Maura's Hard Work Pays Off

Maura has been working hard at her skating all season and it shows in her performance. She skates an extra session every Wednesday after her team practice and though she has doesn’t have a coach to work with her then she uses the time well, practicing what she’s been learning in her Monday lessons and team practices. Off the ice she stretches every morning to improve her flexibility and extension. She does it without any prompting from me.

The hard work is clearly doing some good. Even with my uneducated eyes I can see that she is skating more confidently and smoothly. Her chin is up, her arms are out and her rhythm and timing improve week by week.

We saw the proof of Maura’s improvement last Saturday when she skated in the Skate for the Love of It event at the Asiaf Arena in Brockton, Massachusetts. She tied for first in her individual event. It was her first first place finish ever against competition. Her mother and I are very proud of her and she’s justifiably proud of herself. I got her medal engraved with her name and the date so she can always remember her first victory.

Maura also competed in the stroking competition in which she came in last. I thought she’d done better than that but I’m hardly qualified to judge. Her glasses had slipped down her nose and it looked like she was looking down when she wasn’t. Next time we’ll remind her to push them up before she gets on the ice. We can take this as a lesson in paying attention to the little things. It’s not just on the ice that they make a difference.

After the competition Maura called her grandparents to share the news and her mother and I took her out to lunch to celebrate. It wasn’t an over-the-top celebration but it is what we could afford. Perhaps I can take a reminder from my daughter’s success about the value of hard work. I’ve been working hard on my Web Design Certificate classes but I need to be confident that the work has been worth it if I’m to turn the course of study into a good job. Someday we’ll be able to celebrate Maura’s wins in style.

Maura Skates at the Colonials

Maura’s Synchronized skating team skated last Sunday in the Colonials at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, Massachusetts. It was the largest meet she’s yet been in and unlike at the others her team had competition. They skated very well but Maura's team placed third in a field of three. The Tsongas Center was by far the most comfortable venue I’ve watched figure skating in. Though a third of the stands were blocked off there were still plenty of seats and it was comfortably warm. I wish all the competitions were held in places so nice. On the downside tickets cost $22.00 each.

Maura’s team skated about as well as they ever have despite one of her teammates skating on a possibly broken toe. They came in third partly because they had only eight girls on their team and the other teams were larger.  Larger teams get the benefit of the doubt because more skaters make errors more likely. I’m not sure they would have won even if they had been equal in size. I could see a few spots in their routine where they were just a little out of synch and I’m sure the judges could see mistakes I could not. Unlike me, they know what they are looking for.

Maura was upset when she found out that her team had come in last but she got over it eventually. I’m glad Maura cares a little about winning now. It will help motivate her to work a bit harder to improve.  Despite the loss it was a good experience for Maura. She had been talking about dropping out of synchronized skating but now she has decided to stick with it. I’m glad that she has. I think she will enjoy it more as she gets more experienced and develops her skills. She will also not always the youngest person on her team. She would miss out if she quit now. If keeps on with synchronized skating I expect that some day she will find a place on a more advanced team and get to compete in some of the larger and more prestigious competitions. That will be an experience she'll tell her children and grandchildren about some day.

First Synchro Competition

Maura’s first synchronized skating competition was last Saturday. Her team competed in the Thanksgiving Classic at the Armstrong Area in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The competition was  a great experience for Maura but not so wonderful for me or the spectators in general.

It was a long day for everyone. We dropped Maura at the Rockland Rink at 8:30 in the morning and we all left Plymouth together at around 4:30 in the afternoon. Maura’s team, the Winterettes Basic 3 team representing the South Shore Skating Club, was the only team at its level so they skated against the book—meaning that they had to achieve a set standard to receive a medal, which they did scoring high enough to be awarded the gold. The Basic 1 team from Maura’s rink also took first place, though they had plenty of competitors to skate against. Once they had skated the team had to wait for the mid competition on-ice awards ceremony at 3:30.

