The Central Park Skate Patrol's 2005 Certification is this Sunday, May
1st. If you enjoy helping people and love skating in Central Park this
could be for you:

JOIN THE CENTRAL PARK SKATE PATROL, SUNDAY MAY 1st at 9:30AM
E-mail prankin@..., to reserve a spot or for additional
information. The location of the class will be provided via return e-mail.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION please see below, or visit the website:
http://www.skatepatrol.org and click on "Join" or "FAQ".


THE CENTRAL PARK SKATE PATROL IS DEDICATED TO HELPING PEOPLE HAVE SAFE
SKATING FUN in Central Park. It helps skaters and general park users
enjoy the Park, teaches stopping skills and safe skating techniques, and
assists the injured. It is a wonderful group of dedicated skaters having
fun while doing good! You also get to meet new skaters as they are
starting to learn. Here is some other useful information about time
commitments and about the certification for new members on Sunday May
1st at 9:30am.


TIME COMMITMENT Central Park Skate Patrol volunteers must commit to a
minimum of two three-hour shifts per month, during the skating season,
mid-April to mid-October. Shifts run from 12 noon to 3:00pm, and from
3:00pm to 6:00pm on Saturday and Sunday. Occasionally there are special
events outside of these hours where you can earn "extra credit". We know
that people have lives and jobs and vacations, so it's a minimum
average; if you are traveling a lot on business one month, for example,
do an extra shift on another
month. Of course you are welcomed and encouraged to do more shifts.


REQUIRED SKATING SKILLS The emphasis is
not on being an elite skater, rather on wanting to perform a community
service by helping others, and being competent enough to teach the
basics and set a good example. You should be comfortable enough to a
loop of the park (6.1 miles or almost 10K) in about 45 minutes. We never
race, except maybe in an emergency. This is not a good time to practice
speed skating, but you should be able to get from point A to point B in
a hurry, if needed. You should be able to skate backwards in front of a
student at slow speeds on a shallow incline in order to offer support,
reassurance and guidance. You must have a heel brake and know how to use
it. You should also be able to demonstrate at least one other type of
stop, such as the t-stop or spin stop. Remember, we are only insured to
teach basic movement and basic stopping with the heel brake, but as
teachers, we need to be a few steps ahead of our students


NEW PATROLLER CERTIFICATION WHEN: Sunday May 1st
at 9:30am WHERE: Respond to prankin@..., or call 917-881-0266, will
be informed of location of the class. BRING: SKATES WITH A HEEL BRAKE -
REQUIRED. HELMET AND WRIST GUARDS ARE MINIMUM REQUIRED protective gear.
Bring a pencil or pen, too. WHAT: The certification is designed to bring
you up to speed on what we do on Skate Patrol, teach procedures,
etcetera, and do the necessary paperwork for insurance purposes. It
consists of introductions, watching a video produced by the National
Skate Patrol (NSP), "class room" review, etcetera. Then we go outside
with skates for the practical portion. This consists of teaching you how
to teach stopping using the NSP Instructor Certification Program (ICP)
teaching model. We'll take turns playing teacher and student and learn
how to teach beginners and correct common mistakes. COST: There is a
very small registration fee to become a member of the Patrol. In 2005
the fee will be paid for by the Central Park Skate Patrol. A uniform
(tee-shirt) must be purchased by the individual
patroller. QUESTIONS:
Contact prankin@..., or call 917-881-0266 RSVP REQUIRED: Contact
prankin@... HOPE YOU MAKE IT ON Sunday May 1st at 9:30am!! Please
share with other interested skaters. Thank you for your time and
consideration, The Central Park Skate Patrol is a fun, gratifying
experience.