Some of the best practices I’ve ever skated were the ones where I didn’t care about how fast I was going, how hard I was working, how far I was going, how technically correct my form was or how many calories I burned. In fact, despite being known as a sufferer of low grade narcissism, some of the best practices I’ve ever been a part of had nothing to do with me at all. They were about the people I was skating with.
Continue reading: Some of the best practices
Brian Boudreau prepares for the Red Bull Crashed Ice trials coming this Sunday in Salt Lake City!
Good luck Brian!
Today in Indonesia, one of the biggest days in Speed Skating World History, A Government handing out winning SEA games Bonuses to Skaters & Coaches, in the vicinity of Half a Million USA $.
Speed skating coaches Marcel Lacroix, Bart Schouten, Mark Wild, Xiuli Wang, Derrick Campbell and Sébastien Cros were among Canada’s top coaches and sport administrators honoured at the Petro-Canada Sport Leadership Awards Gala. The event was hosted by the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) on Friday, Nov. 11 at Toronto’s Fairmont Royal York Hotel.
Lacroix, a former national team coach now with the Olympic Oval in Calgary, received the Jack Donohue “Coach of the Year” Award. This award recognizes a coach who exemplifies the great qualities that made Jack Donohue the legendary coach he was. These qualities include honesty, integrity, a positive attitude, competitiveness, a love of the sport, and that sport is about more than just wins and losses.
Read more: HATS OFF TO… Top coaches honoured at gala
Here’s some good stuff for you;
MISC, NEWS
I’d like to congratulate Alex Bont and his beautiful wife Soo Yeon on the birth of their first child, Heidi! And to think I knew Alex since he was like 10 years old…I feel like an uncle myself… [from here]
PICTURES & VIDEOS
Koen Verweij is just too fast!
‘The elite women and elite masters women inline skating marathon started off rain or shine, at the Alexian Brothers Fitness for America Sports Festival in Hoffman Estates on Sunday‘- caption from here, photo by Kristin Ackmann
While eating dinner with Justin Stelley in Chicago, he showed me on his phone this picture of his backwards finish & victory at the USA Indoor National Championships! Impressive!
Colombian skater training for 2011 World Champs
Photo from Pattinaggio Bellusco
MISC, REPORTS
Rennes Sur Roulettes World Inline Cup- photo from Francois et Marie
The 2011 Texas Road Rash started just like every other race with multiple software downloads and dozens of phantom pees. After massive mud flows skaters walked around for a few minutes to make sure the back flood gates were completely shut. Then every skater worked their way through the densely packed crowd to find their ideal starting position. When the countdown began they all got low into position, ready to sprint forth like a bat out of hell and then, when the gun went off, everybody stood up and slowly fumbled forth in big mass of flesh on 110mm wheels. That’s right kids, without your Fairy Glow Wand to magically move everyone out of your way there aint no reason to get into any kind of dramatic skater’s squat. [From here]
The dilemma in Rennes is usually what wheels to wear. Nearly every year it rains or at least threatens to rain. This year there was absolutely no rain in sight and I could step on the start line with no doubt in my mind that I had the right wheel on. [from here]
PICTURES & VIDEOS
EuropaCup in Heerde- photo from Tims ProSkateShots
Rennes Sur Roulettes World Inline Cup- photo from Francois et Marie
Rennes Sur Roulettes World Inline Cup- photo from Francois et Marie
Oster Kids Camp- photo from Anne Biehl
Photo by Cyril Abbas
Rennes Sur Roulettes World Inline Cup- photo from Francois et Marie
Rennes Sur Roulettes World Inline Cup- photo from Francois et Marie
Rennes Sur Roulettes World Inline Cup- photo from Francois et Marie
Racing in France’s Championnat Départemental St Philbert- photo from ASTA
Here’s another fun video courtesy Eddy Matzger; Songkran Water Party 2011
Here’s a bit of short track speed skating content;
Ontario Cup in Kitchener-Waterloo- photo from Jesse Pauley
So many things have changed in skating over the last 10 years, from basic position, to how people skate tracks, rule changes, and even the way we push. One of the major changes I have made in teaching the straightaway push is to take away the lean of the entire body in to the push, and just push straight down in to the ice to start the push. This loads more pressure under the heel at the beginning of the push. Even though the pressure at high speed still finishes with the ball of the foot, more time is spent under the front part of the heel and middle of the blade before finishing with the ball. [Ellis Edge skate tip]
Ontario’s squad at the 2011 Canada East Short Track Championships in Toronto- photo from Ontario Speed Skating
I just received the link from Eddy Matzger himself to the following video; Songkran Skating.
Sharing the joy of your teammate’s & friend’s success is wonderful!
This indoor season at the Scooter’s Indoor Speed Club, Scott Pauley continuously skated flying lap times just a notch over 10 seconds. Again and again, he tried breaking the 10-second barrier. Every time, he was without success.
With one practice remaining in the indoor season, Scott skated a 10.07, 10.20, and a 10.01! So close! But no lap time in the elusive 9-second range for Scott.
The Scooter’s Indoor Speed Club‘s last practice for 2010-2011 was help this past Sunday. Hoping to finally go under 10-seconds, Scott tried a couple of flying laps during the practice. He still came short of his goal during his attempts.
Scott gave it one final try at the end of this final practice. One last shot; see what happened here: 2011-04 Scott Pauley Shoots For Skating A Sub-10 Second Lap
Here’s a tiny wee bit of long track content;
Here’s a bit of short track speed skating content to get your Friday started;
REPORTS & RESULTS
MISC, NEWS
Four Canadian Short Track Speed Skating Olympians including double gold medalist Charles Hamelin, double silver medalist Marianne St-Gelais, gold medalist Guillaume Bastille and Valérie Maltais stopped by Sainte-Justine’s hospital for sick children, today, to help celebrate the Kid and Hospital’s week. [Read more]
PICTURES & VIDEOS
Team Ontario at the Eastern Canadians- photo from Neil Roxas
Eastern Canadian Champs in Toronto- photo from Samuel Jr Fackoury
Here’s the latest long track speed skating news;
“Red Head Speedskater” for Airpushers from Kompost on Vimeo.
“Red Head Speedskater” for Airpushers from Kompost on Vimeo.
Here’s what’s new and current in the world of roller & inline speed skating;
WORLD ROLLER SPEED SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Once again we had to break the law by climbing a very high wire fence late at night to get in. I must have been the only coach in the World at the time with two current World Champions who was taken to court by the police for late night skating activities. The local Mayor was part of my defence for that case.
On track at Worlds in Colombia
Begg family at Worlds in Hastings, New Zealand 1989- photo from here
RESULTS & REPORTS
NEWS & MISC
The key to maintaining your hard-earned conditioning is not to quit exercising all together. As you may know, physical conditioning starts to decline after ten days without training. After three months, it’s all gone.
Photo from Joey Mantia
PICTURES & VIDEOS
Racing in Zaragoza- photo from ElPatinador.com
