Mission Statement, 1st report

My name is Josh, I'm 34 years old. I've been a hockey fan since I was 16, but growing up in Southern California is not conducive to learning to play the sport. Besides a couple roller hockey games on the cul de' sac and a few innocent high school dates to the ice rink in Pasadena, I have zero experience with hockey and/or ice skating.

Recently I've been wanting to get out of my comfort zone and experience something new. Why not hockey?

My goal is to learn to skate, get good enough to join a rec league, then score a goal in a game. Once I score that goal, I'll quit this blog.

The entire journey will be documented here. I'll write sporadically about my progress, my equipment, my conditioning and anything else that I deem appropriate.

So where am I at? Let me reiterate that I am an absolute beginner, starting from scratch. Im not in the best physical shape, nor am I terribly athletic. So this may prove to be more difficult for me than some others may find it. What I lack in the skill department I hope to make up for with my witty commentary.

Saturday I went to Hockey Giant in Anaheim and bought skates (Bauer Vapor X:40), Gloves (Bauer X:30), Shin Guards (Bauer X:40) and a helmet with a full cage (Cascade M11). That was fun and now that I look at it, I guess I like Bauer stuff. I would be willing to accept a sponsorship if any of you Bauer folks want to send me some stuff.

Sunday I went to an open skate in Burbank. My first lap was really sketchy, but after an hour or so of skating in a circle I was fairly comfortable skating forward, though pretty winded, man I'm out of shape. I can cross over going left, and I think I can crossover going right, but not as comfortable because the the rink was going in a counter clockwise direction. Made a few attempts at hockey stops, but I just ended up kind of spinning in a circle. No attempt to skate backwards yet. My skates fit perfectly (SPONSORSHIP!!) and were reasonably comfortable. Much more responsive than any rental skates I had used in years past. Made a huge difference. I only fell once, and it was right in front of a group of 8 year old hockey players that I was trying to impress. The thing is, with my frame, 6 foot 3 235 lbs, when I get moving in a direction, it's hard to change that direction too quickly. Also, when I hit the ice, I seem to slide further than everyone else. I guess thats science. Fortunately the only casualty in what is now known by 8 year old hockey players in Burbank as "The Gigantic Slow Falling Guy Incident" was my ego.

After my skate session I was changing back into normal clothes and a 65-70 year old guy in hockey equipment sat down next to me and started taping things up. I chatted with him for a bit. He suggested I go to the clinic they have on Wednesday nights.

I would like to skate again soon, but I have to watch the Kings playoff game tonight and tomorrow I fly to Ohio for my Grandma's funeral. RIP Grandma.

I think my conditioning level is a problem, in the near future I think I'll be getting a bike to help with that. I also need to buy the rest of my equipment so I can go to stick time.

Thanks for reading this far. Hopefully future posts are more entertaining.