Just starting tomorrow's thread today.
(When did we switch to a Monday start? I thought it was Sun to Sat?)

__________________

probably when nobody remembered to start new threads till Monday

__________________
It's all about the dress!

New Directions

Last night - I'm competing the Swing next week and I really suck so I asked DD to give me a lesson. I am not saying this just because she's dd - she is REALLy a good coach. "Shall I show you my Swing?" I ask her "No, I want to see your swing rolls first" And so we spent most of the time working on Swing rolls and chasses. You are widestepping, she tells me, bring your feet together. After the second time she told me that I asked her "HOW do I bring my feet together" expecting to hear something like "duh, just do it" and instead she said "Think about sqeezing, squeezing your legs, squeeze everything together" and do you know, that worked?

Then she said she often suspected the reason a lot of people's swing rolls were off time was not because they couldn't keep time, but because they weren't swinging through all the way "YES YES - that's my problem -I don't have time" Well then you just need to work on swing rolls - and she takes me around concentrating on really swining my leg through and leaning into it and walla, not only was my timing better, I was actually on a edge. In fact after some practice last night and then this morning...

MY SWING ROLLS WERE MAKING LOUD RIPPING NOISES!

She also reviewed my chasses to make sure I was thinking about a square - down the ice, then across, then up again.

I made more progress in dance then I have in a long time.

And yes, I am paying her.

other stuff today - I kept up in power again, but was last in the Suicides because I take too darn long to stop and turn. If I could work the transistions, I could keep up.

one foot spins ....a couple of times I actually managed a few revolutions after my edge entry....I think it was more because I pulled up and squeezed in to hang on to than my entry being so great but I'll take any progress.

j

j

this is for yesterday:

New Directions:
-Making lots of progress in lowering my sit spin to where it used to be. Also doing well with sit-change-sit.
-Camel is still good.
-I've gotten myself back up to 4 revs on the backspin. Slowly, but surely, that spin is coming back!
-Lutzes were decent.

Missed Resolutions:
-Later, it got too crowded so I couldn't work on dances or moves. I ended up doing tons of backspins and sit spins.
-At one point, a woman (a grown woman of about 50, not a little kid) sat right down in the middle circle and relaced her skates. I'm contemplating spending the extra $5.50 and adding another early a.m. session to avoid these Sunday afternoon sessions - they're getting way too crazy/crowded/dangerous.

Missed Resolutions:
Didn't work out yesterday, so I did off-ice this morning by myself at home.

New Directions:
I just bought a scribe. This could be a good thing!

__________________

Went to the doctor and I have ligament damage. I start PT today and have to stay off the ice for 6 weeks

Guess losing my lesson time is something I don't have to worry about until the end of February

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

Oh, Jessi, that's too bad! Hope you heal on schedule and well!

I managed to do 2 hours of figures and edge work on a fairly busy public session yesterday. I scribe my circles with a marker, because they would be obliterated pretty quickly under these conditions. Of course I have to dodge people, but in general folks were pretty good about trying to stay out of my path. I'm the only person at my rink who has ever formally worked on figures, so I'm creating a fair bit of interest.

I was in my patch blades, and actually managed some FO 3 turns. My timing and weight placement is much improved. It was too busy to safely attempt waltz eights, though. I'll try those later today on an almost empty freestyle.

New:
Teacher training day at school, got to skate - that's three times in 5 days
Crossovers (forward and back, in a figure 8) were much improved...stronger, more secure, faster. Spirals were also okay...less so on my right foot, but as I only started doing them on that leg yesterday I'm not to worried. Edges were good, definitely progressing...

Missed:
Got to the rink with my friend...about half an hour later a good percentage of our year group had turned up to a party neither of us had been invited to. They left pretty quick though .

New Directions:
Skated well managed to do all moves from Adult PR through adult Gold. CW power circles were better than I thought, still tend to forget little things like how to do backward Russian stroking keep leaving out a xo so just glide and change edge, who needs to push?? Very sore in muscles, might take some Advil for that. Did a few spins, must work on centering them. Did wall to wall Rocker foxtrot all the walls not just long axis but short axis as well. Actually kicked wall after rocker. No idea if it is on time.

Missed Resolution:
Fell, and fell HARD! Elbow is very bruised and swollen but luckily landed on upper part of right butt, so just scary. Sent note to Dr just to let him know. Not as bad a cross country ski fall on Christmas day. No blinding pain so I think it's all fine.

