Personal Training & 'Trust the Government'

Another mild early autumn evening, another puck'n'stick session at the primary school.

The demolition of half the old playground continues apace, with most but not all of the dismantled equipment and the dissembled shed now gone, the ground all leveled out.  The temporary fenceline has been expanded, now one must 'walk' one's skates around the edge of the well grassed oval to get to the netball court rather than use a pathway.

Mildly to my surprise, I found that tomorrow's South Australian election did not disrupt my ability to skate this evening.  It seems that the election site is on the basketball court (in the centre of all the buildings, (the netball court is on the edge furthest away from the front entrance and staff carpark)).  With little prospect of eager voters approaching the booth from the netball side of the school (due the temporary fence blocking access to gates and road) I had the court to myself again.

I spent almost an hour continuously on the move, only two drinks breaks of about two minutes and two of less.  Almost no 'skating warmup drills' to begin with - contented myself with doing most if not all of the basic moves nice and slowly with stick in hand as I did my routine visual 'sweep' of the court surface for small pebbles, twigs, bark, etc.  I used my stick to sweep what few items there are out of the playing area.  Good low speed agility training in its own right, this process.

I then did five laps each way around the court carrying a puck on my backhand.  Or, I tried to.  I very rarely got past half way before losing the puck, generally by dropping off behind.  Each time, I looped back to collect the puck and set off in the opposite direction.  Try try try again. Out of curiosity I then did a lap each way at speed with puck on my forehand - no issues at all.  Finished this portion of drill by using the more cognitively challenging method of backhand (tuck the top hand under the right armpit rather than leave it on its own side).  Much more controlled.

Second drill (not counting the agility sweep) was random weaving around a 'course' defined by the two centre circles marked on the court and three spare pucks scattered close but not too close.  I spent a few minutes ducking and weaving around with no particular aim in mind except to not repeat myself and keep moving.  Seemed to do reasonably well not losing the puck with my slaloming around and was shifting it between forehand and backhand quite well.

Third period, tried reasonable speed rushes up the length of the court on the wing and then swept across the top of the slot towards the centre, culminating the maneuver with a shot.  Sometimes, a bit of duck and weave with the puck on the rush up the wing, cut across with puck on either forehand or backhand and shoot (all from the same wing though, as I didn't want a rebound to angle off under the temporary fence into the construction site).  Wristshot and snapshot, concentrate upon pressure and flex on stick when the wrist shot is used.  Didn't hit the target at all from the distance of the netball circle or greater.  Progressively more Tings the closer I was when I took my shot.  Hit it with both forehand and backhand.  Chased in for the rebound (much more difficult if had 'snapped' the stick (used the stick's flex to increase power of the strike)).  On one noteable occasion, Tinged the target with two shots in a row!

Finally, cooled off by casually skating randomly backwards while I finished off my water bottle.

Sun set, one of the election organisers entered my domain, surveying the construction site and calculating its effect upon traffic at 'her' booth.  I had a short yarn with her (have a usually brief chat with people more nights than not when I go to the school).  She didn't seem too phased by anything.  My final comment was to the effect that I'd been pleasantly surprised that I could 'play' on my rink the eve before the election, but that I'd have to make 'my sacrifice for democracy' the next day.  She thought about it a moment, gave a half grin as she departed saying, 'I guess so.'

It was only after I sweated up the hill to home that I realised I was wearing perhaps my equal favourite canadian tee shirt.  I bought it in Vancouver just about two years ago.  It is white with a picture profile of a native chieftain and the words, 'Trust the Government'.

Irony on irony, indeed!