I almost miss compulsory figures. Those horrible, former mandatory double-bubbles of trouble. Or three circles for a serpentine. Scratching out figure eights for up to four hours a week was not my idea of a good time. However, when we skated patch, our arena was so quiet you should hear a skate rivet drop. The … Continue reading Mandatory Compulsory Silence – Figure Skating’s Nemesis
Compulsory Figures
Figure Skating, Meet Roller Blading
I tried inline skating in high school. There were four of us on a street near our school - small towns - gliding up and down the paved road. Minus me. I was too nervous to move, convinced I'd do a face-plant. So much for that cardio exercise. When I was a preteen figure skater, … Continue reading Figure Skating, Meet Roller Blading
Bye Bye Compulsory Dance
Who doesn’t love to snuggle up on the couch with a bowl of popcorn and watch three hours of compulsory dance? Hopefully no one. The International Skating Union’s announcement on June 17, 2010 was a longtime coming. They voted to nix compulsory dance at junior and senior competition and will devise a plan to retool … Continue reading Bye Bye Compulsory Dance
Compulsory Figures – Gone but Not Forgotten
Before International Skating Union phased them out in 1990, compulsory figures were an integral part of figure skating. For those who are not familiar with figures, they were patterns on the ice that resemble figure eights, hence the name. Figure skaters would spend hours honing their figures, meticulously looping around these circles. But they were … Continue reading Compulsory Figures – Gone but Not Forgotten
Skating Scene 