!!! 8O :twisted:

(Now, now, ISk8NYC!!! We at skatingforums.com do not condome violence towards ANY animal other than for self protection there... :P :lol: )

doubletoe

09-17-2007, 08:11 PM

Or, we could just let Rusty Blades end doubletoe's story her way.
(Sorry, DBNY - she hates cat-violence remarks.)

ROTFLOL!!!

http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/images/smilies/yikes.gif http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/images/smilies/panik1.gif

ibreakhearts66

09-17-2007, 10:40 PM

growling
started out popping axels as usual. i finally get myself to do some, and they are fine of course (i pop jumps i can do perfectly and have been doing perfectly for years). do another one, and i guess i was crooked, because next thing i know i slam the side of my face/head into the ice. i haven't done that in years. i guess it was audible, bc everyone (all 5 people) on the ice at the time skated over. lemme just say...OUCH.

get off for a few mins, come back on to spin, see stars, get off. then i come back on to do illusions. my whole ankle gave out and i just kinda crumbled to the ice, whacking my knee.

work on some double loops, but on on the checkout of one, i got my left leg stuck in my right boot, and landed hard on my butt, sending shock-waves up my already almost broken back.

BAHHHHHHHHH

shockingly, there was still some purring

my split falling leaf looks really good. it looks like a full split in the air. i know its not, because i don't have a full split, but i guess the timing of my legs gives the illusion of a full split.

my double sals were big. now, this wasn't the best news, because i couldn't quite absorb the impact of the landing, but when i'm in my new skates and my ankle is a little stronger, it'll be great!

finally--new skates are in! now, i haven't skated in them yet as they're getting waterproofed, but at least they're here! they are gonna be a b**** to break in--custom klingbeils, "very strong" ankle support, but with my ankle, thats better than "very broken down" ankle support. now i just need new blades, another 400 bucks or so :giveup:

dbny

09-17-2007, 11:54 PM

Somehow posted twice instead of intended edit. Deleted the dup.

dbny

09-18-2007, 12:08 AM

The hockey player-guard couldn't explain what I did wrong, just kept repeating "Figure Skating In The Middle." Guess it's like porn - he can't describe it, but he knows it when he sees it.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

I feel I have the right to enter these now I have an official private coach

Congratulations!

Or, we could just let Rusty Blades end doubletoe's story her way.
(Sorry, DBNY - she hates cat-violence remarks.)

ROTFLOL!!!

8O :x :cry: :evil: http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/images/smilies/yikes.gif http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/images/smilies/panik1.gif

doubletoe - Why is Amber allowed in the bedroom, but Mia and Sasha not? This is really the source of your problem. Just let them all in and out as they please :twisted:. My own doofus Cat goes in and out of the bedroom so many times a night that I hung a curtain in the door and if the AC isn't on, we just close the curtain and leave the door open. That way he doesn't wake us with his opening maneuvers or piteous meows when that doesn't work.

growling:
At Isk8NYC for her horrid idea! Skating? Bah, didn't get much of it in today. First it took me forever to get out of the house because I had procrastinated some important insurance business so long that I finally had to take care of it, and second because work got in the way. Coaching is a mixed blessing. I get all the free ice I could ever want - but not the time to use it for myself!

purring:
This was one of those rare days when I stepped onto the ice and felt great right away. I did get to skate for a few minutes and was able to warm up with F and B power XO's, cross strokes, and B power pulls. I usually have to start with two or three laps of power style alternating half swizzles and several circles of FXO's.

antmanb

09-18-2007, 04:50 AM

Purring
Worked hard on spins in my last lesson and was trying desparately to get my shoulders parallel to the ice on the camel and finally when i managed it i got around 5 or 6 revs out which completely thrathes my personal best of 2 and three quarter revs!

Also new coached made me do the uproght spin crossing my free leg over in a different way than i'm used to and i managed to get it after a while and it felt much more secure.

Also actually managed one revolution on the backspin which is progress...not alot but still progress

Growling
Jumps!!!!

Try as i might i've worked some of the drills that people helpfully provided in my two footing the flip take off thread and i can do ok with the drills but as soon as actually try to jump - i sweep that LBI edge right around the toe pick AAAARGH!

The rest of the jumps were ok but the "grown up" loop (in other words not doing a RFI three turn into it to generate the rotation) was not happening at all. It is very hit and miss but i think i understand the jump a bit better.

The attempting to stretch the free leg out on all my jumps has really thrown them off, especially what used be my most reliable jump - the toe loop. Stretching the free leg out on that jump feels completely counter intuitive and like it would force me to toe-waltz.

Ant

momsk8er

09-18-2007, 07:53 AM

I really want to hear more about this bear story. Woman blasting bear sounds pretty amazing to me.

Growling - my coach told me to pick earlier on my toe loop and then wait and draw my foot back before jumping. dang. can't get that timing at all. My body is so used to waiting a half beat before picking and then jumping right away. growl indeed.

Purring - MIF hooray! finally feel some "continuous flow and strength" coming on.

Skate@Delaware

09-18-2007, 09:25 AM

Dang! I've been out hunting a few times...but have only seen squirrels and foxes...Luckily, no bears! But, then again, no deer either :cry:

This is for last night:
Growling: my lower back is strained/pulled...and it still hurts. I stuck it out during the off-ice class. I am able to move around, which actually feels better than sitting.

Purring: We did scratch spin, backspin, spiral positioning, then flips (duh! I haven't DONE these yet) but managed to get most of the way around (with free leg in the right position for once), and leaps (sort of like grand jete's in ballet). Then it was teach for an hour, which was mostly GROWLING as I am either a bad teacher, not quite getting it across to these kids (3 yrs old and no attention span and 7 years old and a fraidy cat)....

After which, power/moves class (on-ice)...where we realized that i am one of the fastest skaters (among the top 5) in the class (of 15). I had to keep slowing down so I would not run into anyone in front of me...8O by the time I got off the ice, my back was GROWLING!!! So it was go home, hop in the whirlpool with some epsom salts. then ice it in bed....man, it hurts!!! I don't go back to the chiro till Friday. This bites!

Rusty Blades

09-18-2007, 10:03 AM

No bears today :mrgreen: just a thick fog in the country that slowed down travel. After a good restful weekend, most things were working today though it took awhile to loosen up.

Purr! Did practice time working on deeper back edges and stronger BO glides (to become a back spiral one day).

PURR!!! Coach referred to my upright spins as "awesome" :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: She said when I do the "slow entry" they're gorgeous :halo:

Growl:Sit spins are getting closer but still not happening.

We worked a bit on choreography (both Interpretive and Free) but my "creative juices" were at a low ebb this morning. Still, we came up with some ideas.

I really want to hear more about this bear story. Woman blasting bear sounds pretty amazing to me.

Ya'll must be a city girl? When one lives on the edge of the wilderness, ANYTHING showing up in the yard is possible. When a bear is no longer afraid of or cautious of humans, there is danger of it seeing people as food. Since I do not intend to be lunch for a 450 pound bear and would rather keep my friends in their "undigested" condition, the bear had to go. I never faced a bear before and had never been close to one that size! Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I became a redhead Saturday afternoon but it was my will or the bear's and the bear lost :roll:

jazzpants

09-18-2007, 11:54 AM

Made the guards push out the middle cones with the comment "My insurance doesn't cover this." Got nailed for doing back spirals (empty end of the ice) outside of the middle. The hockey player-guard couldn't explain what I did wrong, just kept repeating "Figure Skating In The Middle." Guess it's like porn - he can't describe it, but he knows it when he sees it. LOLhttp://www.cosgan.de/images/kao/frech/d015.gif http://www.cosgan.de/images/kao/frech/d030.gif (I will never think of ice guards telling me to skate in the middle the same way again!!! Thanks, ISk8NYC!!! 8O :oops: LOL!!!)

BTW, this is why I like Monday nights also! Our regular ice guard usually doesn't care if people jump and spin outside the middle. If anything, there's usually several lessons going on and they HAVE to do jumps and spins outside as part of their runthrus. Also, our regular ice guard (who sadly hasn't been here in a while, but I understand he's on a nasty project at his REAL job and will be back in a month...) knows a LOT of us regulars on the ice and one thing he knows about me is that when he "reverse direction" for 10 minutes, I will be practicing my waltz and salchows (and lately even my loops.)

During the weekend, the "skate in the middle" rule applies and I have been stopped a couple of times by an ice guard to stay in the middle when I jump. (One of them actually was telling me to help him look like he's doing his job by staying in the middle and telling me that if I jump slightly outside the middle towards the cones that he'll "let me slide by.")

doubletoe - Why is Amber allowed in the bedroom, but Mia and Sasha not? This is really the source of your problem. Just let them all in and out as they please :twisted:. My own doofus Cat goes in and out of the bedroom so many times a night that I hung a curtain in the door and if the AC isn't on, we just close the curtain and leave the door open. That way he doesn't wake us with his opening maneuvers or piteous meows when that doesn't work.I was wondering about that too.

FWIW (of course, this doesn't apply to cats but...) when I was growing up, my Pom puppy had to learn to sleep in the garage at night along. Needless to say, the dog keep whimpering all hours of the night. It was AWFUL the first week or so b/c she keeps whining, scratching the door, and keeping us up. Sadly, it had to be done. Eventually, the dog learned to sleep when she's sent downstairs (except when there's strange things like rats and people going by.) Of course, we had to replace the door eventually b/c of all the scratch marks. :giveup:

So it was go home, hop in the whirlpool with some epsom salts. then ice it in bed....man, it hurts!!! I don't go back to the chiro till Friday. This bites!You have a whirlpool in your home?!?!?! I SOOOOOO envy you!!! :twisted: (It's one of those things that I really really want in my home. Maybe someday when we remodeling the bathroom, I'll try to get one of those whirlpool bathtub. If only I could find something that I can attach to a regular tub and turn it to a "whirlpool". I've seen it once at the Sharper Image but they don't sell it anymore. :(

Ya'll must be a city girl? When one lives on the edge of the wilderness, ANYTHING showing up in the yard is possible. When a bear is no longer afraid of or cautious of humans, there is danger of it seeing people as food. Since I do not intend to be lunch for a 450 pound bear and would rather keep my friends in their "undigested" condition, the bear had to go. I never faced a bear before and had never been close to one that size! Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I became a redhead Saturday afternoon but it was my will or the bear's and the bear lost :roll: I'm definitely a city gal... thanks for the story! That makes total sense now. :bow:

Bill_S

09-18-2007, 11:59 AM

Purring: A freshman student showed up to yesterday evening's freestyle session and put on quite a show. Double axels, etc.-those Cleveland-area skaters can really skate! Almost all of my former coaches have been trained in Cleveland.

