November 2009
Week of November 1, 2009
Gratuity 2
The last tip I received was in May of this year. Just to demonstrate how infrequently this happens, I decided to write about this instance. Granted, Ice Castle was a virtual morgue in terms of Learn to Skate classes over the summer and we did not even have classes for most of August. On the last meeting of a beginner class this week, the parent of two boys gave me a twenty-dollar tip. The kids loved my class, and the parent was impressed by how attentive his sons were. I have become quite competent at teaching beginners. We play a lot of games, and I use colorful markers on the ice. Kids love both. These children were very responsive to my techniques. It was a great class, and we had plenty of fun.
I like teaching beginners. Beginners are not necessarily tots. Specific classes are scheduled for very young children. I find these difficult to teach because the students are basically babies. They are very small and have few motor skills. A helper is often required for larger classes or groups of children who are barely able to stand up. Helpers are usually teenage skaters who want to get experience coaching or earn a few extra bucks. The helper can assist in keeping children upright. I find the task backbreaking. Ice skating is difficult for tots. Different teacher-pupil communication skills apply. An adult cannot simply talk to a four-year-old and explain what to do. Working with this student population is not my personal strength. I am more effective in teaching older beginners who are a little bigger, have more developed muscular coordination, and are better able to communicate and understand instructions. They are still young children but already go to school and are used to interacting with a teacher.
Parents offered several flattering comments. Will you teach the next class? When do you teach? My kids loved your classes. I handed out business cards availing myself for extra instruction. It would be nice to have a couple more private students. A successful group class is great exposure to potential students and the parents who make the decisions and pay the bills.
Week of November 2, 2009
Tough Girls Keep Skating
My student, Naomi* of tiara fame, has moved up to Basic Five. Happily, I am still giving her private lessons, and both she and her mother are pleased with my teaching. Naomi is struggling with backward crossovers. She does them in a small circle and steps sideways as though she is practicing a step-over drill. I personally do not use this drill often to teach crossovers, but apparently her group instructor does. In my opinion, it is not working for Naomi. My preferred method is to use a dance technique in which students learn a backward chassé step around the circle. This assumes the students can already perform backward one-foot swizzles competently on the circle, which is tested at an early level. Chassés are not a test element in basic skills, but work well to break down the steps of crossovers into manageable components. Obviously, no technique works for every student, but learning to chassé cannot be a bad thing as it is a viable skill.
Poor Naomi caught her blade in the leg of her pants and went down hard. She thought she might have cut her leg with the heel of her blade. I have actually done this myself. I led Naomi off the ice to her mother. We rolled up her pants to assess the damage. The skin was not broken, though Naomi may develop a bruise. We still had five minutes. Naomi’s mother rubbed the girl’s shoulder and encouraged her to get back out there. “Tough girls keep skating,” I added. Naomi grinned and stepped back on the ice. Another parent overheard my comment and said to his daughter: “Did you hear that? Get back out there.” He smiled at me and put his kid back on the ice.
Although Naomi is a beginner, she is an athlete and very committed to ice skating. Like most athletes, she wants to be tough. It may not be popular or politically correct anymore, but I come from the school of “no pain; no gain”. I would never force an injured student to keep skating, but young skaters need to shrug off their fear and keep skating. Falls, even hard falls, are part of this sport. Naomi was proud of herself for getting back on the ice and refocusing. She felt strong and confident and jumped right into her crossovers.
When I was a kid, I took group skating lessons. I cannot remember how many sessions I took, but I think they were ISI (or ISIA, as it was probably still called in the seventies). I learned to do a spiral at some point. Practicing the spiral on the public session following class, I caught my toe pick and went down in a hard, knock-the-wind-out-of-me belly flop. Thirty-five years later, I remember how terribly that hurt. However, I would not acknowledge the pain and got back to my feet and continued skating. I hoped no one noticed. No one did. Another kid wiped out doing a spiral. Yawn. I did another spiral after shaking off the experience by stroking around the rink. My mother was an over-protective worry-wart. If she thought I was at risk of injury on the ice, I might not have gotten to go back. That would have been unacceptable. So I sucked it up and kept skating.
