Half Baked: Another day of knocking myself out on Upright Spins.

Triple Axel: A few REALLY snapped in strong, straight, centred and turned REALLY easy. If I am not careful someone might actually think I knew what I was doing!

Half Baked: Another step toward back cross-overs! I found if I didn’t go so deep in the knees I was actually ALMOST getting the cross both ways (CW & CCW). Next week - BXOs and/or a snowy butt!

Half Baked: With coach we worked a bit on the sit spin. Coach also suggested I try some Camel spins (since my spirals are pretty good) - NOT until after I try them on the spin trainer over a nice soft floor! We tried a back spin - that’s going to take some work - not "natural" at all!

Half Baked: Next week will be back to jumps. Coach would like to see me with three jumps and one combination for competition in November.

Triple Axel: The only jump I am close to right now is the Toe Loop so I think my combination will be a Toe Loop/Toe Loop. Waltz jump will probably be the second one and I hope a Salchow will be the third. The Sal feels natural - I just need the height to rotate it. I think next week I will fall down a lot.....

Half Baked: During flood, they were playing a DVD of Olympic figure skating through the last 40 years in the coaches room. I shouldn't have watched - it is just a reminder of how BAD my skating is!

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Dianne
(A.O.S.S.? Got it BAD! )

Triple Axel - I won my jumps event at the Orange Blossom competition yesterday!!!!!! I also got third in compulsories, which I was very happy with. The freeskate is tomorrow (Adult Pre-Bronze).

Half-Baked - I totally blew my spin in compulsories yesterday. It was so bad, that I barely got one revolution. I decided that even though you are only allowed one try, I was not leaving the ice without a good spin, so without even coming out of the first bad spin, I went right into another one which was great. At that point, proving that I could spin was worth the deductions to me.

Have a great weekend everybody!

Yesterday was my first day back on the ice after a week long youth mission trip to the Louisiana gulf - but that was mostly just reminding myself how to do everything

Half-Baked - a bunch of ice was cancelled, including my THurs am power class so I went to the am Moves class today but there has been confusion and conflict with the rink about the cancellations so the rink was locked this morning and so we only had 15 minutes of moves. I made my daughter take it and she glared at me as she spent 15 minutes doing Counters, the one thing she has passed over in her Novice moves and her only feedback was "Those look really good"


Triple Axel

I worked on 3 turns in the class and feel like I am really getting control of them - was struggling with my knees touching rather than my feet and finally got the heel to ankle position and that helped - also keeping my head up and looking where I'm turning. I still tend to rush the turn on my bad side but I am controlling the exit back to my axis. Which is longer than necesary when I rush the turn.

Dance lesson - we went back to the Cha cha - the tuck behind is my nemesis but coach is getting better at figuring out what I'm doing wrong. I lean forward so I don't feel safe at all. When I sit back and bend my knees, it feels safe and I can do it going at a snail's pace. She did give me permission to cheat it when I practice the rest of the dance since she wants me to get used to doing that at speed, as long as I spend as much time working on the tuck behinds. I'm feeling like maybe someday I can do those tuck behinds.

j

Envy! My feet just aim vaguely in that sort of direction, and don't often cross at all.... much to our coaches' irritation, as Husband's feet (natch) are crossing beautifully....

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

Triple axel: I finally figured out why I was having issues with my skates. The blades were still in the stock position. They weren't mounted to work perfectly with me. So I took everyone's advice and went to my proshop(Mennen) and the two Richies were so nice and helpful and it took a couple tries and trips to the ice, but eventually we got them perfect and OMG everything is so much better. I cannot explain how happy I am. I landed a double loop on one foot too! YEAH BABY. And my jumps have more height, I had to adjust a little bit but eventually they were all smoothed out.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=m1AjsHaJxHc

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Triple Axel: My field moves are finally starting to improve. I got a nice compliment today from a fellow adult skater. He said that I was starting to look like an ice dancer. I also landed my first Axel - double loop combination yesterday. It seems like double loops are easier to do when they are on the back of a combination. I gotta work on getting that same snap when I do them from back crossovers. My double salchow is back. I landed quite a few of them. My double flip is back too. I found it easier to do my double sal and double flip if I don't waste energy by bouncing up down in the knee on the 3 turn going into it. Staying low in the knee helped me with jump height.