She's going to be coaching at our rink, and quite a few of the local skaters have already asked for her. I was holding off on getting a new coach to save a bit of money this year, but I'm afraid that if I don't ask soon, she'll be completely booked.

Got in another hour of practice yesterday evening myself, but spins are definitely on vacation.

Dianne - we don't have too many black bears around, but we still get visits from all sorts of other wildlife. I like living at the the rural edge, although your wilderness is certainly wilder than mine.

Our visitors are smaller than yours, and I don't fear being eaten...

http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~schneidw/critters/baby-racoons2.jpg

These guys look like they are purring.

Mrs Redboots

09-18-2007, 01:53 PM

You have a whirlpool in your home?!?!?! I SOOOOOO envy you!!! :twisted: (It's one of those things that I really really want in my home. Maybe someday when we remodeling the bathroom, I'll try to get one of those whirlpool bathtub. If only I could find something that I can attach to a regular tub and turn it to a "whirlpool". I've seen it once at the Sharper Image but they don't sell it anymore. :(
You can get them on Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Conair-MBTS9-Ultimate-Thermal-Massage/dp/B000F4Z9M0/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-1718499-5539966?ie=UTF8&s=hpc&qid=1190141456&sr=8-1) very easily.

As for us:

Purring: The coaches are back! Lessons again. And he has been able to reschedule us so I can still pop home to change and drop my stuff before work, which is great.

Growling: The coaches are back! Lessons again. Which means corrections, corrections and more corrections! All the same, he liked our Rhythm Blues overall....

doubletoe

09-18-2007, 01:54 PM

doubletoe - Why is Amber allowed in the bedroom, but Mia and Sasha not? This is really the source of your problem. Just let them all in and out as they please :twisted:. My own doofus Cat goes in and out of the bedroom so many times a night that I hung a curtain in the door and if the AC isn't on, we just close the curtain and leave the door open. That way he doesn't wake us with his opening maneuvers or piteous meows when that doesn't work.

We did that for 14 years with Amber and Emmy, who grew up together. Then Emmy died a year ago and we adopted Mia as a 10-week old kitten. Unfortunately, whenever Mia would jump up onto the bed at night, Amber would hiss and growl at her. This would happen at least 10 times a night and I became extremely sleep-deprived. So after two months of trying to make it work, we finally adopted Mia's sister Sasha (the only kitten from that litter for whom they still hadn't found a home). It solved everyone's problems because the kittens could play with each other in the living room all night while Amber slept on the bed with us in peace and quiet, just as she had for 14 years. A year later, Amber has finally accepted Mia to the point where she won't hiss and growl at her if she comes onto the bed with us, but she will still hiss and growl at Sasha. Oh, another reason to keep the kittens out is that Mia has this funny habit of snuggling on my chest under the covers and licking my pajama top until it is soaking wet. . . :roll:

And now for my growl and purr!

GROWL
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20070828/i/r2395519660.jpg?x=230&y=345&sig=QywoODWksnFvLKd6.5eI5g--
My left quads practically gave out 45 minutes into my MIF practice this morning! Am I so out of shape after just 1 week of not skating?!

PURR
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20070828/i/r4284514159.jpg?x=380&y=253&sig=RLrpZ05sDvfq1RKrxiNCfQ--
Had the most thorough MIF practice I've had in awhile and even had a little breakthrough on the despised back power 3-mohawk move. I think I'm about to commit to re-testing Intermediate MIF in November, after getting a "retry" a year ago! (Can you tell I've just been AVOIDING them? LOL!)

Isk8NYC

09-18-2007, 02:00 PM

Growling:
Sit spins weren't low enough, once I looked at the video.
Camels were meh. Did one decent camel-to-sit combination spin.
No decent jumps other than waltz jumps.
Grapevines were awful - can barely crossover both ways.

Purring:
Backspins were better without the blade 'lift.' Still getting used to the new edge.
Back outside eights were better than forward outside eights. Go figure! (Pun intended)
Scratch spins were really good, fast with a tight pull-in.

Skate@Delaware

09-18-2007, 02:35 PM

You have a whirlpool in your home?!?!?! I SOOOOOO envy you!!! :twisted: (It's one of those things that I really really want in my home. Maybe someday when we remodeling the bathroom, I'll try to get one of those whirlpool bathtub. If only I could find something that I can attach to a regular tub and turn it to a "whirlpool". I've seen it once at the Sharper Image but they don't sell it anymore. :(
When we remodeled (actually, it was a matter of PUTTING a master bathroom into an empty room...) I INSISTED on a tub with jets-I wanted a really nice garden-style corner tub but was vetoed.

A talk with the contracter resulted in a contract modification and a kohler tub with 6 jets. Not spectacular but it does the job! throw in some epsom salts and essential oils (bergamot and orange, I don't like lavender) and you have a spa!!!!

I have seen those mats that make tons of bubble! I was going to get one but then could not find one. did you check out sharper image?

Terri C

09-18-2007, 06:26 PM

Purring:
I wish my Muffin was. She sat next to me in the old computer chair and grabbed my wrist as I began to type. Luckily her and my Lab Chow mix, Luna are like little babies and are asleep by 9pm. They do not wake me up at all.
Now if Luna would stop chasing Muffin off everytime Muffin comes out into the living room.

On the skating end of things:
According to Secondary Coach, I'm now having growing pains with my loop jump. I kept going up, and either barely landing it on the toepick or coming close to falling. This is a good problem-I got more height and some distance today!!

Started on flip, boy do I want this bad!!

Growling:
Coach did not want to spin today. Oh well.

mikawendy

09-18-2007, 09:51 PM

These guys look like they are purring.

They DO look like they're purring. That's a great picture! (The raccoons that used to show up at my parents' house always used to get into the trash. My dad even resorted to bungee cords for the lids, but he had to loop them in all kinds of ways to outsmart the raccoons. (My parents also had a visiting woodchuck who liked to sunbathe on their porch.)

jazzpants

09-19-2007, 12:56 AM

Our visitors are smaller than yours, and I don't fear being eaten...

http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~schneidw/critters/baby-racoons2.jpg

These guys look like they are purring.Awwwww!!!! They look cute in this pose. Looks nothing like our raccoons that go thru our trash cans. (I've been lucky so far. Our can has this lock thing when the lever is pulled up. To my knowledge, they have not been successful in getting the trash from the can. (However, the spiders sure have gotten attached to the lid of the can. EWWWW!!! :x )

Forgot to post my practice notes for Monday... not much to say about it really...

Growling:
Loop and flip are gone again. Then again, last night is like one of those days where you just feel like your boots and blades are put on wrong or something. Plus it was WAAAAAY too crowded. I ended up practicing the beginnings of my two programs, b/c I want to look like I'm having a good time... not stiff.

Purring:
Back sit is starting to look halfway decent. I see it in the reflection of the glass. Of course, I probably should video tape it to make sure I'm not seeing things. ;)

Bill_S

09-19-2007, 05:09 AM

(My parents also had a visiting woodchuck who liked to sunbathe on their porch.)

I get visits from woodchucks too. They have a fondness for peanut butter sandwiches.

http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~schneidw/critters/charlie-eating.jpg

Growling: My stomach. Gotta get something to eat before I head in to skate in a few minutes. We'll see if more talented students show this morning, or if they sleep in and wait for the evening session. (and you'll know which my money is on!)

Rink meeting tonight at 6 pm to discuss scarce parking, new coaching fees, staff changes, etc.

Skittl1321

09-19-2007, 07:26 AM

The woodchuck with the peanut butter on good! bread looks adorable!

All we get are chipmunks and squirrels and rabbits that drive the dog crazy (they sit on the other side of the fence just out of her reach). But the WORST is the ground squirrel. He lives under the A/C unit. His tunnels aren't too bad, we are able to fill them to keep it from tilting, but we've had to go to all kind of lengths to keep the dog from trying to dig him out. We are scared the unit will crush her!

Oh- skating?

quiet purring I only got about 15 minutes of skating in yesterday. I told myself that I needed to run through my entire test without a warm up. My jumps and spins and crossovers were just barely fine. My spiral could have been higher. So now I'm confident I can do it under "haven't been practicing an hour" situations. My two foot spin was eh, but then I did another that was really nice. My one foot spin isn't always a scratch spin, but if I feel it getting off in the wind up, I can pull my foot to my ankle and get the 3 revolutions out of it. I'm hoping for a nice scratch spin though.

Growling Cedar Rapids Roughriders were displaced from their rink, so my LTS class and public session was canceled for their game. The plus side- while we were teaching the non-canceled LTS classes they were warming up off ice- mmmmm good looking boys on that team!

Rusty Blades

09-19-2007, 09:31 AM

I get visits from woodchucks too. They have a fondness for peanut butter sandwiches.

We don't have many small critters - the larger critters EAT THEM! Lots of coyotes, a few wolves, a cougar (around somewhere but seldom seen), and, of course bears.

Purring: Had a good workout pushing back edges to SCARY speeds, trying to get more height in the Waltz jump, and getting the 3-turn/pick happening WAY faster in the Toe Loop. I hadn't seen coach by her normal arrival time so I assumed she wasn't coming and continued pushing

Growling: THEN my coach showed up so I had to push for another half hour! - despite being a bit tired already :roll:

Purring: It was good though - we got the first 30 Seconds (25%) of my Interpretive choreographed.

