Summer Ice

Finding convenient ice for practicing figure skating is always a problem. In the summer that is a big problem...

We talk here about convenient times, prices and how crowded it is. Firstly, you cannot really practice on public skating ice. That is done on "practice ice" where there are allowed only figure skaters and there are rules about the level of the skaters on  particular sessions and what can be done on the ice. My rink rules are: only Freestyle 1 and up are allowed on ice, spins are done in the middle, jumps towards the corners, and you have to keep moving, you cannot stay in a single spot. As for times, this type of ice is meant to be used by kids/teen figure skaters so during the school year the practice ice is from 5 to 8 and from 2 to 6. I'm lucky I was able to adjust my schedule and skate noon to early afternoon. At 2 o'clock not many kids are making it from the school, so the ice is not very crowded. After 3, there are 24 to 28 skaters on ice, the majority of them with a coach, practicing different levels jumps, spins, moves and dance! I'm lucky that my rink has 3 days a week an hour and a half at noon "adult figure skating only". But I'm fine with the 2 o'clock practice ice too.

Now, during the summer, all of that is gone. Actually the 5 to 8 morning practice ice is still there, crowded, but there. But again, my schedule is set to accommodate the early afternoon skating. Then, between 8 in the morning and late afternoon there are skating summer camps (both figure skating and hockey). And there is some (very little) package ice squeezed in, here and there.  The previous years I was skating what I could on the practice ice and I was driving once or twice a week to a farther away rink. Terribly inconvenient...

This summer, is the first one when my rink has a studio rink in use. Is half the size of the main rink. And the noon "adult figure skating only" had during the summer, the 3 days a week on the studio rink. I knew I will not be able to practice whole pattern dances and moves, but I could practice parts of them, and jumps and spins. Not ideal but convenient.

Here comes the problem. Half the time, the ice wasn't "done" (cut with the Zamboni). And some days it was really bad, like the worst outdoor ice bad... I think the ice is softer in the summer as the temperature of the rink is higher so that makes it get choppy faster. We were given all kinds of explanations: the second Zamboni was broken and it was difficult to bring the main Zamboni to the small rink, then not all employees knew how to use the Zamboni that is at the studio rink. Other times the ice was done in the morning, and nobody was supposed to use it, but it got used without authorization. Some times as our noon session was supposed to start, it was offered to do the ice right then and it was done.

I've got progressively discouraged by this chopped iced. And I'm upset about the last two times I used the noon ice. Before last time, I was there 10 minutes earlier then noon, and as I saw the ice was not done, I let the front desk know and they sent the Zamboni driver to do the ice. It was noon at that point so the ice cut would have taken 15 minutes out of our skating time, but they said we can stay 15 minutes longer. But one of the skaters had a lesson planned to start at 12. The coach seamed unhappy to wait so we didn't. It soo bothered me that he said several times, while on ice, that that ice was just fine. It wasn't fine for me. I cannot work on spins on chopped ice, or on the back figure 8, or on anything where I need to adjust my balance. I'm sure for a strong skater that ice was fine, but not for me...

Last time, I've got there 15 minutes early and of course, the ice wasn't done. I've let the front desk know and they sent the Zamboni guy. He was unhappy. He said that he didn't consider that the ice needed to be done again because it was just one skater on ice before us. He mentioned who was the skater but not for how long she was on ice. And it was a very strong skater and all the middle of the ice was full of spins. Soft ice full of spins from a high level skater, what can you do on it? Nothing...How come the ice didn't need to be done? I mean the rule is that the ice should be done before us. It is in the schedule.

Do you remember I was saying I was upset on the skating world and I didn't feel like skating for awhile in this post? This is adding to that. I schedule my day in that way so I can go skating. I don't have infinite time on my hands. If I would know the ice it is not done I wouldn't go. And it's hard to think I'll go tomorrow and the ice wouldn't be done again. I just don't want to go. One of my good friends fell while saying how bad is the ice (and she never complains about ice) and hit her head and now she is not coming skating anymore. Many people stopped going.

