Aaaaaarghhh...my husband's going to kill me! I was pretty adamant the free skating would be on Saturday and told him so. However it's on Sunday and clashes with his judo tournament. Dammit.

Nicki

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Yes, I got that when I e-mailed Laura Hallam, so obviously there's something else on at Lee Valley on the Saturday afternoon. Bother, doesn't suit me quite so well.... but still do-able.

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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!

Have had a further look at the timetable - it's a complete nonsense! They've scheduled resurfaces in, but allowed no time for them..... someone else please e-mail them, I'll make myself unpopular if I go on wailing at them.....

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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!

There's 20 minutes allocated for each resurface in the timetable I got off the N.I.S.A site. I opened it in firefox, well downloaded and then selected to open with exel. Maybe the one Laura sent you wasn't a completed one?

Belle x

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Keep Smiling!

I don't think it can have been - the printed copy arrived in the post this morning and the timings on that make sense!

So we are skating on the Sunday at 13:01, 13:53 and 17:19, and the Husband's free comes in the middle of that, at 16:12. At least he'll have time to change and listen to his music.

What day/time is anybody else skating?

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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!

I'm there both days. 9.44, 12.13 and 15.30 on the Saturday and 11.06 on the Sunday according to the timetable on the website when I last checked.

Now to figure out how I am going to get to Lee Valley…..

Try the TfL journey planner, which can be a bit weird and wonderful, but which does give some ideas to start from! Incidentally, the printed timetables arrived in the post this morning, and included a map of the Lee Valley Park, which helps, too. And if I remember rightly, there's a huge car park.

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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!

The main problem with Lee Valley apart from not being a full size rink is the problem of finding something decent to eat. I'm not over fond of rink food and Lee Valley's isn't the best.

When my daughter competed there we set off up the road in the car to find somewhere to eat and travelled miles along the road til we eventually came to a place with lots of kebab houses and what turned out to be an excellent Chinese - huge portions at a reasonable price. That was turning left out of the rink.

turning right (and walkable if necessary) you come to a couple of pubs. The first one on the river is OK if it is a nice day and you can sit outside but inside is not up to much at all. The other one looked even grottier so we didnt' even try it. Not sure if you come to anything more promising if you take the car and drive right out of the rink.

Does anyone know?

you certainly don't get the excellent food we had at Sheffield (even if the service was a little slow)

Dont expect nice changing rooms either - there's a boot area that is very open and when we there we were told there was a changing room through a very unpromising looking door which appeared to lead to a cleaners cupboard. The only other door appeared to be locked and we never did find a way in.

As for the loos - just don't go there - urrgggghhh! and I thought Bracknell was bad!

I dont' know if the signage and helpers will be more clued up for the championships but for the open there, it was impossible to find anything out and there were no gate stewards.

Hmmm - thinnk I'm glad I am not actually competing this year - it's certainly not the same standard as you find at Sheffield or Nottingham.

Would anyone happen to have any idea how long of a walk it is from Clapton station? I have visions of wandering aimlessly through East London and never actually finding the rink!!

Clare

Map here. Doesn't look too far - ten minutes' walk, maybe?

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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!

I did a synchro competition there once, where we were allocated the Gents as our changing room! Between 12 of us, and we had to keep barring the door against people who wanted to come in and use them!!!

Grim didn't describe it.

Fiona

Hi guys

Just to let you know that I am out of the running next week, the back has finally caught up with me, the doc has signed me off and worse still, banned me from driving, all in all I have had a horrible year health wise, just hope next year is better and we can meet up again.

The best of luck to everyone.

Grace

I haven't actually skated there, only watched the year Team Challenge was held there - Husband was dancing with someone else (long story) in the Adult Dance category. But nobody commented on the changing-rooms as far as I remember.... and I'm sure I must have used the loos, knowing me, but have no specific memories.

Rink food is always vile - I've never met a rink that realises its users are athletes! I shall bring a packed lunch, I think.

Which is very sad, and we will miss you. I am still keeping my fingers crossed that our rink's no 1 couple, who had to withdraw from Bristol, are going to be able to skate - she says she'll decide next week, but her knee does seem to be healing, so we are hopeful.

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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!

probably because there weren't any! Our team had to change in either the vile loos or just in the open boot room area. Believe me it was bad!


Sheffield food was great and Nottingham isnt' bad and even Bracknell has the occasional decent bit of food in the cafe as well as a proper restaurant which is normally opened for events such as major competitions.