Sessy

09-19-2007, 09:35 AM

We get siberian squirrels around here. It's because they escaped during world war 2 from a nearby zoo, and housed themselves on the territory of our university, which is in a large park. Everybody thought they were tremendously cute so they were never hunted down.
And because students leave their bags of trash lying around instead of throwing them into the containers like normal people, the squirrels come to the student housing blocks looking for food. They tear up the bags looking for goodies, driving our janitor nuts.
Anyway they're really cute, especially in summer they become very bold, you can almost feed them off your hands.
http://www.hetdierenrijk.nl/World%60sNature/landzoogdieren/Siberische_Grondeekhoorn_Tamias-sibiricus.jpg
I think they're supposed to be ground squirrels, but I've seen one climb a tree pretty much like normal squirrels.

No skating for the moment, got the flu. :(

momsk8er

09-19-2007, 10:37 AM

[\QUOTE][\SIZE] Ya'll must be a city girl? When one lives on the edge of the wilderness, ANYTHING showing up in the yard is possible. When a bear is no longer afraid of or cautious of humans, there is danger of it seeing people as food. Since I do not intend to be lunch for a 450 pound bear and would rather keep my friends in their "undigested" condition, the bear had to go. I never faced a bear before and had never been close to one that size! Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I became a redhead Saturday afternoon but it was my will or the bear's and the bear lost :roll: [/SIZE][/QUOTE]

City girl now, but longing to be a country girl. I understand the bears are really getting hungry and out of control due to the drought.

Growling - no skating this morning as I stubbed my toes on the dang chair getting out of bed this morning. Ouch! Don't think I broke my toe, but it hurts like heck.

jskater49

09-19-2007, 11:01 AM

Growling - I really like my artistic program so far but it seems to take forever to get it choreographed. Spent another half hour today and added about 3 things. Coach and I are on the same wave length for it. She'll start a move and I'll finish it.

Onto dance lessons and mohawks were hit and miss today. Reviewed the Fiesta Tango. People complain about the mohawk in that but since I tend to rush mohawks, I rather like the quickness of it. Of course for me the challenge is the dratted step behind. Also when she showed me the 3 backward strokes and then cross over, I knew it was going to be trouble because my other coach has tried to work with me to do back crossovers by picking up my foot because I don't shift enough weight on the skating foot and sure enough that was an issue.

Purring the secret to mohawks for me is knee bend, knee bend, knee bend, even with the strokes before the mohawk. Concentrating on knee bend in the strokes before loosens me up to do it.

Even though I won't be testing the Fiesta for a long long long time, working on it is a fun way to improve my back crossovers and mohawks of course.

j

Morgail

09-19-2007, 11:26 AM

Oh, another reason to keep the kittens out is that Mia has this funny habit of snuggling on my chest under the covers and licking my pajama top until it is soaking wet. . . :roll:

Awwwwwlll! Okay, yes, it's probably annoying when you're trying to sleep. But still....aawwwwwwwwlll!

Bill_S

09-19-2007, 12:20 PM

This morning's practice was completely listless. I was the only person on the ice the whole time. That doesn't help provide any motivation, and I had none of my own to push myself.

Skills seem to be disappearing faster than I learn them.

I hope my poor attitude is because of the anti-biotics for the oral surgery Friday. I've got several days worth left to get through.

doubletoe

09-19-2007, 12:30 PM

Awwwwwlll! Okay, yes, it's probably annoying when you're trying to sleep. But still....aawwwwwwwwlll!

Yeah. . . I usually let the sisters in first thing in the morning to snuggle for 15 minutes and they're pretty irresistible. Here's a picture of the licking bandit herself (last year when she was still a kitten):
http://www.freewebs.com/lauren_and_steve/Mia%20in%20tent%206-23-06.JPG

doubletoe

09-19-2007, 12:38 PM

sorry, duplicate message

Terri C

09-19-2007, 12:57 PM

Purring:
Had a great time skating the morning session this morning. I find that the kids that skate this session get straight to work with no fooling around.
Also found a good off ice class for myself.

Growling:
Did another lousy runthrough of my program. I think part of it is the rink sound system- sometimes I can hardly hear the beginning of my program and by the time I do hear the music, I'm far behind and try to rush elements and we all know what happens when we do that.

Mrs Redboots

09-19-2007, 01:03 PM

Purring: Spent ages taking the Fiesta Tango apart, and then putting it back together again. Coach is diagnosing some of my problems, but thus far I'm having trouble fixing them.

Growling: Knee-bend, staying down, relaxing..... you name it, I don't do it!

dbny

09-19-2007, 01:18 PM

All of the animals are soooo cute! My stupid cat seems to be having super purring fits at 4 AM lately, which means he gets on the bed on DH's side, walks across him (that's 15 pounds of cat) to my head, where he purrs loudly and paws at my face until I wake enough to settle him in the crook of my arm while rubbing his belly. Sometimes he repeats this after I've fallen asleep and stopped rubbing the belly :frus:.

Reviewed the Fiesta Tango. People complain about the mohawk in that but since I tend to rush mohawks, I rather like the quickness of it. Of course for me the challenge is the dratted step behind. Also when she showed me the 3 backward strokes and then cross over, I knew it was going to be trouble because my other coach has tried to work with me to do back crossovers by picking up my foot because I don't shift enough weight on the skating foot and sure enough that was an issue.

OK, I'm going to nit pick, in a friendly way, I hope. Not sure what you mean by "step behind". Maybe the LFI cross behind that follows the RFO cross roll? The 3 backward strokes in the Fiesta are B progressives and the cross over is not a crossover, but a cross front. It really is quite different from a B crossover, and that may be why you are having trouble with it. This is all dance terminology, and I have to wonder if your coach is familiar with it. You should ask her. I would love to have a lesson on this dance, but I'm afraid of the FI Mohawk at speed, and don't have good enough control of the free leg afterwards to be sure I wouldn't trip my partner. Have been working on it alone.

Purring:
Even though I was at the rink earlier than I like, I did work on FI Mohawks, and both L and R were feeling better and more controlled. Same with all F threes. I'm now holding the BI edge on the Prelim alt FO threes to about a foot or two of the line. Prelim power threes are also working again on both sides! Practiced one foot spin with more success than I've been having lately.

Growling:
I'm not a morning person, and it always scares me a little to practice early in the day. I need to get those Prelim power threes going in the proper pattern, not just on the lines!

doubletoe

09-19-2007, 01:36 PM

. . . he purrs loudly and paws at my face until I wake enough to settle him in the crook of my arm while rubbing his belly. Sometimes he repeats this after I've fallen asleep and stopped rubbing the belly :frus:.

Yeah, I know what you mean. . . My husband does that. . .;)

jskater49

09-19-2007, 01:39 PM

OK, I'm going to nit pick, in a friendly way, I hope. Not sure what you mean by "step behind". Maybe the LFI cross behind that follows the RFO cross roll? The 3 backward strokes in the Fiesta are B progressives and the cross over is not a crossover, but a cross front. It really is quite different from a B crossover, and that may be why you are having trouble with it. This is all dance terminology, and I have to wonder if your coach is familiar with it. You should ask her. I would love to have a lesson on this dance, but I'm afraid of the FI Mohawk at speed, and don't have good enough control of the free leg afterwards to be sure I wouldn't trip my partner. Have been working on it alone.

I'm talking about two different things. The step behind is after the progressive, where you step in front, then pick up your foot and put it behind you - very similar to the Cha Cha step behind. I have trouble putting my foot down behind me.

And yes, I know the backward thing is a cross in front, but it really is the same issue for me as with crossovers, because I need to have my weight squarely on the skating foot in order to pick up my foot and set it down in front. I know they are different, but the issue of distributing my weight is the same for me.

I'm pretty sure my dance coach is familiar with the terminology, being that she's tested up to International. When I only have a half hour on the ice, I don't mind that we don't spend a lot of time on vocabulary ;)

j

Rusty Blades

09-19-2007, 02:21 PM

Yeah, I know what you mean. . . My husband does that. . .;)

BAW HAW HA HA HA! I gather your husband doesn't frequent this board 8O

Morgail

09-19-2007, 02:30 PM

Yeah. . . I usually let the sisters in first thing in the morning to snuggle for 15 minutes and they're pretty irresistible. Here's a picture of the licking bandit herself (last year when she was still a kitten):
http://www.freewebs.com/lauren_and_steve/Mia%20in%20tent%206-23-06.JPG

So cute! I'm such a sucker for cats.

Ours usually sleep on our legs at night, but since I've been injured, they've learned not to step on my legs at night or they'll get tossed off the bed. So now my husband gets the 14 lb cat on his legs and the smaller cat curled up on his chest at night. It's very cute:halo:

doubletoe

09-19-2007, 02:57 PM

Ooh, Morgail, way to train the cats to keep your DH still all night so you get to take over the rest of the bed. :D

Rusty - Nah, my DH doesn't visit the board, but probably wouldn't have been able to resist posting the same response if he did, LOL!

Sorry, the non-cat-lovers on the board must be getting a little tired of all this off-topic chat by now. . .:roll:

Emberchyld

09-19-2007, 08:08 PM

Purring: I passed PreBronze MITF and Freestyle today :D YAY!

Good, because if I had to repeat that experience again (or the constant constant practicing only test elements), I'd have thrown myself on my own toepicks.

During warm-up, I think I also managed to land my best waltz-jump so far-- it was long, and I felt like I was floating. Too bad I couldn't repeat that, but it felt great.

And the club members, their parents, the officials, everyone was so nice and helpful and supportive of this adult taking her first test without her coach! (she couldn't make it, so I just did my best) We hear a lot of "catty" things about skating, but this just reinforced one of the main reasons why I just love the sport and the supportive environment.

Growling: I didn't do everything as well as I would have liked, and some of the judges contradicted each other, so I don't exactly know what to think. I can't wait to go over everything with my coach.

And I had to re-test the 1 foot spin because, even though I counted 3revs and two of the coaches counted 3 revs, one counted 2... so the next time I managed to eke out a 4th rev (annoying, since my spins were broken today! I usually pull off five or more revs in front of my coach, in both directions)

Can I join PreBronze for life? :bow:

Scarlett

09-19-2007, 08:22 PM

Congratulations Emberchyld!!!

