Grace, Gold, and Gracie Gold

In my last post about skating (other than synchro), I wrote about my goal to land the Lutz jump before Christmas. Technically, I did land it on one foot in December but it was not pretty. I may have landed two or three but they were all bent in the waist and very awkward-looking I'm sure. It felt awkward so I don't think it really counts. Doing it is one thing, doing it gracefully is another.

Fast forward to last Thursday and I landed two out of two Lutz attempts and they were done with pretty good form from what my coach told me and they felt good. So Lutz jump, check. But that doesn't mean it's here to stay. Nothing is in skating until I can do it in my sleep. 

Landing the Lutz on command, however, has allowed me to graduate to the Coach C School of Axel Jumps. My first homework assignment is practicing the (tiny) waltz jump-backspin drill. I've really been trying to get my backspin down and it's helped a lot with my jumps. The strange thing is, I can't for the life of me master the Waltz jump. My timing is off or I'm rotating too much or too soon. It should be easier than any other jump (it's only a one-half rotation) but it seems to be one of the hardest for me. Camel and sit spins have been blah as usual.

I've also been working on the Bronze MIF test elements. I've got the basics down, it's just staying on those imaginary patterns on the ice that are bugging me out. It's especially hard to practice patterns when others are standing where you need to go. Early morning practices would be best to practice MIF since there's less people but getting up in below zero temps these days is not going to happen for me. I want to hibernate!

Exhibit A: I suck at patterns.
 

Ultimately, I would love to achieve Adult Gold MIF and Freestyle status one day. I think that would be really cool if I could do that. I asked my synchro teammate (who recently passed her last gold test) how long it took her to complete the adult test track and she said about three years from the time she first started taking private lessons. I started private lessons at the end of last March, so I think I can make it happen within three years as long as I stay healthy, my brain cells keep it together, and my bank account stays funded.

So that's the SOTS (State of the Skating) right now. The ongoing goal has been to get the spins consistent and master the jumps, as well as do my best in synchro. My immediate goal is to pass Bronze in April. Maybe take the Pre-Bronze Free Skate test then also.  I'm hoping to have landed the Axel by mid-year. It seems like a long time away but Jess has been working on mastering hers for awhile now and she's a lot more nimble than I am (she's landed it multiple times already but the fear sets in when she attempts it and it's been hard to get past that).  So much to do, so little ice time!

February is around the corner and so is the Winter Olympics! The U.S. Figure Skating Championships were going on in Boston the weekend we were at Colonials. We were just outside of Boston and I wish we could have gone to the TD Garden to watch it in person (if we had a car, maybe!). Here's Gracie Gold's free skate from the event below. She took first place in the Ladies' Senior competition and is on her way to the Sochi Olympics. My fave will always be Queen Yuna but I'll be rooting for Gracie and Team USA, too. If she skates her best, I think she could win it all.


   

Chronicles of Synchro-nia: It's Go Time

Skating competition season is in full swing! We are exactly two weeks away from skating at the Eastern Sectionals in Hershey. This past weekend the Open Juvenile team headed up to Lowell, MA to compete at the 30th Colonial Classic. After a less than spectacular outing at the Cape Cod Classic back in December, the team was hoping to redeem themselves.

My cousin, Tiffany, and I. One of our many selfies as we had a lot of down time during the trip. Since we all rode the team bus (6 hour drive) we were confined to our hotel most of the time. No car = bored!

Went to Max & Dylan's twice during our 3 night stay. It was the only restaurant close enough to walk to (it was right across the street). We did get to go to the Burlington Mall nearby also which was a planned excursion with the whole team.

The girls face timing other skaters they met in the hotel - and inspecting manicures.

The competition was at the Tsongas Center on the UMASS Lowell campus. It's a pretty nice arena. Here's Team Delaware Intermediate skating to Footloose.

Team Reflections skated last in their group and ended up in 2nd place! We were all so happy they did so well.

Silver Medalists!

 

As for the Open Adult team, we have two practices tomorrow, a skating show on Sunday, and a three hour practice next Saturday.  It's go time!

Horsing Into 2014

Photos from our New Year's Eve outing in downtown Harrisburg.

Filet and Fried Oysters at Café Fresco - plus Lychee Pomme Martinis

Lumberjack Shots and Merlot at Brickhaus

Darts

Selfie. I look like Connie Chung - why is my face so round?

Spiraling to the Poor House

In 2013, I decided to devote more time and effort into improving my figure skating skills. I decided this after synchro season was over because I really disliked being the weakest skater on the team.  So I began taking weekly private lessons and logged in at least two practice sessions a week. How much does all this skating cost, you wonder? Well, here's a breakdown of my skating expenses starting with my first 30 minute private lesson at the end of March (1 Freestyle Sticker = 45 minutes of ice time).

2013 Figure Skating Expenses
Date	Description	Amount
3/28/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
3/28/2013	Freestyle Sticker (1)	$       (11.00)
4/4/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
4/4/2013	Freestyle Stickers (10)	$      (105.00)
4/11/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
4/17/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
4/22/2013	6-Week Group Lessons	$       (81.00)
4/25/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
5/2/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
5/9/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
5/16/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
5/23/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
5/30/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
6/1/2013	Freestyle Stickers (10)	$      (105.00)
6/6/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
6/13/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
6/17/2013	5-Week Group Lessons	$       (45.00)
6/20/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
6/27/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
6/27/2013	Test Fees	$       (33.00)
6/27/2013	Club Membership	$       (70.00)
7/3/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
7/11/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
7/1/2013	TR Deposit	$       (25.00)
7/18/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
7/22/2013	6-Week Group Lessons	$       (54.00)
7/25/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
8/7/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
8/12/2013	Freestyle Stickers (10)	$       (85.00)
8/14/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
8/21/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
9/4/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
9/11/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
9/28/2013	Freestyle Stickers (10)	$       (85.00)
10/3/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
10/17/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
10/24/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
11/6/2013	Freestyle Stickers (10)	$       (85.00)
11/7/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
11/14/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
11/25/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
12/4/2013	Freestyle Stickers (20)	$      (170.00)
12/5/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
12/12/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
12/19/2013	30 Minute PL	$       (30.00)
12/31/2014	New Skates	$      (561.50)
BALANCE		$ (2,475.50)

Yes, that's right. I spent THAT much money on ice skating in 2013. More, actually, because I skated in January, February and all of March too (though not as frequent). And the total also doesn't count the monthly program fee to be on the synchro team, the cost for tights, team jackets, fuel, souvenirs, laces, hotel rooms, meals, and other expenses for competitions. Oh, and the numerous boxes of Kleenex that I go through every month because my nose runs constantly while on the ice.

I've basically traded in college for figure skating.  It's also my gym membership.

The rink does offer contract ice where you pay a flat fee every month for unlimited practice time. But I did the math and I save a little money by not doing that. If it included private lessons then it'd be a bargain. Contract ice is a good option for the young Olympic hopefuls that skate 2-4 hours in the morning before school and 2-4 hours in the afternoon after school. I have this annoying thing called a job that gets in the way of getting to the rink everyday and the only glimmer of an Olympic dream I have MIGHT be found in my ovaries -  to be produced at a later date - definitely, maybe.

So I thought I'd share a bit of my insanity to prove to you that I am a crazy person. I couldn't skate today because there's a winter storm going on and I'm stuck at work - but that's probably a good thing because I have an expensive hobby.