If you are , you'll know why already If not, it's the first solo ice dance qualifier of the season.

If you want to say hi, I'm the mum in the navy blue Oxford ISC jacket...

My "kid" lives about 5 minutes' drive from there.... but no, we won't be there until Wednesday, for their dance club.

Good luck to Holly! Give her a hug from me and tell her I said to skate great.

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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!

Ahh, I saw something about that when I was checking opening times on the website. Threw me into a panic for a minute - though it was YESTERDAY that it was closed.

So how did she get on?????

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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!

She came eleventh out of 23 - 15th on the compulsory (which she made a bit of a mess of, mostly because the rink is so narrow) and 9th on the OD. She was disappointed initially, but I think she's now feeling better about herself. One judge had her equal with the child who won, so she's decided she likes him now But it is hard on the kids that they have reduced the marking so much. I know, and she knows, that it's only the placing that matters. But it's still hard when a child who was getting 3.0 two years ago for a far easier and less well skated routine is now only getting 2.6. It makes her feel as if she's getting worse.

So, on to Solihull! It's that taxi service time of year - all this going to ice rinks, and I never get to skate

I know, the marking is awful - at the British Adults, very few of us would have even passed the Novice Foxtrot! And it is very disheartening, which is one reason I really prefer competing abroad, where they don't do that!

Anyway, 9th in the OD is great.

Is AP much narrower than Oxford? I thought they were about the same size.

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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!

It's ever so much narrower. At Oxford, we have about 2-3 feet between hockey circle and barrier on each side. At Ally Pally it's more like 6 inches. It's a bit of a killer for a qualifier event really, because almost all the other rinks are Olympic size (considerably bigger than Oxford) and having a full length diagonal step sequence which works in both sizes is...not easy.

Ah.... NISA's new website doesn't give the size, but I'd always assumed it's 56 by 26, same as so many.

And I agree, fitting in a diagonal step sequence which works in all sizes isn't easy!

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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!

Hi there !

Just saw your comment about Alexandra Palace, I am at Bracknell Rink and know the winner of the event.

I am also very frustrated with the marking, in the compulsory (in which she came 2nd) she had 2 2nd places, and then an 11th ? ?

Her coaches theory, was that the concerned judge penalised her for going over the centre line eventhough that is permitted in small rinks.

She also has problems when it comes to fitting in the canasta Tango, as Bracknell is even wider still.

I guess it depends on the judge's definition of "modest infringement". And if there are deductions involved which one judge applies but another doesn't, that can make a huge difference of marks for only a small difference of opinion.

But yeah, the place marks at these things always seems to be all over the place. At Solihull yesterday there were judges who would be giving the same marks for one child and for the next they'd be an entire point apart. I just hope that someone looks at it afterwards and there's some feedback for the judges so that things get gradually more consistent. Judges are human just like all of us, but I do feel there should be some sort of process where wildly disparate marks are looked at and they are asked why they marked x's routine that high, or y's routine that low, when their place marks are wildly out of kilter with everyone else's. For all I know there already is. But it's badly needed, and it should be publicised that it happens, because I think its presence would make a big difference in the way people perceive the fairness of the system.

I wish we could go on the IJS and have done - they have it in France, and although the judges' marks do still vary rather wildly, at least they can mark each individual skater on merit, without having to worry about placement.

Do you remember last Bracknell Adult Open, when they got totally out of kilter with the marks in several classes (I can't remember whether this was in free or in dance, but I rather think it was in free), and all of them ended up with serious giggles, and started cheering themselves whenever they gave a skater the same marks, and so on..... proof positive that judges are human.

And last Oxford Seniors only one judge noticed that my Husband had made a serious mistake on his Fiesta Tango and penalised it accordingly - the others didn't see it. And one judge went quite blind and had him in first place in the Willow Waltz - above two skaters there's no way in the universe he skates better than, not even on occasion!

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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 think (I'm not sure so don't quote me) there is always a meeting and judges who are out of kilter by a certain amount (not sure of the criteria) have to justify their marks to the referee. I've heard this happens in the solo dance qualifiers. But noone gets to hear the outcome.