Back at Bracknell
It’s been a full month, what with one thing and another, since I last skated at Bracknell. Dragged myself out of bed at six thirty with deep reluctance, ventured out cautiously into a hard frost (hoping that the roads had been well gritted), then sat in traffic for 40 minutes (part Reading early morning rush, which seems to be getting inexorably earlier, part accident on the A329M), all the while thinking “Why am I doing this?” And if I’d remembered that it was pantomime week, with a third of the ice curtained off, I probably wouldn’t have bothered.
But… pantomime week means most of the kids are up too late performing in the show every night to come in for morning patch the next day, so it was very quiet, and the ice was still in good condition even at eight o’clock. So I warmed up, and set to work on level 7 moves.
Change of edge back double threes - BIs are happening after a fashion, but the BOs are much more of a problem. Spent quite a bit of time working on mohawks into BI-O change of edge, as that’s quite hard enough on its own, never mind trying to tack a double three on the end. Some signs of progress - I managed two consecutive BO double threes without touching down, which I couldn’t do at the weekend.
Rocker choctaws - CCW, this is my favourite of the moves, probably because it’s such a pleasant surprise to be able to do it at all; but I’m still running out of steam after three of them, and I’d get on much better if you were supposed to do them in a straight line rather than round a circle. Pity there were too many lines on the ice to get a clear look at my tracings - I’d love to know whether I really am doing rockers, or whether I’m fudging them. But CW is the spawn of Satan.
Consecutive back double threes - really not sure I’m getting the steps right on these: one side has a change of edge somewhere, so I tend to confuse them with move 1. Must look them up again at the weekend. But in theory I think they should be the easiest, or at any rate the least evil, of the moves.
FI3s/BI brackets - have to work up to these via the two foot versions, and then two foot 3/one foot bracket. Spoke to one of the other adults who’s also on level 7, and she said the worst bit for her was the FI3 leaving the free leg in front for the cross. I don’t mind that so much, except that I don’t know how to stop my hips closing and my shoulders swinging round, making it impossible to turn back the other way.
I was just thinking about warming up for some spins, when I glanced at the clock and realised that it was already 9.00 and time to be heading for work. Outside was glorious sunshine and clear blue sky, and I left thinking I really should get back into the habit of doing this every week. Ah well, new year’s resolution.
But… pantomime week means most of the kids are up too late performing in the show every night to come in for morning patch the next day, so it was very quiet, and the ice was still in good condition even at eight o’clock. So I warmed up, and set to work on level 7 moves.
Change of edge back double threes - BIs are happening after a fashion, but the BOs are much more of a problem. Spent quite a bit of time working on mohawks into BI-O change of edge, as that’s quite hard enough on its own, never mind trying to tack a double three on the end. Some signs of progress - I managed two consecutive BO double threes without touching down, which I couldn’t do at the weekend.
Rocker choctaws - CCW, this is my favourite of the moves, probably because it’s such a pleasant surprise to be able to do it at all; but I’m still running out of steam after three of them, and I’d get on much better if you were supposed to do them in a straight line rather than round a circle. Pity there were too many lines on the ice to get a clear look at my tracings - I’d love to know whether I really am doing rockers, or whether I’m fudging them. But CW is the spawn of Satan.
Consecutive back double threes - really not sure I’m getting the steps right on these: one side has a change of edge somewhere, so I tend to confuse them with move 1. Must look them up again at the weekend. But in theory I think they should be the easiest, or at any rate the least evil, of the moves.
FI3s/BI brackets - have to work up to these via the two foot versions, and then two foot 3/one foot bracket. Spoke to one of the other adults who’s also on level 7, and she said the worst bit for her was the FI3 leaving the free leg in front for the cross. I don’t mind that so much, except that I don’t know how to stop my hips closing and my shoulders swinging round, making it impossible to turn back the other way.
I was just thinking about warming up for some spins, when I glanced at the clock and realised that it was already 9.00 and time to be heading for work. Outside was glorious sunshine and clear blue sky, and I left thinking I really should get back into the habit of doing this every week. Ah well, new year’s resolution.