Third Practice is the Charm

Like the saying goes... third time's the charm! This practice went really well. I still skate backwards like an arthritic octogenarian, but it's getting better. I think I'm about the same speed as the famous Mr. Fell... although I think I'm the only one who fell down while going backwards tonight, but hey! I'm learning!

Here are some of the things I've noticed during practice three:

1. We're like the Noah's Ark of hockey workshops. We have a pair each of Wells, Dearmans, Manzellas, and Salisburys (I hope I've spelled all those names correctly).
2. Daryl Evans is a good coach/teacher. He instructs as a whole group, demonstrates, and has helpers also demonstrate... then it's independent practice time to show that we know what we're doing (or not).
3. The use of other experienced skaters to instruct allows for more activity, help, and input.
4. This one guy, Zeiler, is a really good skater and has helped me almost as much as the official helpers.
5. Unlike the NHL where we've only got Paul Kariya, Richard Park, Devin Setoguchi, and lesser known players like Chris Beckford-Tseu, Asian Americans are well represented at the Beginners Hockey Workshop... and we all definitely don't look alike. We run the gamut from petite (there's this one Asian American woman who's about my size... small) to hulking (one guy must be about 6'5"). As I said, we look nothing like each other, but I think there's a Lai (me), a Lau, a Liu, and a Kao... we'll need Bob Miller to do play-by-play to keep those names straight.
6. Finally... those aches and pains from muscles I didn't know I had... they're gone. So that either means I'm not working hard enough or I'm getting used to the whole skating and stick-handling thing. Judging by my production of sweat, I think it's the latter.

More later!