Small Ice Blues

Posted from Yackandandah, 1300 km from home.

 



Last Wednesday night I had knocked off work pretty well totally worn out after a final bid to finish off what needed doing before the final bus.  I'd failed, but had at least worked out not much time would be required on the first day of my holiday to ensure that I could go away with something like a clean conscience.  So, although tired out and not totally on holiday, I knew I soon would be, so I was at least of pretty good spirits.  So when Nancy said to go skating it was the best idea I'd heard all day.  It had been since almost two weeks before that I'd been on the ice.

So, a bit of a shock to turn up and pay my money and get out on the rink to have one of the 'SOS' volunteers tell me that a new 'policy' was in play on the small ice, and that there would be NO backwards skating on it at ANY time.  Even if it was the only ice open for public skating, and even if the majority of skaters are at least basically competent, and even if there is almost no one on the rink.  Which sounded totally ridiculous to me.

So I tried to lodge a complaint with the enforcer, and ended up doing so with the duty manager, who ended up sending it up the chain (presumably to manager and on to the board) after considering my arguments for doing so.  We ended up having quite a lengthy conversation about what had happened and why.  I won't say I'll agree with what is happening, but I can see why.  It is disappointing that it comes down to someone being allowed to screw up at the wrong time, and us all having to pay the price now.  Bit of a shame, really.

Anyways, I got in 90 minutes of skating, probably did a hundred or so stops in that time.  And I didn't skate backwards for more than a couple strides at a time (ie. arguably spins), which was pretty good I guess because I have developed a bad habit of skating backwards in the neutral zone - which isn't generally very wise at all when you think about it. 

So maybe I need to do limit myself to skating forwards for an entire session, in similar fashion to what the new rule did on Wednesday night?!