Female figure skaters may look like delicate flowers as they gracefully jump and spin, but they are tough girls. For our next lesson, Naomi showed up wearing padded shorts. Tough girls keep skating.
*** Names have been changed.
Mid November 2009
Can’t Even Break Even
As everyone involved in skating knows, a coach is paid for lessons taught. I have never heard of a coach getting paid by the hour for just being in a rink unless s/he has other duties such as management or running the front counter. I am familiar with coaches who have been caught “double dipping”. In other words, the coach is being paid to work the cash register but leaves his/her post to teach a private or group lesson without clocking out of the hourly job. This is usually not allowed.
Some coaches overcome problems with unpredictable private lesson attendance by charging for the lesson even if the student does not show and does not give twenty-four hour cancellation notice. Other pros may sell a month of lessons at a time. If the student does not attend, the coach is still paid. This is similar to enrolling in an aerobics class and not coming in favor of doing something else that night. I am not in a position to utilize either of the above income-stabilizing tactics. Maybe highly regarded, well-credentialed coaches can call the shots like this, but not a homegrown wannabe like me. People don’t exactly line up at my door or ring my phone off the hook requesting lessons. I cannot afford to alienate clients with self-serving policies that leave them with no wiggle room. Maybe under economic circumstances that would increase overall demand for lessons, I could be more contract-oriented. My late father used to say: “If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, it would be Christmas every damned day”. Of course, he was right. Rest his soul.
So why am I bitching about this? The season is picking up a little and additional classes have been added during the week, so I am earning more money teaching classes. Sounds good so far. However, on the weekend, two private students cancelled their lessons, so I lost the money from that pot. No classes will be held over Thanksgiving weekend. While I have privates scheduled, I will not make money on classes. Can’t even break even. Classes also will not be held over Christmas and New Years. Most likely, private students will have other plans too. Hopefully, in January the situation will stabilize and I can count on fairly regular classes and private lessons.
Mid to Late November 2009
Excuses and the Gym
I have been busy with obligations outside the skating world which have left me with little time to go to the gym. I try to get there twice per week, but this does nto always happen, in spite of my best intentions. The old cliché “Well, you just have to make time” sounds simple enough, but is not always practical. When I had more free time and less stress, working out was a pleasant part of my routine. I enjoy working out. Some people approach going to the gym as they might a trip to the dentist for a root canal. I’ve never had a root canal, but from what I’ve heard, it’s pretty horrible. I can’t imagine dreading exercise that much.
While I’m not an exercise junkie, exercise has always been part of my life. A friend of mine says she hates working out. Lucky for her, she was blessed with a slim body. Me, not so much. I routinely got at least ten hours of exercise per week and often more when I was actively skating for myself. Now I get about three hours in the gym when I can fit it into my schedule plus whatever skating I get at the rink before and during coaching. I wonder if I have sabotaged myself by adapting my body to an un-maintainable amount of exercise. If a person works out for 10+ hours a week for a number of months then has to drop down significantly because of life circumstances, does the body just pack on fat to prepare for the next high energy output phase? In other words, is my own unpredictable lifestyle screwing with my metabolism? Am I setting myself up for a weight loss and gain roller coaster?
The body may function differently under stress, but it still apparently needs exercise. It does not care that you have plenty of other priorities. This creates of vicious cycle not only in metabolic terms, but also psychologically. I don’t have time to workout but worry about the consequences. Will I gain so much weight that I can’t get it off again? This just adds to my stress.
Aside from not liking to exercise, most people probably cite the excuse of not having time as their reason for avoiding the gym. Paying for a membership usually doesn’t help either and may even contribute to guilt. Fat cells don’t care how much time, stress, or guilt you have. They will store fat with little regard for your current problems. Then you wind up with another problem or numerous problems if obesity leads to other health issues. I guess the answer goes back to “make time” even if it is just fifteen minutes a day on an exercise bike. Exercise can diffuse stress. Fifteen minutes a day may not help a person to lose weight, but it is better than nothing for maintaining health.
