Congrats MaineSkate! We actually saw you test as my dd was the one testing between your two tests! I give you so much credit for going out there in front of all those judges - I could NEVER do it! My legs get all trembly just thinking about it and I am in awe of anyone who can. I just don't have that part of the skating gene.

And my dd passed her Pre-Pre FS test, too and then competed in the afternoon (two gold medals!). It's such a nice, fun, low-key competition.

Thanks for the kind words! And congrats to your daughter!! Can't say I watched her test, cuz I was too worried about my next one.

Julie

I passed my Adult Bronze Moves yesterday! It was a shaky skate but my coach says that on a regular day they are very strong thus on a bad day they still were good enough to pass..

Field moves tests are so nerve-wracking. I got so nervous yesterday it was like I forgot how to skate!!

Anyway, so happy to start learning the silver moves!!

Congrats to everyone who passed their tests!

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Sasha Fan
Supporter of Alissa and Amber Czisny

Congratulations!!

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Terri C is a Bronze lady!
Gold Moves, here I come!

Congratulations! I'll be trying for Bronze Moves in just a little over a week

Congrats JessicaLynn!!!

And GOOD LUCK Morgail!

Seconded! Why isn't there a "good luck" smiley?

Hmm, perhaps this one:

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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!

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Sk84fun, did I miss where you announced you'd passed Skate UK 9 and 10?

Many congratulations!!!! That is not easy, and so few of those who start at level 1 get that far.

Are you doing Dance or Free passport, or both?

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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 just got back from testing the first three dances (solo). I had a mini-panic attack in the warm-up because the music (ALL the music) was different from what I'd been practicing with. I have a really hard time keeping count on the music I'm familiar with. Somehow I managed to actually pass the Dutch Waltz. Didn't pass the Canasta Tango or the Rhythm Blues. I messed up both the pattern (edges on second lobe) and the timing on the Canasta, and just the timing on the Rhythm Blues. After my freak-out during the warm-up, I'm happy that I passed even one dance!

Going back to the rink this afternoon to test Bronze Moves, and hopefully, Bronze FS.

Sorry you didn't pass two of the dances, Morgail. Did you know you can bring your *own* dance music to a test session?

Well done passing the Dutch Waltz.

Here, it's all done to ISU music (except the Riverside Rhumba, which doesn't have any), so you practice to it.

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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!

If you have the USFS dance tapes/CDs (which is what most clubs use for tests), there's 3 tracks of each dance. It's a good idea to practice to all 3, since you never know which one will come up for your test.

Send good vibes for my Killian tomorrow!! Practice today went well.

I passed Bronze Moves and Bronze FS!!!!!! On Moves, I ran out of room for the very last lobe for the Power 3s, and a couple of my RO 3s were shaky. One judge gave me 2.4 on that pattern, but the others gave me 2.5 - so I guess it wasn't too bad!

When I skated out to start my program for FS, I caught my blade in a gouge in the ice and went down on my behind! Everyone laughed (including me), but wow - that was embarrassing. As a result, I felt more than a little nervous in the program. Both my waltz-toe and loop were shaky and I just barely squeaked out 3 revolutions on the backspin. But it was good enough, and I passed I got nice comments on my scratch spin, and suggestions to work on my loop and spiral.


techskater - No, I didn't know that! But now I do However, there were so many skaters testing the first dances that they had us going 2 at a time (starting at opposite ends of the rink), so I'm not sure how that would work in such a situation.

MrsRedboots - thank you! I wish the music were all consistent here - that would be nice.

phoenix - I'll look in to getting one of those CDs. That would definitely help with getting counting down to various cuts of music. Good luck with the Killian!

A BIG CONGRATULATIONS to all those who have passed tests!

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

I PASSED ALL THREE DANCES - Dutch Waltz, Canasta and Rhythm Blues!!! today.