For Maura the wait was fun. It was a chance to bond with her teammates and see some of what the higher level teams could do. For me the wait was a nightmare. The rink was overcrowded to the point where I am certain it was far beyond its capacity. In the event of an emergency I’m sure there would have been injuries. I’m not comfortable with large crowds and the crowd there was far beyond my tolerance. I felt like I was on the verge of a panic attack for most of the day. I hope that not all of the competitions are like that. If they are Maura will have to forgive me for not always being there to see her compete.

Halloween Classic

Last weekend was Maura’s first skating competition of the season, the Halloween Classic on her home ice at the Rockland Rink. Maura didn’t win either of the two events she skated in on Saturday. In fact, she came in second out of two competitors in both of them. She still had a good time, as she always does. The biggest reason she competes in individual events is because she enjoys it and that is always a good thing.

Even though she didn’t win, I thought Maura skated well. To my unqualified eye she skated better than her opponent in her individual program, though the judges did not agree. I am prejudiced in her favor. In any case, her timing was spot on and her form was as good as I’ve ever seen it. She’s been working hard on the ice and remembering to stretch and do posture exercises at home. She’s had extra ice time this fall and she has been putting it to good use. I rarely have to pester her to keep her working on the ice, even when she is skating alone. The practice is clearly paying off and her skating is smoother and more graceful than it has been and improving every week.

Much of the practice has been for her synchronized skating routine. Her team skated publicly for the first time on Sunday. It was only an exhibition, not a competition, but they did a great job. I think it was more exciting for Maura to take her place with her team than it was to skate her individual events. She is the youngest skater on her team and has the least experience but she is doing her part. The exhibition was a tune up for the team's first competition, which is this Saturday. Maura’s team looked really good in exhibition and I think they will do well.

A Fresh Start

Maura is back in school now. This time of year is a time of new beginnings for both of us. This year it sees more beginnings than ever before. Maura is in a new school for 5th grade—the Abigail Adams Campus of the Weymouth Middle School. She’s taking the next step in her figure skating career by joining a synchronized skating team and taking on new responsibilities at home.

School may be the smallest change for Maura. She hasn’t changed school systems and much remains the same as it was in her elementary school. There is a larger pool of students as every 5th grader in the Weymouth Public Schools is at Abigail Adams but her class isn’t much larger and she stays with the same people throughout the day. None of her close friends from elementary school are in her class but she is staying in touch. She walks to school without me and sometimes her friends join her. So far she seems to be enjoying her new school. She doesn't complain and she gets out the door without any fuss in the morning. Her mother and I will be meeting her teacher this evening and I expect that we will hear that Maura is doing well so far. Time will tell if Maura has trouble adapting to the new school but I don’t expect her too. She enjoys learning. I hope that never changes.

There are some big changes in skating this year. Maura has joined the Winterettes, the United States Figure Skating synchronized skating team that is affiliated with the Winterland Skating School where she takes lessons. There are actually five teams separated by age and ability. Maura is on the Beginner 3 team. She is the youngest and least experienced skater on her team so she has some catching up to do but I expect that she will. Her practices with the team start today and she will be getting some extra lessons with the coach. She’s also keeping up with her individual lessons and we plan on her skating in ISI competitions as an individual like she did last year, starting with the Halloween Classic at the Rockland Rink where she skates. I think this is the year that Maura has to decide how much effort she is willing to put into skating. I don’t want her to stop enjoying it and I will never be upset at her if she doesn’t win first place but she may need to work a little harder if she wants to keep improving.

