Comfortable: Got to "squeeze" in that extra skating session--sooooo, drove up and found what seemed like a zillion kids from day camps (in lovely neon t-shirts) trying to get skates on, tied, etc..... felt sorry for some so helped tie skates for the little ones (daughter rolled her eyes, calling me "everyone's mom"). Rink was warm! Got some pointers on straightening out my spiral! Did a 1/2 loop (without crashing!), and didn't pitch forward on my waltz jump landing! And, got an offer of a partner for an exhibition skate!!!Ah, the little things in life that make it worth living!

Uncomfortable: the zillion kids from day camps! Power pulls that made my legs sore (haven't done them in months!); Stretching and arching my back on jump landings so I don't pitch forward; keeping my back arched on spirals; etc, etc, etc. I swear I've used more muscles today than ever before!

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Skate@Delaware
Ah, show skating!!! I do it for the glitter!

Uncomfortable: Well, the week started of badly, lets put it that way. There has been a car accident, no one was hurt, arguments, a death, no skating (well till today), illness, just generally not a good week. It started last friday, reached its peak on monday but things started to look up from there.

Comfortable: I has such a good skate this morning, maybe it was because I havent been able to skate this week, but it was just such a good lesson. My jumps where pretty normal really, but im improving so thats what matters. My spins were just great, best ones i have done in ages. Edges are improving a lot, even if i do put me foot down a few times here and there. The main thing my coach told me today was to keep my arms up, aslong as pointing out faults in my skating, like toe pushing one way and not the other. But, that just means i have more things to work on for next lesson. Even my dad thought i skated better and a lot faster this morning. I just had such a good lesson. The ice was so empty, there was me and my coach, and another coach with his student and that was all. It was just so nice. So apart from the rubbish start to the week, im feel quiet happy today and i just cant wait to go skating again tomorrow.

Hannah. x

Comfortable: Last night's ice dance club session was fun, as usual. Very few men, one of our most regular men was in the middle of rewiring his house and felt he really couldn't leave his wife to cope with all the floorboards up! And another did come but got off early as his knee had "gone". But got my Festival Quickstep rather better than it had been - I'm almost comfortable with it now.

Uncomfortable: Did a 14-step with Husband. Not fun - I find I need to work on getting on with it after the step to forward - I want another beat there to get my balance again, which, of course, I can't have! Still, it will come with practice. Also did a Foxtrot, which was seriously dire, but not bad since I haven't done it for ages. We were so out of time in the Canadian Cha-cha that I had to stop dancing it, it was just silly, and I felt that Husband was rushing the long change of edge in the Fiesta Tango.

This morning's practice was all uncomfortable, though. Husband, for some reason, was in the most appalling mood and everything I said was wrong, and all the mistakes we made were my fault, and I was "earwigging" on someone else's lesson when I just happened to be skating into position to start the exercise we'd just decided to do, and at the very end I had my head bitten off for reminding him to pick up his blade-flannel! Honestly...... men..... I still have ruffled feathers now, some hours later!

And things got no better after he'd stormed off, either, as the elite dancers are preparing for a competition next week, and they were all edgy and snappy, too. All in all, I was quite thankful to leave the rink today!

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Mrs Redboots
~~~~~~~~
I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

Comfortable: Spin lesson went well - sit-change-sit is coming along nicely, I think. And I'm up to almost-3 revs in position on the camel, Coach is giving me credit for three but I suspect that judges might not be so generous. Also hit one terrific layback - centered, decent bend and 8 revs!

No work on flips or lutzes ( ) because I have a competition next weekend and Coach wanted to work fine points of the program. So we did run-throughs - and more run-throughs - and more run-throughs....She likes the tweaking I did with the spirals, but....

Uncomfortable: ....the ending pivot is iffy and I can't get the arm swings right. Or I get the arm swings and nearly fall over in the final stop. Or I wrap the prop string around my neck and hit myself on the head with the ball. Eight seconds of music and we spent almost an hour on it and it's still wonky. The only saving grace is that if I stay in character I can look awkward - the character isn't supposed to be good at the skill.

It's not fair, I want to be good enough to go to a competition!

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http://www.yourphotoalbums.co.uk

Me too! (Bronze Moves and FS tests, anyone???)

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

But Jazzpants - it's only your Adult Nationals you're not qualified for - you could do the various European competitions, or even Peach Classic....

Melzorina, you may find you qualify for club competitions, even now. Or even Opens, mostly in this country they don't have minimum levels.

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Mrs Redboots
~~~~~~~~
I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

Yeah, I know. I know!!! And all the other various local competition too like Skate SF!!! And heck, I could do next year's Adult Sectionals too as a pre-Bronze skater. But I REALLY want to do AN the most!!!

Melzorina: Check within your area to see if there are any local competitions... you could probably go into those. Skate SF here in San Francisco always have beginner competitions from ISI pre-Alpha on up... so if you can afford going to San Francisco... no excuses for you!!!

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

Comfortable:
Power threes- for some reason they've finally arrived! Was able to do complete patterns of them minus the chicken factor!
Early morning skating on Thursday morning, complete with Starbucks incentive!

Uncomfortable:
My freeskate program- 8 weeks until Peach and it's hard to get together! At least it's 8 weeks and not two!

