New Skates!

Yay I finally got my new skates! Jackson Freestyle. And they do fit. Big relief to that, considering how much they cost. $189. Definitely don't want to take it all that lightly. Plus blade guards and boot covers and tights, about $215. Woe behold, my boot covers don't fit, though they said one size fits all. Anyway I kept stretching it, and the threads are coming off, but now it fits. Better than the whole thing not being able to fit, and I can always resew the threads. Another sorrow. My skates were dirtied when they were handed for sharpening. I can't figure out how to remove the stains, probably made by iron filings or some powder substance used for sharpening. The powders were invisible at first, but when I touched the boot, the powder smeared out, creating what looks like dark bluish stains. Scratch it. It's not iron filings. It's silica.. according to my dad. Though it shouldn't matter since I'll be having boot covers over them, but I really wanted them to be all perfect. They're new after all. I hate leather. I couldn't clean my leather ballet flats either, having them ended up to have blotches here and there. Sigh.

Anyway back to my skating lesson.. after being idle for three weeks. I did stroking, crossovers, and three turns again. Don't really mind though, since perfecting basics is really important. Left, right stroking, right over left crossovers, left, right, outside three turns one landing are all nicely executed. It's only my left over right crossovers that I can't do. For one thing, going clockwise is not a comfortable motion for me. Also I don't really have any confidence skating on right leg, especially not that lesson, as the blades were a little dull and I kept slipping.

I have no idea what the deal is with one landing, two landing three turns. I mean who cares how many landings you do? Sigh I don't know. And I never asked my coach what it was all about. Maybe I should, the next lesson. Much as I say I don't care that I'm not learning new things, I do. I have nothing new to practice, and that makes me bored. I also envy other students, who are not perfect at three turn nor crossovers or T stops but they get to learn bunny hop, two foot spin and all that. But I don't. And I don't want to waste 10 lessons doing the same thing over and over again. It's a serious waste of money. Time.. I have all the time on hand so I don't really care. But I think my coach is putting off teaching me new stuff until I have my own skates, so that I don't have to relearn some moves. Well now I have my own skates, we'll see how next lesson goes.

On another note, I have my left split when I'm fully warmed up! Considering I only began stretching for a month, and I had a hamstring injury. If I had not been injured, my right leg should have been more flexible. I don't know why, but I injured my right leg more seriously. Waiting for it to recover.. meanwhile, still stretching! I want to be able to do a spiral on ice! It's such a graceful movement on ice.. my favorite element! It's a wonder I still prefer Mao Asada to Sasha Cohen, who is so known for a perfect spiral. But the first thing of Mao which struck me was her spiral, or rather her cuffs floating about when she was performing her spiral. Which made me like her spiral.. maybe. I don't know, and I don't really have to know do I?

Lots of exclamation marks but I'm really hyped up about my skates! Hope to get to skate in them next week. I tried heat molding, but there wasn't any real obvious difference before and after. I daren't try heat molding a second time. My boots have been tortured enough by me, by all sorts of cleaning agents. I don't want them to spoil even before I start skating in them!