Aaah: There was a photo of my coach doing the rounds this morning that showed him with his hair dyed red on one half and green on the other! Allegedly, so his wife said, it was for a fancy-dress competition, but she was at pains to point out she wasn't married to him back then so didn't know that for a fact.....

Meanwhile, we had our couples lesson in its new Tuesday slot. We spent most of it doing exercises - forward and backwards swing rolls and chassés in waltz hold. Coach is great at knowing we are trying to up our standard and thus criticising points he didn't used to. Like where our free legs are, and the hold, and where (at last!) Husband's shoulder is, and so on.

We also did "mirror" stroking in Foxtrot hold, which was hard, and "mirror" swings, which were much easier (I kept thinking we were going to do a Tango Mohawk), and finally cross-rolls round the rink in Foxtrot hold.

Aaarrggghh: Yes well, it was better than it used to be, BUT..... I know we won't ever be satisfied, but there are times when I wonder if we'll ever make it. It really is hard to skate together, both in Waltz hold and Foxtrot hold (the latter is easier, actually, but harder on the body!). Coach spent so much of his time correcting the hold, correcting our arm position, reminding us where our free legs needed to be.... but he was still complimentary.

So we thought we'd finish by showing him our spin. Big mistake - we went into it too fast, and guess what part of his anatomy Husband ended up spinning on????!! Yes, that's right..... prostrated himself at my feet, he did!

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

This is for my current lower back condition...

Aaaaah:

• I got my skates sharpen on Saturday and it's much MUCH better! I feel more secure on my edges now!
• I'm also starting to get back my strength and recovering from my long weekend at Skate SF.
• Spins are fine, except for camels!
• Moves are starting to come back, though I really won't know until I go out there and do that whole entire test w/o distractions from other skaters. (Gotta find myself a nice quiet session...)

Aaaaarrrrgggh!!!

• For the past week, I've been having backaches, triggered by doing too many jumps. (Should have quit when Jay told me to.) Though it's much better now, I don't dare attempt to jump until I get back my range of motion on the lower back. Before I felt like I was twisted up. But right now, I feel very numb around that lower back area... (Well, not numb but it's like I don't feel that area much...) ThermaCare back warps are helping me a LOT!!!
• Didn't dare try jumps, though I am working on loop drills (Don't worry, you guys in the Peanut Gallery! I didn't not jump at all!!! This is all EDGE work!!!)
• Camels didn't happen at all... I think the lower back problem killed it. Doesn't hurt, but just don't feel it. (Not that I ever had a camel, mind you.)

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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!!!

What do you mean by loop drills?

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

You and me both! Why did I think this hop, step & jump was a good idea? Oh well, in less than 3 hours it will be over.

I've put streaks in my hair (I plan to ham this thing up like you wouldn't believe) and, irritatingly, they haven't dried.....

And my e-mail delivery is playing up, so if you expected an e-mail from me and didn't get it, that's why.

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

Aaaaah
I skated for an hour yesterday and my big achievement was that I landed five out of five loop-loop combinations. Nothing fantastic about that you may think, especially considering I've been doing them trouble-free for some time now, but this was my first attempt at this combination after breaking my wrist so it was quite an achievement to me. I really could "feel" the ice and feel the way the jumps used to feel, so I'm getting my confidence back now. I also did some decent flips and several camels and camel-sits that worked well.

Aaarrrgggh
Nothing. I came away feel very content as I hadn't expected to have the confidence to do as many jumps as I did. My only low point was that I didn't try the lutz - I haven't quite got the nerve for that one yet!

Nicki

Just practicing getting the feel for the takeoff, but never leaving the ground. I have a tendency to not wait long enough before I take off on the jump and with loops, if you get the timing and feel in sync, then it's really easy. Needless to say, I still haven't gotten that timing to date. (Well, there are other things besides timing, like body position, knee bend, etc...)

Keep in mind though... the injury is b/c I did WAAAAY too many jump and I took a few falls along the way. ("Happy now, coaches!!?!?!") Chiro should fix that in a couple of days and my lower back should be better then... (Okay! Show of hands -- how many of you guys have their chiro on speed dial on their cell?)

__________________
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!!!

Aaaaaarrrrrrrrrgggggggghhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

Husbands! Don't you just hate them????

So we come to the hop, step and jump competition, in which we are required to do a cherry flip - toe loop, to those of you from across the Pond - an upright spin and a forward spiral. So the kids go through theirs, ranging from a step rather than a jump, to an extremely good jump, to a spin that was basically just a 3-turn with a great entrance & exit to a spin to die for.

