Well, the second week of my women only power skating/ice
hockey skills clinic has come and gone and I tell you, talk about having to
check my ego at the door. I signed up for Ice Hockey this year and thankfully
found a clinic to take at the same time and took the plunge and dove right into
both, with a gut full of fear, my head questioning my mental stability and my
heart smiling the whole way.
Seriously, I never thought of myself as being overly competitive
nor did I think that I had an overly high ego, however this clinic is proving to
me one thing…..whatever competitive streak I may have, and wherever the hell my
ego may sit I may as well leave it all in the dressing room because when I step
on that ice it’s a completely different world. One that is certainly foreign to
me. Skating is not easy, and I don’t care what anyone says I don’t think it
comes naturally. Now don’t get me wrong, I can only go up from here and up I will
go and hope to go quite quickly but man oh man will I take a beating while I climb.
Some of the women in my clinic are friggin rock stars, I will
admit I am completely jealous of how they so gracefully swish across the ice,
doing beautiful crossovers, stopping on a dime and speeding so quickly across
the ice with the puck I may add. They make it look so easy.
I certainly don’t feel graceful and I’m sure I certainly don’t
look it either. I did feel more confident today and figure each week it will
get easier and I will get better, but graceful I am not!
It’s a little embarrassing, ok so really it’s a lot embarrassing
and I can’t believe I’m even admitting this but I am. The drills are fantastic
and really how else am I going to learn? You sign up for these adult rec
leagues (ball hockey, ice hockey) and there is no practice time, there is no
instruction, you show up for your first game and you get pointers and you
figure it out as you go and you do improve, or at least I hope everyone
improves, all with time.
Until I get my stopping skills down pat this is going to be
very difficult. Now, this week was much better, during my drills I actually
stopped (for the most part) when I was supposed to, last week I would do a quick
turn and proceed. It’s amazing just how good you can get at tight turns when
you cannot stop and don’t want to fall down. That’s one skill that I seemed to
have managed quite rapidly.
Now, skating backwards is a completely different scenario. I
watched our defence players last week with complete aw as they raced backwards
down the ice to protect our net. I immediately looked at one of the other girls
on the bench and declared right there that there wasn’t a hope in hell of me
playing defence. I may not be fast, and I’m working on my accuracy so I may not
be the goal scorer, however I certainly wouldn’t be putting any money on me
being able to get my ass back to my goalie to offer assistance, so winger I am.
In the clinic we have to skate backwards, and each week I cringe
when they yell out this drill. As all of the other girls manage to go from one
end of the rink to the other I am lucky if I make it to the blue line,
seriously it’s that bad. How hard is it, I’ve got junk in the truck, you gotta
hang it out there and make great big C’s with your skates, problem is I make a
big C and can’t seem to close the gap and end up in one heck of a mess and
although I’m sure to some they find it entertaining I find it terribly
embarrassing and frustrating!
Somehow throughout all of these drills I have to also throw
a puck in there and believe me, it’s different than the bright orange ball that
I’m used to (although I seem to be passing and receiving a pass way better with
a puck than I ever have with the ball….go figure). So although I tend to
multitask at all times, multitasking for this clinic is simply overwhelming!
Head up, two hands on the stick, stick on the ice, keep the
puck moving and whatever drill we happen to be doing. When I’m already
concentrating on my balance, trying not to fall down or better yet run into
someone, this all quickly becomes almost too much.
So, although I am probably my biggest critic (and no one is
allowed to come to watch as I think I just may die of embarrassment), I still
manage to do all of this with a smile on my face and the knowledge in my heart
that this too will get easier.
Even though this is the most embarrassing hour and a half of
my week I can also say that it certainly also provides a complete escape from
every other aspect of life. While out on the ice, multitasking and trying not
to look like a complete fool there is not a chance that any other thought can
run through my mind. It’s kinda like meditation; I focus on me, the ice, the
puck and keeping my skates blade down on the ice.
So, I have another eight weeks of checking my ego at the
door and as much as I am not a religious person I think I just may have to
start each session with a small prayer to survive yet another painfully
embarrassing week on the ice.
Thankfully all of the ladies at both the skating clinic and
at my ice hockey league are fantastic. They are all just out to have a great
time. They pass to you no matter how many times you miss it as they want you to
learn, they want you to have fun, they want everyone to participate and have a
good time. Its rec, it’s just for fun, it’s just for sport and I absolutely
love every single moment of it all, embarrassing or not.
If I have learned anything as I tackle yet another sport, it’s this:
Keep smiling and never be afraid to tackle something new, no
matter how embarrassed you are, no matter how “new” you are, no matter how
young or how old you are. Face your fears, in time you’ll overcome them and be
a better person for it. Share your story and encourage someone else to tackle something
new themselves, you never know what door you may be kicking open for someone
else.
