I don't see any other announcements about this here so I thought I'd let everyone know that the proposed adult age group changes that were discussed here a few weeks ago have officially passed at USFSA Governing Council.

http://www.usfigureskating.org/Story...9731&type=news

The changes are listed at the end of the article that announces Hershberger was elected president. Not good news for those hoping for USFSA-driven int'l reforms. Looks like status quo.

As for the age group stuff, I still think it's a bad idea to cut the old Class I in half, especially given the problems attracting a critical mass of these skaters at AN and other comps. IMO, the best solution would have been to completely redraw the divisions for all classes and have an even number of "years" in each - make Class I 21-30, Class II 31-40, etc.

What will most likely happen is that most comps, even those that attract a lot of adults - Peach, HC, New Year's - will probably not get enough entries to have separate comps for Classes I and II and so they will be combined, meaning those in their early 30s could be competing against 21-year-olds, who likely started skating as children or teenagers. That sounds encouraging.

Oh, and the USFSA approved CoP as the official judging system for all qualifying comps.

No word on the adult MIF changes.

So I just went from being a Bronze 1 to a Bronze 3?

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Champagne in 2005, 2008, 2009 - who's next out of the pre-bronze club...?

Wang chung!

Hey Mel, at least you'll be young in your new group. I've been moved up an age class, and I'm still old!

I knew this was going to be a transistion year, but I feel like I've aged 10 years just before my 36th birthday!

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Champagne in 2005, 2008, 2009 - who's next out of the pre-bronze club...?

Wang chung!

Oh my. Now I am class V.

Will someone please hand me my walker, Geritol, and box of Depends?

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Keeping School Figures Alive!!

Wow, I moved to class II faster than I thought I would. So much for ever competing in Gold I.

I am surprised that this passed, and wonder how informed the voting parties were about the state of things in the adult skating community. In addition to the problems that this will (most likely) cause for getting entries for class I, there is the issue that 21 year olds will now be competing in Championships events.

Now, I'm not a Gold or Masters skater myself, but I would be a bit frustrated if I now had to compete against college-age skaters to qualify for the championship events. Will Championships Masters events becoming like another intercollegiate championships (which IIRC, Alissa Csizny won last year, and she has a triple lutz)?!

Well, let's see how the vote on the MITF changes comes out...

I went from class II to class IV,...not sure what that will mean...
except perhapes more skaters in that group. The qualifying events for next year will be interesting Any one know if we will have the new judging system in place for Adults next year...... i hope so.

I said it before and I'll say it again. This was done because it was noticed that there was a huge drop in adult skating participation and that the 21-24 year old has nowhere to go competitively. Now,if the Adult Skating Committee were really smart, they would have looked at the competitions with young adult categories and saw the low numbers there.

Now, what will happen if one does a non qualifying standard competition with Adult events- I as a 40 year old will be in the same group as a 21 year old. Add to that I'm now a Class III- sheesh!

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Adult Nationals, 2009 "The Time of My Life"

Deleted it because I read it over and realized it made absolutely no sense. I'll type up what I wanted to say later and promise to make it more coherent.

I'm still a class I, so, I may medal at my 1st AN simply because the number of entries will be so low...

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I've got mad salchow disease!

Go ahead USFSA!!! Make me feel older than I already do right now... (And I was just getting used to being in Class II and now I'm in Class III...)

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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!!!

I say age is just a number--who CARES what age group you are in; so, for example, you've been reclassified from Class II to Class III; you're *still* 36-45 .

I say let the "kiddies" enter the adult structure. The number of starts is withering, and we need a new bumper crop. If anything, let the "kids" (they're not all skating wizzes!) inspire you to train harder. I know that's easier said than done ...

And look at the winners from AN; the younger folks in each class did not win.
And when I compete in local comps, sometimes silver skaters who are more than 15 years older than myself beat me (I'm 29). ...

(Ok, bring on the attacks ... )

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Doubt whom you will, but never yourself.
"Do what you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life."
-Haha, I've *arrived*! I am listed as a reference on Wikipedia.

(Raising walking cane...) Just you wait, kiddo!!! When you start running into overuse injuries and all sorts of spinal stuff caused by "getting older" and you end up having to readjust your whole entire workout routine b/c of those injuries...you'll think twice about those comments... You're lukcy that you're as flexible as "Silly Puddy" now!!! (Jazzpants then ponders if NoVa is old enough to remember what "Silly Puddy" is...)

Yes, there is one young lady who's a young adult that I befriended at Skate SF that I do wish would have the option of competing as an adult and not have to compete against these little pre-prelim kids if she wanted to. (If she is reading this, you know who you are...)

And hey, it's nice to be able to say that I can keep up with "ya young whippa snappas." (Or at least be a KEWL "Auntie Jazzpants" to young girls out there b/c I'm old enough to be their parents but be a skate buddy to them on the ice...while still be able to alert their parents when I see something of concern... b/c, of course, I'm their "Auntie" )

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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!!!

Trust me; I've had my share of injuries, including 7 back injuries, 2 of which were stress fractures in my lower back. And as a pair skater, I'm getting acquainted with more and more '-itises' week by week.
And again, my flexibility is not natural. I have worked extremely hard to get it (like 7 years?), and I am thorough with my stretches and muscle toning.

