Practice #1

So I just got home from my first practice. If you are a male you will appreciate what I am about to say. I went into the bathroom to put my spandex on and then I suddenly thought to myself “Damn… wrong underwear!” Boxers just don’t work with spandex. Luckily I had a backup pair of spandex which made everything kosher.

After a few warm-up laps I felt mildly comfortable on the new skates… I should definitely emphasize mildly. The Challenge boot seems to be a bit lower cut that my previous Verducci which made me feel a bit wobbly. I will also attribute the wobbly ankles to lack of skating which is a given.

I skated the pace line for the B group to get some additional time on the floor and followed that up with pace line for the A group. I stayed in until 15 laps to go which was acceptable. I could have lasted a bit longer but my legs were getting tired and I started to get that “just back on my skates out of control feeling.” I definitely don’t have the top speed that I used to but I think that will come in time.

It is really nice to see Cheek skating so well. I think if skaters from outside the area saw a Piedmont practice they would be amazed. Tonight for example there was Cheek, Harry, several Jr. World Team members… oh, and this guy you may have heard of, Joey Mantia. That isn’t to mention the pool of older skaters that are extremely talented and have tons of experience. Sorry, I digressed.

We did some 5 lap relays which allowed me to work on my sprints but again, the wobbly ankles and additional height from the 110’s made me feel very sloppy. I have typically had a custom or semi custom boot so I think having a stock boot will take a bit longer to break in. I will give it two weeks and if it hasn’t taken to my feet it will be time to stick it in the oven. My main issue is that it feels a bit big around the ankles which causes me to tie it really tight… something that I hate to do.

I also unfortunately brought the wrong pair of socks and they moved around a bit causing a very small blister on my right foot. The plan was to skate tomorrow in High Point but I might take the day off to let this blister heal a bit. If that is the case my next practice will be on Thursday.

All in all I think I had a good first practice and got a ton of floor time. My goal for the next practice is to make the pace line until the final 10 lap race at the end.  I should also add that I am a bit more timid than I used to be.  Back when I skated Senior… fear pretty much did not play a factor, but I guess with age you naturally take less and less risks.

I would say practice #1 went well and most of all, I had fun.