| As many an HIA News reader likely knows, I was a big skating freak throughout the late 70's and well on into 1984. I wish I could recall a time when I wasn't "good" at skating, but, god bless me, I had a skater's comportment from the get go: strong legs, excellent balance, and a swimmer's ribcage. I rarely, if ever, fell down, and if I did, it was likely pre-calculated for attention. Yes, you know me -- I was that fantastically talented skate enthusiastic who could pirouette, skate backwards, and was often found squatting on yon skatefloor, one skate thrust out, "driving" through those hapless slower skaters. I, in essence, was a cute little showoff, the kind with accessories: pocket flashlights be-duck taped to the underside of my constantly-polished (to hide the rummage sale quality! gasp!) skates, quirky marbled plastic comb in back pocket to keep my hair be-feathered, plush Smurf tied to top of skate for extra cute quality. . . . Ahhh yes, I was quite the catch in those days. My skater's downfall, however? No one EVER wanted to skate with me on the Moonlight Skate. There I'd stand, down at the gal's end of the pole barn cum skating rink, waiting, ever waiting, for some cute guy to skate up to me and outstretch his paw, choose me to skate 'round n 'round the oval to the strains of Hopelessly Devoted to You, or Blue Bayou....Oh, sometimes my adorable friend Marsha Andersen would talk one of her many admirers into doing a pity round with me....but I always knew they were sent by my secret moppet cupid. Nope, the dudes just wouldn't have me. Was it my thick eyeglasses? My superior skating style and high-ranking Ms. Pac Man and Frogger scores? My Smurf? All of the above? Likely this mystery will stay unsolved, and I shall never know why no cute boys ever tried to unlock my heart with their skater's key....I imagine they would likely eat their rubber stops if they could get a look at me NOW Katy Beem. |
| During my sophomore year in college, our dorm floor went to the local roller rink for a social outing. We rented the whole rink out. It was very dark inside with wood paneling, colored lights and several disco balls. There were even boxed in columns in the middle of the skating floor just like people have in their downstairs rec rooms. Anyways they even played those 2 giants of the roller rink song repetoire: "Funky Town" and "Born to Be Alive". The announcer said there was going to be roller disco contest. I had gotten good at skating because I played ice hockey. I could do funky chicken back cross-overs in both directions and I could corner frontways like a bitch. So I put all of these moves together with some very Dance Fever-ish Denny Terrio hand jive kind of motions and I won the singles category. My prize was Sprite in a cup from the snatch (oops I mean) snack bar. Steph Ahrendt |
| Skating Rink Stories II |