New Skills, Who Dis?

Lesson today! After Sunday's awesome practice, I was feeling confident going into my lesson this week. Christopher said that this is the lesson where we focus on details (and by details, he means fixing my jump technique). 

Jumps - So, we started with the Toe Loop. A few years ago, I fixed my Toe Loop so it wasn't a Toe Waltz but an actual technically correct Toe Loop. However, somewhere along the way, I slipped back into bad habits and have been Toe Waltzing again (especially when it's in a combo). We started off reviewing a back pivot and then went on to do some small Toe Loops. Once I got those correct again, we added Toe Loops onto Toe Loops. Now, I just need to keep up with it and not fall back into the bad technique of the Toe Waltz. Next up, we looked at the Flip jump. He had me doing four half-flips into a full flip. That was helpful but not nearly as helpful as the next exercise he gave me which was to do a walk through of the Flip and make sure my free leg was crossed in front. Somehow, this made things click. It forced me to lift the free leg up into that "h" position quicker and just overall improved things. Next was the Lutz. We worked on the same exercises as with the Flip but more of an emphasis on the outside edge entry. Then something neat happened! He asked to see a Lutz-Loop (which I've never done) and I DID IT! I've never attempted it before because my Lutz is so technically bad that my landing isn't secure enough to add a loop but damn! I did the thing!

Spins - Next up were spins and, like Sunday, it was a good spin day. I was getting some good camels and I even managed a Camel-Sit-Upright combo. 

So yeah, I'm not sure why I'm killin' it lately but I am and I like it!

New Guards, Who Dis?

I got a much overdo sharpening yesterday and also got a new set of guards too since I have been having some strong feelings lately about my Edea guards. 

Guards - When I got new boots and blades last spring, I had to give up my Rockerz guards because they were too big for the new blades. I tried to buy new Rockerz from the Rockerz website but they did not have my blade type listed on their site. I contacted someone from Rockerz and they told me that the reason was that they didn't have the specs on my particular blade so they weren't going to cut guards for them. But, he said I could go to my local skate tech and they will cut them (apparently, they need the blade present). I ended up getting Edea guards since those fit most blade types and was really happy with how they felt once they were on, but getting them on and off has been a struggle, especially with my bad hands. So, I decided I've struggled enough and asked for some Rockerz to be cut while waiting for my sharpening. I cannot tell you how much better it is! Never again will I stray from Rockerz. 

Stamina - I skated at the Y today and immediately realized how good I feel. Not only because of the sharpening but I just had a load of energy! I ran two Free Skates, my Free Dance, and the Hickory Hoedown with the music. And! I still had energy to spare! Yay! I haven't felt this strong since pre-surgery. 

Spins - My spins were AMAZING today! All of them were centered and solid. Amazing what a sharpening can do! 

Jumps - These were nice too. I mean, my Flip and Lutz are what they are but my other jumps were pretty good as well. In fact, I had two loop jumps that were BIG! I even worked on Axel prep. 

Overall, I felt awesome today! I don't know what changed but I like it and I hope it sticks around.

Harnessing My Skills

Lesson today and Christopher was running a bit behind so I had extra time to practice stuff before my lesson. I felt inspired to work on some Axel prep and I'm glad I did because that's what we worked on today!

Harness Lesson - We only had about 10 minutes left in the session when Christopher got there. I told him about this weekend's competition and how out of place I feel at Silver. He gave me some encouragement and then asked me if my doctor has signed me off to get back in the harness. I said I was good to go and he said "Great, let's do fun stuff today!" It's been 6 months since I got in the harness for Axels so it took a few tries to get it right but I was able to land two of them towards the end. I forgot how much I needed to jump up and on a curve (I was jumping out and on a diagonal, oops). It feels good to work on these again. Maybe I can make this an additional goal for this year - to at least attempt them off the harness :)

2023 Casper Invitational Recap

I'm back from Wyoming! Ugh, it's always so windy there. It was a good time and I got to skate with my Unicorn Sisters (and meet a new one!). Most of the Unicorns were in Colorado Springs volunteering with 4 Continents so I didn't have too many people to compete with. Here's how it all went down. 

Morning Practice Session - I was placed into a "high" practice session and by "high" I think they just meant "old" since it was just the adult competitors. It was nice though because there were only 6 of us on the ice and I didn't have to dodge the Snowplow Sam skaters who rarely look out for other people. Because of this, it was a really productive practice session. Despite the ice being insanely hard, I managed all of my spins and jumps. In fact, my husband said one of the sit spins I did was really nice. So yeah, it was a good session and I felt confident going into my two events. 

Solo Free Dance - There were only two of us competing in this event and we both skated well. I ended up placing second behind Angie and I'm really okay with that. She skated beautifully! I got first place ordinals from one judge so I can be proud that at least one judge thought I did well. 

Silver Free Skate - There were three of us competing in this event (one lady had the flu and withdrew). So it was me, Angie, and Dawn. I knew what I was up against and so I expected my placement (I got third). I didn't skate a bad program, it just wasn't as good as theirs. They have really low sit spins and flawless combos so I get it. I have room to grow still. 

Final Thoughts - I have so many thoughts about this weekend. The biggest of these is I really need to get my spins in shape. I'm just not the best spinner but I think I can at least get them better. At this level, I really need some spin combos. Trying to get by on just a Sit Spin, Scratch, and a Camel isn't going to cut it. Another thought is that the judges were absolutely fair in their placements. Angie and Dawn are on a whole different level. Basically, I was a big fish in a little pond while I was in Bronze and now I'm a tiny fish in a big pond in Silver. I just need to "get good." However humbling it is, I know it's good for me to be skating at this level. I need to be challenged and pushed and this is sure as hell doing that. Finally, I have to give myself some grace considering I just had surgery about 2.5 months ago and then I just jumped right back into competing. My lack of stamina comes through in the video playbacks (which I am not going to post, sorry). I just looked a little slow and cautious. I know I've been skating pretty guarded since I got back from surgery but I didn't realize how much until I watched the videos. Alas. It's all part of recovery. Anyway, it was a fun competition and it was run well. The medals were pretty snazzy too. First competition of 2023 is in the books!

Casper's Comin'

 Oof, I've been really bad about updating this past couple of weeks. My apologies. Anyway, Casper is approaching this weekend and I'm in super cram mode trying to fit in as many practices as I can. 

Solo Free Dance - In general, this is in good shape as long as I remember to make eye contact with the judges and emote. Working on this is difficult in a busy practice session. It feels like lately I've had to abort parts of it because people are in the way. I'm always aware of who is running a program and make a point to stay out of their way but sometimes I don't think that same courtesy is extended to adult skaters. Sigh. 

Silver Free Skate - This has been rough lately in practice and, usually when that happens, it means my performance on competition day will be pretty good. I hope that holds true. I ran it this morning and besides having to abandon my final jump combo because someone wouldn't make way, it was okay. I got the schedule and I know who my competition is for this event (except for one skater who I haven't met yet) and I know I'll be up against some tough competition. I'm really trying to focus on skating for me and doing my best rather than focusing so hard on what medal I will earn. If I can stay calm and really feel this program, I might do okay. 

Nationals - Well, I'm registered! I guess I'm committed now, lol. I'll start really working on the Bronze Free Skate again once Casper is over. It had to take the backseat for a couple of weeks. 

Future Solo Free Dance - Once Casper is over, I really want to get my Solo Free Dance tested and passed because I already have my music picked out for the next one (and a custom dress on order!). It's going to be lovely!