Debbie S

09-19-2007, 08:37 PM

Congratulations, Emberchyld!

When I took Pre-Bronze FS, I had 2 judges write on the form that my 1-foot spin had 3 revs (my coach said it was 3) and 1 judge wrote that I needed 1 more rev, but she did not ask me to reskate, and she passed me. Actually, I think what happened is that I did 1 rev with my foot out, and then pulled in for a scratch for 2 revs (this judge is known for being very tough and she likely only counted the revs 'in position' - I mean, come on, it's Pre-Bronze!). But the test is pass/retry, so judges are supposed to consider the test as a whole and not really let 1 element make or break the test, plus my test was the last test of a 4 1/2 hour test session that went from late afternoon to early evening (read: dinnertime) and I suspect that if the judge asked for a reskate of my spin, the other judges might have thrown something at her - lol. :lol:

Morgail

09-19-2007, 08:51 PM

Congrats, Emberchyld!!!

RinkRat321

09-19-2007, 09:06 PM

first, congrats emberchyld!

purring:
new skates are finally starting to feel normal and not extremely stiff
did a ton of I-spins today. i even got a compliment on them from this really good skater at my rink who NEVER compliments anybody so that was pretty cool.
landed some axels & 2sals in the new skates
my off ice coach and her skater both told me that my spirals looked better
i think my split jumps are slowly, and i mean very slowly, improving.

growling:
boots are still to stiff to do double loops or really any other doubles besides salchow. :(
Flying sit = gone thanks to my new skates. i think it'll get better once my skates get a little less stiff.

ibreakhearts66

09-19-2007, 09:17 PM

http://mfrost.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/07/22/calvin_2.jpg(purring)
got my new skates today! sadly, that was about the only purring in my day:frus:

http://mfrost.typepad.com/cute_overload/images/2007/09/04/aggressive.jpg
(growling)
my stomach still hasn't gotten used to my new meds (requip). im almost at school, and i tell my mom, "maybe i should stay home, i'm feeling sick" so we're on the way home, but traffic sucks. almost there, literally like 2 minutes away, and i start puking out the window. haha i swear i have never seen a car pass more quickly than the BMW behind us...

my new skates are gonna be nooooooo fun to break in

and no skating today :( i was gonna try out my new skates for a while at culver, but my mom had to go to back to school night

Skittl1321

09-19-2007, 09:29 PM

Congrats Emberchyld!

Growling I managed to get sick today. I didn't skate during synchro but went to the off ice to learn anything new, then watched on ice. I had skated my lesson but felt like I was going to throw up the whole time.

Purring- I guess I managed to perfectly recreate a test situation. Today's lesson was done with me having hot/cold flashes, feeling like I was about to throw up and shaky legs- because I'm sick. Exactly how I felt when I was nervous :) Hopefully I won't be sick saturday, but if I am, I've practiced under the situation and coach still gave a thumbs up.

Saw Quarkiki and the baby today- the cutest little girl ever.

Skate@Delaware

09-19-2007, 09:31 PM

Congrats, Emberchyld!

I had an interesting lesson tonight, was taken early and went extra long!!! Coach gave me a new intro to my waltz jump....skate around the red hockey circles, then around the middle circle then JUMP! this builds up SPEED and covers the ice. managed a few nice waltz jumps before my arms got lazy and dropped...so we moved onto the salchow.

This has been a constant "fix" for me ever since I hired her to help me "get" it. My 3-turn is too curvy, I'm not doing something right with my arms, I'm not scooping with my free leg, and my head is wrong. So, my homework for this is to do it from only the 3-turn....and jump it!!! I don't have a problem dropping down to such an elementary level if it improves the jump!

Next, back 3's! Worked on arms/legs and tweaked. Got a practice pattern for rehearsing the ISI4 footwork: back crossover, hold, back 3, hold, mohawk, forward 3-turn, hold, mohawk, repeat. BOTH directions...but warm up with 2-footed back 3's!!!!

Last, it was the loop, which is my nemesis! Did some decent ones but they would have been great if my free foot had not tapped down on the landing (dumb, i keep doing that!!!!); homework: backspins, and loop "glides into backspins" along with waltz-loops (which I can do very badly!)

PURRING: I did several AWESOME!!!! toe-loops that several coaches saw (including mine)-they VAULTED!!! they had HEIGHT!!!! Yeah!!!! 8-)

Growling: my back is a little better but not a lot; my coach was upset when i owned up to having a seized up lower back (i.e. we need to communicate!!!!) and my right shoulder hurts now and by the time I left the ice, my left knee was hurting as well. I'm falling apart!!!

doubletoe

09-19-2007, 09:51 PM

Congratulations, Emberchyld! And DON'T commit to Pre-Bronze for life. . . We wouldn't want you to make a liar out of yourself like Jazzpants did! ;)

RinkRat, any tips on the I spin?? I always get the leg 2/3 of the way up and then lose my balance. . . :(

Ibreakhearts, I love that picture of your gray kitty! :D

RinkRat321

09-19-2007, 10:03 PM

RinkRat, any tips on the I spin?? I always get the leg 2/3 of the way up and then lose my balance. . . :(

i still have the same problem. how do you enter yours? i haven't officially learned it from my coach yet so i dont know if theres more than one way to go into it, i do mine from a back sit and then i lift my leg up into the I-Spin. what helps me is trying to hold the back sit longer. it gives me more speed and that makes it easier for me to hold onto the "I" part of the spin. practicing the position off ice helps tons too!

dbny

09-20-2007, 12:04 AM

I'm talking about two different things. The step behind is after the progressive, where you step in front, then pick up your foot and put it behind you - very similar to the Cha Cha step behind. I have trouble putting my foot down behind me.

That's the same thing I was talking about. The step in front is a F cross roll, since it's from FO to FO.

And yes, I know the backward thing is a cross in front, but it really is the same issue for me as with crossovers, because I need to have my weight squarely on the skating foot in order to pick up my foot and set it down in front. I know they are different, but the issue of distributing my weight is the same for me.

Now I get it. I have a bit of that issue myself when going CW in the Adult Pre Bronze three turn pattern.

I'm pretty sure my dance coach is familiar with the terminology, being that she's tested up to International. When I only have a half hour on the ice, I don't mind that we don't spend a lot of time on vocabulary ;)

:oops: ... I see why you wouldn't mind about the terminology so much, but it does make talking about it long distance easier.

Purring: I passed PreBronze MITF and Freestyle today :D YAY!

CONGRATULATIONS!

Purring:
I figured out why my one foot spin works better from a F pivot than from a T push or wind up - the pivot allows me to feel and find the spin spot as I'm bringing my free leg in. Armed with that new bit of knowledge, I was able to get a couple of one rev backspins from an almost-back pivot. Was once again able to warm up with F & B power XO's and begin three turn practice sooner than usual.

Growling:
Overslept and got to the rink with only an hour to practice before work. L boot is pressing on inside ankle bone again, and I don't have time to go to Klingbeil on a Thurs, Fri, or Sat morning to get it adjusted :x.

Thin-Ice

09-20-2007, 03:12 AM

Thin-Ice

09-20-2007, 03:15 AM

Thin-Ice

09-20-2007, 03:17 AM

Skate@Delaware

09-20-2007, 06:29 AM

jskater49

09-20-2007, 07:03 AM

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!
P.S. I think you can only join "PreBronze for Life" when you've been stuck on Bronze tests for a while.... because it sounds like you'll be moving past those tests too, with your good attitude and abilities!

Well I fully plan to be pre-bronze for life without ever taking a bronze freestyle test. I can't even get in a sit spin without spinning, realistically speaking, that's not going to happen. I'm not going to waste time with it, there's lots of other things to do I enjoy in skating. I'm perfectly content to be in pre-bronze forever.

j

jskater49

09-20-2007, 07:08 AM

Purring: I passed PreBronze MITF and Freestyle today :D YAY!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And I had to re-test the 1 foot spin because, even though I counted 3revs and two of the coaches counted 3 revs, one counted 2... so the next time I managed to eke out a 4th rev (annoying, since my spins were broken today! I usually pull off five or more revs in front of my coach, in both directions)

Yes, well aren't you glad you were able to do that many so you could manage the bare minimum for the test?

Can I join PreBronze for life? :bow:

Well I'm in it for life - though I do plan to pass bronze moves someday. But I have a feeling this is only a temporary place for you. ;)

j

sk8tegirl06

09-20-2007, 07:48 AM

Purring: I have a "program" to perform in front of judges for the first time. It is not going to be my competitive program but it gets me in front of judges before testing, hopefully in October. Nice change of pace instead of doing test elements again. I might actually get a decent waltz 8 on both feet by test time 8O Somehow my right foot is now cooperating in doing 3 turns.

Growling: It is only under a minute, so we managed to put something together in my 20 minute lesson, although I can't remember everything. So I kind of fooled around with it a bit at the end of the session.

Sessy

09-20-2007, 08:19 AM

http://mfrost.typepad.com/cute_overload/images/2007/09/04/aggressive.jpg
(growling)t

Wow, your cats look incredibly much like ours:
http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/1307/img2045ip5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/3109/glaschaenelisej501nq5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
And in our case it's also the gray one who attacks the other cats.

Our friday club training's been cancelled for a hockey game btw. *sigh*

techskater

09-20-2007, 08:25 AM

You know, once I pass ISI 4 that equals pre-bronze (most places anyway)....just a thought...it's the back 3's that are sooooo wicked EVIL :twisted: and the loop landing that is holding me up!

I still have no interest in testing USFSA for this year. Maybe next year, unless school is too busy! Oh yeah, I'm going back as soon as I get accepted to nursing school. (I have to take sociology (spring 2008) and chemistry (summer 2008) and the entrance exam (summer 2008) first-they are in progress.....).

ISI FS4 is equivalent to BRONZE, not PreBronze. ISI FS 3 is PREBRONZE on most announcements I've seen.
From the Pony Express documents for this weekend:
Bronze 1:40 max. Passed adult bronze FS test and no higher than the standard preliminary FS test or ISI FS 4, prior to 10/1/77, the second figure test. NO AXELS OR DOUBLE JUMPS. #3800-3801

Rusty Blades

09-20-2007, 08:48 AM

Congratulations E.C.!