Thanksgiving Weekend 2009
A Talk with Mom
One of my private students, Naomi, has been having trouble concentrating during her last few lessons. I have written about Naomi previously (1, 2). Naomi used to come to the rink at least a half-hour before her lesson and stay afterward. By the time Naomi got to her lesson, she was often tired. How a ten-year-old kid can be so tired, is beyond me. I have more energy than a lot of the kids I have taught. Naomi likes skating, but I wonder if she is involved in too many other activities. She recently took up ballet to help her skating. In my opinion, Naomi is not at the point with skating where she needs ballet, but that was not my decision. Actually, I think ballet may be confusing her on the ice.
Anyway, Naomi is still struggling with backward crossovers; not that backward crossovers are easy. Last week, I gave Naomi an exercise to practice off ice that involved standing with her weight balanced over her hip with her crossing leg held up and extended in front. The objective of this exercise is to teach her to balance over her weight toward the back of her foot so she will not scratch her toe picks. This is a common problem learning back crossovers. Naomi did not practice the exercise and returned to the rink riding her toe pick when asked her to perform the pose on the ice. When I demonstrated the move for her, she glided around, fooling around, and did not pay attention to me. I got her attention, made her watch, then perform the skill herself. I know when to punt. Naomi was not getting it; not from lack of ability but from lack of focus.
Like many kids with even a slight aptitude for skating, she likes to play with movements her body performs naturally. This usually means edges and turns in one direction, often without correct posture or improvement. I asked Naomi to stroke around the rink on her outside edges. I distinguish between beginner stroking, which is generally done on flats and more advanced stroking which utilizes the edges. After a few strokes, Naomi rolled from inside edge to inside edge. I stopped her and asked if she is working on these in her group class. Yes, she is but on a hockey line. I asked her to show me. She rolled from edge to edge without bringing her feet together between pushes and pushing off with her toe. I cringed inwardly. When I tried to show Naomi correct technique, she ignored me.
After the lesson, Naomi’s mother sent her daughter to the snack bar so we could talk. I described the problem. Naomi’s new group instructor is Dylan, the new coach who still actively competes. Mom told me Naomi got off the ice following her first lesson with Dylan in tears. Dylan was trying to correct Naomi’s inside edge deficiencies and apparently does not know how to punt. Naomi became frustrated and angry. Dylan is a beginning coach, and Naomi is a beginning freestyle skater. Although Naomi would like to drop Dylan’s class, Mom won’t allow it. “She needs to learn to deal with different personalities.” I happen to agree but was privately glad Naomi won’t be leaving me for Dylan’s stable in the near future. I agree students need different perspectives if only to decide which teaching styles mesh with their personality. Of course, Dylan was absolutely right to correct her mistakes, but I was not there to see how he handled the situation, so I only have the secondhand account of a tearful child’s parent.
I suggested Naomi come to the rink early to work off her excess energy and need to play before her private lesson so she can be more focused. Mom wants Naomi to learn the right way. Three cheers for Mom! Naomi has also expressed an interest in competition. Mom does not think she is ready. I concur. If Naomi chooses to compete, she will have to increase her commitment and will have to practice her coach’s way. Naomi is still in the “this is fun” stage. Nothing wrong with that. She can skate her whole life without ever leaving that stage. But if she seriously wants to improve for competition or just personal satisfaction, she will have to leave her bad habits behind and spend time on technique.
Skating well is very rewarding. I love not hearing my toe picks. I teach kids from the earliest stages to be quiet on the ice and have soft knees. I start every beginner lesson with knee bounces and silent marching. I praise students when I can’t hear them. One of my favorite lines is: “If all the lights were out, no one should even know you are here”. Of course, later their blades ripping the ice with powerful edges should give them away in a second. But we aren’t quite there yet.
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