Dear Yvonne, Larry and Tony,

I wanted to make sure I got the note off to you before I got busy doing something else and forgot. A big THANK YOU for a great time and a well hosted event. I am glad to know that roller skating is still alive and well. I can not imagine what you must be planning for next year.

I know it is a time consuming effort to put something like this together. People have no idea how much planning goes into something like this and you hope you haven't missed anything and that the event runs smoothly. Well hats off to all of you. I was a great success and as I mentioned before leaving yesterday I already have my reservation for next year.

The sessions were lots of fun and the banquet with dancing was the icing on the cake. Those that missed the banquet missed one of the highlights of the week and the location was nice and easy to get to.

A thank you to the organist (Nick) you assembled for this extravaganza. That in itself was amazing.

the camaraderie and friendliness of everyone makes an event like this successful. I am sure I have made lasting friends with those that I have met.

So again, a big THANK YOU and we plan on being there next year if not sooner.

Worth and Margaret McDaniell

Flowerybranch, GA

Dear Yvonne, Larry and Tony,

Congratulations! What an outstanding event. It was the best time ever. Each skating event was filled with fun and excitement. All was so well planned and organized.

It was truly a memorable experience and I am looking forward to next year.

Thank You,

Florence    

Whiting, NJ

 

Dear Skate Reflections,

It was our first time for an event such as your production. just wanted to say how wonderful it was to see talented people displaying their love of skating and friendship.

Jerry and Sharon Greer

Lynwood, IL

 

Hi Guys,

I just wanted to drop a note to thank you all for the wonderful time the wife and I had at Extravaganza. The events, the entertainment, the music, the way we were made to feel so welcome, all spectacular! We are now planning our annual vacation around the Extravaganza, so please announce the dates as soon as you can. This crowned the wonderful year we have had returning to the rink after a long absence and we truly had the time of our lives.

Bob and Tami Adams

Baltimore, MD

Never Say Never!

At the age of 50 I was pulled out of skating retirement (20 years!) I could still get around the floor. I found someone who knew how to skate and we did the Flirtation Waltz, and found someone to skate with recreationally for the next several years.(Thanks King Lee) How exhilarating to get out on the floor and do all the intermediate and senior dances. The really great part was not caring if you were on the baseline or your shoulder/hipline “broke” (figuratively) but just having such fun! Imagine my heartbreak when I had what was supposed to be minor foot surgery and ended up with a plate, rod, and 7 screws in my foot – and someone else’s bone – all due to surgical error! My skating days were done. I felt it was so unfair to let me feel that thrill again for such a few short years and to then take it away (I know .. ungrateful aren’t I?)

I had been “testing” getting my non-bending foot into a skate for the last 2 years and I finally did it … I was ready to try rolling once again. In October 2009 I went with “The Gang” to Holiday for a skating extravaganza and knew it was going to be a do or die event for me. If I couldn’t skate – I mean really skate – then I would accept that I needed to pack away the skates forever. My foot held up for awhile but my knee failed.

Fast forward to December 2009 as I’m reading the latest issue of the Roller Skater’s Gazette. The front page was all about the 9th Annual Extravaganza in Kissimmee, Florida in February 2010. All the old anger and disappointment over the botched foot surgery came back in a rush as this was something I was going to do once I retired. As I sat there bemoaning my woes I realized that it didn’t have to be about what I used to be able to do but about what I could still do – be with old friends who always make me laugh – and meet new ones along the way. I decided to put my big girl pants on and deal with it. I was going to Kissimmee!

In Florida I met up with my friends for dinner before the first reunion session on Sunday. Jerry Cresswell, Chester Fried and I met Stephanie Antanavich when I came out of retirement and we all started going to Holiday. I knew Bill & Seiko Davis by sight and had met Bobbi Jackson in October at Holiday (and Bobbi’s husband Gerald).

And then we were all off the see the wizard .. oops .. wrong story .. we all headed for Skate Reflections. You could feel the excitement when you walked in the door where I was greeted by the smiling (and beautiful) face of Yvonne Simmons. I specifically mention Yvonne because we had e-talked prior to my coming to Florida and I was looking forward to meeting her. Another reason I mention her smiling face is because in all the years of my skating (which is 62 years) I never encountered what I would call a friendly and welcoming face at a cashier’s booth. (Sorry if this offends anyone but most faces were dour at best!) I just felt welcome immediately and knew it could only get better!

Then it was off to change and put on my skates. I stepped onto the floor and away I went. Much to my dismay, I wasn’t able to do much more than “scissor” around the floor as I was afraid to lift one foot off the boards! I kept telling myself that was enough – but my brain kept yelling, “NOT!”. Everyone was so friendly and it was like no skating event I had ever attended. And I swear Jerry, Stephanie, and Chester know everyone who ever skated so I was introduced to everyone!

A waltz came on and a nice looking man asked me to skate. My head and heart raced with excitement but my brain quickly kicked in and reminded me that it still hadn’t decided if it was going to let me skate. So I declined and said that I didn’t trust myself yet. I was thrilled, however, to have been asked. I must have fooled someone into thinking I was a skater!

I later shared this with Jerry & Stephanie and then pointed out the “obviously desperate man who wanted t skate with me” and they both laughed and assured me he could have held me up. He was Bob Dalton, the pro at Skate Reflections. Oh man - did I ever blow that and he never asked me to skate again!

