Behind the Blade
January 28, 2016
Ever wondered what life is like for figure skating coaches ? Look no further than this article. Coaches at the Pettit National Ice Center opened up about their experiences, techniques, and their lives in general.
Coaching figure skating may seem like a piece of cake, but it is far from easy. Many coaches have bruises and broken bones because of their skaters. A lot of coaches wake up super early for their skaters as well. Coaching any sport is one of the hardest jobs in the world both physically and mentally.
“I have been tripped by skaters, I’ve had skaters run into me, I have had shoulder and back injuries from skating dance and pairs,” says David Redlin. David is a high level figure skating coach at the Pettit National ice Center.
“I have to work around 50 hours a week with 40 kids. Since I have so many, I see a lot of them in the morning. That means I have to wake up around 3 a.m. and start teaching at 5 a.m.,” he explains.
Information like this might scare off a crowd of people, but some might say that it is worth the injuries and sacrifices.
Coaching may be one of the best jobs of the world. For many, coaching is a dream job because coaches get to watch one of the most fascinating sports of the world. Coaches enjoy it because they get to teach life skills and the basics of skating while watching kids grow into adulthood.
“The best part of coaching is seeing a student reach a difficult goal through hard work,” says Angela Johnstad. Angie is another high level coach who works alongside David Redlin.
“It’s cool to watch kids learn that when they fall, they have to get up,” she notes. “The worst part is seeing my students grow into adults…and leave me,” she adds.
Even though coaches do the teaching, sometimes the coaches learn more than the students do. Coaches can teach themselves useful skills, while not even noticing.
“I had to learn time management, to give myself enough time to get everything done,” says Julie Szczygielski. Julie is a learn-to-skate coach at the Pettit National Ice Center
“I also got to learn how to handle rowdy kids,” she adds.
Coaching can be one of the worst jobs or the best jobs depending on the person. Because these coaches opened up, it gave a better understanding on a sport people know little about. Figure skating coaches are very hard-working individuals with lives.
Ava • Jan 30, 2017 at 2:20 pm
I like your article! I do not know even know how to skate!
Mrs. Yannett's 3rd grade • Nov 29, 2016 at 8:30 am
Many of us like to skate at the Petit Center. Thanks for writing this!
Waverly • Oct 24, 2016 at 5:11 pm
Good story. I didn’t know coaching was so hard
lily • Oct 18, 2016 at 1:34 pm
i love ice skateing but don’t know how to figure skate
truman • Feb 23, 2016 at 10:43 am
i never did ice skating but mabye i can try
Erik • Feb 10, 2016 at 7:56 pm
I liked your article
Ava • Feb 4, 2016 at 2:54 pm
Even though its really cold, I still like to skate.
Reed • Feb 4, 2016 at 2:47 pm
I love ice skating although I’m constantly falling.
Henry • Feb 4, 2016 at 2:47 pm
Because I skate, I wrote this article.
Sophia • Feb 4, 2016 at 12:17 pm
I don’t do figure skating, yet I love it.
Olivia • Feb 4, 2016 at 12:10 pm
It is good to know what skating coaches experience, for I skate too.
audrey • Feb 3, 2016 at 10:54 am
I really liked the article because skating is really hard to do.
audrey • Feb 3, 2016 at 10:53 am
I really liked the news.
Gabrielle • Feb 3, 2016 at 10:42 am
Cool! I love ice skating.