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Doubt whom you will, but never yourself.
"Do what you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life."
-Haha, I've *arrived*! I am listed as a reference on Wikipedia.

I wonder if these ages catagories will carry to Skate Canada's Adult Program AdultSkate and Skate Canda Adult Championships?

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"It's not age that determines but the heart." "Skating is not just a sport for the young but it's a passion for the soul of the young at heart." Brigitte Laskowski

I am a nomadic adult skater who is a member of Windsor FSC (Skate Windsor) WOS SC again since Sept. 1st, 2008.

http://eastcastlemusic.tripod.com

Singerskates Sports Music Editing

Of course, keep in mind I posted that reply tougue firmly in cheek...

I'll admit that I'm envious. I started skating when I was 31 and after about 6 years of skating, I'm still crappy when it comes to flexibility... (and I DO stretch and do strength training.) My spiral are finally above hip level now on a FO edge... (It wasn't before...)

I've called in the cavalry now for help... actually, per my secondary coach's wishes, I've started back on pilates again with a new trainer today... We'll see...

I'm lucky I don't have any more back injuries in the meantime (knocking on wooden desk.) Actually, I've been lucky that I don't have as much injuries period. I always thought that my many years of exercise and good training habits at the gym attributed to that. (About 18 years now actually...okay, now I'm feeling REALLY old now!!!)

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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!!!

This is a reply from the other side. I'm turning 21 in 4 days and I'm quite upset that this passed. In local competitions, none of the adults want us to skate with them because they are so sure that we'll beat them. They can be quite viscious. The first adult competition I skated in one lady had me near tears because of things that she said. I'm sure this isn't the case all over.

I also recently did a project on adult skating for a journalism class I was taking. Every single adult said they did not support this decision because it wasn't fair.

It's also hard because I've been skating standard track. I've been doing doubles and an axel in my programs. I've only tested high enough to be the equivalent of Silver, which means I have to completely change my programs unless I continue skating standard track, if they allow me to.

While sometimes it is hard to compete against the kids, it's also hard to compete against adults who do not want you there. It takes a lot of the fun out of it.

So please, if you get paired with a younger adult skater, be nice. It's not our fault this was passed, and many of us don't like it either.

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

Great, now that I'm FINALLY old enough to do ANs under the old rules, they change them so I could've been competing for four years! At least I still have three years to try for Gold I.

Wow, COP for Regionals and Adult Sectionals... I'm sure the clubs that put on Regionals are going to be thrilled about the amount of profit $$$ they'll lose by having to use COP.

Does anyone know if the MIF stuff passed?

probably nothing. Skate Canada has its own thing. We don't really have anythign the same as the Us for adults.

That's a shame that you had to deal with some obviosly immature person who felt the need to do that to you. Not everything in life or skating is fair. There are adults now who skated as children. Do I think it's fair that I have to compete against them? Not really. Am I going to whine and complain and lose sleep over it? Not hardly. I certainly hope that the last line of your post sticks in people's heads when they start competing under the new age rules.

I'll add a third view to this. Not every 21 year old started skating when they were 6. I didn't put on a pair of skated until I was 20. When I was 22, 23, 24, I would constantly get asked why I wasn't competing in some of the adult competitons and I would always tell them that I wasn't old enough to be an adult. That limbo period bites. I'm undecided on how I feel about this change. I understand the concerns that the 25+ crowd have, but I also know what it's like to be stuck in that 21-24 year old void.

This will be very interesting.

I like the challenge

I will compete at the Gold I - Men's level at some local competitions, then of course Silver I - Men at Dallas, TX.

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Tim David's Website

I am really excited about this! I'm turning 19 in July, and I'm excited that i'll be able to compete on the adult track sooner! I've been lucky, the past few years at the preliminary level I've been able to skate in groups with people around my age... but I'm certainly not going to get younger, and it seems to be the trend that most people quit skating when they go off to college, leaving me with competitors that are much younger than me and that have been skating for twice as long! I've always skated with adults (started in an adult lts class) until recently when a lot of the adults at our club (for various reasons) have stopped skating... so at my rink i was always pretty much considered "an adult skater"... it does seem odd that once you suddenly start landing an axel and some doubles that people take notice of you!

I'm so sorry you had a bad time. While I also don't think this decision is fair, I would never give a skater a hard time because of it! It's not like you're not following the rules. But your comment about doing doubles and and and an axel illustrates the potential unfairness of allowing such younger skaters to compete with the older ones.

And yes, Lurking Skater, I know that not every 21 year old started skating at 6. But I have watched a number of skaters start at 20 or 21 and their learning curve is WAY faster than many of the adults who started at 30. It's just a fact of physiology.

Just my opinion, so please don't shoot me for it.

Pat

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August 22, back on the ice!

http://www.marie.org/rink/

The link above is to a blog by one of the GC delegates. She gives an issue-by-issue account of what went on at the GC meeting these past few days. The adult age changes are covered, as well as many other issues. Several interesting comments have been added by readers -- don't miss those.

Well, I for one am glad. It means I'll be eligible in 2 years. I'll be 21 next year but probably not in time for the entry deadline, and plus I'm sure I can't go to Dallas! That means if some of my friends and clubmates decide to go I'll have to go. Sounds scary.