The last new start for Maura is that she began taking a share of the family cooking duties. She’ll be cooking dinner on Tuesday nights this year. She started last night by roasting a chicken. I was there to supervise and help but Maura did most of the work and as she learns her way around the kitchen I’ll expect her to do more. For now she is understandably a bit nervous with knives and the hot oven but I know she’ll get over that with practice. For now I will be in the kitchen with her but the time will come when I just expect her to get dinner ready and let me know when it’s done. I’m glad that Maura wants to learn to cook. I’ve always thought that it is one of the most important domestic chores to learn and that cooking from scratch is the best way to ensure you eat healthy food. Maura’s chicken was a very good first effort and every one appreciated it. Each meal is a lesson for her and she's already planning next week.

ISI District 1 Championships

On the weekend of July 1^st Maura competed in the ISI District 1 Championships at the William L. Chase Arena in Natick, Massachusetts. She competed in two events at the Alpha level.  She came in 6^th out of 8 competitors in both events but she was happy with her performance, and she had a good time, which is what matters the most.

Jennifer and I got up early and drove her to Natick twice. On Friday morning we fought traffic at rush hour to get there on time because Maura had an early ice time for her individual program. She was scheduled to skate at 8:40 am but she had to be there an hour earlier. She had a special treat—her grandfather came to see her skate (she calls him Papa). He lives in Florida and hasn’t had the chance to see her compete before. On Sunday we were back for Maura’s stroking competition. Maura skated even earlier than she did on Friday but it was an easy trip because there was hardly any traffic.

The truth is that Maura loves skating and she enjoys competing but she doesn’t care that much about winning. I think if she did she would work a little harder than she does. She has exercises to do when she isn’t on the ice but she never does them unless I bug her about them—not just remind her but bug her. It’s about as easy to get her to clean the cat’s litter box as it is to get her to practice holding her arms out for a few minutes so she can train herself to keep them up when she’s skating. I don’t expect Maura will come in first often unless she discovers that she cares more than she does now but if she is happy I am. She’s found a sport that she enjoys enough that she wants to participate regularly. It’s something she can keep doing for as long as it interests her. I’ll never be upset if she doesn’t want to be competitive.

Ice Show 2011

Maura has stayed busy since we came back from vacation. She hasn’t competed in figure skating recently but she hasn’t stopped skating. In fact she’s been skating more than ever the last two weeks. A few weeks ago she tried out for a synchronized skating team. We haven’t heard whether she will be on the team or not but Maura and I are both hoping that she will be. I think it would help her get better at her individual skating because she would learn to skate with precision, which she doesn’t always do now. She will have more time on the ice, which would help her improve even if she learned nothing new. She would also have a chance to make more friends at skating. Maura is a very friendly girl but she has only made a few close friends at skating so far. I’m sure that as time goes by she will make more but she is likely to get close to her teammates more quickly than to girls she doesn’t spend as much time with.

This last week Maura performed in the Rockland Rink’s annual ice show. She spent lots of extra time at the rink. The show was last Saturday Night but she’d had three rehearsals during the previous week to get ready. The dress rehearsal was on Friday night and I took her so I saw the show twice.

This year’s show was Broadway themed. The routines were all performed to music from Broadway shows. Maura was in two group numbers. One was “Strangers Like Me” from Tarzan and the other was a song from Hairspray. She had a great time and did a fine job skating. The Hairspray number was the most fun. She wore a sparkly shirt and a pink wig that matched the big smile on her face. She got to keep the wig and she plans to wear it to school on Friday.

We had a full contingent of Maura fans in the audience to watch her skate. Julie Tittler came to watch and so did Rheannon Swire and her parents. We took up a whole row in the bleachers. We had gone to see Rhea skate in competition earlier in the day and watched her take first place in her group. Rheannon is one of Maura’s idols and Maura was very happy that Rhe was there to see her show. Maura could certainly pick a worse person to idolize; Rhea is a great role model—not the least because she has done many of the things that Maura wants to do over the next few years of her life.

The ice shows that Maura has skated in so far have been her only experience with skating in a group but she seems to do it well.  I think she will enjoy skating on the synchro team if she makes it. I’ll get used to the extra hours in the cold.