Decided not to skate today- am too tired from yesterday. Was up at 4:15 for a dash to Starbucks before my lesson at 6:10 in the morning, then home to give Dad a much needed break from Mom. Had a lot of people in and out of the house yesterday to get Mom admitted to a home hospice program. At least we'll get more help with her
Dad was to go early this morning to help one of our neighbors out, but the neighbor didn't need Dad until later! So no skating this morning, and am in holiday mode, so to speak, so will stay at home and rest, with skating resuming on Tuesday- no ice here on the 4th!

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Adult Nationals, 2009 "The Time of My Life"

How bout skating in an exhibition? Does your rink have them? Ours opens the season with one, usually about one month after opening. It's usually just for parents and anyone who happens to stop in, but your get to do a whole routine, with music (vocals even) and be announced. I'm going to try to be in one this fall.....(pray for me).

See if you can do it too!

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Skate@Delaware
Ah, show skating!!! I do it for the glitter!

Uncomfortable: I have not been skating since Wed. morning and I'm not skating 'til tomorrow. Have been resting my back and trying to catch up on some needed sleep. It's feeling much better today but I have to be careful...

Comfortable: GREAT NEWS about the "Fire & Ice" show... add one more star to the list of cast (besides yours truly, of course!!!) RUDY GALINDO will be joining Kavady on our show as well!!! YEEEEEE HAAAAAWWW!!!!

Man! I wonder who else is joining our show too! Last I've heard another elite skater hasn't officially consented yet...and no, it's not Galindo. (Are you reading this, Lives To Skate???)

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

Opens? To compete in the club competitions, you ahve to be a member, and my mum doesn't fancy forking over £40 a year, plus about £30 for the club jacket, and competition fees etc. So not fair! That also goes for the exhibition. I really wanna be in it!

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http://www.yourphotoalbums.co.uk

Well, that's what Saturday/summer jobs are for, isn't it! You don't have to buy the jacket, mind - or you may be able to buy a second-hand one.

Our club's competitions are mostly members-only, but we have two a year for which the only criterion is that you have to be taught by one of the rink's coaches. It's actually cheaper for members to enter, but non-members may.

You do have to belong to NISA to compete at Opens, which is somewhere around the £30-a-year mark (a little less, I think, but I can't remember exactly how much), but then, you're going to need to join sooner or later when you are ready to start taking the Level 1 Bronze tests.....

We didn't skate today - neither of us likes Saturday patch enough for it to be worth getting up for except in the run-up to competition - but we have subscribed to a new package of television channels, including the only one that ever shows skating!!! Yaaay! Plus, too, the Tour de France, which is why we subscribed today.....

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Mrs Redboots
~~~~~~~~
I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

First couples' lesson today since the competition, and we spent most of the time practising forward stroking in reverse Kilian hold! As we not only expected, but also both needed & wanted. We did some work on swing rolls in Kilian hold, too, focussing on the swing rather than on the edge, and on stroking in waltz hold. Mostly working on the holds, which still leave a lot to be desired. Plus we did a figure-8 of runs round the circle in reverse Kilian, and rather surprised our coach by how much better we were doing them than before. I told him we'd been working on Jen's coach's Evil Eights, or a modified version thereof, in hold, and he was dead pleased! We have to go on - I think we may have quiet ice on Tuesday, so will be able to do that then.

Out of lesson, we played with the Foxtrot, 14-step and Festival Quickstep, and a bit of the step sequence in our free dance.

Nothing really uncomfortable, surprisingly - all went fairly well! We might have had a row about the step sequence, but luckily it was time to get off, so we didn't!

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Mrs Redboots
~~~~~~~~
I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

Or so I thought!
I was awakened at 4:45 yesterday morning to take care of Mom. Soon after, was followed by a phone call from the hospital where I work at to stay home. We are called off in 4 hour increments, so I called back at 10 am to find out that I was going to be off for the entire day! With that news, Dad shooed me out the door to skate!
Had a awesome practice, save for spins. Program runthrough was okay, but the the Bronze moves rocked- even the power threes!
On top of all that, it was mostly adults on the session, so we played 80's rock n roll and let it rip (INXS, New Order, with some Coldplay mixed in)!

Same work scenario happened again today- so I'll be back at work on Tuesday!

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Adult Nationals, 2009 "The Time of My Life"

Uncomfortable: My knee

I don't know what I did to it. I fell on the other knee a few days ago... and it looks AWFUL. And it feels weird when I do certain things. I can't afford to stop skating for months, so until I get myself into a doctor (blasted holiday on Monday means I can't go then... :rolleyes: GRAH) I'm off the ice. Which is impossibly hard for me. I'm dying to skate! But.... I don't want to hurt myself permanently, or in a way that means LONG times off of the ice.

Waaaaaaahhhh!

Uncomfortable:
That I ran out of steam at the end and my body just didn't want to do spins and jumps....

Comfortable:
Was mainly practicing Bronze Moves and footwork stuff related to my program Doing a RFI3 from full speed is getting better, but not there yet. As for doing RFI mohawk from a fast speed, also not there yet... But Bronze Moves definitely still steady... even the power 3's!

Met a new beginner adult skater who complimented on my skating. When we introduced outselves, she asks if I post on the RSSIR newsgroup? She remembers my name!!! KEWL!!! Looks like I have a fan!!!

__________________
Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!