My friend wants to take up figure skating but she is too old. Advice?

my friend is 17 and wants to take up figure skating. i think she is too old. she dreams about skating in competitions. she has been skating for 8 years now, but hasn't taken any lessons. she is graceful and skates smoothly, but doesn't know any tricks. although figure skating is also one of my passions, i don't know what advice to give her. on one hand, i would try to take some lessons too and encourage her, but on the other hand, i think i am too old too. i don't think she could become a star and compete (don't get me wrong - i want her to), but i don't want to get her moral down. she really wants to do this. how can i help her? she doesn't have many ice rinks in her city and lessons could be expensive. she spends a lot of time on roller blades, but it's not the same thing.

My friend wants to take up figure skating but she is too old. Advice?
You're never too old to skate!





I presently have two adult skaters that I coach: one in their 40's and one in their 50's.





Ice Skating Institute (ISI) has numerous competitions throughout the U.S. that caters to recreational skaters. Events exist for the traditional freeskate performance to spotlight and other artistic events for all age groups.





She definitely needs to take lessons, so she can correctly learn all the elements and not pick up bad habits. Adult skaters are a growing breed and there is plenty of opportunity for her to shine!





I would suggest she start in learn to skate program and supplement with a weekly private lesson.





Good luck in her future skating achievements!
Reply:My coach Practiced and practiced after he had spiraled downward in his twenties but at forty eight he came back and won worlds.Unless you plan on going to olympics at age 28 you just have to go into adult worlds. or even Masters!!! Report It

Reply:Shes not too old! I only started getting good when I was 12. Tell her to take some lessons and try it. Do a few adult comptetions. She'll really enjoy it. Remeber, she doesn't have to make it too the olympics, just have FUN!
Reply:She is not too old. She is too old for the Olympics and such. But there are lots of other competitions. She should find a local skating school and take some classes. They offer adult classes, which may be more comfortable for her then taking lessons with very young children. She will definitely learn a lot of skills (jumps and spins) in no time. Heck, maybe she'll get good enough to coach others in order to make some extra cash for college (or to pay for her own lessons).
Reply:I don't see why she can't. At 19 I went from never having been on skates in my life to, in 6 months playing hockey in a league full of Canadian Junior Hockey and American College Hockey players..If she has the athletic ability and the willingness to work at it, I would not sell her short. Anything is possible.
Reply:age 17 is not too old to try something new. who gave the idea that your friend is too old????
Reply:No i dont think its too old. I started skating at 12 and that was considered old but I learned a lot in only 2 years. I'm 25 now and still skate competively. I discovered synchronized skating and I love it! She might be too old for competing Olympic level but its never too old to start competing locally. If she wasts to become an olympic skater (I dont care how old you are) she better be skating 7 days a week 5 hours a day.
Reply:ive been figure skating since i was 8 and im now 12. i just had to quit because of how high the costs are. shes not too old to figure skate. i used to coach people twice as old as me and even 5 times as old as me. but just make sure that shes ready to face high costs. just for an example - my skates cost $900, all private lessons are expensive but can come to be over $60 an hour. and not only that you have to pay to be a member of USFSA (US figure skating association) and you have to pay to be a member at a club. you also have to pay up to $15-20 to even skate on their ice. i had to quit last week because the money was insane. i only skated twice a week too. sometimes i wish i never started. so keep that information in mind.
Reply:It depends on her goals. If she wants to be an Olympic figure skater in ladies' singles - yes, she is too old. But if she just wants to learn to skate and to be able to compete - she dan start at any age. 17 isn't too old for that at all. If she works at it, she can even get quite good.





It won't be a waste of her time.
Reply:Get her a walker with those little plastic skis on them!!
Reply:No she is not too old. She, if she is good could still go far with it. Trust me, encourage her, she needs it. Let her have her dream.
Reply:I am a figure skater. You're never to old to start any hobby. Maybe it feels weird to you that she is starting at such a late age, but don't let her know that you might get her hopes down. But, I started at 3 and I was the oldest one so it does feel a little weird. Just tell her how you feel and maybe it'll help her get the courage to start and you will get the weird feeling out of your system. Hope this information helps you. :-D



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