Then the Under Level 2 kids do their sals, sitspins and back spirals.

Then it's our turn. There's me wearing my new skirt and a matching collar, rather elaborate make-up and coloured streaks in my hair to match the skirt. There's his Lordship, in the blue shirt he'd worn to the office & his one and only pair of skating trousers.

So I'm on first, so I go out there and do a respectable, if small, cherry. So he goes out there and does a huge one. So I go out there and do a not-very-good spin - maybe 2.5 revs? His spin hasn't worked all evening - until competition-time, when he goes out there and does 5-6 fast revolutions and a not-forced exit.

My spiral hasn't worked all evening, either, but it does during the competition. It's okay - but only okay. So the Husband goes out there and does a spiral that goes round, and round, and round, and round the hockey circle, about four times!

Grrrrrr....

Of course I don't mind - I knew he'd outskate me. What I do mind is that he can never do this sort of thing in practice, he always skates infinitely better in competition, even that sort of informal, doesn't-matter-a-scrap competition.

Oh well, we wives have ways of getting our revenge.... like putting more chilli in his supper than I know he likes!!!!!

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

Aaaah: I was back on the ice today after a three week absence due to vacation and illness. It was good to be back. Sit spins and scratch spins were pretty good. So was my first attempt at a camel spin. The position wasn't entirely pretty, but I managed four good revolutions. I also found out that all the off-ice jump practice I've been doing is paying off. My coach asked me to do a half-flip, but I just naturally pulled in and ended up doing more of a 3/4-flip before I popped out of it. I think it's safe for me to say that I'll be getting my flip jump before the loop jump.

Aaargh: Did I mention the three weeks off the ice? My feet were screaming at me by the end of my lesson. And now that I've been sitting at my desk for a while, I can feel my muscles tightenng up much more than usual. I need a massage!

This isn't exactly "aaargh", but my coach asked me if I wanted to do a piece for the Christmas show, which will be in exactly one month. To do so would however, would entail finding new music and putting together a new program. I'm kinda torn. On the one hand, it's just for fun and I've always wanted to do a Christmas show. On the other hand, I'm going to need to do a heck of a lot of skating in the next four weeks so that I don't entirely embarrass myself. Any thoughts or input?

Haven't posted for a while as after the British Championships I rather lost focus and also can't help feeling that I'm unlikely to better what I achieved this year, winning our rinks open at my level and medalling at the British. I'm not ready to move up - I can't do a backspin which is required for next level - but doubt that I can win again at current level. I've also expended a great deal of mental and physical energy on organisational matters for our rinks upcoming panto on ice recently and am pretty drained right now.

Never mind, I am still having my lessons and concentrating on Field moves for a bit which shoudl improve my overall skating - I can feel a difference in control already.

aaaah

Did some nice spins - I love spinning - except the backspin!
One or two lovely salchows - mostly when the music playing had just the right beat for the timing.


aaaarrgggghhh!

The dratted loop -where did my loop go? I had it - even in competition - now it's gone. The daft thing is I actually did a loop-loop last week that felt so easy but it happened exactly once - now I can't even do a single loop or 3 jump -loop which I also had. I hope it comes back soon I miss it!


aaaagh!

Really enjoyed watching daughter run through one of the programmes for the panto - it looks really fun. She's paired with one of the boys who she doesn't know well but he's a nice lad and they are getting on OK. I like the music too - Blondie's 'Call Me' which was a lucky find as we were listening to a CD with some other songs we were considering but when it ran on to this one my coach said - 'how about this' and we realised we could make it work as it is when Aladdin first 'calls' the Slaves of the Ring so fits the plot.

__________________
'skating is not just a sport - it is an obsession'

AAAAAARRRRRGGGGH!!!!

Where the #$@#&* is my RFI mohawk today? I did a bunch of those last night and I did a bunch early in the session, but afterwards they just disappeared!!! (Would whoever have my FI mohawks, please return them back by Thursday in time for my lesson?)

Minor ARGH... secondary coach cancels lesson... At least now we have an understand that I do practice even when she's not there, just not at the times that she's there!!! (And I have a meeting Wed afternoon, so that's why I'm skating today!!! )

Moves are kinda tentative this afternoon. Don't know what's going on with me. I've been going into stuff with more gusto usually...

AAAAAHH!!!

I am taking a break for a day tomorrow from skating... so I can recover my lower back...

