Buying new boots and other adjustments

 I declare this to be the month of adjustments. I'm exhausted... the skating in itself is way easier that the scheduling of skating... At least it is not the month of bad news, as I complained about September... and October. 

So, my home rink announced it is opening  January 4th. That's great news, right? Only I've e-mailed the rink director to thank her for the news as I wanted to wish her happy holidays also. And she answered  let's wait and see if it's actually happening. The covid slowed down in my region, but... It seems that my home rink will wait a little more to see what's gonna happen as they set the registration very late, for December 29th. The problem is that the rink I skate now had the registration already... and I hadn't registered. And there are days that are already sold out. My activity is now not as much skating as it's betting on which rink it's gonna open.

I've already told you I've got no ice for the last week of December, as it got sold out at this rink I'm skating at now. I've called few rinks on Saturday and I found ice! But... I couldn't register... I needed to make an account, that takes up to two business days to get set (it is already two business days), then I need to purchase an electronic gift card, then I'll have to call to reserve spot by spot... if they'll still have some available, which I cannot see online.

I also found out that my club will, maybe, have a test session at the end of February... I wanted to wait to change the boots to after I test The Pre-Juvenile moves. But now the Christmas exhibition is done, and as I will not test in the immediate future, I've decided to buy new boots. 

So the new boots... Long story... I decided in something with low cut back to help with the toe pointing, they are considered a high intermediate boot: it is Riedell (like my old boots) Flaire. I went to the same shop from where I bought my first boots. They measured me again, came with the same size 5.5, and they had them in stock, only they felt too big, not in length but the toe box.  They also had in stock 5, the right foot felt good, but the left those were hitting/hurting my left toes (my right foot is smaller than my left).

The boot fitter recommended semi custom... $70 extra to have an in between size 5.25.   And I would have to wait up to 6 weeks for them to be manufactured. I wanted to think about it because it didn't make complete sense for me, it wasn't so much the 5.5 lenght bothering as those felt big around. The shop also had in stock size 6 narrow, even if I haven't measured narrow (I said long story). Well, those felt good, of course I need them in 5.5 and those were not in stock, but the boot fitter called the factory and they had them there. They are supposed to come in 2 business days so I've placed the order.

Only there is this general problem with mail delays, plus, there are the holidays... so... so... There is nothing to say after the so...

But wait, my skating this week needs adjusting too. I was hopping I'm gonna be in the process of breaking in the new boots, now I don't have a plan. Plus... I bought ice 2 hours later than my usual spot, as that was all I could find... and  it's throwing my whole day off. And I've got traffic both ways. But the worse part is that the ice was unbearably chopped. That it's the 3rd session without cutting the ice. I left early yesterday... I canceled my lesson today, I'm actually considering not going today. Yes, it was that bad...

Now, my actual skating... Each time after an ice show I've had a little drop in enthusiasm, like an awareness that the glamour (from the Christmas show) is gone, I have to go back to hard work. This time I have the extra problem that I don't really know what to work on. That is related with me waiting on the new boots and not knowing what ice I'll have. I don't feel comfortable jumping in my old boots... or going fast for higher dances. So I'm doing all the slow stuff, the new skills I've learner. It is just that I think I would need extra help on those from my coach, and, all the work on these slow but more difficult skills will be interrupted when I'll have the new boots to break in. I warm up with the Pre-Juvenile test and then I improvise... as I said I adjust...