Since, for those who celebrate it, the season of Lent begins this week!

Feasting: Not a lot, today.

Fasting: Not a good lesson; we are still struggling with the steps of our free dance. Patch fees have gone up, so we will now be paying £18 a week instead of £15. Sigh.

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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!

Its funny because chinese new year is around the corner and that is when we chinese really eat alot while visiting relatives. So the thread title is relevant to me too!

edit: I have my protocols!

Lsp1 -0.2
1A -0.5
1Lz -0.1
CCoSp1 -0.5
SpSq4 0.33
1F -0.17
1S -0
1Lz+1T+1Lo -0.10
1F+1Lo -0.03
CoSp1 -1.00

So none of my spins got a level 2, I reviewed my layback and I just missed the 8 rotations oh well. Now I know what happens if you attempt a flying spin but can't hold the first position and attempt a combination. It gets called a Combination spin. Interesting. I would have won alot more comfortably if I had the presence of mind to stick to my program I basically threw away 90% of connecting steps due to being nervous and stuff. That was probably why the program felt so bad as well. I actually lost really badly in the PCS. If this was last year, my competitor would have won due to the higher PCS weightage last year. Moral of the story = Even if you think you're about to trip over you still better try and do all the steps and turned that you planned in your program... lol

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Tidesong

Feasting: backward 3-s are coming fast and easy.
Fasting: I pulled something in my back yesterday during my program and today I'm having a hard time walking. 3 motrins have done nothing. Mommy!

Feasting:
Good lesson today. Patch was busy because a lot of people have tests tomorrow apparently, but it wasn't heaving. Field moves went quite well I thought...crossovers much better, as were spirals, although I need to sort out my skating leg. Worked on the foxtrot again...remembered to write the steps down when I got home this time lol. Did it with music too, which was fun, and my rhythum is quite good from my music.

Fasting:
Not used to crowded ice - kept crashing into people. One girl...very obnoxious, heard her yelling at her coach...was told by mine she'd slapped her (her coach) in the past .

But overall, good practice. And if there's anyone on here that skates at Ally Pally and is taking a test tomorrow - good luck!

Wow, congratulations on that spiral sequence! It must have been fantastic!

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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

Feasting: I am finally hitting a back outside edge immediately on the entry to the backspin instead of falling over to the inside after all these freaking years...about 3/4 of the time, anyway. Not scratching yet, but that will come. If I can get a secure back 1-foot spin first, that will make me happy. But I am closer to this than ever, and funny how it worked out I made more strides in group lessons with this element than in private lessons.

Fasting: Out-of-control young'uns on crowded ice. After a while, I just had to . And still trying to decide where my summer ice will be and if I'll have time to skate.

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All that glitters has a high refractive index.

I hear you! Yesterday I was teaching a 4.5 yr old tot in the center (supposedly reserved for private lessons and figure skating), when two out of control boys slammed into us knocking the tot down. I saw them coming out of the corner of my eye, but my tot was caught completely off guard. She was so cute - she got right up and told me she wasn't hurt, but she was scared - then she burst into tears, and I had to hover very closely for the rest of the lesson. I think they would have to put a half dozen very alert guards on the ice to handle some of these crowds.

MissIndigo - Congrats on your new real backspin!

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Feasting: Finally got my rotational mojo back. Landed a couple of nice doubles. I've been popping everything the last month or so.

Fast: Lost my bunga pads

[Feasting]
Skated tonight....scratch/back scratch showed up Camels were strong as was camel/sit...until I got to my program....

Did my program...pretty strong...messed up one of the spins, but that's okay...and I ended way early!! Funny story...was doing my program, and landed my flip in front of one of the upper level coaches who quickly said, "keep going! skate!" to me...and I did, of course...then I ended very early to my music, and he commented that now I just need a flying spin in my program because I ended early...I told him not to tell coach that I ended so early, because she would add more to my program

[Fasting]
Resumed working on my moves...maybe it's because I am more aware of it, but with the power circles, I did not notice any toe pushing minus on the VERY first CW crossover (my non-dominant side)...but after that it's all edges....worked to clean up the "running" the judges noticed. Sometime next week, I will play the metronome CD to work on the "choppy-ness"....or I will put it on my iPod (if coach doesn't hold it hostage....) so that I don't have to submit others to that torture I figure I will focus on fixing one problem at a time... I also did some work on the brackets today....did them on the hockey goal 1/2 circle, and was able to keep the tracing pretty much on target with the circle...will probably need to drill that a bit before I work on the full pattern, also worked on the toe pushing with that pattern, which, is easy to fix now that I am aware of it...

