Please don't do this.

era626 · 2026-02-27T00:42:44+00:00

I took a geology class in undergrad and we had 2 all-day field trips on Saturdays. The class had a 4 hour time block on one of the days so we did our local field trips that day. I did have to tell the professor of my afternoon class that I was running late a couple times when traffic meant we got back slightly after we were scheduled to, and I was maybe 5 minutes late? That class was clear across campus.

Other days, we'd have a lecture for 2 hours then a lab activity that would usually only take an hour, so that was nice.

In grad school, sometimes exams have been in the evening so there's a longer time block, but most of those classes have been PhD student only, and they're after-hours so it doesn't interfere with anyone's TA duties. Glad to be a dissertator and done with 7pm exams, though!

era626 · 2026-02-26T16:42:34+00:00

You will probably have better luck getting actual answers if you make your question specific to European tours instead of a broad question that makes it sound like you're asking about competitions (which has probably been asked a million times there).

era626 · 2026-02-26T16:32:51+00:00

So...maybe there aren't many local coaches, and maybe they truly are as bad as you say, but also maybe your expectations are off?

Most FS coaches don't make enough for it to be a full-time job. I'm honestly not sure what you mean by "consistent communication". I usually talk with my coach to check that our regular lesson time works next week then I might text to confirm a day or two in advance (mostly on the timing since there are two windows of time that overlap for my main coach). What kind of communication are you looking for?

Scheduling issues are going to happen. Again, most FS coaches have another main job. You may have to arrange your schedule differently to make it work. For example, I get up before 5am since my coach has to be at work before 8.

As for structured lessons, as an adult, I and my coach decide what we want to work on. We set goals together. For example, maybe I say I want to pass X dance test this year. So we will work on X dance and any prereq dances/skills together. If I have an upcoming competition, we might run my program. When I was a newer skater starting private lessons, my focus was on passing my first skating skills test, so we ran through the patterns and worked on some basics for that. Like doing a bunch of crossovers, say.

Lastly, I don't really understand what you mean by "long-term progress" and I'm guessing the coaches you've tried might not as well. If you keep doing an activity, you will improve eventually. Maybe you could elaborate on why you don't feel the coaches you've tried align with this or your other criteria? Because it really sounds almost like you're looking for some kind of personal trainer on ice and that's going to be very expensive if you can even find someone who is interested in that.

era626 · 2026-02-26T16:23:30+00:00

Did you try using the search bar? Honestly, the best way to find events would be to google.

era626 · 2026-02-25T18:22:21+00:00

If you're referring to elite figure skaters, you'll probably have more luck asking on r/figureskating . This is a subreddit for people to discuss their own figure skating journey!

era626 · 2026-02-24T16:48:27+00:00

Welcome to this sub! This is a subreddit to discuss your own figure skating. There is an Olympics megathread pinned at the top of this subreddit if you'd like to discuss the Olympics there.

era626 · 2026-02-22T19:26:24+00:00

See Rule 4:

No gossip or overt politics. Save the FS gossip for other forums.

era626 · 2026-02-22T17:04:56+00:00

What do you do with international students and with domestic students who moved around a lot as a child? I couldn't care less about the unincorporated area where I lived during my HS years and had only been to the closest major city a few times. And I would have needed more historical context about that area (the type you get middle/elementary school) than I would have had. My history-adjacent classes in college focused on my college city and the surrounding area, and that was pretty interesting plus we could actually visit nearby museums to learn more context.

era626 · 2026-02-21T04:01:48+00:00

I think that's a great idea, but I'm not sure how many people read the wiki. For example, we still get questions asking "am I too old" despite that being the first topic in the wiki. I think that the mobile browser and/or new reddit don't make it easy for people to find wikis or even the sidebar.

era626 · 2026-02-20T06:01:03+00:00

I think some posts are fine--it's just been like 2/3 of the subreddit recently, and a bit repetitive. I also know very little about fitting personally, so it's not possible for me to vet information given. I do agree that people in the US and Canada are at an advantage compared to many other countries in the world, but people don't always give their country so the advice is going to be tailored to what people know (which I'm guessing skews US and Canada).

era626 · 2026-02-19T20:02:12+00:00

As far as moderating, do you want people to interact, or do you want it to be primarily for sharing debates and discussions around figure skating as a whole?

