She screwed the top of her bottle back on and glided in his direction. A young teenage pairs team looked on with wide eyes. The girl had silky strawberry-blond hair and appeared to be about fourteen years old. The boy was much taller, with curly jet-black locks. She judged him to be about seventeen.
“Kaylee, Steve, this is Coach Frankie. Please say hello.”
They greeted each other softly.
“We’re working on learning some new elements for the upcoming season, but we’re having a hard time understanding the split double-twist takeoff and catch. They’ve mastered it off the ice, but on the ice is another story. We were wondering if you wouldn’t mind watching them and seeing if you could offer a few words of advice on the skill.”
“Of course.” Frankie smiled warmly. “Split twists are super tricky. I remember it being one of the hardest elements to learn. Nothing can really prepare you for it. What entry are you guys using?”
“We’re doing a Lutz entry,” Kaylee responded.
“Okay, great. Let’s see it, then.”
“You heard her, you two—go on, show her your best attempt.” Charlie’s voice was light and encouraging.
The pair nodded and took off from the boards.
“Thanks for doing this.” Charlie’s eyes tracked his charges. “You were great with Richelle. I hoped that if I asked you again, you might be able to give Kaylee and Steve some helpful advice. You’ll see what I mean in a minute.”
“Of course,” she sputtered, slightly stunned by the compliment.
Mr. C the coach was a person she could picture herself getting along with. Why couldn’t he be like this all the time? Off ice, it was like he was a completely different person.
Kaylee and Steve performed their footwork into the skill, and Frankie watched closely as Kaylee turned backward. Steve placed his hands on her hips. Tapping her right skate into the ice, Kaylee pushed off her toe pick just as Steve pushed her into the air. At the top of the element, she crossed her legs in the air and rotated twice. Coming down for the landing, Frankie watched as her body tensed, anticipating the landing. Steve caught her late, nearly dropping her.
“The technique is good. It’s trust issues with the landing.” Frankie winced. Trust between partners was the foundation of pairs skating. Without it, a team would never be able to advance to the highest levels of the sport.
“They’ve heard me tell them a thousand times to relax, but it never seems to sink in.” Charlie sighed and inclined his head. “I’ve tried every training trick I know of—trust exercises, visualization drills, journaling, and the harness. I don’t know what else to do.”
Kaylee and Steve returned to where Charlie and Frankie stood, cheeks rosy, catching their breaths.
“Sorry, Mr. C, that wasn’t our best. We know we can do it better,” Steve apologized in a slightly high-pitched tone.
“I know you two can.”
Frankie puffed out her cheeks. “Kaylee, once you finish your rotation position, what’s freaking you out?”
“I don’t know.” The girl’s shoulders sagged. “Mr. C has told us that if I trust my body, we can do this skill with no problem. I just can’t seem to let go of the memory of the last time I fell. I hurt my shoulder and was off the ice for six weeks.”
Frankie nodded.Bingo. Fear of falling and overthinking.
Steve rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s not just you, K. I know my timing on the catch isn’t consistent either.”
What Kaylee needed was a distraction. That way, she wouldn’t have time to think about the twist. If she was more relaxed, Steve should be able to cue in to her. At least, that was what worked for Frankie and Danny when she used to overthink things.
“Show me your arm position again when you bring your arms in,” she said. Kaylee crossed her wrists and brought them into her chest as she might for a jump. “What would happen if you tried rotating with your arms over your head?”
“I don’t know?” Kaylee fidgeted. “I’ve always done split twists with my arms pulled in.”
“What do you say we give it a try off-ice, K? We could go to the gym and play around. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you,” her partner said.
“We can also put you in the harness to try a few single twists if you’d like,” Charlie added.
Frankie could see that the girl needed a different tactic. Taking a bold risk, she said, “What if Mr. C and I were to show you how it’s done? Would you try one then?”
“I haven’t done any pairs elements in a few years.” Charlie’s face paled. “I don’t know if I remember how.”
“I think we can manage a simple single split twist. I’ll even do it on the harness with you.”
