Adult Skating Classes in NYC | Golden Skate

Adult Skating Classes in NYC

LutzDance

On the Ice
Joined
May 9, 2019
Hi everyone! I'm considering taking a beginner's class in figure skating this summer, and I'm wondering if anyone has recommendations. I have absolutely no experience in skating and have skated between five to ten times recreationally, during all of which my highest level of skating consisted of moving forward without falling:p For now I have my eyes on the Adult Skating Night ($400 for 10 classes, ~80min each) or Adult Skating + Fitness ($350 for 7 classes, ~95min each+free general skating on the day of) at the Sky Rink at Chelsea Piers. The former is a bit cheaper and the latter fits my schedule better. Has anyone taken classes at the Sky Rink? How is the quality of classes/faculty there? I'm also open to suggestions to skating at other places in New York. Thanks in advance!
 

celia

Rinkside
Joined
Apr 6, 2011
I have done Sky Rink Adult Skate Night and recommend it. It is divided into groups by level so you will find your right place. I have not done Adult Skating and Fitness. I got my previous coach because he taught a different Saturday group class at Sky Rink (Black Diamond) and I liked him enough to stick with him for private lessons. And yes, I would say the overall quality of the coaches is good.

There is also City Ice in Long Island City, Queens. They have adult learn to skate as well. I haven't tried their group classes but I skate there for freestyle/coffee club and am impressed with the coaches around me. They have adult beginner classes Monday 6:30 am and 10:00 am or Sunday 10:30 am. https://www.cityicepavilion.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/LTS-ClassesCamps_bro_2018-19_R20.pdf
 

jf12

Final Flight
Joined
Dec 8, 2016
Hi everyone! I'm considering taking a beginner's class in figure skating this summer, and I'm wondering if anyone has recommendations. I have absolutely no experience in skating and have skated between five to ten times recreationally, during all of which my highest level of skating consisted of moving forward without falling:p For now I have my eyes on the Adult Skating Night ($400 for 10 classes, ~80min each) or Adult Skating + Fitness ($350 for 7 classes, ~95min each+free general skating on the day of) at the Sky Rink at Chelsea Piers. The former is a bit cheaper and the latter fits my schedule better. Has anyone taken classes at the Sky Rink? How is the quality of classes/faculty there? I'm also open to suggestions to skating at other places in New York. Thanks in advance!

Both of those classes will be picking from the same group of coaches so the instruction would be the same. Chelsea Piers does a good job of rotating coaches through the levels through different sessions so you can try a lot of teaching styles. Out of the two, go for the weekend one. Usually sky rink is pretty dead on weekends in the summer since most people go away. During the week this summer might be a lot more busy than normal since one of the rinks is going down for maintenance.
 

DanseMacabre

Final Flight
Joined
May 27, 2018
Country
Iceland
Hi everyone! I'm considering taking a beginner's class in figure skating this summer, and I'm wondering if anyone has recommendations. I have absolutely no experience in skating and have skated between five to ten times recreationally, during all of which my highest level of skating consisted of moving forward without falling:p For now I have my eyes on the Adult Skating Night ($400 for 10 classes, ~80min each) or Adult Skating + Fitness ($350 for 7 classes, ~95min each+free general skating on the day of) at the Sky Rink at Chelsea Piers. The former is a bit cheaper and the latter fits my schedule better. Has anyone taken classes at the Sky Rink? How is the quality of classes/faculty there? I'm also open to suggestions to skating at other places in New York. Thanks in advance!

I did the Adult Skating and Fitness class last summer and it was great. It’s worth noting that the fitness class prior to the skating lesson is much more than just a warmup. It’s part Pilates, part additional strength training and cardio. The physical fitness levels of the class varied a lot and some people started skipping the fitness class because it was too much for them prior to skating. By the time they got on the ice, their muscles were already shot. If you’re relatively physically fit it shouldn’t be a problem.

The entire rink was reserved for the skating and fitness program and it was broken up into smaller groups depending on experience. There’s always a section for absolute beginners so don’t worry about that. The instructors do tend to rotate but Sky Rink has some pretty great coaches across the board. Usually your group will have the same instructor for the whole program but occasionally other coaches will sub or they’ll split the term between them.
 

LutzDance

On the Ice
Joined
May 9, 2019
Thanks everyone, that's a lot of helpful information!

Celia, thank you for sharing your thoughts about Adult Skate Night and bringing my attention to City Ice Pavilion! It's actually closer to me than Sky Rink, so I might give it a try sometime :)

jf12, thanks for the information about coaches for these two classes and the occupancy of Sky Rink during summer!

DanseMacabre, it's so great to hear that you enjoyed the Adult Skating and Fitness class, and thank you very much for the heads up on the pre-skating fitness class! I do modest intensity cardio/strength exercises regularly so hopefully I'll be fine :p Also it's good to learn that the class has the entire rink to itself :)
 

thesu

Spectator
Joined
Aug 7, 2016
They have adult beginner classes Monday 6:30 am and 10:00 am or Sunday 10:30 am. https://www.cityicepavilion.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/LTS-ClassesCamps_bro_2018-19_R20.pdf

I've done both the Sky Rink Adult Skate Night and City Ice group lessons. Much prefer City Ice because the ice conditions are better. At Chelsea Piers, the class and practice are only on half the rink, and it has tons of grooves even after resurfacing. Also while some of the coaches overlap, the coaches at City Ice watch you more carefully. And the attitude at City Ice is more familial.

You could always try both. Skate on public session/coffee club to examine the ice and atmosphere. In the summer, you can also choose 4 weeks of the Adult Skate Night (rather than the whole session). Also, the 6:30 am sessions at City Ice are for people in LTS level 5+.
 
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