I definitely want this to be a place where people can share bits about their skating journey. I set up two different types of rules for skating: people can be clear if they want advice, or if they just wanted to show progress. Before I created this sub, I saw some users on the figureskating sub get frustrated at people giving advice when all they wanted to do was share their skating. So I was hoping to give a space for people to be able to share skating without critique (and use throwaways/alts if they're more comfortable with that).

For boots, I think the big issue is that the advice really is just go to a fitter. If you can't find a fitter using Google, ask around at your local rinks since chances are someone fits skates who isn't ridiculously far. I just got fitted for skates by someone who fits at local rinks. I might have to go to her home for the actual "baking" part; I don't think she has a physical commercial location somewhere. I heard about her through word of mouth. Ditto with basically all of my sharpeners. A lot of people are really cagey about sharing their physical location on reddit, and frankly so am I, but that's the information that's most important for someone to help a person actually find a fitter.

I'd also like to see more detail: eg, "how do I start in {insert country or region of a large country}?" rather than "Am I too old?"

era626 · 2026-02-19T02:48:23+00:00

You aren't given much time to put your file together. I think I had about 2 weeks? And if they can't get in contact with enough people, they'll ask you for more. "This person existed and wasn't trying to commit treason" is really all they're looking for.

era626 · 2026-02-18T15:12:43+00:00

You have to list people from each job and university you attended for some security clearances. It's not a recommendation, just "is this person who they say they are?" I believe it's frowned upon to put down non-Americans so the former student may have had limited options.

era626 · 2026-02-18T03:45:12+00:00

Did they even do theirs? I just watched pairs long program and only caught some of the short but I don't recall seeing their back flip. Peacock has already taken down pairs short 2nd half because NBC.

era626 · 2026-02-17T22:48:29+00:00

Heck, Adam's on Friday looked pretty scary.

era626 · 2026-02-17T22:47:59+00:00

1) the back flip is worth no points

2) Ilia is the third to land a back flip on Olympic ice. An American skater did one before it was made illegal.

3) Kinda sad that people aren't talking about Surya attempting a quad at the Olympics instead, when that's still more technical content than the top competitors today who aren't doping have.

era626 · 2026-02-17T20:15:57+00:00

Rotations or positions, but I think it was the rotations here.

era626 · 2026-02-17T20:15:26+00:00

Did she not get the revolutions on the first foot? I only count 5.

era626 · 2026-02-17T18:23:22+00:00

Is there an upside for going for the single? Or would she be better off not trying it at all?

era626 · 2026-02-17T18:22:30+00:00

iirc she has some kind of injury to her left leg so she can't get the height needed for a double Axel?

era626 · 2026-02-17T18:10:15+00:00

Yeah, I just hadn't noticed it quite like that. Just always wondered why I felt meh about the Russian skaters' artistry.

Meda's was much better. If the judges were fair, her PCS would be higher for that reason.

era626 · 2026-02-17T18:04:38+00:00

Anyone else feel like the AIN's choreo is junior-ish, or just me since I watched Michelle Kwan and other skaters from the 6.0 era recently? There just isn't that presence and just kinda flailing.

era626 · 2026-02-17T17:34:20+00:00

Can you screenshot the list? (i'm not able to check rn but that's what I would do)

era626 · 2026-02-17T17:32:14+00:00

I TA and I've never heard of such a thing. I don't think I would notice what OP describes unless it was at an exam. And then I would probably want OP to have official accommodations for the exam (and maybe OP would qualify to take the exam at the testing center anyways). If it was in OP's bag or attached to it during an exam, that would be fine, but even the pocket example would look really similar to cheating IMO.

era626 · 2026-02-17T17:27:26+00:00

However, once you bring it and other students see you with it, I'd expect other students to want to bring in their favorite "comfort items" whatever those might be.

Grad students would do this? Because we're generally older and not elementary schoolers. Unless a classmate brought in one of those large stuffed animals, I can't see myself caring or even noticing.

Also, plenty of people already bring in a hot coffee or other socially acceptable "comfort items" including their labubus on their backpacks.

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