But back to skating--this is, after all, The Long Track Life. And skating in 2011 went from horribly discouraging--in the spring and summer, when my thyroid levels dipped again and it took a bit of work to get the meds adjusted properly--to fantastic, in the fall when I went to Milwaukee to skate and discovered that some technique improvements had resulted in significantly faster times. 2011 was truly a year of dreams coming true--when I started this blog I had several posts, including this one, in which I lamented my unorthodox skating style. It wasn't that I didn't want to skate more conventionally, and it wasn't that Coach TieGuy hadn't moved heaven and earth to try to teach me to skate more conventionally; it's just that we had come to the realization that the more conventionally I skated, the more slowly I skated. So I did my Bunny on Crack "crazy tempo" skating, and was pretty fast (for my age), if I do say so myself. But still, I was beginning to realize that, to get faster with my current technique, I'd need to get in even better shape--and I'm already frequently riding the ragged edge of overtraining/injury. So I dreamed of someday, somehow, making that technical leap that would allow me to skate "properly," getting more power to the ice and going faster with less effort.
I dreamed of it, but honestly had pretty much given up hope of it happening.
I still truly don't know what led to the change in my skating. This summer I started trying stuff that I'd tried before; only, when I'd tried it before, I'd gotten slower. This time I got faster.
Whatever the reason, I'll take it!
Not that there isn't still some work left for 2012. This video, of a 500 meter and 1500 meter time trial from this morning, amply demonstrates that. A strong wind caused a bit of regression in my technique, and I seem to have developed a funky new armswing that looks like a cross between swimming and imitating windshield wipers. My starts, particularly the 1500, are truly horrific. And I see that the Chicken Wing is back. So yeah, 2012 will be busy on the ice!
2011...yeah, it was a good year. And 2012 will start off with my big meet of the year, the Masters Single Distance in Milwaukee, next weekend.
I can't wait.
Happy New Year!
aiy-yai-yai...well, since you posted this video, you leave yourself open for comments! >;) i'd say that on your starts, concentrate very hard on nothing other than bringing your feet fully back in and under you: think, "i'm gonna smash my heels together on the recovery stroke!" type of thoughts. maybe a step or two into the start, anyways- not sure that would be really possible right off the line.
ReplyDeletethe other thing most noticeable is your height: when you finished the 1500, you didn't even need to stand up after crossing the finish line. more crouching-tiger focus! by skating lower (even if that means simply rounding your shoulders down, flexing more at your ankles, or bending over at the waist) you will be forced to reduce your tempo a bit, think more "hang-on hang-on-hang-on!" till you are forced to fall off your gliding foot, and get the swinging arm up into your face! (remember my "hand-obscuring-the-field-of-vision technique inlining? lol)
finally, i will again bring up the much-maligned "drill" that so many skate experts frown upon (but which did WONDERS for my technique, i used to skate very much like you in this video, and not all that long ago either). that exercise where you skate down a straightaway crossing your lifted foot back behind you, making sure your knee is bent enough so that you don't hook your blades of course. exaggeration during the drill can be toned down into eventual real skating technique. naysayers or not, when i told Heidi about this trick she suddenly went from someone complaining about how she couldn't keep up for longer than 2 laps behind me at cruising pace to someone i was attempting to keep up with (quite irritably) for 3 or 4 laps at the "same" crusing pace.
read, laugh, heed or discard: whatever you do, have a happy new year and continued skating improvements! :)
Mel, thanks so much! I will definitely try your suggestions...the "getting low" and the "feet together on the start" have been plaguing me for years. I think the strong wind and frosty ice contributed to my return to a more "high tempo" style for the 1500, but it does seem like some days I have a much better "feel" for the falling/carving thing...yesterday was not one of those days! I need to get more consistent with my new technique, so I'm up for anything that will help me get there!
ReplyDeleteThanks again, and Happy New Year!