RE: Cats. Me and my dog LOVE cats! :twisted:

Purring: Worked on back outside edges with free foot high (for back XO's and back spiral), sit spin (coming along), and started trying upright change-foot spin (potential but don't yet have the balance on my left foot and they "unwind" into a LBO)

Growling: I REALLY need to work on my back outside edges! The coaches all love my forward edges but backward edges aren't even in the same league (yet!)

That's it for this week! MUST buckle down and do off-ice jumps - I need HEIGHT!

liz_on_ice

09-20-2007, 09:41 AM

growling - back to basics on back inside edges which were never really good. Got a couple of good pointers from coach and I'll be working them. Discovered to my chagrin the other week that I've been doing that darn dance step sequence wrong - it's an outside mohawk on step 4, not inside. Started working on it the right way last week, LFO mohawk was ok, but RFO was scary. Starting to smooth out both ways now. Soon the change will be behind me.

purring - back inside pivot is pretty spiffy, jumps were all showing improvement this morning. Beautiful crisp day just makes you want to jump.

peanutskates

09-20-2007, 11:36 AM

I did 15 rotations on the scratch spin, with a good exit too!!! (according to a witness who counted...)

doubletoe

09-20-2007, 12:34 PM

i still have the same problem. how do you enter yours? i haven't officially learned it from my coach yet so i dont know if theres more than one way to go into it, i do mine from a back sit and then i lift my leg up into the I-Spin. what helps me is trying to hold the back sit longer. it gives me more speed and that makes it easier for me to hold onto the "I" part of the spin. practicing the position off ice helps tons too!

I can do the position if I'm just gliding on a RBO edge, but when I'm spinning, I run into balance problems.

How do you grab your free foot and pull it up? Today I had my secondary coach work on it with me and she suggested I grab the heel of the blade with the right hand first, keep the free leg bent until I'm most of the way up, then grab the front of the blade with the left hand and straighten it into the Y position. Unfortunately, I have trouble getting into the back sit, so the weak back sit is probably at least half the problem, too. . . :roll:

Emberchyld

09-20-2007, 06:34 PM

Thank you everyone for the wonderful responses!

I'm thinking that my "squat" spin might be enough to permanently make me a member of PreBronze for life, but I'll try my best to at least pretend that I'm working towards Bronze next. I think my coach and I need a short break from moves-- both of us have been a bundle of nerves since August.

And how wonderful your rinkmates were there to support you in the absence of your coach.

Surprisingly, I wasn't at my home rink-- I was two hours away from my home rink and club at an unfamiliar rink (in fact, technically it was my rival hockey rink, since my home rink is the Flyers' practice rink and I tested at the Devils' practice rink!)... scared, feeling totally lost, and having absolutely no idea what to do. But all of these wonderful people at the rink reached out and supported and guided this poor lost adult-- what an awesome welcome to the world of testing!

Purring: Me and my kitty as I slept in this morning, then as I took a nice long shower. It's been a while!

Growling: Me, as I realized that I was having ice withdrawl all day because I hadn't skated this morning! Back to the ice tommorrow, but I think I'll just take some time to play!

Terri C

09-20-2007, 06:56 PM

And now a word for the current longest standing Pre Bronze for Life Member....

Purring:
Primary coach was VERY HAPPY to see all spins in working order, as well as higher jumps from me.
"What is motivating you to get your tushie up in the air?"
"The thought of a possible trip to Lake Placid next April!"
We also now have to wear a orange or yellow sash when we skate our program to show right of way on the ice.

Growling:
The freestyle session was mobbed, the ice was crappy and if that wasn't enough, one of the coaches hoarded the music box all afternoon! I only ran my program once, because I didn't want to hassle with it at all.

LilJen

09-20-2007, 08:54 PM

Purring:
-My first trip to the all-new Thursday morning "coffee club." We can play whatever music we want, and coffee and EVIL donuts are available just off the ice. And, it looks like I could even do private lessons during that time, which would rock, because I'm still at the level when I have to skate with the wee kiddies who aren't so good at yielding to a fast, crazy woman.

Gradually feeling stronger and more like myself, but

GROWL! My ankle just conks out after 35-45 minutes. It's just plumb worn out, when the rest of my body has only just gotten started. I'll have to think of something other than spins that's also easy on my left ankle (can do only so much spinning before I want to throw up--yep, back at that stage again).

Ha, coach told me our rink is hosting the state champs in December and how about getting something together because she wants as many adults competing as possible?! I said let's see. . . am I ready to humiliate myself again??

Morgail

09-20-2007, 08:58 PM

We also now have to wear a orange or yellow sash when we skate our program to show right of way on the ice.

One of the rinks I skate at makes the skaters wear this bright orange vest. They tried to give to me...but it's like a child's size medium or something. I laughed - there is NO way I could fit in that tiny thing. My coach ends up carrying it and following me through my program. A sash is a much better idea!

And only because everyone else is doing it, here are my kitties (Penny is the big Maine Coon-ish one on the left, and Nutmeg is the one on the right. Her eyes are blue...they always come out devil red in photos! :twisted: )

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f395/morgail/kittiessmall.jpg

dbny

09-20-2007, 09:35 PM

Growling:
L boot is pressing on inside ankle bone again, and I don't have time to go to Klingbeil on a Thurs, Fri, or Sat morning to get it adjusted :x.

Growling, Snarling & Spitting Too:
After teaching this morning for an hour and 15 minutes, and doing just a little skating for myself, that L inside ankle bone was fiercely painful. There is now what looks like a cyst on it. I had another lesson half an hour after the last morning one, so I put a piece of sheerling on the ankle, and it got me through that lesson, but my L foot hurt so much at the end that I had to power pull off on the R foot. When I took my boot off, it was so painful that I ran home to get my old boots, hoping they would be better. Well, after teaching for three hours in them (with the sheerling), I was in so much pain that I had to take the skates off and walk barefoot through two rinks to get to my shoes in a back office. I have an 11 AM appointment with Klingbeil and have had to cancel my own lesson tomorrow afternoon. I'm really desperate now, because I have a heavy teaching schedule on both Sat and Sun. Someone suggested cutting a hole in a few cosmetic pads and I'm going to try that. Any other ideas? Off to soak the feet.

PS - the old boots are disasterous! The blades are a 1/4 inch longer and I nearly caught the toe pick several times. Now the R ankle hurts too. How did I ever manage in them? One used pair of custom Klingbeils/Coronation Aces now for sale!

Purring:
-My first trip to the all-new Thursday morning "coffee club." We can play whatever music we want, and coffee and EVIL donuts are available just off the ice.

What time is your coffee club, and how many usually skate on it? Ours hasn't taken off at all, and I don't know if it's the price or the time or both.

jazzpants

09-21-2007, 12:18 AM

Primary coach was VERY HAPPY to see all spins in working order, as well as higher jumps from me.
"What is motivating you to get your tushie up in the air?"
"The thought of a possible trip to Lake Placid next April!"NICE!!! :D

We also now have to wear a orange or yellow sash when we skate our program to show right of way on the ice.Good! That should help a little bit. We have "construction orange" sashes here... Of course, I'm surprised given how small it is that I can belt in pretty easily. :bow:

Growling:

Primary coach added more stuff to the choreography on the artistic number. And he liked the stuff that secondary coach put in there too! (His first words when I came in was "Okay, so what else did secondary coach put into your program?" There are more people who are getting a sneak peek at my artistic number now and the reception is VERY POSITIVE!!! :bow:

Purring:

WHA!?!?! I have to learn to be FUNKY, flirty and FLAMBOYANT too!?!?! 8O (Trust me -- some of the stuff that primary coach gave me is gonna take some time for me to adjust to. :oops: )

antmanb

09-21-2007, 05:37 AM

Purring

Had my lesson last night and i like the way my new coach structures my weekly half hour lesson - 15 minutes on moves and basic skating then aternates between 15 minutes of spins and 15 minutes of jumps!

This week we did lots of back outside three turns and back inside turns. Having spent two years being really scared of them and getting nowhere, she's turned it all around for me, she's just so encouraging with the tiniest of advances that it really motivates to push my self out of my comfort zone and get some back inside three turns done! Hurray!

Then onto jumps. Did a couple of really nice floaty waltz jumps. The new stretching my free leg right through pointed felt so weird a month ago when i had to start doing it and now it makes so much more sense - i jump higher and longer than i ever did before and it feels great to do it.

Made some progress on the toe-loop as well. She's taken all of the curvey entry out and wants a straight entrance to it and i manged to pop a couple of big ones off in the end.

Loop was giving me fits but eventually i landed two on one foot (though too far forward). Apparently the thing that got me to keep my free hip up and skating foot off the ice was to think of a piece of string running from my foot up to my hand...hand come in and up so foot has to do the same and keep up!

Growling
My salchow has well and truly left the building :x Coach thinks that mt attempts (which i thought were pretty good) are too swingy. The three turn is too curvey and turn too much before the take off. She's making me work on leading with my left arm and leg and leaving them in the same place through the turn - keeping the three as flat as possible. It has thrown everything off on the jump and i can't quite feel what it is i shoul dbe doing on the prep so i can't for the life of me get the jump. I'm going to work on the prep edge and forget the jumping for while.

Same with the flip - am running the drills that everyone recommended. They are really helping but i've decided to not do any jumping yet until i've re-learned the entrance without two footing it. I braved a couple of no-rotation jumps towards the end and managed to get the free leg up and off the ice with a lot of my weight back. This will take work :frus:

Ant

Scarlett

09-21-2007, 05:40 AM

Had a really bad lesson which left me feeling really bad about my skating and begging coach to let me off the ice-

Growling:
Loops, Flips, Lutzes = GONE!!! I don't know where they went but they are so far gone it is unreal. I'm not even crossing my legs in the air anymore. :roll:
Camel is regressing.

Purring:
Going through a lot of personal drama lately and for an hour I was focused on how badly I skate as opposed to all the drama in my life.