It was a single panel with a judge who some say is easy but I prefer to describe him as someone who understands the concept of "encouragement test"

This was my FOURTH time on the Dutch and Canasta, first time with Rhythm Blues and I think I skated the Rhythm & blues the best. Something about that music makes it easy for me to get down in my knees and get on an edge.

I tested at my old club without my dance coach. My former freestyle coach put me on. She's very, um, intense. She can seem mean, but I know that she really wanted me to pass and was getting frustrated that I was not skating that well.

The test is at the end of the day at a competition where I was an ice monitor for an hour, and competed freestyle and they were running behind so I had my skates on an hour before I tested. ANd I was the only one doing the dances so it was 1, 2, 3 boom boom boom.

After I warmed up the Canasta, my coach pulls me over and says very intensley "If you want to pass this test you are going to HAVE TO BEND YOUR KNEES and make some kind of an attempt to look like you are on an edge --you are on your flats the entire dance, you know that don't you????" and I'm like quivering...."yes?"

On the one hand it was a hard truth I had to hear (so that's what my dance coach means when she says niceley "Edges could be better...") and I did try to bend some more and get some more edge to it, but after that I was so tired and felt like I hadn't worked much on the Rhythm Blues so when they played my warm up (right after testing the Canasta,) I just wanted to get off and scracth - but my coach told me to just listen to the warm up music and then just go ahead and test. So I did and probably did that the best.

Oh yea and did I mention the judge's mother is a member of my church? I"m sure that had nothing to do with passing.

Anyway, I'm grateful and I'm not going to test for a long while until I figure out how to have better edges cuz even an "easy" judge is not going to let me get away with those edges for the next round.

j

Congratulations Morgail on your Dutch Waltz and Bronze tests.

Not every club lets you use your own music, it's up to the club. I found the timing for the Canasta VERY challenging until I switched music...a lot of it is HErnando's Hideaway and that melody is so distracting, I end up trying to skate to the melody instead of the underbeat.

J

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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 know how hard you've worked for this - you deserve it. Now, onwards and upwards.

(I am strongly reminded of the story in today's Gospel reading!

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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!

Congratulations!!! And after such a long day!

Congratulations to all those passing tests---especially the ones that took extra perseverence!!

Speaking of perseverence.....I failed my Killian today. BUT--I skated on time, did all 6 choctaws really good, and kept a very happy smile on my face throughout. Considering that 2 weeks ago I couldn't even keep up with the music, I think that's pretty good.

Nerves!! I was VERY stiff on the warmup, haven't been in front of judges since last August, and obviously it's been too long. Luckily for me it was a big group, hence long warmup, and I finally resorted to doing lunges down the ice to try & get my knees going. After several attempts I got through a pattern, & it got better from there.

So on my test, the partnered part was all right, a little inconsistent pattern, but not bad. And then my solo was just too flat, which I was aware of as I was skating, but those knees just weren't as soft as I needed them to be today. It was the 2 outer/outer edges that weren't edgy enough, all 3 judges commented on them.

So--it's okay. I'll keep working on it, & seeing as it really had just started to get off the ground at all, I'm sure next time wil be better. And I will be more relaxed!!

ALSO--2 of my students were testing, a Dutch Waltz, a Swing & a Hickory, and they both passed everything!! So I was very very happy about that.

Commiserations, Phoenix! Sooner you than me with that Kilian, is all I can say!

But oh, how I know what you mean about knowing your knees aren't soft enough and being totally unable to do anything about it - that's exactly what happened to me in my Moves test. So frustrating!

Congratulations to, and on, your students. Wish our coach would let us test Level 4 (Swing Dance and Fiesta), but he won't, yet. If ever.

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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!

Ditto!

And good for you to bring students to a passing, though I'm trying to figure out the order of all those dances..I'm figuring the swing was the last of the pre-bronze and the Hickory was a contingency?

j

Awww. Sorry you didn't pass, but it sounds like you've got a great attitude about the test.

Yay for phoenix' students!

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