A recreational skater to a competitive skater...
My daughter is becoming more "serious" about skating, she skates year round and is going to try competitive skating this year. I am concerned about the difficulty of competing at this level as I know it is very difficult to go from being a recreational skater to a competitive skater. She is a very hard worker and skates up to 12 hrs/ week and does off ice training 2 hrs /week. Most of the other kids her age are recreational, do you think this will turn her off of skating? She is extremely enthused but I worry about her getting discouraged or losing her self esteem. She is 11 yrs old and I know how fragile her emotions can be at times! Cynthia (CFSC) |
Linda says:
It sounds like you are already aware of what to expect when your
daughter becomes a competitve rather than recreational skater. If she is
enthusiastic and wants to do this, that is a good sign. As a parent you
need to watch for the signs that she is losing her enthusiam or
self-esteem. A big part of moving to a different level is being prepared
for what lies ahead and it sounds as if you are.
Unfortunately, you cannot know how your daughter will handle the competitive level of skating until you are in it. You need to keep a watchful eye out for any problems that arise. The sooner you see a problem and work on it, the better. If your daughter's seems to be losing her enthusiam or self-esteem, start talking about it and work out a solution. The earlier any self-esteem problem is handled, the better.