I feel it messed up my already messed up summer skating. And there is one more month with this schedule. And I don't really know what to do this coming month, I mean I could try to go to the previous year setting, but it is a big effort to adjust my schedule, again, for just a month. Maybe I should take the whole month off?

Volunteering at a test session

As I wanted to get more involved in skating, I e-mailed and asked the test chair of my club if they need help. She also said she won't be there but one of the judges will act as a test chair. It was a very welcomed help, because there was a volunteer missing that day. I ended up helping for three hours and a half.

My job was that of a "runner". That is the person that picks up the forms from the judges, checks for the forms to be completely filled out, takes them to the office, makes copies and gives the result to the skaters. As I said, this was a very big session. The majority of the tests were double panel and some triple panel. That means that two, or three skaters were judged at the same time. There were lots of forms to be handled. And the judges don't always finish a form on the same time with the other judges judging the same test. So you have to keep that on the side until you have all the forms. It was somebody else that did this at this session. Also, she checked for the forms to be filled up and for eventual inaccuracies, like adding the scores and write the total and circling the result. If there is something missing it is given back to the judge, because nobody is allowed  to write on that form, but the judge. My job was to take, usually 2 sets of forms, for 2 tests, to the office (that was at the other end of the building), copy them on colored paper, give the originals to the volunteer that processes, and give the result (the copies on colored papers) to the skater. A move test runs between 6 to 10 minutes. That was just enough to finish my job and start over. I occasionally got behind doing other stuff, or the forms were not all ready, and I've got worried that I'll mess up. But I've caught up immediately and all worked out well.

I've joined a club when I've decided to test. I haven't really knew what a club does, or how it is organized. And I haven't realized they needed volunteers help. I'm thinking that clubs don't to a good job in asking for help. On the other hand I'm probably the exception in not knowing, the parents of the skaters do know but they are probably too busy to get involved much.

Anyhow, it was an interesting and satisfying experience and I encourage anybody that gets a chance, to do it!

Skating for enjoyment versus progress

I'm still not skating much. The summer schedule is not convenient, the ice condition varies wildly, I've got disappointed in some people involved in organizing my rink club, and I meet some of these people on a regular basis, I didn't get to test and I don't have a plan on what to work on... They are all valid excuses, but at points I wonder if they are just excuses, because I know, last year I would have found a way to skate. I also spend a lot of time doing trial judging and studying for it, that still counts as skating, right? Or does it?

I've always found skating is missing something. Or, I'm missing something in skating. I'm actually paying attention on this for a long time now. And I think that that "something" is somehow related with enjoyment. Ideally, it would be to enjoy every second on ice, and when I work on skills, to enjoy the process. I've wrote, when a first started the blog, a post about recreational skating versus training, and I said it there, training is hard. Looking back, whenever I pushed hard for progress, I didn't really enjoyed myself, the only satisfaction was the actual progress, not the process. On the other hand, I know for sure I still want a higher level of skills. That would allow me to move less careful, so more freely. I feel that that would give me more enjoyment.

There are just two ways I see people enjoying skating. One is doing competitions, so training for that moments when they present their program and that bring them joy. And when I worked for my Pre-Bronze freestyle program I enjoyed the process a lot. I'm thinking to start working on a new program, even if I don't have the elements (jumps and spins) I need for it.

The other way I see people enjoying skating is skating for themselves, and they don't seem to train or push. I used to feel like that before I started to skate with progress as a goal. I used to enjoy the gliding, the cold air on my face, the quietness of the mind. The problem is that I don't know how to get back to that at this point, plus, now I think I want even  more. For me, enjoyment is connected with self expression... with meaning and soul.

At least I start to see a kind of a plan. For now and immediate future it doesn't seem that I'll be able to skate much without putting extra effort in scheduling. The one good thing that comes out of skating less is that my hip feels really good. But whenever I'm on ice I should have in mind enjoyment. And, even if I'm not ready now, and don't even skate enough for it, I should somehow get to the point when I push for progress again...

Fashion: Figure Skating Practice Tunic Dresses

As I don't skate much these days, I was thinking to share my first skating sewing projects.

