Sunday, January 15, 2017

When the student is ready, the coach starts making sense

I have a notion that I'm confusing the hell out of Learn to Skate USA. I'm signed up for Freestyle in my home rink, and Basic 6 in another rink. "The Ice Doesn't Care" ruthlessly screwing up LTS USA databases willy-nilly.

I can do everything in Pre-Free and everything in Basic 6 except----drum roll---FI3. That's the reason I picked this class at another rink, I need to nail that FI3.

Anyway, I needed the midweek ice time, so I'm now in a strange rink,  facing a male ice dancer in hockey boots, in a class where I'm the only student. 

Internally:"Private lesson! Private lesson!

"I can do everything in Basic 6," I say after the introductions, "Except FI3."

"Okay," he says, "Let's do that then. Show me where you are."

 VOILA !

I have early back edge termination issues......but by God I can do that turn--and do it in the middle. "Well," he says, "That's better than I thought it would be."

So he teaches me this technique where I enter the three with a bent knee, then as I slowly rise to a straightish leg for the turn, I pull my free leg into a T-position til it touches the heel...then turn!

Suddenly, I have an explosion of knowledge. He has taught me this technique, that brings together all the techniques that every other coach has taught me. Finally, the student's legs are strong enough, the student brings experience from practice, the student is ready to understand


Of course the coach isn't happy with my arm position, and I lean back too much (that's new), and I have free hip issues, but for a moment there....I thought I had conquered FI3....


2 comments:

  1. Oh, that wonderful moment when it works! Hooray! Thanks for sharing the epiphany!

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  2. Ah the forward inside R! I was really good at those too. I found that working on the FI3 and then a doing a BO3 after it helped me figure out the correct position coming out of the FI3 in order to glide correctly into the BO3.

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