I was sooooo nervous. I had a lesson the morning of the test, and I was already nervous then. By the end of the lesson, my limbs felt weak. My stomach was in knots the whole day. So the time finally came and I was the very first person to test. It was nerve racking enough to have three judges staring at you (but they were extremely nice and friendly), but there were also all the family and friends of the other skaters watching. The rink was so quiet and I really wished that they could just all chat amongst themselves and not watch me.
I got through the perimeter stroking, and the forward edges and the back outside edges fine. Then somehow, I pushed off badly on the back inside edge and couldn't hold it together. I put my foot down briefly. Oh crap! was what went through my head but I managed to finish it and hoped against hope that the judges might have missed that.
Crossovers were fine, but while I felt like I was going at tremendous speeds, on video I speed like a turtle. I thought I had really good knee bend, but apparently, not so much. Then came the dreaded waltz eight. I felt absolutely awful going into this, since I knew I had already used up my reskate chance with the stupid back edges. But it ended up okay, and I must say, it looks better on video than I thought it was! Last of all was the straight line spiral. I didn't push off very well and lost my balance, it was all I could do to even keep the leg up on the first spiral, but it still looks really bad. I'm just glad the judges still passed it.
Not surprisingly, I was asked to reskate the back inside edges. Hey, better than doing the waltz eight again! I successfully did it on the reskate, and I passed! Wheeee : D
Here's the video of me doing my test. My boyfriend thought I was finished before the waltz eight since I stood there so long waiting for the judges, so there's a little bit cut off before he realized I was still going.
I was supposed to do my pre-bronze freeskate at the same test session, but we ran over time and the hockey guys could not wait for the ice. So we had to stop and my test will be rescheduled. I had hoped to happily say I passed both my pre-bronze tests now, but at least the worst is over. Hopefully soon, I can say I passed the FS too.
I'm so glad I can stop practicing waltz eights!
I feel your pain about the crossovers. When I'm in the video, I look like a turtle. Doing them, I feel like the wind.
ReplyDeleteYeah exactly! I actually feel the wind billowing my hair! Unless that's a mental thing too...
DeleteCongratulations!! I knew you'd pass. You're way above passing level already, and I bet the FS will be an easy test for you. Maybe easier than the moves test?
ReplyDeleteYou look great in the video, and it really is funny how much more "skaterly" a skirt and tights can make you feel, isn't it? I haven't skated in one yet, though I have a skirt tucked away for test purposes. It just feels too cold for regular practice gear (plus, I feel nekkid without my kneepads). I'm a fan of getting basics down solid but I think the patterns on bronze are a lot more fun to practice, and I'll be glad when I can move on to those.
Thanks Sarah! FS is definitely easier than moves test for me. Unless I do something stupid like catch my toe pick, I think I should be fine. But I should be more careful about the spins, spins aren't my strong point either.
DeleteI went to public session before the test to warm up, and in my full skater gear, with gelled down hair in a bun, I felt like I stood out. But then there were like fifteen other skater girls there too, so probably not lol.
I was so sick of practicing those moves that I told myself I'll put off testing for a bit. But I already started looking at bronze moves! They definitely look more interesting.
Congratulations!!! You look so solid on the ice!!! =) I am so glad I have people to look up to when it comes to skating (*runs away to practice edges*)!
ReplyDeleteThank you! :) Good luck with your edges!
DeleteCongratulations! This is such happy news. I have to ask you: where did you get your skirt? I'm gearing up for my first test too, and I don't want to wear a dress, as I'm too tall for anything but a custom one, which seems a silly expense for a test dress.
ReplyDeleteThank you!! I'm afraid I got my skirt from my home country, Taiwan, when I went back on holiday during summer. But I'm sure there must be similar skirts sold here too. When are you testing? Good luck!
DeleteNicely done Janie! Having a video record is a cool idea because you'll refer back to it soon and see how quickly you've progressed! Congrats!
ReplyDeleteThank you Christine :)
DeletePity I couldn't get a video of my FS test as well, it's nice to look back and see how I did.