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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!

Ladies-sasha
mens-alexei even though I doubt that it will happen.
pairs-someone other than s&z, P&t or a russian I hope.
dance-dont know dont care and dont want to care

Share a skating horror story.

I was 15 years old, and it was my last competition because I had decided to quit at the end of the season. I was at the Tri-States competition in Ohio. In my warm up, I fell on my double loop and somehow managed to end up sitting on the back end of my blade. It ripped my dress and cut open my, ahem, back end.

I was skating later in the flight, so my mom sewed up the dress, dried my tears, and I skated anyway. I think I finished 8th - not the way I wanted to end my competitive career . (At least, I thought it was the end at the time -- I never dreamed I'd be competing again as an adult!)

Do you prefer your ice to be softer or harder?

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"The only place where success comes before work is in a dictionary." -- Vidal Sasson

"Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway." -- Unknown

Harder. Soft ice annoys me, I can't get a good edge and it's distracting.

What's your favorite non jump or spin move? Mine are spirals. My coach said the other day I have a very good spiral and that's high praise from her!!

Lunge. I have a very low lunge that looks like Sasha Cohens.

are you a jumper or a spinner? Im a jumper by far...

I'd choose spinner because there's nothing like hitting the sweet spot on the blade and getting a fast, controlled, centered spin. I'm fairly equal with both though.


Do you suffer from smelly skates? If so, how do you counteract the stench!?

Mine do smell, and it is worse since I skate barefoot too.

I haven't found anything to counter the odor. My wife has banished them to the closet in the basement since she doesn't want them upstairs.

What blades do you use?

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Keeping School Figures Alive!!

Gold Seal for Free and MK Dance for, erm, Dance!


If you could have a career in skating (forget age, skill, finances etc) which area would you go into?

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The best whisper is a click

Headlining for Tom Collins' tour! As it is, I plan to have a career in skating, but related to the media somehow. I'm also going to look into Disney On Ice for when I graduate, but I'm not sure yet if I'd really want to do that.

Have you ever skated under spotlights?

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Shae-Lynn and Victor: We knew you were champions, and on 3/28/03 the whole WORLD found out! Thank you for twelve wonderful years!

No. I think I've skated under disco lights before I started skating, if you see what I mean.....

Do you ache anywhere today? (I have a sore ankle, don't know why, and my knees did not like all those stairs at Central Hall, Westminster, where I have been at a conference)

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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!

YES!! I have a massive bruise on my right hip from trying a ROB bracket! My coach told me to get up and try again (a cool thing is that my fall was spectacular enough that Nicole Bobek asked me if I was ok ;-) and when I almost fell again he suggested maybe I should try it later ;-)

Have you had any injuries that you feared were really bad and turned out not to be as bad as you though? For example, I landed really hard on a rib and after trying to push it and skate, my breathing was labored and I was in serious pain. The next morning I woke up and was a little better then 2 days later I was miraculously better!.

Hugs!
Danielle

I fell down the stairs last January the day before a test, and twisted my ankle. It hurt sooo incredibly bad during the day, but as soon as it became time to go skating, it miraculously felt better. I wasn't allowed to jump on my session that night (I land on my right foot). I bound my ankle really well, and skated. The next night, I passed my test too! It's a good thing it was not a freeskate test but a dance test, or I would have had to withdraw.

What's the worst injury you've skated with?

Other than the knot I had in my back at Adult Nats. last spring, the worst injury I've skated with was a stress fracture I got on the outside of my left ankle (my landing foot!) in Summer 1995. I was off the ice for six weeks. Since then, I've used special stretching techniques (which I learned in physical therapy) for both my ankles every time I skate in order to prevent any more stress fractures. They've worked like a charm (knock wood)!

Which maneuevers do you practice off-ice (if any)?

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This space has been put on hiatus for retuning....

jumps, spins and edges on my spin trainer, and running through the patterns for all of my dances!

Other than your skates, what is the most essential thing you must bring to the rink every time you skate?

