oh boy am I going to be sore tomorrow

[unicornduke]

ice skating lesson progressing well

this week we did swizzles to stops forward and back, squats while moving forward and backwards, one leg glide where you crouch and balance which I could do forward but not really backward, c cuts in a circle as a precursor to crossovers, and jumping. yes. jumping. 

tiny itty bitty jumps but I was sweating by the end. I'm writing this down partially so I know what to practice. I was just going to go to a public skate on saturday but I kinda want to go tomorrow to get that empty ice time. I'm not sure yet. oh wait there's a hockey game to watch never mind. 

And in the first session, Coach D said that I would have a harder time since I'm in hockey skates. I do tend to slip and fall more than the others do and part of the issues I'm having with stopping while going backwards is that I instantly unbalance when I try to stop. But eh, it's fine. 

It's also a very good reason to continue actually working out. Squats and such. I think that's what I'll do tomorrow instead. 

Comments

[graydon]

Yay! progress.

One thing about hockey skates is that the boots fit differently and are stiffer than figure skating skates. The other thing is the amount of rocker in the blades. (That is, how much the blade curves front to back.) So there are real mechanical differences.

[unicornduke]

oh yeah, that's for sure why I'm struggling a little on the backwards things. The jumps were actually easier lmao

The stiffness is making a few things a little difficult, like the squats on ice and keeping balanced but it hasn't been too bad so far.

I figured I should start as I want to continue and get some good foundations from them and work on my hockey skills.

[graydon]

Begin as you mean to go on, by all means.

Get a good helmet BEFORE you start in on the hockey skills.

[unicornduke]

Haha, gear is next on my list, I think I'm going to get skater gear and play out first before I start moving on to my goal of being a goalie. But cost is a big factor so I'm going slow. I doubt I'll be able to play before next season, which is fine by me.

[graydon]

Totally get that cost is a factor!

The fuss budgeting arises from hockey skills involving pucks flying around and it's amazing how unrecoverably damaged a puck to the face can leave people. (Well, head, generally.) It's fairly rare -- most kids survive road hockey -- but I remember a few kids dying of hockey when I was in elementary school.

[unicornduke]

Oh yeah, I'm fully aware of the need for quality head protection. I have plans to get a nice full face cage for playing out. I've done my research on the goalie gear (reddit hockey goalies has a whole guide) and basically concluded that 400 to 500 dollars is a reasonable amount for a goalie mask for good protection, whether new or used.

I'm aiming for next season primarily because I'm going to pay off my truck loan by the end of the summer so I'll have at least a little bit of extra money towards fun things. So if I play out next season, that will give me another year to save up for goalie gear, which I can then do the year after.

[graydon]

Prudent financial planning is good!

It really does take at least a year to get strong at something, even with consistent practice. So the gear and the sufficient practice seem pretty well aligned in that plan.

[redstapler]

Are you doing Learn to Skate?

[unicornduke]

Yep! There's a local rink doing a Learn to Skate with eight sessions. I'm doing it partially to learn how to stop and go backwards and partially just to get regular rink time with dedicated space. It's pretty great so far.

[redstapler]

Sweet!

I start LtS1 on Saturday, and I'm really excited!

[unicornduke]

That's so awesome! My adult class has four people total so we really get some good attention from our instructor. I hope it goes well for you!

[redstapler]

Thank you!

I followed dragonlady7 into roller derby in 2011, so it's an activity my body has some concept of how to do. I went skating with a friend over Christmas and enjoyed it.