Every summer, Wheaton Ice Skating Academy holds an ice dance camp. During the week of July 5 to July 10, 2010, About.com's Guide to Figure Skating, Jo Ann Schneider Farris, took her three children to the camp. This is a summary of that very busy week.
Schedule
The camp took place at Rockville Ice Arena from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm, Monday through Friday. The arena has three ice sheets. Rink #3 was where the camp's on ice activities took place. Rink #2 was also full of activity since an ice hockey camp was taking place there at the same time. Also, speed skating instruction took place in Rink #2.The skaters training at the Wheaton Ice Skating Academy were expected to take part in the camp in addition to their regular Academy training schedule (which took place in the late afternoons, early evening, and on Saturday). Everyone (the skaters and parents) anticipated a busy and exhausting week.
Monday Morning, July 5, 2010
The skaters took to the ice at 8:00 AM. On ice group instruction took place until 9:45 am. The children did many exercises on the basic skating skills needed for ice dancing.After a short break, participants took part in off ice exercises which included stepping up on benches, splits, stretching, and off ice jumps.
Another break followed and then the skaters went back on the ice for more group instruction.
Monday Afternoon and Evening, July 5, 2010
The skaters returned to the rink in the late afternoon for an off ice "ballet-type" and core training class. They then had an hour of "Academy" where again they were instructed in a group. Skaters worked alone and also with partners on stroking, turns, swing rolls, progressives, and twizzles.
After the ice was resurfaced, two more hours of practice followed. During that time, private lessons were given by the Academy's three coaches Alexei Kiliakov, the Director of Wheaton Ice Skating Academy. and by co-directors Elena Novak and Dmytri Ilin. During practice time, the skaters practiced compulsory dances, short dances, and free dance.
Tuesday Morning and Afternoon, July 6, 2010
The camp's on ice instruction in the morning included skating with a soccer ball. The children were given many exercises where partners would skate in waltz position with a soccer ball at their chests. The children skated for two solid hours. A short break followed.
Like Monday, more off ice activities followed, but this time there was a real ballet class taught by Elena.
Following the ballet class, more on ice instruction took place. The kids were beginning to have fun, so a racing and endurance game took place during the last five minutes of the camp.
The skaters returned in the afternoon to practice in the late afternoon. Again, private lessons took place. Skaters skated to music and ran through compulsory dances, short dance, and free dance programs.
Wednesday Morning - July 7, 2010
The skaters were divided into two groups. The older skaters took to the ice while the younger skaters did off-ice activities. Alexei and Dimitri taught the older and more advanced group (Junior, Novice, and Intermediate level ice dancers), and Elena took the younger group (Juvenile and Pre-Juvenile level ice dancers).
The older skaters were instructed with partners that morning. They did many difficult exercises again with the soccer ball which included doing choctaws, mohawks, step sequences and footwork, chasses, and swing rolls.
The off ice that followed used yoga mats. The kids were instructed by Elena and did stretching.
Everyone was reunited together on the ice for the last hour for an on-ice choreography and dancing class. The class resembled a modern dance class, but took place on the ice.
Wednesday Evening, July 7, 2010
Evening activities took place at the Wheaton Ice Arena. The skaters took an off ice ballet/ballroom class in the evening taught by Elena. Then, they all took to the ice for "Academy." What took place looked like a traditional ice dance practice session, but the skaters were taught in groups and privately for an hour and a half.
The younger skaters first worked on the Willow Waltz, while the older skaters did the European Waltz, the American Waltz, or the Viennese Waltz (depending on what level they were at). Music played and skaters skated many patterns to music. The three coaches gave every skater on the ice equal attention.
The teams went on to practicing free dance and short dances. The solo skaters continued to practice whatever they were working on.
Thursday Morning and Evening, July 8, 2010
Again, the skaters were divided into groups. The younger kids did "off-ice" first and the older kids were on the ice. Instruction included exercises in stroking and partnering. A racing game took place on the ice at the end of the morning.Skaters returned to the rink in the afternoon for two hours of traditional practice where the skaters did compulsory, short dance, and free dance.
Friday Morning, July 9, 2010
The early morning included a class which included stroking, twizzle, and turn exercises. Many of the exercises were done to music.Then, the "fun" began! The kids went to an indoor soccer field in the building next to the ice rink and played soccer!
The last hour of the camp included many on ice games such as "Capture the Guard." (The kids "captured" a skate guard instead of a flag!) The kids left the camp happy and smiling.
Friday Evening, July 9, 2010
The younger skaters were at the Wheaton rink, while the older and more advanced skaters were at the Rockville rink with Alexei. The three Schneider-Farris kids joined in with what the older skaters were doing.(Joel says, "Alexei's off-ice class was painful. We did all sorts of hard stretches. They were harder than anything I've ever done before!")
The skaters than took to the ice for an hour and a half of training. What took place was similar to what took place on Wednesday evening at Wheaton except that fewer skaters were on the ice and Alexei was the only coach present. The evening began and ended with a group stroking session.
Saturday Morning, July 10, 2010
It was a rainy Saturday morning in Maryland, but that didn't stop all of the Wheaton Ice Skating Academy's skaters from getting on the ice at the Wheaton Ice Arena at 8:00 AM. The skaters practiced for two solid hours (no breaks) and were taught in groups and also given individual attention by Elena and Dimitri. (Alexei was out of town.) Skaters worked on individual assignments. They did their compulsory dances, short dances, and free dances to music. The on ice portion of the morning ended with a group stroking session.An off-class ballet/gymnastics/stretching class ended the morning's activities.
After that class ended, the Schneider-Farris family said good-bye to all their Wheaton Ice Skating Academy friends.
Reflections and Thoughts from Jo Ann:
'My children usually train about 20 hours a week. This was an unusual week since the kids trained for 35 hours! I saw them improve at many things in one week!
Also, most rinks are full of children doing single skating. We did not really see anyone doing other figure skating disciplines, which was unusual. It's wonderful to see so many children doing ice dancing!
The three Wheaton coaches, Alexi, Elena, and Dimitri, work together as a team. There were no "competing coaches" present.
These kids work harder and are expected to do more than most kids their age. The parents of the Academy skaters are supportive of all the skaters and of one another.
It was a wonderful experience. We made new friends and look forward to seeing the Wheaton group at future skating competitions. I hope we can return to the Wheaton Ice Skating Academy again!'