Half-baked: My foward sit spin is garbage. I really need to focus on my leg strength so that I can have a better position. The Flying Camel wasn't doing too well either. I couldn't get more than 4 revs before it fizzled out. Still having a hard time with double toe


BlackManSkating

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Proud to be one of the few black men out on the ice

Goals
Pass my Silver Moves Test
Finish Choreography for Silver Program
Land a Clean Double Toe and Double Lutz
Work on Double Axel and Rockers
Speed up back Camel

Triple Axel: Well, not exactly but I skated 5 days after twisting my formerly fractured right foot and it was okay. Skated again the next day and decided to take my ^&*Y*&&%% Bronze Moves in 9 days - August 12. Still having problems with the step forward on the right power 3, but the rest of the Moves are flowing great, and well, if I flunk that one, so be it.

Half-baked: My attempts to get together to skate with sexyskates (Diana, the veterinarian from New York) never got off the ground - mostly because I had to work, and also because of my twisted foot I couldn't meet her on Monday at my rink. But I went to the rink anyway, just to say hi, and she ended up coming back to that rink twice more to skate this week - lots of clean, clear ice, for a good price, she says... Nice to know that we have something over those east coast rinks (well, her's anyway) in little Portland, OR.

Also got a chance to talk with her about a veterinary case that I'm having trouble with, so although it wasn't "Vets on Ice" we still managed to communicate and see each other twice this week while she and her husband were vacationing in the area.

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

Triple Axel-Looks like i've finally got my axel back consistently DDDD. landed a couple of double sals that didn't kill my ankle. did some nice camel spins. Got in a really good broken leg. Also got a good back sit, change edge to forward inside edge. FINALLY did a decent LFI ce LFO spiral--for some reason I can never hit the outside edge. i'm starting to think my blades have been mounted wrong for 3 years...

OH and I also saw a girl I hadn't seen in like 3 years! she's doing awesome, landing triples. I also saw another girl that I hadn't seen in a while, Savannah. Then I found out her mom makes the new pants I just bought and love! Her line is amazing...savvyskater.com. It's pricey, as is all skating gear. My pants were actually 50, not 70, but they are spectacular. They're nice and warm, plus they have hooks on the bottom like over-the-boot tights so you can hook them under your boot so they stay over your heel. And they're way cute Plus its nice to support a skating mom, better than buying from some faceless company. Or worse, sharene skatewear (had an absolutely terrible experience with them. never again).

Half-baked- I would say my double sal was both triple axel and half-baked today. Did some good ones, did some bad ones. double loop was not great, but I was tired and kinda lazy (shhhh). ehh butterflies.

Wow, you are amazing! Please post videos!!!! I always look forward to your posts because any minute now I'm expecting a quad, haha

(Love your music too)

__________________
Revised Official 2010 Goals checklist
Skate __
New boots __
(lowering the bar for 2010 as I haven't skated in a year)

TOTALLY HALF-BAKED: Thought I'd let you guys know what has happened with hubby (my part-time ice dance partner). On the 29th of July, he was taking a SAFE Driver Motorcycle Course for Novice Riders, it was raining, he braked too aggresively and locked it up, wiped out and the bike landed on his right foot.

Diagnoses? three fractured bones in his foot. On the ball of his foot!!! They cant cast for a few more weeks because of the swelling. The doc said no surgery would be necessary as things would just knit together and heal, he would regain full use of the foot.

I wanted hubby to get a 2nd opinion to make sure he would still be able to skate, but he did not want to.

So, with our rink opening up next month, he won't be able to skate. Right now he isn't even able to drive!!!

He is off of work. He is a civil service employee and has tons of sick leave so he is ok with that. Boredom has set in...poor guy!!!!