Sessy

09-21-2007, 09:24 AM

Growling:
they don't have the skates I want! I've been trying to buy new skates for like 6 months now. Sure, I can get risport, but I don't want to!!! ugh.
Anyway they *might* come in on tuesday now. *sigh*

Purring:
sitting down on 1 leg into hydroblade/sit spin position is working while keeping the weight on my toes (I always get my weight onto my heel, so I can do hydroblades fine, but I can't do sit spins at all). I can't get back up from it yet without leaning on the heel, but hey, I've got patience :)

icedancer2

09-21-2007, 10:54 AM

Purring: Getting more comfortable skating at the mall rink which is 5 minutes from my house. They have recently made some changes and are keeping the ice better and are cleaning the ice more often so it is more appealing to skate there than before. The silly politics at my old rink plus the 20-minute hectic-traffic commute was really starting to get to me. I will still go there once a week for maybe a lesson or at least a visit with my great coach, but the time has come to cut the apron strings to the place that basically just wants to be a hockey rink.

So the new (actually not so new - I go to dance sessions there and have been skating there off and on for the 14 years that I've been in Portland) rink has pretty sparse public session in the morning and the ice is good. I worked a little on figures (there is a rumor that Pacific Coast Sectionals will host a figures competition this year!) and did some Moves and parts of dances and it felt pretty good. There was one friend on the ice and a couple of adult lessons so we pretty much had the ice to ourselves. As I was leaving I met a new young man who just moved here to go to college and he is an ice-dancer and will be attending our social sessions - very nice! It's always good to meet new skaters! (Unfortunately I have found that the college students often show up once or twice and then they get too busy to actually do any skating...)

Growling: Well, I do miss my old friends at the other rink. At the mall rink I have to dress differently because it is basically not cold at all and there is not as good of control of the music as the mall muzak is always playing in the background. Oh well, I can always use the iPod!

My hip and right leg feel much better this week but my old fractured foot hurts to step on... I have to get a lot of body work and do a lot of yoga/PT to work this baby out - getting old is h*ll.8O

I'd like to post a photo or two of my cats but don't know how...:cry:

doubletoe

09-21-2007, 01:00 PM

And only because everyone else is doing it, here are my kitties (Penny is the big Maine Coon-ish one on the left, and Nutmeg is the one on the right. Her eyes are blue...they always come out devil red in photos! :twisted:

They are beeeyootiful!

PURRING
No emergency room visit needed (whew!)

WHIMPERING
This morning I made the mistake of deciding, "Just one more axel and then I can stop" instead of quitting when I knew I was getting fatigued. I don't know how the heck I did it, but I fell and hit my chin and also the top of my left hand. Now I have a big purple lump on the top of my left hand and my chin looks just like Jay Leno's (provided his was also purple with a little red scrape on the bottom). I am trying to type with one hand so I can keep my left hand elevated. . . I'm also completely avoiding typing with my chin.

Bill_S

09-21-2007, 01:41 PM

. . . I'm also completely avoiding typing with my chin.

SPSHNORT!-- oh there goes another good cup of tea! Where's my tissue?

Sessy

09-21-2007, 02:08 PM

ROTFLMAO! :bow: :lol: :lol: :lol:

LilJen

09-21-2007, 03:15 PM

What time is your coffee club, and how many usually skate on it? Ours hasn't taken off at all, and I don't know if it's the price or the time or both.

9-11 Thursday mornings, ages 21 and up. We've had 10-12 most weeks (this was only the third week). We'll see if it continues. The largest demographic is the retired folks, for obvious reasons : ) The Friday am session (7-8:30) gets quite good attendance as well--lots of people go before work/classes.

I'll be interested to see if they keep the 12-3 public sessions. . . I was there last Friday and it was just me and dance buddy. Forgot to ask him this week if anyone else showed up. Natch, I hope they keep them : )

So sorry to hear about your boot fiasco, dbny. I hope you get things sorted out quickly so the pain goes bye-bye.

sue123

09-21-2007, 03:56 PM

Purring: I actually got ot go skating for the first time in a long time! We didnt' have classes today, so I went and basically just goofed off wth a friend. Didn't actually get much done, but it just felt so good to be back on the ice. I attempted a few spins, couple jumps. I wasn't really trying to do much, just messing around, having some fun. Me and my friend were the only ones on the ice, it was great. You could skate around, pretend to be an Olympic Champion as you skate to old 80s music. j

Growling: Not much, other than one fall I had. I was trying to spin, and somehow fell. From the waist down, I stopped spinning. The rest of me kept on spinning so my back is a bit sore because I think I twisted it, but other than that, it's fine.

Mrs Redboots

09-21-2007, 05:10 PM

Purring: Ice practically empty this morning, only one Junior couple, who left when it was time for the she-skater to go to school. After which, there were three middle-aged men and me on the ice!

We spent some time trying to choreograph Husband a spiral sequence for his new programme, but there weren't any TSs or coaches around, and we don't really know what you need to do apart from that his knee has to be higher than his behind and he has to hold that for at least 3 seconds per edge. He thinks to go in to it from a hydroblade (copying another skater at our rink, he does a hydroblade-straight-into-spiral which most people don't have enough leg-strength to do, and he is wobbly), and then finish with his spiral-into-loop-jump, which he reckons is the only way he _can_ do a loop jump right now!

Then we worked on our step sequence and then the Fiesta Tango.

Growling: Husband had a nasty fall, although he only banged his elbow. But now his bruises have bruises.... Our Fiesta was dreadful. After he'd gone, I was all alone on the ice, something I hate unless I'm competing.

momsk8er

09-21-2007, 08:24 PM

what's a hydroblade?

growling - Too many munchkins on the ice. I'm getting spoiled from early am sessions with almost no one on the ice. These pm sessions have too many little people! I really don't want to behead any of them with my blade, but somehow I seem to be invisible to them.

purring - oooh coach says I'll be ready soon to test my pre-bronze moves!!! Yikes, that's scary.

sorry about your chin, doubletoe - I agree you should avoid typing with it for a few days

nice kitties, everyone.

dbny

09-21-2007, 08:40 PM

Thanks for the info, LilJen.

doubletoe - Weren't we just talking about that kind of thing on another thread? It's always that "just one more" that does it! Glad you didn't need stitches, and you are wise, indeed, to watch out for those nasty keyboards.

My boot seemed good when I tried it on at Klingbeils, and Don also worked on the R boot, which had become a bit loose, and was pronating like the L used to do :frus:. I ended up working a few hours today (my only day off), off ice, because of special circumstances, but resisted putting the skates on. I'm working from 10 to 3 tomorrow, and bought a gel insert for shoes that I can cut into doughnuts for more ankle protection, if necessary. The skating director actually said she would make an exception for me and let me coach from the boards in my shoes, but there's only one student I could actually make that work with, so my feet have to hold out tomorrow!

Sessy

09-22-2007, 04:17 AM

what's a hydroblade?

Like a shoot-the-duck, but done travelling backwards and on an edge, oftentimes a very deep one.

Mrs Redboots

09-22-2007, 05:42 AM

what's a hydroblade?

Like this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ng9ide5Myfo), only Husband's isn't nearly as good.

Emberchyld

09-22-2007, 05:55 AM

They are beeeyootiful!

PURRING
No emergency room visit needed (whew!)

:lol: :lol: Why is it that this just sounds so totally normal for a skating message board?

Skate@Delaware

09-22-2007, 07:42 AM

ISI FS4 is equivalent to BRONZE, not PreBronze. ISI FS 3 is PREBRONZE on most announcements I've seen.
From the Pony Express documents for this weekend:
Bronze 1:40 max. Passed adult bronze FS test and no higher than the standard preliminary FS test or ISI FS 4, prior to 10/1/77, the second figure test. NO AXELS OR DOUBLE JUMPS. #3800-3801

Ooops! You are right! I haven't seen too many announcements that mention ISI3=pre-bronze but then again, I'm here in ISI country...I'm going mostly by the chart on Don Korte's site. http://www.sk8stuff.com/f_rules/level_equivs.htm

I ditched work yesterday because I was feeling the need for a personal day. I really miss my daughter and was feeling overwhelmed. So-GO SKATING!!! I had a nice skate, even though the ice was really crappy from the previous night's hockey. My back 3s are coming along. Did some toe-loops at speed (i.e. going around the rink and speeding up) and they were nice. My spins are happening if I take them easy.

I need to swap out my blades soon, and hit the new ones with the Pro-Filer I bought (3/8"). My back is slowly healing so that's a good thing. And tomorrow is audition for the ice show. I am to the point where i dont care if i am a snowflake or not. I have better jumps now and more flow.

ETA: My coach gave me a nice compliment Wednesday at the end of the lesson..,.forgot to mention it here. She said that compared to last year, my skating has improved so much! Not a little bit, but a lot! From her, that means a lot! She does give praise, but sparingly so it means more when you do get it.

LilJen

09-22-2007, 09:29 AM

what's a hydroblade?

Matt Savoie doing a hydroblade (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SnU6lNAwz8)

Fast forward to about 3:00 and you'll see a fine example. Although I highly recommend the rest of the program as well!

looplover

09-22-2007, 12:16 PM

Congratulations Emberchylde!!!!!!

Purring: Good sit spin today - good 8 step sequence (I don't know when I'll test silver moves but I like to practice this) - and I finally memorized the part of the program we've got choreographed so far. Got skates sharpened...yay for edges! Worked on forward power pulls a little.

Growling: Sheesh what a crowded freestyle I was on - I envy all of the kids who just go for what they need to do and don't care how crowded it is. I on the other hand search for free ice which is no longer free by the time I get there and then bail out and I look like nervous adult skater lady to them. :roll:

My loop was kinda lame, I could tell it had no height - but I had a nasty fall on it last week so wasn't as gutsy today. One part of footwork feels awkward. Stuck butt out too much because I kept leaning over and looking for people around me.

Morgail

09-22-2007, 12:36 PM

Matt Savoie doing a hydroblade (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SnU6lNAwz8)
Fast forward to about 3:00 and you'll see a fine example. Although I highly recommend the rest of the program as well!