Skate for the Love of It

Sunday morning saw us heading to Brockton, Massachusetts for another skating competition. Maura competed in the Skate for the Love of It ISI Competition hosted by FMC Icesports at the Asiaf Ice Arena. It was Maura’s first competition at the Alpha level. She’s been working on her new program now since the beginning of the year and she was ready to do it for real.

We got up early to get to Brockton by 8:30, an hour before Maura’s scheduled ice time. Early is relative. Brockton was only about half an hour from our house in Weymouth, a much shorter trip than it was to Marlboro in December and not much further than it is to her home rink in Rockland. Leaving the house 7:45 was sufficient to allow us to get lost on the way and still arrive with time to get Maura registered and dressed before she had to take the ice. Since we managed to get lost driving through Brockton it was good that we’d given ourselves the extra time.

Maura skated well. During her program she had her usual look of intense concentration but when she was done she was all smiles. She was happy with her performance and so was her coach. I’m not a qualified judge (at least not yet) but I thought she’d done fairly well. She came in third in a field of four, not a stunning result, but it is the first time she’s gotten a medal that wasn’t by default. Maura was happy to come in third and posed to get her picture taken on the podium with a big smile on her face. If she ever decides she isn’t satisfied with third place she’ll start working harder when she’s off the ice and she might do even better. Until then I’m satisfied with her performance if she is. The most important thing is that she enjoys what she’s doing and keeps at it. She certainly does enjoy it and I’ll do my best to get her to lessons every week as long as she wants to keep taking them.

After Maura was done we headed home for most of the day. I was happy to get out of the rink. I need to get a warmer coat to wear when I’m watching Maura skate. I’m always shivering in most of the rinks we visit, at least in the winter. They are quite pleasant in the summer.

We spent the early afternoon playing games together as a family and then headed back to the rink to watch our friend Rheannon Swire skate with her synchronized skating team. Rhe is one of Maura’s role models and we wanted to go out to cheer her on. Cheering on your friends is almost as important a part of the competition experience for Maura as skating. She’s always happy to see her friends skate well, even when she’s skating against them.

Maura Moves Up

Maura isn’t competing this month but she is skating. Last week she took her test to move up to the Alpha level in ISI competition. I didn’t take her to her lesson that day—it was Martin Luther King Day and her mother had the day off—but Maura was excited to tell me that she had passed her test when she got home. I wasn’t surprised and I don’t think her coach was either. She had already begun working with Maura on her new program.

Maura has been hard at work on her Alpha routine for several weeks already. It uses the same music and has the same advanced elements but otherwise it is quite different from her Pre-Alpha program. Her path on the ice is nothing like it was before. Maura is learning it well. She has a good sense of timing and to my unpracticed eye the new routine looks almost as polished as the old one. She still has a few of the same old problems, though. Maura has always had trouble keeping her arms up.

Maura will have to skate really well when she competes again at the end of February if she wants to bring home a medal. Unlike in her last competition she won’t be the only skater her age at her level. She’ll have at least one friend from her home rink skating against her and probably others as well. There are many more skaters her age at the Alpha level than there are at the pre-Alpha level. Perhaps I can use that to motivate her to work harder getting ready.

Maura always works hard when she is on the ice with her coach. She truly loves skating and she also loves her coach. It is harder to convince her that she needs to work off the ice. She has an exercise routine that she is supposed to do every morning but she doesn’t always remember to do it, even when she is reminded. I know how she feels. I don’t like to exercise either and I’m certain that walking around with pennies on the backs of your hands isn’t nearly as fun as skating.

Maura Skates Again—the Icicle Invitational

On Saturday, December 3^rd, Maura skated in the Icicle Invitational at Navin Arena in Marlboro, Massachusetts. It was her second competition and the first one she has skated in away from her home rink in Rockland. Maura did very well and had a great time.

