Because the blossom is out here, and the first daffodils are out in the garden! And it's daylight when we leave for the rink just after 7:00 am and it doesn't get dark until nearly 6:00 pm!

Signs of spring: Husband's parallel spin seems to have returned from its winter vacation. And the end pattern of the Fiesta Tango is beginning to go better - to the point that I'm beginning to think about stepping forward on to an inside edge, rather than stepping forwards and hoping for the best! Willow Waltz coming-along-nicely, too, although there's massive room for improvement.

Winter Frosts: Husband's very out of practice with his jumps, but they are showing signs of returning. I am finding it hard to think of things to work on, and tend to go round doing the same exercises over and over and forget what I need to work on! Must make a checklist!

Rink very crowded, as usual on a Sunday, and difficult to do full patterns of dances. Ruined my inside-outside changes of edge by having to cut an edge short to avoid someone and of course then couldn't get back on pattern. Cannot do back changes-of-edge except as slaloms.

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

Signs of spring? Ha!

Yet another snow storm has prevented LoopLoop and me from practicing (we are only really able to run our program on Sundays) ... and Easterns is frightfully approaching in 6 days.

Luckily, the snow has stopped and the temp has gone above freezing.

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Doubt whom you will, but never yourself.
"Do what you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life."
-Haha, I've *arrived*! I am listed as a reference on Wikipedia.

Winter Frosts:
Loop jump is still in hibernation. The only one I came close to landing on one foot cost me a fall. Why? A witness said I stepped on the velcro strap of my boot covers. I had undone it to show something and I didn't fasten it right. Funny thing is, someone else fell in the exact same spot a few seconds later, which led to an ice check until the witness confirmed that I'm an idiot and she just fell.

Signs of Spring:
Prel MITF - Threes on the line, well close to the line - much better. Thanks phoenix! :wink:
Spins were on today. Sit, Scratch, Layback, and Camels, Back Sit, Back Camel, Back Scratch too! (With proper back spin exits, too! ) Managed a few sit-change-sits and tried a camel-change-camel. Not yet, but I am not complaining.
Jumps were okay, but few and far between thanks to the crowd.
Salchows were outstanding and clean. (Amazing for me!)

Cold Snap:
Excellent flips, 99% landed, but not quite. Split jumps were really high but (I'm sure) ugly. LOL
Great incomplete lutzes - actually felt the backspin position on those.

ETA: Almost forgot - RBO things that looked like running three turns. (Could they pass as a twizzle?)

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Ditto here on the lack of "Signs of Spring" here. We're bracing for a LOOONG series of rain storms that promises to keep my neck of the woods went well into NEXT Saturday (says the weather forecast anyway. Figureskates, is this still true? I'm the San Francisco, CA area (middle of the California state.)

Since we're in Winter Frost mode... the ice at the weekend rink was CRAPPY! When I got there the ice was already demolished pretty much and the rink wasn't gonna resurface the ice again 'til after the public session was over. Didn't attempt the camel spin b/c I was afraid of getting myself caught in the ruts.

One of the coaches left a big enough figure 8 circle for me to play around with my 3-turns and edges. (The circles in the 8's are too perfect for it NOT come out of a scribe too. Too bad I'm CRAPPY at figures!!! )

Signs of Spring:
Got in a one foot spin, sit spin and a backspin, which of which really felt like it was on the BO edge and keep staying on that BO edge and spinning and spinning. Of course, I couldn't reproduce it again either...

O Heavenly Father (or in this case, secondary coach)! Forgive me, for I have sinned! I attempted 3 loops away from the wall at the weekend rink... ALL three cleanly landed!!! I know my assignment was NOT to do the loop at the weekend rink... only at the home rink. But I found some straight line marks created by the Zamboni in the center of the rink and I just couldn't resist the temptation to not try the loop on those lines.

Did I forget to say that I landed all 3 of those loops clean??? And it was easy too???

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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!!!

We are getting a cold rain here south of you all.
That sucks though about not being able to practice when you have Easterns a few days away, but think of it as extra rest.

Jazzpants- I wonder what Coach's penance will be for practicing the loop at the "forbidden rink"
No skating for me today- there is no freestyle ice to speak of around here. I stayed home and cleaned house and cooked!

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Adult Nationals, 2009 "The Time of My Life"

I'm sure she'll think of something since there's more work to do on my loop jump "muscle memory" to do , but it does reinforce the theory that my muscle memory has finally settled in on the loop and it's "remembering" to land clean now rather than two-footed...

