Four Reminders To Help You Conquer Tryouts

by Tara Tahil

“Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” -Theodore Roosevelt

The weekends of tryouts and auditions can be one of the most challenging periods of time in a skater’s career. Once the celebratory cheering for the end of another season concludes, the joyfulness in the air quickly shifts to an anxious, nail-biting environment. It can be challenging to stay focused on the task at hand whether you’re trying out for a new organization, working hard to move up a level, or staying in the same place. Almost every athlete struggles with the nerves revolving tryouts, but it’s important to remember these four things:

1. It’s okay to be nervous, but stay positive
One of the most important things you can do is to remember to stay positive. Nothing hurts an athlete more than negative self-talk. A few things you can do to prevent this is to visualize yourself performing a skill that you’d most likely do at tryouts successfully, congratulate yourself after completing a drill even if it wasn’t that difficult, and genuinely compliment another skater for doing something well.

2. Trust your training

There’s no reason to have any doubt in your skating skills when months of practice sessions and hours of exhausting power drills all led up to this moment. Hundreds of twizzles, thousands of spirals, and countless numbers of spread eagles, all led up to this moment. If you’ve put in all the work, there’s nothing left for you to do, but perform. It’s like a competition. You’ve practiced all season and now it’s time show everyone what you’ve been practicing. Only you know what you’re capable of so you have to be the one to demonstrate it.

3. Be confident
Your skating speaks for itself and so does your confidence. It’s easy to feel insecure when you’re judged by coaches and the people around you. However, this isn’t the time to think about what others think of you. This is the time to think about yourself and all the hard work you’ve put in. When you step out onto the freshly cut ice, breathe in confidence and exhale doubt. Press your shoulder blades down into a “V” and keep your chin up, as if you were showing off an extravagant diamond necklace. Hit the “I believe in myself” button and you’re ready to accomplish anything.

4. Everything happens for a reason
After an exhaustingly long weekend of tryouts filled with numerous choctaw drills, rockers, brackets, twizzles, many different synchronized elements, and musical interpretation, — it’s time to go home. At this point, you’ve given your best performance and the results are no longer in your hands. Use this time to reflect on your career and the people you’ve met along the way. There’s nothing worse than agonizing over that email or that phone call that determines your future. This sport is so much more than the outcome and results. Thank your coaches for helping you become the athlete you are today and thank your parents for their endless support. Remember that when one door closes, another one opens. From my personal experiences, some of the best things in my life have come from not making the team of dreams and I certainly wouldn’t be where I am today if I had. And I’m grateful for that.