It’s inevitable. If you have been in the skating (mom) world long enough, that you will get the same question over and over…. “Did you ice skate?” In my case, the answer is “No!” I had only been on skates once in my life before my skater started. They were old and painful and I never left the hallway carpet. Probably a pair of $20 Lake Placids. (Ouch!)
I do remember watching Debi Thomas at the Olympics on a small black and white tv as a kid. Maybe Caryn Kadavy. The Brians, Katarina… But I lost interest with Tonya and Nancy. How could such a beautiful sport go so wrong? Well, that is what I asked myself then. Now I know the answer and it is a pretty simple one. Some of the people in figure skating are insane.
Mainly you hear about the moms with their dreams of Olympic gold who have a skater who rather just do the occasional lesson and spend the rest of the time with her friends. Or those “drop and run” moms whose skaters are left to their own devices once mom pulls from the curb. She doesn’t really care what they are doing as long as they aren’t in her way. Or those moms that spend $1000 on skates, $500 on a dress and never watch their 7-year-old actually skate because mom is sitting in the lobby talking to anyone who will listen about $1000 skates and $500 dresses.
This is not their blog.
There is a whole other level of crazy and it is called “coach”. Don’t let them deceive you with their black puffy coats and (somewhat) professional demeanor. More likely than not, a nutjob is just waiting for the moment to reveal it’s true nature. Something will set them off at some point. You just need to be prepared. That is what this blog is about.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m sure there are some decent human beings working as coaches. Eventually, I might even meet one.
In the meantime though…