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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!!!

Jazz, that is GREAT!!!!

Winter Frosts: hmmm-spins? For some reason, I'm stupid and forget everything coach says when I move away from her.....she says "hold the free leg behind you longer; bring it around when you raise up" so I do NOT do that, but whip it around and then I travel....I am mad at myself!!!

Signs of Spring: My 2nd spiral in the sequence was so good, she made a glowing comment-"That is the best I've ever seen it!" Wow!!!! Of course, she picked apart everything else, but that's ok (competition is this weekend, and still no times!!!).

The loop-what can I say? I do feel closer....every lesson is a drudge of drills!!! I feel like Eliza Dolittle and she is Professor Higgins!!! We are waiting for that moment when it really "CLICKS"!!! Until then, it's backspin, backspin, backspin, loop attempt, repeat.....

She gave me a new procedure to follow: backspin, backspin, backspin as warmups, then LFO 3-turn, 1 back crossover, loop, backspin

She is at her wit's end trying to get me to get my free leg up and in front!

So, after doing several of these, I clunked down on one and she really liked it, because the free leg was in front, although not raised very high. It was a small breakthrough!!!!

Then, to top it off, I said I am serious about doing ISI spotlight next year.....and if she had any suggestions, I am open!! She was really excited!!! So am I because she is really creative!

I think Skate Annapolis will be my last comp of the season...there is a Basic Skills comp at my rink but I don't want to do it...did it last year and felt odd. We just don't have very many adults, again I competed alone. I'd rather work behind the scenes, maybe doing hospitality or being a runner or something.

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

Winter Frosts: My Teenager is making me lose focus. What a nutty week. My focus is TERRIBLE. I am working on two programs, and can only remember 1 or the other, but not both on the same day.

Signs of Spring: A friend's mom told me i looked like a "professional" out there! I know it's not true, but it sure made my day. I think she likes my Michael Bolton "At Last" ISI number i am working on for fun.

Signs of spring: Went skating at Rockefeller Center today with a few friends for my birthday.(man that place is expensive!) But when I last practiced, my flip was very high and felt comfortable, and I figured out how to fix my salchow that was making me insane. Turns out after my 3 turn my free leg swings crazily out to the side, so I learned to keep it straight and checked for a couple of seconds after the turn.

Winter Frosts: Got my blades sharpened and my backspin ran away from me. I kept getting stuck!

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Way to go on the loops, Jazzy!

Signs of Spring:
- I think I made a tiny bit more progress on the double sal today. I landed one that was less than 1/4 cheated and where my pick didn't just stick in the ice on the landing and make me crumple.
- On Friday, my coach and I decided to simplify the body position on my second spiral and today I tried it in my program for the first time. It felt very solid.
- I also completed the opening camel combination spin in my program run-through today, which is always worth patting myself on the back for, since I tend to have particular trouble on the camel when it's the very first move in my program.

Winter Frosts
I'm still getting spooked by the axel. What the heck is wrong with me?! I only landed one today and it was over-rotated on the landing. I shied away from it in my program and didn't even take off. Um, I've only been landing this jump for almost 4 years so what gives?
My right hamstring, which I pulled at least 6 weeks ago, is giving me major grief. It hurts to stretch it out, but if I don't, I can't do the "showcase" spiral in my spiral sequence. And even after stretching, it's so hard to get the free leg much above the hip now. This is so depressing!

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

Signs of Spring: We had a small local "artistic competition" this weekend at the rink where my primary coach is... so I entered my new Interp. program. Only one other adult in that category.. one of my best skating friends who I've skated with for 15+ years. This was SOOO low-key for both of us, since we just figured one of us would skate, then the other one would skate and we could see each other's programs (we don't normally see each other do complete program run-throughs since our practice times don't overlap by much), then go have pie afterwards.

We both had good warm-ups, she skated beautifully, I was really happy with how I skated, and our coaches were happy. She's a dancer, so her basic skating is so much better than mine. I told my coach ahead of time, my friend would win, and if I were lucky I would get 1 or 2 judges to split the panel. One judge did give me first... and shock of shocks.. it was a tough DANCE judge!!! My friend took the other four judges and we both stood on the top of the podium for our photo (wearing our medals, so there will be no question she won.) But it was a great day, no nerves, good programs, lots of support from the kids we train with.. and really good pie afterwards!

