Gee, it’s great to be back home. Here home is, of course, shorthand for the rink; I have actually been back in my own house for a couple of days now, but my skates (packed into my checked luggage, never again) got lost in the delayed-plane-shuffle and stayed in Reykavik for an extra day or two.
Perhaps that’s not a surprise (wait for it. . . wait for it. . .) It is Iceland, after all. (Groan.)
Well, I finally put my beloved boots back on my eager little feet and made it back on the ice for the first time in a few weeks. No public ice at my regular rink today, but I am fortunate to have a number of nearby rinks with summer ice.
I am now living proof that skating requires muscles that one does not use in everyday life. I can feel the burn! This is especially true on my left side; I have not worked those particular glute and leg muscles in quite a while.
But I am thrilled to be back, and even more thrilled that I haven’t forgotten how to skate. In fact, once I got over the initial wobblies, I felt pretty good. Hips felt level, feet (mostly) pain-free, pushes and extensions happened pretty easily. I have been doing lots of lunges (forward and side) and my single-leg deadlifts off the ice, and I think that’s helped with maintaining some strength and stability.
And I even got to see my good friend Sonia as well as some other familiar faces. Hooray!
So far, so good. I think I’ll just stop here, filled with gratitude that I am back on the ice.
jo skates 
June 23, 2016 at 9:46 pm
And I hope the trip to England was productive and great overall, too!
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June 23, 2016 at 9:56 pm
It was really fun, Anne! There for over a month and time just flew by. Good to get home, though, with some time left in the summer. Hope you’re having a fun one.
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June 23, 2016 at 10:01 pm
Welcome back! So what rink did you skate at today? I ended up at Maple Grove.
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June 23, 2016 at 10:11 pm
Sonia and I were at Richfield. We’ll have to coordinate the next session!
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June 24, 2016 at 9:41 am
Welcome home! I can’t believe the airline lost your bags for a while – I would have been so mad!
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June 24, 2016 at 10:10 am
Thanks, Eva! I got them back, so no harm done in the end. But having my skates in them made it really nerve-wracking.
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June 24, 2016 at 6:04 pm
Woo, scary that your skates were missing! Is it even possible to carry them on in Europe? I’m impressed that you kept up your off-ice work in England but I’m sure it was a good thing! You left before the giant trauma of Brexit, probably a good thing that you didn’t have to be there for that.
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June 24, 2016 at 11:18 pm
Yes, Brexit is quite a shock, and I’m glad I’m not there right now. Don’t quite know what to make of it! I have usually carried on my skates when traveling in the States–I’m not sure if they would be acceptable carry-ons for an international flight. What do the top-level competitors do, do you think?
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July 4, 2016 at 9:24 am
I’ve been off-ice since before the 11th of June (our son’s wedding). Wife didn’t want to see any wedding photos of me sporting yet another cast. I need to get going again–my left, lower back is complaining about all the inactivity!
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July 4, 2016 at 2:31 pm
Congrats to your son, George, and congrats to you for making it through the photo session without incriminating evidence of skating! Hope you get back to the ice soon. Your skates are calling!
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