My desire to sew something to skate in came after I bought an inexpensive tunic dress at Marshall's that became an uniform going skating that summer because it made it easy for me to transition from what I was comfortable on wearing on street on hot days, to the ice rink. I was wearing knee length leggings and this tunic dress to the rink and even running errands without feeling under dressed. Then at the rink I added over the knees legwarmers and an athletic jacket and I was ready to skate. No fuss, no changing in dressing room or bathroom and packing extra clothes. That tunic was made from a flimsy rayon fabric and was short lived and I couldn't find something similar. After the summer was gone and I would wear skating a long sleeves sport blouse over legging to the rink and I was wishing for something to cover my behind. So I had no choice but to make my own.

Now, I did sew when I was younger. A lot... I studied fashion design and pattern making for two years, had two fashion shows in school and sewed for clients. But then, I decided to take another career and I've been sewing just a couple a times a year. And I've never got to work with knits. Knits while very forgiving need different patterns and sewing skills than I had. But thanks to youtube I picked it up quickly. My at this point sewing machine was a very cheep and simple one and was stretching the knits so I had to buy a serger. That makes sewing knits really quick and easy.

These are the first tunics I've sewed for skating practices. They are really bad pictures (snapshots from videos of my practices, taken with my phone), sorry for that.
 

I made them quite loose so after they rise as I rise the hands, they'll go back on their own, I wouldn't have to pull them down. The white one is a thick poly knit and the dark gray is bamboo terry with tie dye inserts on the sides. The poly pilled quite fast, the bamboo lasted for few years. It is disappointing to put so much work in a sewing project only to last for few wears. I'm sharing this because that has became my main problem, how to judge the quality of the fabric. And it seems there is no way. I have to restrain myself and use reorderable fabrics that I test first. That became especially important when I was asked by other skaters to make some for them.

As I was getting better at skating (maybe the fashion helped?) I was getting too warm in my tunics. As I was looking for something thinner I came over some wool knits, a blue gray and a cream. They were just a little ticker than a t shirt fabric. I have some ski base layers made of something similar. I made a basically long t shirt from the blue one and as it was looking rather plain I added a ruffle 2 inches above of where the tunic was ending. I don't have pictures with this one but I'll take some next time I'll wear it. At this point I've started Ice Dancing, and I think everybody that learns Ice Dancing knows Kseniya and Oleg youtube videos. The ruffle was inspired by one of Kseniya's skirts. With the cream knit I've learned my lesson and I design it to be more than a long t shirt. I added an asymmetrical piece  inspired by another skirt of Kseniya. You can see it in the videos I posted in My jumps post, and here is a snapshot.

Monthly skating review: progress and goals adjustment

The first two weeks of last month I've trained hard in order to take the Pre-Juvenile MITF test at the end of the month. When I found out I wouldn't be able to test I've got demotivated to skate. Also, you can read in the previous posts, I've got disappointed in how testing and clubs (some) are organized and considered to pull back. Pull back on skating, on testing? I'm figuring things out...

It just happen that life got a little in the way. My rink schedule changed so I have to adjust my life schedule. My car broke and there is a heat wave and that cuts even more from the incentive of going skating. So, these last two weeks, and make this one the third, I've managed to skate.... twice a week. That's down from four times a week this year, and  six to eight last year. The days I've managed to skate were either adult public skating (allowing hockey players with figure skaters), or adult figure skaters but on a studio (small) rink. Plus I've haven't seen my coach in two weeks.The pace is very different from how I was skating before. It is slow and unfocused but it was pleasant for a change.

I've realized, for kids that skate, for adults that do competitions and even elite skaters, there is on off season, a break, a recharging time. So I've decided to embrace this quieter skating time. This may change after I'll have my first private lesson next week. But also, I have questions for my coach on the skating skills that are over my level  that just interest me. And, so, my skating may stay quiet for a while. And that may be a good thing. Both my brain and especially my hurt hip may benefit from it.


Plans and goals for next month? Absolutely none!