Later, the same speed skater at the Larz Anderson rink offered another tip: lessons for beginners through the Bay State Speedskating Club. I signed up, and spent many a happy Saturday afternoon in January and February learning to speed skate. The next six-week Learn-to-Skate session begins March 6 at Walpole's Iorio Arena, at a cost of $85.
Skaters of all ages and abilities gather each Saturday. At a recent session Olympic speed skater Daniel Weinstein, a tall, muscular Harvard senior and one of the club's coaches, led 15 skaters, ages 7 to 13, around the rink. A few girls and boys wore speedskates; most had hockey or figure skates. Everyone is required to wear helmets and gloves for safety. Weinstein wore hockey skates when he started speed skating with the club at age 8.
As the Olympian and the kids circled the rink, Dan Ott, a 50-year-old executive from Medfield who competes nationally, coached 20 people ages 15 to 56. Our group wore an assortment of hockey, figure, and speed skates. Demonstrating the proper forward crouch, Ott watched us beginners awkwardly follow his example. "Even lower," he said, adding, "Good. Nice job."
Coach Joanne Hallisey of Natick, the mother of two-time Olympian Caroline Hallisey, skated over to help. "Relax your upper body," she said. "Sink as low as you can" approaching the corners. "As my daughter says, `Don't go down to the ice; let the ice come up to you.' "
"Fun," "safety," and "relax" are Bay State Speedskating Club code words, which has produced not only Dan Weinstein and Caroline Hallisey, who is the nation's top-ranked woman in short track, but also Olympic medalist Eric Flaim. Flaim still comes back twice a year to coach and to offer a weekend summer camp at the Walpole rink. Another member, 16-year-old Matt Hickson of Norwood, who is training in Wisconsin for the world team in long track, is ranked third overall in his age group in the United States.
