Another meet

Spent Saturday past at another speed skating meet with my daughter. Here’s a recap of what happened.

This meet was organized differently than our previous meet. Instead of ladder format, the kids would skate 2 separate distances (222m and 111m), bracketed by age, and randomly put into skating groups. The winner of each skating group, followed by a few other skaters (based on best time posted) would skate in the age bracket’s ‘A’ final, with the remaining skaters skating in the the ‘B’ and ‘C’ finals. Each skater would receive points based on where they finished, and both race point totals added together to finalize a ranking for the day. This meant, depending on how she would finish, she had an opportunity to winner some awards. A little motivation for her.

The day started off early as her group was the first to be on the ice. Her first race was the 222m (or 2 laps) and as soon as the gun went off, she fell. She managed to get up quickly and still posted a decent time, finishing 7th overall for her age bracket. This meant she would not skate in the ‘A’ finals. In the ‘B’ final they had 6 skaters (normally there is only 4) and right at the first corner, several of the skaters became tangled and my daughter fell (along with 2 other skaters). It took her a few extra seconds to get back up and she ended up finishing next to last in the group, 10th overall. At the time we were not aware that ribbons were given out to the top 8 finishers. We only found out later when her skating friend from our club (coach’s daughter) ended up finishing 8th overall and she received a ribbon. You could see a little disappointment on my daughters face, so I mentioned if she skated well (and didn’t fall) in her next race, she would have a chance to receive a ribbon.

After lunch, the kids went out for the 111m (1 lap) race. This time she had a good result, finishing 2nd in her group, 7th overall. That left her in the ‘B’ final, but this time, the ‘B’ final only had 4 skaters (with 4 in the ‘A’ final), guaranteeing her a top 8 finish and a ribbon (so I figured). Her friend was also in the same ‘B’ final. She was happy with the thought that she might win a ribbon, but she also commented on how she wanted to beat her friend, since her friend now held the advantage 3 to 2. One thing that really stood out for me between the first 111m race and the finals was that both girls were really interested in watching the older kids skate. During the morning break, both girls wanted to colour and play, but not in the afternoon. To me, that is a sign of someone who wants to learn and become better. I then mentioned to both girls, that they should watch how the older kids do their crossovers, and how it makes them faster. Need to keep planting the seed.

The ‘B’ finals went smoothly for all skaters and my daughter ended up finishing 7th, with a time slightly slower than her previous race. Her friend finished 8th, making their little competition tied again. Overall, she was happy with her results, other than falling, and she came home (early than our other meet) with a ribbon that listed her name, finishing position, and time. Winning something is always a huge encouragement to do better, especially when her friend won 2 ribbons to her 1.

On a side note, my daughter ended up finishing 9th overall (out of 11) for the day, based on the points she received from her 222m race and her 111m race, while her friend finished 8th. Everybody starts off somewhere, now to see if she can improve.