We got up early and left the house before sunrise. We wanted to get the rink by 7:00 am because we were told that we should check in an hour before Maura was due on the ice and she was entered in the very first event of the day, Pre-Alpha Stroking, at 8:00. It’s about an hour’s drive from our house in Weymouth to Marlboro. We allowed extra time in case we got lost. We didn’t so we were at the rink by 6:30. We ended up waiting in the lobby for an hour before we could register.

Once we were registered everything seemed to go smoothly. Jennifer got Maura ready without any trouble despite having to share the locker rooms with the hockey players who were finishing up their games. Maura skated in two events, Pre-Alpha Stroking and the Pre-Alpha Individual competition she did in October. She skated very well in both her events, at least to my untrained eye. She even managed to do a good job keeping her arms up, which is one of her biggest problems. When she got off the ice after her individual program Maura had a big smile on her face. She knew she had done well.

Maura took first in both of her events. It was not a big surprise. She was the only skater in her age group at her level so she wasn’t competing against anyone. Nevertheless, Maura was pleased with her two gold medals and proudly wore them for a photograph on the podium. If she keeps skating Maura will likely get more of them, and not always because she is the only skater in her group.

This might have been Maura’s last Pre-Alpha competition. Maura’s coach, Jenny, was happy with her performance. On Monday, at Maura’s lesson, Jenny said that if she works hard over the next few weeks Maura can take her next test and move up to the Alpha level before she competes again in February. Now that the local public rink is open again for the season and Maura has more chances to get on the ice I expect Maura will improve more rapidly than she did in the fall because of the extra practice. Her mother and I will encourage her to keep working hard off the ice but she doesn’t need much encouragement when she has the chance to skate, just a ride to the rink.

Maura’s First Competition

Last Saturday Maura competed in her first ever ice skating competition. She skated in the Halloween Classic at the Rockland Ice Rink, where she takes her lessons. It was fun for her to compete first on home ice where she had been working on her program all summer and fall.

Maura and her mother had been busy getting ready during the week before the competition, getting the things she would need and making sure they were all in her skating bag and ready to go. My parents came for a quick visit so they could see Maura skate. They were in the stands with Jennifer and I watching. Family friend Rheannon Swire and her dad completed Maura’s cheering section. Rhe is an accomplished skater and one of Maura’s idols. Having her in the audience was almost as special to Maura as having her grandparents come to see her.

We got to the rink early to make sure Maura had plenty of time. It was good to watch the more advanced skaters who skated before Maura. We could see what Maura will be doing in a few years. Next time we won’t arrive so early. It is easy to forget how cold it is in the rink and we were all freezing by the time Maura was ready to skate, including Maura. She wasn’t nervous though, until right before she went on.

Maura didn’t win. In fact, she came in third in a field of three. Nevertheless she did very well for her first time out. She completed her program without falling and almost on time. She will skate in competition again and next time I expect she will do even better. She learned a bit about what the judges look for and she is inspired to work a little harder, on and off the ice, so she will improve. We’re planning to enter her in one competition a month during the winter, but the first one won’t be until January. She can use the extra time to get some practice.

After Maura skated her grandfather and I gave her a big bouquet of flowers. She had a big smile on her face as she waited for the scores to be posted. I hope she continues to enjoy skating competitions as much as she enjoyed her first one, even as she takes them more seriously. I’d like to see her win someday but the important thing is that she always does her best and makes the effort to get better. That is what the competition is really about.

Summer Icetime

Maura has now been on summer vacation for a week. It hasn’t been the most exciting week for her. I’ve been busy and we haven’t got the money for long adventures. She has many plans for the summer but had nothing for the first week except the beginning of her summer skating.

Ice skating isn’t a traditional summer activity but skating will be a big part of Maura’s summer this year. She started on Thursday with her very first private skating lesson with Jenny, one of her favorite instructors. Maura began learning the program she’ll skate in her first competition, the Halloween Classic at the Rockland Rink (where she takes her lessons). She has until October to get ready.