__________________
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!!!

aaah: today's session started out really well. A few tightly centred scratch spins (with a dozen rotations) a super flip/loop/loop combo and a few nice big loops. but then....

aaaarrrghhh: had some problems with lacing all session and had to retie them about 10 times, no use. I'm getting some bad pinch and pain issues near the vein above my anklebone. It is causing jumping problems. Boots still need a little more breaking in. Might need to seek out some bunga if I can get them.

oh well. But since I got the new boots and blades my spins have been more consistently centred than ever, with two tracing lines for the picks which is a new and welcome thing for me

I'm sorry----I had to "borrow" it for a bit yesterday! I'm done with it now. Thank you very much-it was VERY NICE! I am now looking to "borrow" a LFI mohawk for lessons tonight...any offers? (mine is crappy)

And since I'm shopping, I'd really like to "borrow" a full-rev loop (ok, I'd settle for a 3/4 way around) for lessons tonight! And, more ooomph on my toe-loop....and forward scratch spins....and a backspin...and a sitspin...and...

Blisspix-try getting some of those 1/2 sole gel pads that are made for dress shoes-you can get them at the drug store or Walmart in the shoe stuff aisle. Put 2 of them together and stick them on your ankle where the pinching is...I use them for lace bite and they work very well; PLUS they are MUCH cheaper than bunga pads ($4-6 vs $$$$)! They feel the same-squishy gel stuff.

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

I'd lend you mine, Skate@Delaware, but I don't honestly think you'd thank me for it, it's not all it should be!

Oh, but I was stiff this morning - still am, come to that. Back much better, though - I think I stretched it out yesterday. But just generally heavy-limbed. However, got my 2nd wind when skating.

Aaargh: Husband woke up when his alarm clock went off, and decided he wasn't going to skate today - he'd had a bad fall yesterday, not on the ice, and although he was fine to skate last night (that spiral!), he decided to have a rest day. So he made tea and then proceeded to tell me, in detail, about the footwork he wanted to do for his free programme.... (mostly 3-bracket-3s, which neither of us can do yet!).

I was so slow in my warm-up moves I really thought I'd freeze to the ice! Finally got moving, though, just about in time for my lesson. Probably because, as I didn't have to be down at the rink before 08:00, I had my breakfast before leaving the house, and was not on the ice until about 08:45.

Aah: In my lesson, did my cross-cuts the best I've ever done them! Who-hooo! And my B cross-rolls weren't bad, either. Got given a new exercise I absolutely adore - you do F cross-rolls down the rink until you reach the centre line, then you speed them up and try to get them Paso Doble speed (I beat each!). I can't quite do that yet, and I find, when I try, they lose all their flow. Coach says he doesn't think I'm able to make them flow at that speed, as yet, as I don't get enough under-push, but he still wants me to work at it. Anyway, it's terrific fun, and after a couple of laps in post-lesson practice, I've decided it's my current favourite exercise!

Coach had a good correction for my I-O changes-of-edge, which was basically to remember to change my shoulders (but that, as I said, won't work when Husband and I try to do this exercise in Kilian or Reverse Kilian hold, which we do. Still cross that bridge when we get there.).

Aaaarrrrgggghhhh! But then my cross-cuts disappeared. But totally! I was listening to Kirsty McColl's version of "Miss Otis Regrets" on my headphones which is the perfect rhythm to do them to, and I couldn't do them at all! Finally, when I had nearly given up in despair, they came back! And the trouble is, I still have no idea what I was doing differently!

Discovered I can't keep my weight in the circle when doing circular exercises. When I was doing back crossovers round the circle, I was fine with the coach, but not solo. I asked him why, since I wasn't leaning on him, and we were only just barely holding hands, but he said it was because he was applying sufficient pressure to keep my bodyweight over my left (or right, as appropriate) hip. Then when I did the end pattern of the Fiesta round the circle (that's a good drill, too), I kept wavering my upper body all over the place. I told him to work out some drills for me for next week, but I am not too sure whether I shall look forward to that!

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

Aaaaah
YAY!!!! I had a brilliant lesson today. Everything worked. I showed my loop-loop to my coach and it was a good one. She then asked me to try the entry for the lutz, but not to actually jump. After doing that she said I could have gone for the jump so I had a go and landed a perfect lutz with a decent running edge out of it! I am so pleased. The last time I attempted a lutz was before I broke my arm the first week of September so it's been a long while. I also pulled off a really nice sit spin and a sit-change-sit, then some decent camels and camel-sits. It was such a wonderful feeling to "be back"!! I never expected to get back to it so soon after my injury. I guess I'll be doing my programme again soon.