No ice on Tuesday and Friday this week. Don't know when I'm going to have a lesson with coach because lunch times won't work this week due to busyness at work...I'll try to duck out of work a little early on Wednesday to get some time in this week...

I'm doing something funky on my take off for my axel...somehow it feels as if I'm taking off the middle to back of my blade instead of my toe

Fasting: My skating today - went to the dance session but I was too tired to really skate much - went to see Stars on Ice last night and couldn't get to sleep afterward because I was kind of hopped up... oh well - guess I won't be skating like THEM anytime soon!

Feasting: (or maybe feasted upon) - I found out today that there is another competitor for the low level figures at Pacific Coast Adult Sectionals so now I have to compete. My dance coach said he would help me with that BI3 the next time we have a lesson - I need all the help I can get -- YIPES!!

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Is Portland the only city with it's own ice-dance website? http://www.pdxicedance.net/

Feasting:
Well, besides food...

Fasting:
*sigh* I'm trying to work out the in-betweens of my program but it's an impossible task during the public session. May have to start coming in either mornings or one of the club ice sessions. (More than likely it will be the club ice session since sleep is a top priority for me and I have a good bunch of prepaid club ice ticket to use up before the end of the USFSA year! Of course, I really HATE that other club ice rink... )

Working on secondary coach's exercise from this past Friday's lesson. I think I'm hating backspins again!!! And I so envy MissIndigo's accomplishments today. (MissIndigo!?!?! You're BACK!?!?!? You should change your handle to DOCTORIndigo now!!! )

Congrats, kander!!! I'll bet you will get your double loop and double flip back soon enough. (But don't worry if you don't have it. I still have that video of your double flip from way back when for prosperity too! )

tidesong: OH, yes! It's getting close to Chinese New Year. Gotta go someplace appropriate to "feast!" (And congrats on that SpSq4 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!!!

fasting
Hit a kid today... That is, I didn't physically hit him, I just gave him such a scare with a near-miss that he fell, bumped his head into the edge of that iron bar rack chair-like construction he was waggling around the ice with. Still, mea culpa... He was back on the ice pretty fast though and his mom was all okay about it, but I was pretty shaken for the rest of the session because I had honestly not seen him coming - when I saw him he was half a rink away and I've no idea how he got to the point of collision that fast.
Then after an hour or so, another kid went and did the same thing without my "help". Those racks are dangerous!!!
- Practiced back inside edges and did 1 run that even I was happy with (out of 6 or so, LOL), smooth and secure, and the rest kinda sucked...
- Sit spins now DO travel back to the line before I start spinning, and feel more secure and go deeper, but I still keep falling a *lot* and I can't straighten out my free leg.
- Was pretty impossible to practice any of the programme for that show competition thing cuz a group of little kids with a *particularly* stupid mom ("Oooh, look at what that girl is doing, skate closer to her to watch it!") who kept skating in absolutely chaotic patterns about the ice rink. Here's the first part I filed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZGeY9TrI2o
that's the music it'll have and after it comes a scratch spin, waltz jump, scratch spin, some foot steps, half-loop and some more steps. I did one and two halves while mom was there with mom to yell "watch out" at me when anybody came too close.

feasting
- it's carnaval holidays here, which means early morning skating sessions!!!
- mom came to skate too, and she called my programme run through "Not Evgeni Plushenko, but not bad."
- Did one camel-to-scratch spin and the scratch at the end was centered.

Does anybody have good tips on turning passive flexibility in active flexibility?

Feasting for DD - so we were both skating last night and DD does her Novice test program and nails her double loop/double loop right in front of me...and I'm watching and each required element is getting done...she does a waltz jump instead of her axel but an axel is not required in the Novice test...then comes the dreaded double toe...and she lands it! Afterwards she comes up to me and says "Do you realize what just happened??" "You just skated a passing Novice Free skate!" I told her.

Of course there are not judges around but she thought a year ago she'd never be able to do it and this was a big confidence boost for her. One of the reasons she won't compete at the test track is that you can do a double toe but not a doublt lutz and she until recently just hasn't been able to land a double toe but she can do a double lutz.

As for me, one of the things coach has been trying to nail into my head "Look where you are going!" finally clicked and I realized that if I turn my head and look behind me before the mohawk, it's actually much easier. But for some reason it's hard to get my head to turn.

