My Skating Story

Ice Skate by Sage Colley

Since 2015, I have taken ice skating lessons at the Lloyd Center mall. The class levels start at Basic 1 and go up to Basic 7. Then there are Advanced levels 1 to 6. I started in Basic 3; when I began, I could skate forwards and backwards and do forward crossovers. The highest level I ever reached was Advanced 3. I can now do forward and backward crossovers, forward and backward 3-turns (switching from front-to-back or back-to-front on one foot), a waltz jump, a toe loop, and a salchow. I can do a forward scratch spin, but on average I only do about five revolutions.

A learner must have an openness to engage in new experiences. I grew up ice skating at an outdoor skating rink in Upstate New York. I never took any lessons as a kid. I just figured out how to skate on my own. When I learned about the ice skating lessons at the Lloyd Center, I immediately wanted to take lessons. When I started in Basic 3, I felt a little silly because I was the only adult. However, my desire to learn how to skate was stronger than my feeling of embarrassment. I was open and ready to learn from my teacher!

We rode the Max to go to/from the Lloyd Center. On the way to/from class, I often reflected on my own skating abilities and interests, as well as my family’s abilities and interests. (They also take lessons). My daughter and I both wanted to learn how to figure skate. We wanted to hold our arms properly and do the moves correctly. My son just wanted to learn how to go fast and stop fast (using a hockey stop); he did not care one bit about holding his arms properly. My sweetie, Sky, was the jack-of-all-trades. He wanted to learn to figure skate and how to do hockey stops. He was not interested in holding his arms correctly. He wanted to do the move without necessarily trying to look graceful. During class, I would listen to my teacher intently and try to absorb all that she had to share. After class, I would ask my daughter or Sky for their input: Was I doing the 3-turn correctly? What moves did they find hard or easy or interesting?

As my lessons progressed, I started to see a symmetry between some of the moves. For example, I first learned how to do a forward-outside 3-turn. This means that the skater is skating forward on an outside edge. In the next level, I learned how to do a forward-inside 3-turn. After I learned how to do a forward-inside 3-turn, I remember talking and skating with Sky during our free skate time. We deduced that there were two kinds of backward 3-turns: backward-outside and backward-inside. We were making connections and developing new ideas (new to us, anyways).

After Sky and I both learned how to do a waltz jump, we would try to create basic routines for ourselves. We were using what we had learned to try to create something new. I can still remember our first routine: forward-outside 3-turn, back crossover, back crossover, waltz jump, waltz jump. We practiced and practiced, and eventually we could do it together, making our jumps synchronized. It was amazing!