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| Skating Journal 2004-2005 Part 2 |
| Time to Test - December 3, 2004 I had not tested in over two years. I hate to test. Last time I tested adults were not required to test Moves in the Field. So, I have been spending the majority of my time trying to learn the moves. The freestyle was not much of a concern, but the moves....Ugghhh! It is so quiet, there is no music - it seems to take FOREVER!!! Anyway...let me start at the beginning. I have had three different coaches helping me with my moves. One for each of the places I have trained so far. Having moved twice kept me from testing them sooner. So, finally I was ready and I really liked my coach and how much he supported me and believed I could pass. Friends of mine were getting married in Vail and the test was also in Vail. So, on a Friday night I had to test and then go to a Groom's Dinner. Boy, was I going to be fun if I failed!! Also, I could NOT fail. If I failed it meant that I could not go back to AN this year since I would not skate Bronze again - the reason I did not compete in 2004. So...very important. Before heading over to Vail I went to my rink to go through the moves once. I got there and it was a pretty empty session which was nice. However, there was a man walking around with his shoes - his grandchildren were skating. This scared me for many reasons. He may be putting pebbles on the ice. If we collide, there is no chance he is going to not topple over, etc - it was dangerous in my opinion. So, I asked the front desk if he had permission to be in his shoes. He did not and they went and asked him to put on skates. As I skated by him (he was in the hockey box) I heard him say something but I did not pay attention. I skated by him again and heard a distinct "Cry Baby". I stopped and asked him to repeat himself. He said, "You heard me you cry baby". "Why would you call me that?", I asked. "You know damn well why", he said. "Because you were asked to get off the ice with your shoes?", I asked. He smirked. I told him that I thought it was dangerous. He responded that he did not believe it to be dangerous. "Well, I have skated for many years and have seen bad things happen," I said. "Well, for skating so long, you sure are terrible!". To that I said, "That is your opinion and I am sorry you can't follow rules", and skated away. Now, because I was working on patterns I was forced to continue to skate next to him. As I skated by I heard "You Suck," another "Cry Baby", and the remark that made me finally stop..."I hope you fall". Now that he wished harm upon me I went back to the front desk and demanded his removal. I was crying and ridiculous. I am sure if I was not about to test that I would have been much more calm about the situation. For those familiar with the film, Happy Gilmore, it was much like the scene when happy was trying to put and the man from the crowd was flinging insults at him. I was so upset. I needed confidence for this test and was just told repeatedly that I suck and am terrible! The rink manager talked to him. He accused me of starting it and that I was swearing at him. I was told to stay away from him - no problem. I tried to go out and skate and could not. I was made because I felt like he won, which is ridiculous. He should have been told to leave and I should not have been made to feel like I could not skate. Well, now I had to get in my car and drive to Vail. I called my friend and my husband to try to calm me down. Luckily my coach has a good sense of humor and made me feel much better. The test went well. I had a bobble coming out of a three turn, but I did not put my foot down. The freeskate was great. I passed and soon after went to party with my friends and celebrate their wedding. What a story to tell!!! Bye Bye Axel - Dec-Mar, 04-05 Since I was focusing so much on my test, I stopped working on my Axel! Stupid Idea!! I could not even get all of the rotation and I was a big, big chicken. I might eek out one, but the consistency was far from there. I can't believe I landed this in a competition. This jump is so annoying! New Program - Jan-Feb, 2005 My coaches wife is a great choreographer and so I thought of her as soon as I decided to scrap my already choreographed Interpretive Program. I just did not want to skate to Aida anymore. I never connected with the choreography - I think I mayhave rushed my old coach to choreograph it before I moved. So, I decided I wanted a challenge and chose the music, "The Typewriter". It is music with typing and "dings" in it. It is fromo the fifties - really cute and REALLY fast. Lori slowed it down for me some, but it is still fast. It is footwork driven and since I did not know any footwork, I knew there was going to be a lot to learn with the program. I thought I would never be able to get through it. The choreography was very cute, but I just did not know how I was ever going to be able to do ti all. Coach Kelli - February, 2005 I have wanted to teach for a couple of years now. I never had the opportunity to help with any classes in Jackson because of my work schedule. I can't tell you how flattered I was when my coach asked me to help out with some classes a couple times a week. I took on this role with seriousness and zeal. I got my PSA membership reinstated, bought a book, looked up some games on-line. I even made lesson plans. I was so excited. It has been really fun to teach the little ones and the new adults. It is more work than I imagined though. I love teaching. |