Anyway this was all last night. This morning DD and I took separate cars...news warned of mixed snow and ice and I wanted to drive her, but no she wasn't ready to go...well freezing rain turned out to be much worse and she ended up in the ditch. Good news I was able to retrieve her, car was not damaged, it will just have to sit their until the tow ban is over and she was not hurt. But I spent two hours driving back and forth in freezing rain (some places looked like I was driving on a frozen pond) instead of skating on ice.

j

Oh goodness! I'm glad your daughter is safe- but sorry you missed skating and she probably got quite a scare. I left for work early enough this morning that it was still a light rain of ice, but everytime I stopped my car my wheels were spinning- I was worried I wouldn't make it. Everyone coming in though says the weather is just horrible! I hate ice- but hopefully the rain will wash some of the snow away. We got at least 8 inches yesterday- and all that was predicted was a "light snow".

Skating- still can't
I've been working on remembering the choreography for the synchro program.

I'm really nervous about going back to the ice because my knee is worst on cold days. I really hope that eventually goes away, because the ice is always a cold day!

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-Jessi
What I need is a montage...
Visit my skating journal or my Youtube videos (updated with 2 new videos Sept 26, 2009)

Congrats to DD on skating so well! I'm glad no one was hurt in the accident and the car is OK. That's the kind of accident that can provide lifesaving experience for DD, she's not likely to get into that kind of fix again.

Sorry you can't skate yet. Have you tried a neoprene sleeve (available in drug stores) to help warm your knee? Younger DD was told to use one years ago, and it did help.

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She was going slow but then saw cars passing her and thought she could pass and lost control of the car. Really I think the only way you learn to drive in this weather is to go in the ditch because until you lose control of the car, you don't realize how easy it can be to lose control. So I'm thankful this was a safe lesson for her. I was beating myself up for not insisting I drive, but there would have been no lesson for her in that and she's going away to school next year and will have to learn to drive (or decide not to drive) in bad weather for herself.

j

Well the car is undamaged, and your daughter is fine too, thank Heaven for that. Seems like it was a pretty cheap lesson

So glad your daughter is okay...but I just can't help but laugh at the people who say they hate ice ...

so glad your daughter is ok, daughters are so precious. I am dreading the day mine learns to drive. Not that she isn't going to be perfectly capable, but I will be a nervous wreck anyway. Of course my son totaled 3 cars before he was 18, so maybe I deserve to be panicky. Hopefully girls are safer drivers than boys.

feasting - pretty good moves this morning. Good spin, starting to get a change foot spin a little teeny bit - maybe a rev or two or three out of the backspin. If only I could pick up my foot sooner, though. Jumps were ok. Camel spin goes around once, maybe twice before I end up on my toepick - progress.

fasting - no lesson, waaah. haven't done a waltz-toe or sal-toe for a few weeks, and I'm just not getting the timing back. Did a lot of athletic stuff this weekend, and I'm really sore - especially upper body.

Feasting:
-Got my camels on video and am very pleased with how much they have improved.
-Program run-throughs are getting somewhat easier.
-I'm feeling confident about my dances. I think I may actually pass this time!
-I did this gigantic flip last night. But then I freaked out in the air (Wow! This jump is huge! Yikes!) and double-footed the landing
-Lutzes were decent.

Fasting:
-Moves still need some polishing. I'm running out of time to do that. I think I'll go for an extra a.m. session or two this week and and next week. I need to start practicing them as though they were in the test each time (with presentation and nice endings, and no big breaks in between).

Feasting: I was alone on the ice for about 1 1/2 hours . Worked on my figures, my loops are interesting and slightly original...

Worked on all the silver and gold moves managed everything very nicely, focusing on all things clockwise. Double back 3's are much easier than last week.

Had a very nice moment that brought tears to my eyes, working on rockers--I noticed how my leg swung on left so tried it on right. It worked, I did the entire Jr rocker pattern, it filled the rink nice lobes good flow...it's been almost 2 years since I could do them...I was just so happy


Fasting:
Fire alarm, made me get off the ice...it was a drill.

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Who me? Couldn't be....
http://www.youtube.com/bouldersk8r

Wow.

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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

Congrats on the rockers! Those a-ha moments when things work are so neat. And your persistence and hard work in coming back after your surgery are so inspiring to me.

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Ask me about becoming a bone marrow donor.
http://www.marrow.org
http://www.nmdp.org

feasting....and fasting.....4 days and counting to the test. And of course, we're supposed to get a huge snowstorm tomorrow night/Wed. morning, so it's possible I won't be able to have my lesson on Wed.! It's okay--I refuse to freak out. I've worked my a** off for this dance, and I'm totally capable of stepping on the ice and skating it decently. Besides, it isn't the partnering that is the issue here, so if I don't get my lesson I can still work on it by myself.

Only got 15 minutes to practice today, but was pretty stable. Will have 1/2 hour tomorrow, then long session on Wed. assuming I get there.

That sounds amazing coskater

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Tidesong