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"Without a struggle, there can be no progress" ~ Frederick Douglass

a water bottle!

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if you could steal any skates costume and wear it for a show or competion of your own whos dress would it be and from what progran did they skate with it on in?

Interesting question! I'd probably take Katia Gordeeva's dress from their "Reverie" exhibition at the 94 Olympics. It was beautiful - light blue, sleeveless, a knee-length slightly ragged skirt (and some small ragged bits on the shoulders), and a faint sparkle. It looked lovely.

How many ice surfaces does your rink (or main rink) have? And do you skate all of them at some point?

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"It’s never too late to skate at any age." - Alexei Mishin.

My main rink has an olympic pad for figure skating and the original hockey size for hockey most of the time. Sometimes during the year we get put downstairs (yuk!) when a hockey tournament is scheduled. To think that old surface is where I learned most of my skating!

Do you wear skirts, practice dresses or pants for practice and how many layers?

In the winter I have a wicking undershirt, turtle neck, lightweight pullover sweater, polarfleece pullover top and stockings, to the boot leggings, light fleece/poly smooth exterior stretch pants. Warm weather (summer) I wear stockings, to the boot leggings, skirt, light undershirt, turtleneck, polar fleece top (until I am warmed up - about 10-15 minutes.) My old rink in town before it was totally rebuilt, I used to love just wearing a teeshirt with a skirt - I felt so free! But the rinks around here are cold all year.

I wear a sweatshirt and pants usually, or sometimes a sweater and pants. I only break out the dresses on special occasions.

Of course, my seasonal dress varies too with my body's thermal sensors. In summer, I can wear one single layer (with underwear) and pants and tights and be fine. Gloves stay too. In winter, however, I must have my turtleneck and sweatshirt, and sometimes one of those fitted tank tops underneath with the built-in shelf bra to help keep me warm.

Okies...my question...what do you think, if you can think of something, is the most positive thing that the USFSA adult MITF test structure brings to the overall culture/philosophy of adult skating? I do like that it encourages us to further develop our power, but I am not keen on the inconsistency with its judging (probably from the test structure being so new).

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All that glitters has a high refractive index.

I think it definitely encourages more power/edge quality/overall skating quality. It shows the USFSA is recognizing Adults more and more. Any thing that gives us recognition can't be bad.

What MITF test are you working on? I am on Intermediate, as well as preparing for Adult Pre Bronze, Bronze & Silver Moves.

Intermediate - testing later this month. This will be my second MIF test, with the first being Adult Gold. Hopefully I'll do better than I did with my figures tests as a kid .

I am going to ask the same question - what MIF test are you working on?

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"The only place where success comes before work is in a dictionary." -- Vidal Sasson

"Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway." -- Unknown

Im working on Pre-preliminary. I have everything but the waltz eight. I can do it once but not the neccasary 3 times!

What freestyle, pairs, or dance level are you working on?

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~*~always, sonia~*~

hmmmmm....i guess prepre. Im in basic, but not usfsa or isi basic, out rinks system....

what supposidly basic skill do you just hate? fir me its turning CW

Mohawks! I just can't get them down properly, I still play with them almost every session, hopefully I'll be able to acquire the skill to do them properly!

Have you ever attended and skate camps or clinics? (I did a stroking clinic this summer, and even though I was usually last, it was a hoot!)

Steven

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"A sure sign of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result." - Albert Einstein
"A free society is one where it is safe to be unpopular." - Adlai Stevenson
"Got Edge?" - Steven J. Arness - Coachless, two years and counting.
"He who carves himself to suit others will soon whittle himself away."
"Sometimes you get what you want but loose what you have."

Spent a week in August at Lake Placid to attend adult skate week at the Olympic Center. This is my fourth year and I highly recommend it. Besides learning a lot there is a great comradiere among the adults who attend, about 90% of which return every year.

What jump do yo really detest?

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Keeping School Figures Alive!!

salchow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What spin do u hate?