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

Oh, I hope your husband's foot heals well and quickly. Thank goodness it wasn't a far worse injury!

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

Not even half baked - I tried for the first time since years and years ago the axel. I realize that it doesnt even look valid, but its a step

I tried another attempt and of course, the technique really got messy

I just have this huge block with this jump. After having a bad waxel - like this

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Tim David's Website

Wow, congrats on the axel-double loop combo!! That's an interesting idea. Maybe I'll try loop-double loop so I don't freak myself out over the double loop on takeoff. Have you tried it? What do you think?

Dude, maybe if you'd stop doing all those double axels you'd have enough strength left in your left leg for a sitspin, ROFL! Seriously, if you can even land a single axel, I really doubt insufficient left leg strength is the problem. It's probably just one little body part out of place that's making it harder than it needs to be, KWIM? The important thing is to keep your back arched and rigid, then once your free leg comes all the way forward and hits the skating leg, keep lowering your butt and pushing your free leg forward until you feel the left calf pressing against the inside of the right thigh. That will get you low enough while also keeping your weight on the ball of the blade.

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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

Oh, Skate@Delaware, poor your husband! And poor you, losing your skate partner like that.... still, I'm sure he'll be back in a few months.

I had a totally half-baked morning - was very tired.

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

Triple Axel:
- Dance coach was really pleased on the progress I've made on my dutch waltz. Thanks guys. I ran through three patterns of the darned thing and we moved on.

-Finally figured out the timing of the canasta tango.

Half baked:
-Cross behinds on Rhythm and blues still ain't happening. Well the first one isn't. The other two are fine.
-Spins (after lesson) were especially offensive today.

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Happily defying the laws of physics when I skate...and not in a good way

If I could meet ole Axel Paulsen, I would kick him in the teeth

President and Founding member of the I hate Toe-Loops Club

Still a member, but trying to get out of the Pre-bronze peanut gallery.

Visit my skating journal

Triple Axel: Went to my regular hockey rink this morning where they have a little-known public session on Sunday morning - yup, there were 3 of us on the ice - the guy who runs the zamboni who is an ice-dancer and can do all of the dances in his hockey skates (just for fun), a very pleasant teenage skater doing freestyle and myself.

I worked on Bronze Moves after warming up with some figures and dances and then I got off the ice, took off my skates, stretched and talked with the zamboni guy for a while - I'm trying to think of this like the testing session where I will no doubt skate early in the morning, then wait around for a while during the tests and then put my skates back on to take the test.

I got back out on the ice, turned off the music, did a 5-minute warmup and then did the Moves, just like on the test, and it was fine.

Then I practiced for about another hour - some Moves, some dance, some other stuff just to keep going... very nice practice.

Half-baked: Trying to decide what to wear for this Moves test - it is summer and it will probably be hot outside, but this rink is cold - I went to Ross Dress for Less this afternoon and picked up a little black cardigan sweater and a sleeveless top to go with it. I may freeze to death in this outfit, but I'll try it at the rink this week and see how it goes... I find at this point of the test process there is very little more I can do about the skating, but at least I can look good! -- Now I will just have to find some makeup (for anyone who knows me, this is a rare event... I have had people not recognize me at test sessions because I look so different when I dress up!)

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

Triple Axel: Bronze moves are going well! Much better than pre-bronze moves, which is weird. My problem now with bronze moves is what to do at the end of the rink - I keep ending up right near the wall or not close enough. I think I'll pass though. Sit spin was fast and low.

Half baked: sheesh I did some weird thing on a waltz-toe loop today and nearly fell on my face but didn't; I have no idea of what was going on there. People had folding chairs on the ice (!) during the public session today and were using them for holding on, which freaked me out a little. I left soon after. Didn't loop or flip. Now haven't flipped since April. NOT GOOD. Nose runs during fast sit spins. Uh, also not good...

__________________
Revised Official 2010 Goals checklist
Skate __
New boots __
(lowering the bar for 2010 as I haven't skated in a year)