Aaaarrrggghhh
Nothing!!!

Nicki

AAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH

Have come down with a really bad dose of the cold, I was sent home this morning from work The ARGH is because I can't go to the adult skate lesson this evening Oh well, try again next week!

__________________

The best whisper is a click

Glad you liked it! Now PLEASE FedEx it back to me for my lesson on Thursday with primary coach!!! Thank you!!!

BUMMER, TashaKat!!! Definitely try again next week and meanwhile, REST UP!!!

__________________
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!!!

Oh, bad luck. If you feel well enough, pop down to Streatham tomorrow night & try your luck with the dance.... or even just come and watch and chat & get your head together!

Hope you feel better soon. Did you enjoy the pole-vaulting... sorry, pole-dancing?!

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

Well, my practice today started out Aaarrrgggh when I got pulled over by the speed trap on the highway on the way to the rink. But it quickly became Aaah when the state trooper told me as long as I had a clean driving record (which I do) he was only giving out warnings - something about a new laser enforcement system.... phew! Anyway, it was still a bit Aaarrrgghh b/c I got to the rink a few minutes late.

Aaah - well, I was pleased that I could still cover the longer ice surface in my moves run-throughs. I have been practicing them on smaller rinks lately so I was worried that my ice coverage had suffered. It felt like I had good speed and flow and that I was hitting the right edges. I practiced the 8-step and it was reasonably well-done for the first time practicing the whole sequence - but it's got a long way to go to be comp-ready for NYI. Landed some loops and salchows that were OK.

Aaarrrgggh - still too much scratchiness on anything involving back crossovers! I didn't feel the loop was getting as much height as it had during a practice last week. Backspins were very inconsistent. Spins have started traveling again.

Jazzpants-I'm done with your Mohawk, so you can have it back. Thanks for letting me "borrow" it.

Annabel-I'm loaning you my spiral; I can spare it for a while.

Aaah: I talked with my coach about my goals and testing and competing and everything. I told her I had been a bit upset but had to look at things realistically. So, after stewing for a week and reviewing, I'm ok with competing no-test while I get some experience. She said she was unsure how I had taken it last week, she thought I was upset but I hadn't said anything about it at the time. Yeah, reality bites sometimes. (yeah, this really is an Aaah moment).

We started putting my routine together! Yay! And, even though I had a migraine cooking (stupid weather), I managed to to several very nice scratch spins! Yay!

Aaarrrgggh!: Ok, so we started working on my routine, and we're going through it and we get to the salchow part-and I forget how to do a salchow! My mind went completely blank!! Ha! Then, I'm supposed to do this back spiral.....sure....it was a twilight zone moment. Out goes the back spiral, in goes my toe-loop (waltz) Whatever! Now I have to work on speeding up my steps, because I was still going when my music ended....

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

I wanted to interject that these posts make me so sad - still no ice for me...I bet I'd have a solid lutz by now and a decent backspin and possibly getting close to working on the axel by now

Imma have to work extra hard when I get back I suppose

Any word yet on when they will be done with the restorations?

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

Been there, done that! I was doing my "Master of the House" interp from a couple of years ago and turned the wrong way - had to "wing" the programme (badly), and ended up coming down in front of the judges, I was supposed to do a back spiral and a toe-loop, and totally forgot which leg to do the spiral on, and which way to jump in the toe-loop.... well, duh.... so I did a sort-of clockwise-half-flip, which was really weird and didn't even leave the ice!

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

AAAHHHHH - still relaxing from my 3 week off ice vacation

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Tim David's Website

Aaaaahhhh:

~I had my first program runthrough where I landed every jump and did every spin. All elements completed. No falls. Footwork done.

~I'm getting pretty comfortable with sit/change sit.

Arrrgggh:

~Remember the program run through? Well I didn't mention that my footwork was clunky, my spiral sequence slow and I only got two revs on that back camel.

~On the axel, I can get into backspin position, but lack enough oommph to get around. Then when I try to generate oomph, I lack the ability to get into backspin position. Coach seems pleased about it overall though, so I guess that's something.

~I'm not really achieving the "check" between the lutz and loop on the lutz/loop combo. I kinda just land with my arms tucked in and take off for the loop hanging on for dear life. The combo isn't that great in quality and it's bugging me. Have to work on those.

I haven't called or spoken to anyone, but last I heard from my coach it was going to be at least a month or two as of last week.

He did mention that he would be coaching at a different rink, but I'm going away this weekend so maybe next weekend when I get back...sigh