Winter Frost: I had to drive two hours home, get just 3 hours of sleep, then go to work.. so no skating for me today. But it was SOOOO worth it! I wish all competitions felt that relaxed.

Signs of spring: I actually know how to do everything for my new test consistently

WINTER FROST: the tests will take place 1 month after we NO LONGER HAVE ICE!!! That is, they'll take care to get ice on wednesdays afternoons in an other town (again, that's 1 time a week instead of 3 we do now) so we can practice some, but I'll probably have school at that time and I can't call in sick for it because I need to get my bachelor's degree before I start a master's and I won't get it if I miss my court practice (which is on wednesday afternoons).
And probably, the test will be on a time that I have court practice too - if I'm unlucky!!!

So, how do you think this test will go after not skating for a month? My point precisely.


The Netherlands suck. What MORON came up with the thought to close all rinks except 2 for 6 MONTHS?!
And I need this test to get a programme. They only give us a programme after you passed this test at our club.

And my salchow and waltz jump and spreid rittberger (loop), I can practice on guards off ice. But that's not gonna work for the toeloop I fear.

I love it - what a great plan!

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Ouch. Be really careful with that hamstring... I know that it's depressing, but you can't push it too much or you'll have grief for longer than 6 weeks.

I pulled a hamstring about 9 years ago, didn't baby it and rest it like I should, and it messed up my flexibility and strength until I was forced to rest it (3+ months in a cast for a different injury) last year.

A second hamstring pull this past Septemberish in the other leg only took about 4 months to really heal, and while it's still a little bit tighter, the flexibility is almost all the way back. But I really babied this one (and, though it killed me to do so, didn't push it at all in skating or dancing), and the stretches were very low grade-- only until I felt a pull, no pain.

Helps: heat packs before and during stretching, under the hamstring
and there are these adhesive heat pads (similar to those handwarmers that hunters use) that some places sell in their pharmacy department (not icy hot or anything with menthol medication-- these only have carbon and the activating agents that make them literally heat up). I would slap one of those onto my hamstring before skating to keep it warm and cut back on any further injury.

Feel better! Hamstring pulls are the worst!

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When asked what his "secret" to success was, Wayne Gretsky said: "Skate to where the puck is going and not to where it has been."
Is the figure skating version of this: Skate as if you're doing an axel and not just learning how to hop?

Emberchyld, thank you. I am only stretching with warm muscles and I'm not really stretching to the point of "pain" (because that would mean I was tearing the muscle, right?). However, I am stretching it to the same point my physical therapist stretched my left hamstring when that one was tight, which is to the point where I feel a very uncomfortable pull and need to really make myself breathe through it because I want to hyperventilate! I am wondering if it would help to ice it after stretching? Or take ibuprofen?

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

On the other hand, I also pulled mine and had it hurt seriously for a few weeks, but I continued to skate and do spirals and it just went away by itself.
However, at the time, I was only practicing the toe-loop and salchow sporadically and had no other jumps. And my legs/groins/etc are and always were as inflexible as it gets (REALLY inflexible. I've never seen anybody with less flexible legs than me!) so I just gave up on attempts to stretch those muscles. I'm just working on what I do have from nature, which is a flexible back - an advise from doubletoe which is really working out so thanks for that dear!!! But because of this, my spirals have a 90 degree angle between standing leg and free leg at most.

So you know maybe that qualifies as resting it, I don't know.

Jazz, YEAH on those loops! That muscle memory is sticking with you now, but I dread hearing what your sentence is gonna be when coach hears about it!

Doubletoe, Good for you on double sal. And your camel combination. Sorry about that blasted hamstring. I've known one person who had a hamstring pull, and, sigh, it sounded like one of those injuries which is quite difficult to deal with and heal. But it is *really* important to heal it properly, from what I understand, or the "six to eight weeks" turns out to be six months!

I have a special comment about your axel below, when I post my skating day woes! LOL! (Seriously though, I have a friend who has worked on an Axel for years, and she says it's 98% mental........I know YOU can do it, doubletoe)



SIGNS OF SPRING:

-On the bright side, I landed three decent feeling waltz / loops today and they felt "easy". Also two salchow / toe loop / loop combos. These are not as good, but at least I landed all three and was able to push out at the end.

-Backspins from a standstill were good today! My rocker is helping me here, and I'm loving it.