And it all went downhill from there. My foot hurt and my knee was killing me (this is the poor already damaged knee that had to carry all my weight for 4 years). I sat out about half the session and watched David Ripp (who I had not yet met) dazzle me with his dancing ability. Afterwards I assuaged my broken heart by going with “the gang” for ice cream sundaes! I also added David Ripp and Steve (whose last name I don’t know) to my new repertoire of friends and we were all together for dinner and/or ice cream for the remainder of my trip. Then back to my room to re-think these 4 days of skating. All I wanted to do at that point was to go home. I know I told myself before coming to Florida that it was all about the social aspect of the event but I lied. For me it was still all about being able to dance skate.

I went back for more punishment on Monday. I put about 6 band aids on my toe and a brace on my knee and off I went. Surprisingly my body perked up a bit because all of a sudden I was doing Argentine Tango rolls (forward guys!). My friend Jerry told me it was unfair that he skated all the time and couldn’t pull them off yet here I was after 4 years doing them like I had never stopped skating! I don’t need to tell you how pumped that made me! I got a bit braver. A really good song came on and I broke into a Carroll Swing. Now mind you “real” skaters – this was not the Carroll Swing with all those beautiful edges and turns. This was almost a “flat” Carroll Swing with more of those Hail Mary turns but it was dancing nonetheless! Tall Paul and I laughed all around the floor as we kept up to each other with the steps. People were watching and smiling and I was just laughing and feeling like I was on cloud 9!

I went on to follow Paul through more dances that started to pop into my head and I think that Jeanne Coonse joined in at this point (Another fabulous new friend). I was still most fearful of that dreaded left 3-turn only because that was the really bad knee but before the session was over I pulled a couple of decent turns. A few steps here of the Paso and a few steps there of the Argentine with another couple of steps of the Quickstep and I was in seventh heaven. I was actually even pulling off identifiable edges! And what made it even better was having my own cheerleading team on the sidelines encouraging me to try even more!

I couldn’t wait to get back on skates Tuesday despite my swollen knee. David Ripp and I had talked the night before at the dinner dance (great dance with Nick Viscuso playing the organ!) and we were looking forward to trying some of the dances. The bad news is that my foot and knee refused to cooperate and I was only able to skate about a half hour and do virtually nothing. The good news is that David was so busy selling skates that he never got a chance to even put on his skates. Thankfully I had met another wonderful new friend, Chuck Martin, and he and I sat there and commiserated over our inability to get out there like we did in the “old” days! After skating we all went to dinner and then off for ice cream sundaes again. (I told myself I deserved the ice cream given the amount of mental anguish I was having about this on again/off again skating thing.)

On Wednesday I headed for the nearest drug store and loaded up with all kinds of bandages - determined to not give up this final day. When I got to the rink it was as if an Invitational Meet was going on. There were so many more skaters and the outfits were dazzling (I was still wearing my old 10 year old skating skirt!) I put on my skates and prayed for a miracle … and got it! The knee was cooperating and, with a few adjustments to the foot bandages throughout the session, I was trying everything. I was like a kid in a candy shop and I was grabbing a piece of this (dance) and a piece of that (dance) and laughing the whole time. I couldn’t wait to skate with David.

Unfortunately for me (but fortunate for David) he had a really busy day and didn’t get his skates on until the final couples. On the bright side, however, I think everyone was just too busy taking pictures and saying goodbyes to realize that the last couple skate played for 3 songs – the first time a tape had been put on in 4 days due to the wonderful organists we had - Nick Viscuso, Bill Clark, Ralph Brown, Marty Dumic, Doug Moyer, Steve Daniels, Corey Freidinger, and Shawn Muier. David and I pulled off a Rocker Foxtrot, Pacifica Foxtrot, and Fascination Foxtrot (notice I said “pulled off” - in the darkness of couples you couldn’t quite see all that I missed). It was a bit disconcerting because no matter how many times I did the Pacifica I couldn’t seem to get the one part right – it was as if I had this mental block about this one piece of the dance. It was only afterwards that David told me he was doing the International version. I was doing the American. Bob Dalton came over to us and said it was the first time he had seen both versions skated simultaneously by the same couple! I can’t tell you how relieved to know that my CRS wasn’t full blown! Unfortunately, however, there were no dances at the end so my moment of glory was short-lived.

What a wonderful experience. I had such a wonderful time meeting so many new skaters and sharing so many stories. We relived the “old days” on so many levels from so many regions. I had a chance to talk with Doug Moyer about the days when we skated at the Exton rink and I had brought some old pictures – one of whom was John Casavecchia. Doug then called someone over and did a “guess who that is” with John’s picture and we ended up calling John via Doug’s cell phone. It took John only one hint to come up with my name for which I was especially happy. We haven’t seen each other in over 40 years maybe? We hung up with promises to get together once I got back to Pennsylvania.

I had a great time judging all the contests (thanks Chester & Bill) and was especially proud to be asked to give Chester an award for his untiring devotion to skaters everywhere. I’ve never skated at a rink anywhere that made me feel more welcome in my life (thanks to Larry, Yvonne, and everyone else who had a hand in this). I’ve also never skated an event that gave equal time to both dance and shuffle skaters and where each so respected the other. It was great to see competitive skaters not taking themselves quite so seriously (something I wish I had learned much earlier).

It is now 6 days later and although my knee has not yet resumed normal shape and I limp my heart still races at the thought of what I did. I’ve also added a couple of items to my bucket list with several components:

Dance skate again

1. Make orthopedic appointment (but no knee replacement) – Done

2. Make foot doctor appointment – Done

3. Lose 20 pounds – working

4. Buy Edeas – working

Attend Skate Reflections Extravaganza in 2011

............................................... and NEVER say NEVER!