The competition program is something entirely new for Maura. Until now she’s been focused on learning new things on the ice. Now she has to perfect what she already knows. She will be skating at the lowest, pre-Alpha level initially so her program has to demonstrate the most basic strokes and moves in skating. To do well she’ll not only have to do them correctly, but do them with style. Maura seemed to understand what was required when I watched her taking her lesson. I’ve rarely seen her concentrating so hard. Often the details seem to escape Maura but last Thursday she was clearly thinking about even the fine points of her form. Even to my unpracticed eye it was clear she has some work to do but she has plenty of time. I’m looking forward to the first time she gets to skate to her music. It will be fun to see what she does with rhythm.

Maura needs to skate more than just on her lesson days if she is going to do her best. I plan on taking her to the rink every chance I get. The Rockland Rink has open skating on Tuesdays so I took her to the rink to practice her program and cool off on a warm day. Even I didn’t mind being in the cool rink. Usually I shiver and endure it for Maura. It’s much more pleasant there in the summer.

Maura’s Ice Show Debut

Saturday night was the ice show that Maura had spent the previous week working hard to prepare for. She was excited all day and could hardly wait to perform. I think the only reason she was able to sleep Friday night was that she had worked very hard at the dress rehearsal and she was tired. On the night of the show she was nervous, but ready.

The Rockland Rink Ice Show was titled “Holiday Memories” and had a holiday theme. Maura was in two numbers with other girls of approximately her size and skill. “If You Are Irish” was a St. Patrick’s Day number and the girls wore sparkly green costumes. “Shake a Tail” didn’t have a holiday theme but it was a fun, sassy song that Maura really enjoyed performing to. Maura did a great job in both of her numbers, especially since it was the first time she’d skated with a group or for an audience. Maura wasn’t the best skater in the group but she did what she was supposed to do with a smile on her face. I was particularly impressed with her part in a pinwheel. She had one of the outer ends of a rotating line of skaters so she had to skate the fastest. She’d never done anything like that before she learned the routine for the show only a week before.

Jennifer and I went to the show mostly to see Maura but we didn’t leave when her part was over. It was fun watching the other numbers, too. The little kids were really cute. The more experienced synchronized skating teams and some of the solo performers were very impressive. If Maura stays interested in skating and keeps working hard at it she might have a solo in a show someday. I expect to see her skate in a few more ice shows. She certainly enjoyed her part in this one.

Maura on Ice

Maura has been taking figure skating lessons for a year and a half now. She has enjoyed being on the ice from the start and has made enormous progress. By now she’s learned all the basic moves and has started to learn how to put them together. Her enthusiasm has never flagged and she gets excited every time there is any prospect of ice time. At the same time she is very serious. When she is practicing a move and fails to do it to her satisfaction she shakes her head and does it again until she feels she’s gotten it right. I am very proud.

Recently Maura has expressed interest in going beyond taking group lessons. Jennifer and I asked her if she wants to compete and she is eager to give it a try. With financial assistance from her grandparents (she’s their only grandchild after all) we’re getting her private coaching starting this summer and her coach will be working out a routine for her to perform in competition in the fall. I don’t know how she’ll do but if she does not do well it won’t be from lack of effort. Maura concentrates well for an eight year old especially when she’s focusing on something she really loves.

Competition won’t start for Maura until October but she’s got a big ice skating event this Saturday. The rink where Maura takes her lessons has an ice show every spring and Maura is participating in it for the first time. In addition to her Monday afternoon lesson she has rehearsals this week. Her Mother and I are looking forward to seeing her perform. Some of our friends are planning to come and see her too. Maybe I’ll make a sign to hold up wishing her well. Then again, maybe I won’t. I don’t want to distract her or embarrass her.

In any case, when I see Maura skating I know the hours I’ve spent shivering at the rink have been worth it. I’m very glad she’s found something to be passionate about and I hope she keeps it up, whether she does well in competition or not.