Yuna

When you want to show skating without triples, this is how it's done. Triples are way overrated, and don't even get me started on quads. IMHO. OK, not so humble.

Interview with Caryn Kadavy

My favorite skater of all time. She was just the best. Most beautiful layback ever. Grace and beauty, strong jumps, excellent spins.

And Skateguard interviewed her.

Aerials & Figure Skating

I was watching Pandora's Holiday Moments on Ice yesterday. And I saw something...I was mesmerized. As if pair skating weren't dangerous enough...AERIALS? Wow. Just wow.

Of course, when she put the strap around her neck, I got really uncomfortable. When I was six, my grandma took me to the circus. I remember a beautiful lady with a sparkly pink halter top showing her midriff and matching harem pants. She performed this spinning trick with the strap around her neck. She fell. There was no net. She broke her neck. She died instantly. I've never wanted to go to the circus since.

At least this skater was holding onto the strap. Beautiful routine. I've always loved aerials. But I seriously lack the upper body strength and grip strength to ever do them. To combine it with figure skating is just epic.

back on the ice

Geez. I haven't been skating since Oct 14. 3+ weeks. Yikes. First, I wasn't feeling well that week. Skating and sweating in a cold rink is not the best idea when you're under the weather. Then time just got away from me. The new rink I skate at is a 50 min drive, and it's dreadful. I let my dread of the drive keep me from skating. I need to get me some books on CD to make that drive more pleasant.

I went skating today. Decent session considering how long I've been off ice. I did a couple scratch spins. Perfectly centered, mostly. Not much toe pick scraping. yay!

 

My back scratch was not happening. My outside alternating 3's need work still. I struggle with that back inside edge control. But my back 3's were superb. I'm getting a lot better at holding the forward edge.

Then I worked on the Dutch Waltz and Canasta Tango. There's a dance camp weekend next June that I want to prep for. It's good to have goals. I don't want to be such a dance newbie when I go. Definitely need to call up the dance coach for some private lessons soon.

Nothing

I'm used to bad sessions. I can usually tell myself a bad session is better than no session. But the last few sessions, NOTHING, and I mean nothing, has gone right. Those alternating outside 3's that were almost perfect...nope. It's like they've vanished. Maybe I'm overthinking it, but that back inside edge, I just cannot check it properly. I swing the circle too small and can't step out for the choctaw. I've tried going back to just working on single outside 3's on a hockey circle. I can't keep my edge on the tracing. I'm trying so hard, but I can't keep my arm in front, I can't keep my hip from dropping. I've tried. And then my back 3's, although the scraping is almost gone, are still too swingy, and I can't control it.

And getting to this other rink 3x a week is rough. No weekend sessions, so I'm trying to do it on weekdays and work later on other days to make up the hours. I can't keep this up. I'm going to have to skate on Sundays and only go twice during the week. But there aren't any freestyles. I'll have to go to a public session. ugh. I hate those. Crowded. Bratty hockey boys. Unstable little girls coming into the middle. I'll try it Sunday. I guess if it's awful, I'll only be able to skate twice a week until they bring back weekend freestyle.