*swoon* I miss his skating. :bow:

Skittl1321

09-22-2007, 12:54 PM

Growling Woke up this morning with my eye completely red, hoping I don't have pink eye or another corneal ulcer- can't wear contacts today, which stinks because I hate skating in my glasses. The world is trying to make this test hard on me!

PurringEdge class went well. I can't do spirals on edges at all. My leg just goes crazy.

Went back after LTS and practiced only about 20 minutes. Ran through everything on the test, and I know I can do it. Now I just have to wait until test time.

icedancer2

09-22-2007, 06:13 PM

Morgail PM'd me and told me how to upload an image so I'm trying that out right now...

but it didn't work out....

Skittl1321

09-22-2007, 06:41 PM

I passed PB Freeskate :)
For some reason they had 3 judges judge it- and that was kind of strange- when I got off everyone said they saw that and were really confused. They were running pre-pre test 3 at one time. Still, I was glad I got the ice to myself, although it did mean you could hear my scratches. Overall the test was pretty representative of how I skate. My scratch spin wasn't a scratch spin, just a one foot at ankle spin, but I figured it would be better to do a low level spin well, then ruin a higher spin. Spiral was REALLY slow, but when I did my show program I caught a toe pick and almost fell, and that's how I hurt myself last month, so I figured safe was better than falling on my face. The pre-nerves were apparently a good thing. I felt like I was going to throw up all week. When I got on the ice I was mostly fine, just slightly nervous. My husband said I looked really angry (oops), but that I wasn't looking down the whole time (good).

Judges comments were pretty brief-
Two different jumps:
Judge 1: waltz jump- equal flow in and out, toe loop- not quite fully rotated.
Judge 2: waltz jump- okay, toe loop-okay
Judge 3: T-careful

One Foot Upright Spin
Judge 1: 6 revs- controlled
Judge 2: okay
Judge 3: 6 r on toe (eek! I didn't think it was)

Two Foot Upright Sprin
Judge 1: 6 revs
Judge 2: okay
Judge 3: 4 r (wonder how I got 2 revs less here?)

Forward Crossovers
Judge 1: controlled
Judge 2: okay
Judge 3: okay

Backward Crossovers
Judge 1: steady flow
Judge 2: a bit stiff and scratchy
Judge 3: tenative

Lunge or Spiral
Judge 1: spiral at hip height and steady
Judge 2: okay
Judge 3: 4 seconds- ok position, lacked speed (sure did!)

Scarlett

09-22-2007, 06:52 PM

Congratulations Skittles!!!

dbny

09-22-2007, 07:51 PM

I passed PB Freeskate :)

CONGRATULATIONS!

badaxel

09-22-2007, 08:44 PM

Congratulations Emberchyld and Skittles!

I love all the animal photos! There's a skunk that lives in our yard, but I haven't been able to get a picture yet!

Purring- Did one rather tight axel this morning a got some applause from a rather difficult coach. Also, started landing some 1/2 rotation cheated double sals. My back camel is getting very strong from the flying or change camel entrance. And, got through my program, mostly. Most importatntly- I turned 29, so now I can stop competing against 21 year olds who have been skating way longer than I have!!!:lol:

Growling- Only skated 2X this week due to Back to School night. Only landed about 10 axels in about an hour of attempts!!! Why, oh why can't I get this jump anywhere near consistent!! And, I've developed about 6 different axels, all of them are whippy or cheated or two footed, or whatever. I hate the axel.:frus:

ibreakhearts66

09-22-2007, 10:03 PM

Wow, your cats look incredibly much like ours:
http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/1307/img2045ip5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/3109/glaschaenelisej501nq5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
And in our case it's also the gray one who attacks the other cats.

Our friday club training's been cancelled for a hockey game btw. *sigh*

sadly those kitties are not mine. i am a cat lover, but i don't have any, my mom's allergic :(

first of all, congrats skittles!

growling/purring-first time in new boots. custom klingbeils, suuuuuuper stiff. i'm afraid they may be a little too tight along the arches, but i'm gonna give them a couple more tries and try taking out the insoles before i get them punched out. my feet burned like crazy, just like they did in my harlicks.

purring-well, not entirely sure if this was bravery, stupidity, or a little bit of both, but i did some jumping in the new boots. landed some axels and some double sals, then decided to go for some double loops. i landed some! it was amazing how much more secure my ankle felt. i have a hard time landing my jumps when i get too much power, because my ankle just collapses. not today!

got some compliments on my split-falling leaf :D i love them, they are so much fun. haha but i have decided i must be the only person on the planet who can actually POP one of those (ironically, a popped split falling leaf turns into a full rotation jump...)

growling- it was POURING! anyone who lives in the los angeles area can back me up here. plus my rink is in the valley, where they have flooding issues. it took about an hour to get to the rink, and i was afraid the engine was gonna get flooded.

the rink was crowded, but duh, it was a saturday.

oh and one more purring one of the girls at my rink said the sweetest thing! she's 11, and i was sitting with her while she was getting her skates off, and she told me how much she missed me when i wasn't there. she was like "you would never come and then i'd be sad and lonely." this girl is just too sweet.

Sessy

09-23-2007, 05:18 AM

oh and one more purring one of the girls at my rink said the sweetest thing! she's 11, and i was sitting with her while she was getting her skates off, and she told me how much she missed me when i wasn't there. she was like "you would never come and then i'd be sad and lonely." this girl is just too sweet.

Wow, you really do break hearts don't you? :(

As for the kitties, well some people who are allergic to cats, are not allergic to the Siberian breed (but you need a pure breed) because they lack a certain enzyme in their saliva which people are often allergic to. But you'd have to borrow somebody's siberian cat to test that out before buying one.
Also, Siberian cats leave fur all around and require a lot of grooming.

Purrring:
Today's skating cleared out my sinuses, and, COACH ELLY CALLED MY SPIRALS "NEAT" (proper/tidy, not sure how to translate). :lol: :lol: 8O 8O
Usually Elly is very critical of even the tiniest errors, and she was critical of everybody else's outside edge spirals except mine, so I'm happy like a bunny. :mrgreen:
And she didn't yell about my camel spin today, she just said to push the upper body a bit more down.

growling:
the stuff she said about my sit spin. Not that she's not right, she is.

looplover

09-23-2007, 05:41 AM

Congrats Skittles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sessy

09-23-2007, 06:36 AM

Purring- Did one rather tight axel this morning a got some applause from a rather difficult coach.

You need to change your name soon ;)

Mrs Redboots

09-23-2007, 06:58 AM

Emberchyld

09-23-2007, 09:36 AM

I passed PB Freeskate :)

Yay, Skittles! Congrats!

It's a huge relief, isn't it?

Isk8NYC

09-23-2007, 09:41 AM

I passed PB Freeskate :)BRAVO SKITTL1321!!!

Skittl1321

09-23-2007, 10:10 AM

Yay, Skittles! Congrats!

It's a huge relief, isn't it?

Yes- huge relief. But I've already been asked (not by my coach, he wasn't there) when I was testing Bronze! UM, maybe next year?

I think I need to get the PB stuff way better, even if it is passable. My husband came with me and asked me if my jumps were so low (compared to a silver lady, doing the same jumps) because I am weak, or scared. I had to admit, for the waltz jump- it's weak. I'm not scared of that one anymore :(

Morgail

09-23-2007, 10:37 AM

I passed PB Freeskate :)
For some reason they had 3 judges judge it- and that was kind of strange- when I got off everyone said they saw that and were really confused.

Congratulations!!! I'm glad you conquered your nerves:) I had 3 judges for my PB tests too. The kids testing pre-pre had to share the ice two at a time and only got one judge, while the other lady testing PB and I got the rink to ourselves and got 3 judges!

oh and one more purring one of the girls at my rink said the sweetest thing! she's 11, and i was sitting with her while she was getting her skates off, and she told me how much she missed me when i wasn't there. she was like "you would never come and then i'd be sad and lonely." this girl is just too sweet.

Aw! That is too cute.

Congratulations, Skittleskates.

Growling, spitting and claws fully extended: Appalling skate this morning, can't even do forward outside edges. Came off the ice in floods of tears and feel like giving up. I would, if I wasn't committed to the Mountain Cup! After that, if things are no better.
I'm hoping it's Darkest Hour syndrome, but I'm having a terrible day today all round (so far, it may yet improve) and it feels like it never will....

No - there is no giving up! You're not allowed;) Everyone has bad days. It will get better:) Do some stuff that is indulging - for me that's taking a nice bath or eating ice cream.

mikawendy

09-23-2007, 01:50 PM

I passed PB Freeskate :)

Congrats! That's great news!!

My husband came with me and asked me if my jumps were so low (compared to a silver lady, doing the same jumps) because I am weak, or scared.

All in good time. Most bronze, silver, gold, and so forth skaters I know do the single jumps better than when they were at a prebronze or equivalent level. Part of it is gaining more experience with the jumps. Plus, the skills acquired along the way from doing MIF that demand push and power and from adding freestyle elements to one's repertoire mean that elements learned earlier (single jumps, edges, basic spins) do get better. So don't worry about this! I felt similarly after my PB freestyle test--I did the waltz, toe, and salchow, and the judge commented that my salchow was tiny. At the time, it was.

Also you mentioned the judges had different # of revs. They're supposed to begin counting when you hit the "position" but I've always noticed different judges have different counts (off by sometimes even more than 2 revs). I think this depends on when each judge feels you have hit the position.

Again, congrats!!!!

ibreakhearts66

09-23-2007, 06:32 PM

Congrats! That's great news!!

All in good time. Most bronze, silver, gold, and so forth skaters I know do the single jumps better than when they were at a prebronze or equivalent level. Part of it is gaining more experience with the jumps. Plus, the skills acquired along the way from doing MIF that demand push and power and from adding freestyle elements to one's repertoire mean that elements learned earlier (single jumps, edges, basic spins) do get better. So don't worry about this!

so so true. plus, when you start working on the double (or triple) version of a jump, you need so much lift and power that your singles naturally get muuuuch bigger.

