More Perseverance

I went to the public session tonight to practice. I got there at 7:30 and stayed until 9:10 or so, with a Z-break around 8:10. It was not too crowded. I spent most of my time working on my stroking, although I briefly touched on most of my other "skills". My stroking is indeed improving. I concentrated on the stuff Glenn had told me, bending my knees more and being more deliberate about my movement. I also worked a bit on my forward swizzles, since Glenn had told me to bring my feet closer together at the end, to bend my knees more, and to feel the push from my knees before I turn my feet out. I'm getting a bit of power from them now, it's pretty neat. My stroking is improving. I tried a few one foot glides, all but one on my left foot. They are not much longer than last week, but they feel a lot steadier. It appears that Glenn's tactic to work on my stroking and let the glide improve through that is right. I'm also feeling a lot more confident on the ice and not nearly so dorky, which helps.

My only self-criticism is that it took me about 20 minutes or so to warm up today! I felt very stiff when I started. I think that's because I hadn't skated since last Wednesday. I really need to get in three practices a week (evenly spaced) or it seems like I lose my edge, my nerve a bit.