I meant to update this sooner, but I have been so busy, and oh how the summer flies! I am so happy with how my skating has progressed this summer, particularly this August. I can definitly attest that skating 3X a week instead of just once helps too. My scratch spins are finally back to normal, (thank goodness!) and last week I started learning some new spins. When I first started working on the camel spin, I thought it would be impossible to learn, but after a week of diligently trying, my attempt at a camel at least looks recognizable! I have also been working on the attitude spin, which has likewise been quite difficult. It has been quite a refresher to work on new spins though. And while I usually have a really decent backspin, I am actually having trouble keeping it on the outside edge, so that has been another thing I have been working on.
As far as jumps go, my flip absoultely ROCKS :) I don't know how high it actually is, but I feel really comfortable with this jump, and it feels quite high. My loop has been so-so...I can do good loops, but often I psyche myself out and just can't seem to do them. It's like my body all the sudden feels like it might fall over backwards or something, and just bails on the attempt! So I am trying to mentally overcome this little block, which is almost harder than trying to physically overcome a difficulty! I have been working on the lutz with so-so results. I have trouble landing it, but my take off is on the correct edge, so in my eyes that is more important than actually landing the jump right now. My coach told me to do a hundred walk throughs, which I think is good advice considering how it paid off on the flip.
So that is a brief rundown of how skating has been going. This coming week, I have upped my session to 3 hours instead of 2 per day, so I am hoping that the increased practice will yield even more breakthroughs. :)
Well here I am, finally able to update this page. That is a good sign that things are slowing down and I'm finally able to skate again. I spent last Saturday volunteering at my rinks competition that I normally would have been skating in. I was actually pretty lucky that I didn't compete, because my final presentation for my internship was the day before, and I am sure I would have had a meltdown by mid-week if I had both a presentation *and* a skating routine to worry about.
I have to say that it was good for me to watch all of the kids skate. I have heard people say this before, but now I have really realized it for myself...there are a lot of kids out there who can pull off axels or doubles but really have NO presence on the ice. Their technique is sloppy, their sit and camel spins unrecognizable, their spirals substandard. Seeing this really made me inspired to work on my own technique... I would rather take my time working my way through the elements if it means I look proper, and not like some of the sloppy kids on the ice. Some of the best routines I saw were from people in the freestyle 1-3 range. This actually makes me really anxious to have my skating videotaped so I can see what I actually look like, and see what it is that I need to improve on.
Speaking of skating though, I managed to have a GREAT skate today, despite being under the most adverse conditions. Since yesterday was my birthday, my friends had me out till 3 am. And guess what time skating started...yes, 7:30 am. I was convinced I wouldn't even be able to function, but that wasn't the case, thank goodness. I am FINALLY getting used to my new blades, and my scratch spins are coming back. I am still having problems centering them, but I'm making progress and that's what counts. My backspins were better today than they ever were, and I think that had a lot to do with slowing the spin down, and making sure I was centered and on the right edge before pulling in. My sit spins were not stellar today, though I had one or two that were nicely centered. I am hoping that I might be able to learn the camel spin soon, since I really enjoy having new elements to practice...just to keep my mind fresh!
As far as jumps go, my flip is getting more consistant. I am not longer "afraid" to practice this one on my own, and that is such a good feeling! My loop hit a high a few weeks ago, and for some reason has gone a bit downhill since then. So far though, I am well on my way to accomplishing the goals I had set for myself this summer, which included having my loop and flip down, and having a new spin in my repretiore. I think as soon as I see my skating on videotape, I will truly be convinced to how far I have come since last year... just to think, I was practicing a two foot spin, mohawks, and three turns for my competition last year!
Hopefully I will be able to write good things here regarding my progress in the next few weeks, as I have quite a bit of skating time contracted for the next few weeks.