LilJen

09-23-2007, 06:38 PM

Synchro practice tonight was rather growly in tone. I don't know what it was--so many of us couldn't figure out where we were supposed to be, one person was in a rotten mood for some reason, and we ran out of time like always, then we couldn't really hear the music, then our 79-year-old caught a toepick and went down and was quite spooked (I give her credit; after venting her fear & frustration she did come back on the ice--that's gutsy).

I think it must have spread to me, 'cause I was feeling down & discouraged. It's been almost 5 months since my ankle fracture/surgery and I'm wondering when it gets less painful on the ice. (I did about 8 weeks of rehab and then several more weeks of rehab on my own/working out/getting back in shape.) I was hopeful the other day that maybe, just maybe, I could do some CCW half-jumps, but my LFO edge is just. not. there. I can turn my boot so far to the left it's crazy but the whole foot just won't go. I'll have to tinker with it next time I skate (maybe lean against the boards?) but I'm just really frustrated. Hoping it's just the funk of the day. . .

dbny

09-23-2007, 07:18 PM

Growling, spitting and claws fully extended: Appalling skate this morning, can't even do forward outside edges. Came off the ice in floods of tears and feel like giving up. I would, if I wasn't committed to the Mountain Cup! After that, if things are no better.

I'm hoping it's Darkest Hour syndrome, but I'm having a terrible day today all round (so far, it may yet improve) and it feels like it never will....

Don't you dare! I still haven't gotten to skate with you, after all these years. We all know that you keep improving as you go. This was just one of those miserable days when nothing worked. We all have them, and many of us feel the same way, but here we are, still skating. Now, go get 'em at the Mountain Cup!

PS - After I broke my wrist in 2001, I would have quit if I hadn't just bought expensive new boots and blades. Good thing we all have reasons to keep going :lol:.

Growling:
No time to skate for myself at all. L ankle was much better today, and would have been OK, except that there was one more birthday party to teach just when I was taking my skates off! That last half hour did me in. I'll be off to soak my feet in a few minutes. Tomorrow is a light day, work wise, and I was hoping to practice, but with the ankle, and a dentist appointment (I have a cavity :x) in the middle of the day, it's not looking good.

badaxel

09-23-2007, 07:48 PM

You need to change your name soon ;)

Thanks! I like it, though, because I have a bad axel and a bada$$ axel. I never know which one I'm getting that day. :lol:

Thin-Ice

09-24-2007, 03:46 AM

Congratulations, Skittleskates.

Growling, spitting and claws fully extended: Appalling skate this morning, can't even do forward outside edges. Came off the ice in floods of tears and feel like giving up. I would, if I wasn't committed to the Mountain Cup! After that, if things are no better.

I'm hoping it's Darkest Hour syndrome, but I'm having a terrible day today all round (so far, it may yet improve) and it feels like it never will....

Sorry Mrs. R... but you're only allowed to give up for 48 hours. Then, it's back to the ice for you! (This is the same logic I use on myself when things just are NOT happening the way I think they should. The other choice is I ban myself from the rink for 72 hours.. and am dying to get back after about a day and a half. Besides, skating is tough; so we're entitled to have bad times... if it were easy, EVERYONE would skate!)

Thin-Ice

09-24-2007, 03:48 AM

I passed PB Freeskate :)

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

And you'll take your Bronze tests when you're ready.. just like you did the Pre-Bronze tests! Hurray!

jskater49

09-24-2007, 05:01 AM

I have a group adult class on Sunday afternoons--due to schedule conflicts this is only my second class. The other adults in this class don't want to jump so we just work on edges and basics, which is fine with me.

Purring - Crossovers - I actually was complimented for having a good second push - and I was going the awkward way when I got that compliment! ALso she had us hold the inside edge with our free leg crossed behind and that was no problem for me - I could hold that sucker forever. But I remember the days when that was quite a struggle for me!

Growling Then we did forward crossovers without picking our feet up at all. Now that's still a struggle for me but I managed to keep moving without picking up my feet. There was a time not long ago when I couldn't even figure out how to do that

Then she had us try something she learned from some Russians in a seminar -oppositie arm positions - instead of the classic "hug the circle" position, put the opposite arm in front. This is supposed to keep your body more square. I'm mixed about this. It was a much more comfortable position for me but I don't see that as a necesarily good thing because in the classic position my back arm tends to creep forward, thus twisting my body and making me work against myself.

Besides I'm afraid my other coaches will yell at me if I change my arm position. ;-)

We did 5 step mohawks and I was okay - except for everyone once in a while I just couldn't do the mohawk. BUt since I used to always be that way, I have to vew this as progress.

Later on during practice, I did a run through of what I have of my artistic. Orange vest and all. Well of course, when someone has a new artistic everyone looks up and watches...and half way through I caught my toe pick and did a spectactular belly flop Confirming to all the parents watching that it is crazy for a woman my age to skate. The fact that I got up (not so quickly though) laughing and continued to skate did not change their opinion.

j

jskater49

09-24-2007, 05:05 AM

I passed PB Freeskate :)

Of course you did!
:bow: :bow: :bow: Congratulations!

j

jskater49

09-24-2007, 05:10 AM

Congratulations, Skittleskates.

Growling, spitting and claws fully extended: Appalling skate this morning, can't even do forward outside edges. Came off the ice in floods of tears and feel like giving up. I would, if I wasn't committed to the Mountain Cup! After that, if things are no better.

I'm hoping it's Darkest Hour syndrome, but I'm having a terrible day today all round (so far, it may yet improve) and it feels like it never will....

I know that feeling well. A lot of times, that comes before some big improvement. I felt that way not long ago about my mohawks. (remember the "I stink I suck" post?) I couldn't do a mohawk and I couldn't do a step behind which meant I was never going to learn any new dances.

Okay so I still can't do the step behinds, but mohawks...maybe...

Hang in there, the frustrating days that end in tears are part of the obsession...

j

Rusty Blades

09-24-2007, 06:04 AM

{{{HUG}}}

... feel like giving up. I would, if I wasn't committed to the Mountain Cup! After that, if things are no better.....

No you wont! You can't - you are as hooked as the rest of us. You will do what we all do - have a good cry and then go back and try again.

Skittl1321

09-24-2007, 06:31 AM

Thank you all for the congratulations.

Congratulations, Skittleskates.
Appalling skate this morning, can't even do forward outside edges. Came off the ice in floods of tears and feel like giving up. I would, if I wasn't committed to the Mountain Cup! After that, if things are no better.

I'm hoping it's Darkest Hour syndrome, but I'm having a terrible day today all round (so far, it may yet improve) and it feels like it never will....

I'm so so sorry to hear you had such a bad day today. I know it's a horrible feeling, but I also know that skating wise- it's probably a one- off. You know you can do forward outside edges. Give yourself a treat, maybe schedule some time off after Mountain cup, to ease the frustration, and keep skating. I know you do it because you really love it.

Laura H

09-24-2007, 09:56 AM

Purring . . .

I finally got to skate at the reopened local rink . . . wow! ICE! :bow: I was one of the 1st two people on the ice at the first public session on Sunday. Attendance was pretty light, hope that's just because the word isn't out yet (I think they must have wanted to make sure the rink would actually be up & running before going hot & heavy on the publicity!).

Nothing spectacular, but I did manage to stay out most of the 2 hour session . . .whew!

Waltz jumps . . . "felt" good, took a little video and discovered I wasn't getting much (well, any) height on them, went back and really concentrated on rolling off the toe pick and actually achieved a tiny bit of "hang time" . . . woo hoo!!

Half flips were . . .grrrreat! (I wish this wasn't such a nothing little jump in the scheme of things, cause I can really get into these!).

Growling . . .

spins were a little weird . . . can't quite put my finger on it . . something strange about the entrance. I gave myself my standard, "don't freak out, it's just a 3-turn pep talk" and it did a little better. Also did some "push from the line" drills to make sure I wasn't cheating the entrance. By the end of the session, I had at least a few decently centered spins. Didn't attempt the backspin at all though . . . considered the sit spin and decided against it :halo: but did do some shoot-the-ducks though.

yeesh. Salchows are sad. I did make myself do a series of them though, ugly as they were (little hoppy things!). I figure at least I can work on the timing aspect of it.

STILL trying to figure out what to do about lessons . . . I probably need to sign up for group lessons just to take advantage of the ice time, but I'm not sure what the "adult class" is going to consist of . . . I may just end up taking "jump & spin" with the kids . . . can't decide. So much depends on the instructor!! :frus:

quarkiki2

09-24-2007, 10:51 AM

Congrats, Jessi!!!

doubletoe

09-24-2007, 12:59 PM

Skittl, way to go!!!!! :bow: :bow: :bow:

Mrs. Redboots, I think you are right about the "darkest hour." That has always been my experience with skating, so just hang in there! Maybe take a little breather and do something on the ice that just *feels good* to remind yourself why you wanted to do this in the first place, KWIM? ((Big hug)) :)

jazzpants

09-24-2007, 08:25 PM

Congratulations, Jessi!!! YAAAAY!!!

Welcome to the Pre-Bronze Peanut Gallery!!! (Which of course, I have reliquish membership of a while back... but... :bow: :bow: :bow: )

(((Annabel))) My experience has been that it's usually when you have the worst times on the ice that your better skating session will come... so HANG IN THERE!!!

Purring

Loop jump
A couple of clean waltz-loops!
Transition from back sit to forward attitude spin is decent.
Actually took some time today to practice the beginning of both my programs so it's smoother and I can get into it quicker. It was smoother towards the end of the public sessionGrowling

Flip jump. I had a couple of them that didn't land clean and one that landed clean but the landing was scary.
Beginning of FS program needs polish. Beginning of artistic program really needs a show stop... and I still haven't mastered it yet. And I sorta accidentally almost whacked another skater off his balance thru the arm gesture of the program. :oops: (He recovered and stayed vertical, thankfully.)
Back sit isn't low enough yet.
Was playing around with different spirals...Tried to do a Y-spiral on ice (since I could sorta do one off ice.) Can get the leg up but can't stand up straight. :frus:
Ice is crappy and WAAAAY too crowded to practice the transition going into my straightline footwork in my FS program.