-Catch-foot camel attempts? My coach started me on it last week. I touched my blade today. I couldn't get organized enough to grab it, but I did touch it.

WINTER FROST:

-Flips at boards are great. Open ice, the first one is "good", and after that I revert to bad habits/technique. I had two today that were passable, the rest crap, and just plain awful.

-Now for my reference to doubletoe's Axel. All I can say is, maybe it flitted over MY way, because you would have thought I was going for an Axel when I tried a simple waltz jump late in the session.

I got launched beyond any place I've ever gone in a jump, and totally botched the landing somehow. I really couldn't say, I don't think I pushed out, ....may have landed on the rocker and freaked out, instead of pushing out....but I fell BIG TIME. It's been a while since I fell like that. I think it's gonna be one of those 6" round bruises that lasts for a couple of weeks, with a bruised bone underneath? Anyway. My friend was quite concerned, as she said she "heard it from the other end of the rink", but I got up and finished the session.

Then, right toward the end, I fell doing a spin and got my L shoulder pushed up and my wrist kinda strained.

I think I'm becoming over-confident, and over-zealous, in my new boots and blades, while they may still need a tad more breaking in. Right now, I'm not sure I'll be having my lesson on Wednesday (due to the hip, the shoulder and wrist will be fine, I can tell now). I may have to take a few days off. I'll wait and see though.


Not a great day for falls, which can't be avoided, but I did enjoy the earlier parts of the session, and some of the elements I had success with!

boy I fear this is gonna sound really dumb, but isn't over-rotated actually GOOD cuz it's closer to a double axel?
I know I sound dumb, but somebody explain to me why it just doesn't work the way I think it works.

No. It means you aren't checking your upper body appropriately.

Signs of Spring:
For starters, I got off at my normal time from work today (3:30) and will be all week with the possibility of working late Friday (more $$ for AN '08). Yeah I skated after work!
Backscratch and sitspin were good and so were the jumps ( still no pain on the landing!). I've got my muscle memory back on all of them.

Winter Frosts:
My scratchspin was off today- don't know why.
I can do all of the elements for the Bronze freestyle test okay in isolation, but when the music comes on for the program, oh brother! The last two months of skating twice a week for a hour showed its ugly head with my lack of stamina today. My right ankle got a little cranky toward the end of the session and basically stopped all jumps the last 10 minutes or so.

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Adult Nationals, 2009 "The Time of My Life"

Well, there are different reasons you can keep rotating when you land. One is if you aren't checking your rotation on the way into the jump (i.e., you are jumping around instead of up and then around) and another is if you aren't finishing the rotation quickly enough in the air so you are not checking out and stopping rotation before landing. Either way, what you end up with is an uncontrolled landing, which means a wild, curling landing edge or a step-out.

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

Thanks for the encouragement, Jazz. And I am so sorry to hear about your waxel waltz jump!! Ow!! Ice and arnica, ice and arnica. . . and pads.

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

You might want to go back to the physical therapist for a check-up and some extra therapy and/or training suggestions. Maybe you will benefit from some massage or myofascial release. It couldn't hurt and maybe they could fix you right up!!! I have a tight tendon in my leg and I'm getting ready to go back for some more myofascial massage....it really does help!

I have started yoga (after a 25 year hiatus-OMG did I just write that?) and I am hoping to get some stretch for my ultra-tight hip flexors, lower back, and knees. Then I might be able to do the splits by the end of summer!

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

OMG, tell me about it. I am going into my PT place for a deep tissue massage once every week or two, and it does help somewhat. However, I can't get a hold of my physical therapist for advice because she is on maternity leave and doesn't check her phone messages. I would go to someone else, but she is also a skater so she totally understands what I am doing and need to be doing with my body. I once went to a different PT and she had me doing all the wrong things because she didn't realize how I was using my muscles in skating. Sigh. I will try again to contact her, though. Thanks for the reminder!

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

Yeah, I know how that goes. I just switched chiropractors because I felt I wasn't making any progress. My new one (which was actually my old one-long story) has me doing exercises!!! And he is ok with the skating stuff (falls, etc) where the other one didn't want me to skate (falling "ruined" his adjustments).

My regular massage therapist quit the business because he wasn't making enough money, so now I have to find another one so I haven't had deep tissue in about 2 months. I will go straight to myo after my competition (skate annapolis).

My next best thing is my new whirlpool tub!!!!!

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