I don't think Lee Valley has anything other than chips and stuff like that.

Maybe they will make an extra effort as its probably the first time this rink has run a BAC, they may just pull all the stops out. Well I hope they do, it would be a shame to see this big event fade away as it appears to be doing.

Why do you say it is fading away? I know the rink is not exactly Sheffield standard, but the entries seem to be much higher this year and there seemed to be signs last year that NISA were getting their act together on the organisational side.

John

Well for one thing Lee Valley is not exactly a top rink in this country - not even full size. last year at Sheffield we had no photographer. ( my chance for a podium shot at championships and no photographer - not fair)

At one of the Sheffield events we had a proper kiss and cry and were given water after our skates - had decent cups and medals and a proper photographer and it felt like a proper competition. The next year nothing - not even a photographer and then this year moved to Lee Valley. Even with a photographer this year, it feels like it is being taken less seriously, though I hope that is not the case.

i know ther is a photographer thsi year but not beign held at

Oh no. I'm really sorry to hear that Grace. I hope your back improves very soon.

As for the championships, am I the only one still awating my details through the post? My name's up on the website so I'm not unduly worried but it would be nice to get the stuff through the post.

I agree in that it just seems that the BAC isn't being taken seriously this year. Nothing against Lee Valley but I feel that for a national championship we should at least be using a full size rink. There seems to be no practice ice scheduled either so those of us who skate on full size rinks have just 2.5 minutes on the ice before we compete in which to make the necessary adjustments to enable our programmes/dances to fit.

To add insult to injury my husband who is a competitive judoka, gets the regular judo magazine and there's a huge advert in there for some judo championship........Where? At Ice Sheffield of course. So I feel a bit put-out that a judo championship can be hosted there but not our adult championship.

I can't help but feel that NISA just don't take us adults seriously which is a huge shame. Kids come and go but us adults stick around and we deserve to be treated just as seriously as the kids.

Nicki

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The difference is that the judo will pay for using the facility. It also doesn't require iceSheffield to provide any volunteers which we are now struggling with due to the number of events that we have held over the last couple of years. I understand Nottingham are having similar problems with volunteers. The trouble is that for those of us with children competing or indeed competing ourselves (not me!), we have time off for competitions, tests and then you add the NISA events and our annual holidays have disappeared and we haven't enough time left to run our own Club events.

I am sure that Lee Valley will try to accommodate you and make it a special weekend. I know the NISA Cup apparently went very well there.

Skate well all of you!

Thanks, Max. The thing is, of course, the year you organised the BAC, it was fabulous - really great, and then last year it felt like it wasn't being taken seriously at all. You even managed a team of flower-girls (even if they did eat all the judges' sandwiches!)! Last year, it felt like "just another Open", and they rushed us on to the ice and off again so fast that it was running an hour early by the end of the day! We didn't exactly feel welcome..... although, to be fair, there were great on-ice presentations at the end of both days.

But I'm not surprised that you are having trouble getting volunteers - that's the trouble with being at one of the two major ice venues in the country, it must feel like One Thing After Another.

I'm sure Lee Valley will do a good job for us; and for those who are coming as spectators, as I remember, there are loads of seats!

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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!

Oh I do hope you are right John, I guess I am only going by my age and standard, in my first in 2003 there were 6-8 people in it, 2004 saw 6 people, 2005 saw 4 and this year only 3 which unfortunately through my own fault is down to 2.

I agree Annabel and BatikatII, the year of the flower girls/boys at Sheffield was great, made us all feel very important.

Thanks Nicki I'm sure it will improve it's just gone wrong at the wrong time.

Try e-mailing Laura Hallam at NISA she could probably e-mail them straight to you, I have found her very helpful.
laura.hallam@iceskating.org.uk

Cheers
Grace

Yes I guessed it was for those reasons. Just seems weird that hubby will be competing at judo at an ice rink! I also appreciate how much organisation the BAC involves and volunteers are always few and far between. If it's anything like our Opens, it's invariably the same people year after year, so yep I can understand that it's time someone else took a turn to host the championships. Let's hope Lee Valley do us proud.

Nicki

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Thanks for that Grace. If it doesn't come tomorrow I may well do that. Was there anything in there that I needed to read? I've seen the timetable so I know what time I'm skating.

Nicki

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Nothing extra in the info sent in the post really. It had the timetable and photo and DVD order forms and a map.

Covering letter on stated what was included, reminded us that only CDs are acceptable and that our passes can be collected on the day.