When I think about figure skating I think of the women gliding across the ice in little, short ice skating dresses with a sign behind them that reads, “Olympics”. I’ve been passionate about ice skating since I could tie my own skates. I’ve worked my whole life to get where I am today and I can assure you that there were many obstacles. Having your mom as a coach isn’t always the best way to train nor is it the friendliest. My mom, Jen, figured skated when she was young as well. She competed in competitions just like I do. Unfortunately, she had to top when she tore her acl right before Nationals. She got surgery and by the time she would be cleared to skate her time would be up. Most of the time when you tear an acl you can work on improving during physical therapy, but her acl tear was so atrocious she was unable to land her jumps and other skills. If it wasn’t for my mom pushing me to my full limit, and encouraging me to do my best every time I stepped foot on the ice I would’ve never made it to where I am today.
The first time I experienced my first win was when I was 6. I want first place at the junior regionals against 5 other girls. All 6 of us had been training for about 6 months and had worked our way up to competing against one another. Each one of us had our own style; rock, graceful, happy-go-lucky, generic, and a few others. As for myself, I like the more happy-go-lucky dances because it suits my personality. I was so excited when I saw I had the highest scores on the jumbo screen. The crowd applauded and threw flowers onto the ice. Everyday since then I have worked hard, improving day by day, eating the right diet, staying focused on just school and skating. My mom worked her hardest to not only train me and push me to land the perfect triple, but she has also been my biggest supporter. Has she been harsh at times? Yes. Has she tried to break me to see if I break? You know it. But the real question is, has she shown me her love by doing all of this for the past 11 years? Hell yes. The story behind my passion for skating is not to be like my mom, but do something I can be proud of as well as my mom be proud of. I have to show her every practice every morning at 5:15. I have to show her by eating a healthy yet maintained diet for a 17 year old girl. The day I finally showed her my everything was the day I won Nationals. The look on her face was priceless.
It was the summer of 1998 and it was my last day to practice the routine for Nationals. I was in second place during regionals, 1.2 points behind Lily, the girl who has a spunky routine every performance. The night flew by. Before I knew it, it was already Saturday morning. Mom woke me up with a low fat strawberry mango smoothie. I quickly drank the smoothie and got in the shower. It was a 3 hour drive the the skating arena and we needed to get a head start on things. As I was in the shower, my mom packed a cooler full of water and a few vitamin waters to boost me up, as well as some healthy snacks. As I finished up in the shower, I went to my room to throw my hair up in a bun, throw some sweatpants and a t-shirt on and pack the things I needed; hairspray, extra clothes, my uniform, and most importantly my skates. By 8:30 AM we were out of the house. It was a long car ride ahead of us, but it gave me enough time to calm my nerves and let me rethink everything I’ve worked for that lead me up to this point. My mom and I have worked so hard to make this happen, and now it’s finally happening.
We finally arrived, Holterman Ice Rink. It was beautiful on the inside. The ice was shiny and slick. The best performances at that arena was hung up on a banner on the wall. I had always dreamt about competing in Nationals since I could remember. I wished for it every year on my birthday and my New Year resolution I was determined to improve every week. We walked through the arena to check in with the judges and get a number tag. Then we walked next door where our hotel was. We checked in and started getting ready for my first routine. We only did my hair and makeup. I typically put my uniform and skates on at the arena. My mom has always gotten me prepped and ready to go for every competition. When prepping for your competition your hair and makeup should somewhat correspond with your uniform (s). Therefore, my first dress was violet with silver sparkles and gems. It was a happy-go-lucky song to go along with it because of the sparkles; which kind of makes it happy and smiley. Or at least it does to my mom and me. For my makeup my mom gave me silvers eyeshadow on the outside and inside corners of my eyes and then the same violet purple and my dress on the inside. She blended the colors so you couldn’t see the separation of all the different color sections. The eyeshadow was the most extravagant makeup I usually wear. Other than that it’s the usual; foundation, powder, blush, and mascara. My hair was tied up in a bun with sparkles sprinkled on the give it a reflection off the lights while I’m skating. It was time to leave our hotel room and head back over to the arena. We picked out a spot in the locker room and set our belongings down. I was scheduled to skate third. My mom and I watched very closely and intently at the first two skaters. They were good, very good. Finally, it was my turn. I hugged my mom and stepped onto the ice. I could feel the thousands of eyes staring right at me. The music started. I didn’t hesitate at all to start. As I glided across the ice I felt free. It was time for my double...I landed it. Great. Now my triple….I landed it. Perfect. I felt a huge weight come off my shoulders as I landed 3 more triples. The crowd applauded, awed, and whistled. I felt unbeatable. The music stop and so did I. I waved to the crowd and listened to my final claps and howls. My mom handed me my sweater and I quickly zipped it up as we nervously walked over to the bench where the announcer would announce the scores. I was in first between the first two skaters and I. I was nervous when they continued with the remaining skaters, but I was still in first! The final girl was .5 points away from me and she ended up taking second place. I couldn’t believe it. I, Amber Jones, 17 years old, just took first place in Nationals! My mom hugged me so tight I could barely breathe. We celebrated that night with milkshakes and chicken tenders. Which was a big deal for me because I’ve always been on a strict diet. We had a blast the rest of the night. The excitement and joy of the both of us was completely noticeable. We went to bed pretty early that night due to waking up early and running around all day, trying to stay focused on the competition and rethinking my routine. We woke up the next morning & packed up our things to head home. I held my gold medal the entire 3 hour drive home.
The amount of excitement my mom and I had combined together was infinite. So in return, before we left I secretly set something up for her. It was to show my appreciation towards all the hard work she goes through for me. Whether I lost or not I was still going to give her her surprise. So I arranged a vacation for her and I to go on to Naples, Florida. A long week to spend; relaxing, tanning, and just showing her my appreciation. I set it up to be delivered to us at a certain time. The tickets were in an envelope which were in a bouquet of bright red roses. Two hours after we returned the flowers were delivered to us, addressed to Jen Jones. She opened the tickets and burst into tears. I started explaining to her that we’re leaving in 10 hours to fly down to Florida and we needed to pack right away. I also explained to her why I had set this up. I told her I needed her to realize that I respect and appreciate the rough times we’ve gone through together and the energy she uses to keep going everyday to push not only me, but herself. SHe wiped away her tears and we walked to our rooms to pack our bags. If it wasn’t for her, I would never be where I am today. Today, I am relaxing in Naples, Florida. Tanning in the sun and drinking a lemonade slushie, 48 hours after I won a gold medal for Nationals. Thank you, Mom.