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

New Directions - completely new directions, like new moves to learn! Passed my Pre-Bronze MIF test today, whoopee!!!

Nothing bad to say about today. First test passed in 30 years (I did figures as a kid, but only passed 1st figures).

Congratulations!!!!!!

Wow, congratulations MomSkater!!!

Coskater, that's amazing progress, considering your recent hip surgery!

New Directions:
- I landed 3 out of 3 of my axels in warmup yesterday. Each one got better, with the 2nd one being perfect and the 3rd one beyond perfect.
- I landed a clean double sal, and the others--which I either fell on or stumbled out of--were fully rotated and landed on one foot. According to my video documentation (my poor husband acted as videographer yesterday), I just dropped my right shoulder on the landing and didn't check my free leg back hard enough. It helps my confidence to know that the only thing wrong with the jump is something that happens after I'm already fully rotated and back on the ice.

Missed Resolutions:
- I 2-footed the axel when I actually did it in my program. I need to remember not to rush the pull-in once I leave the ice. It's something I only do in my program because I feel pressured.
- My spins were frustrating and seemed to be taking another step back instead of improving, in spite of all the lesson fees I've been paying trying to bring them up a notch.
- Watching myself on video was depressing. I looked slow and my extension was lousy. I was also having trouble getting my RFO catch foot spiral high enough and keeping it there, which makes me wonder if I was just having a bad day or if my coach has been sugar-coating things for me, telling me it's high enough. . .
- My nemesis Intermediate MIF move is still working fine, but yesterday I was having trouble with the OTHER ones! I can't seem to keep all 6 moves at passing level at the same time.

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

CONGRATULATIONS!!! That's a GREAT way to start the New Year!

Congratulations Momskater

__________________
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

__________________

Congratulations!!!

I'm so sorry to hear that - I hope everything heals quickly!

CONGRATULATIONS!!

New Directions:
-took 3 days off to let my ankle heal a bit and skated for the first time yesterday
-learned all of the senior MITF patterns in my last two lessons!!
-landed all of my big jumps at least twice: axel, double sal, and double toe
-fixed the spread eagle into axel in my program by thinking about jumping up and not around, duh!

Missed Resolutions:
-completely overdid it on the ankle and it's sore again
-double toe was not at all consistent
-sound system was turned off, so I couldn't do my program with music which is what I really need to be working on

Congratulations, Momskater! Commiserations, Skittlesk8s!

New Directions: Rather awesome today - two exercises we did, the coach was really, really pleased with! One was runs (progressives) round the circle in waltz hold. Mind you, this was with me going backwards - when it came to Husband's turn to go backwards, it was a whole nother story! The other was waltz 3s in waltz hold round the circle, which he said was much improved!

Missed Resolutions: His surprise when we did the progressive runs better than he expected was really rather unflattering! Plus when Husband went backwards.... not good! You could tell he really wasn't comfortable doing back runs. Nor am I, solo - I tried later and couldn't get a decent edge. Plus I got told off, as always, for not pushing into the RFO3 when we did waltz 3s that way round.

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

congratulations!

__________________
It's all about the dress!

new directions - I landed one more (pathetic, but who cares?) loop in practice after a whole bunch of tries. Salchow is starting to get some air, it feels good. Three program runthroughs went smoothly

missed resolutions - I'm still chickening out on toeloops trying to fix that toe waltz. If I jump straight up, I pick and launch correctly, with plenty of air time to go around, but if I rotate I either two-foot the landing or go back to giving a final push off the pick as I start to turn.

__________________
It's all about the dress!

new Directions
My Snow Whites were mounted! The edges feel a lot like on ice, fun toy.
My forward biellman spiral is now working solidly without a warm up, which makes me hopeful I might be able to do it in a contest safely sometime (but for now I'm sticking with the backwards one).
A hockeyer was trying to chat me up today.

Missed resolutions
I was a little angry today and I skated a bit reclessly and very long, so I took a very hard fall and I have blisters all over my feet now.

Both
I filmed my biellmann and forward alternating 3's on the line (right?) today and they don't look good but I expected them to look much worse!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj2K74rwwus

Missed Resolutions: Sleep? What's that? Whatever it is, I NEED MORE!

I am such a woose! Why can't I get my Waltz jump and Toe Loop out away from the security of the boards! And my back XOs - it seems I am still afraid to trust a back outside edge!

I wanna go back to bed!

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

What are Snow Whites? Congrats on the forward Biellmann spiral! What are you doing differently now that is making it work?

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