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“I know very well it isn’t hard,” replied Joe, “but it’s hard for me because I’m a perfectly punk skater.”

Strobe laughed. “Oh, well, practice is all you need. Can you do the ‘Figure 3’?”

“Pretty well. I guess you have to learn to skate when you’re about five years old to do it decently. Like swimming. I never skated much until two years ago.”

“I started when I was about eight, I guess,” laughed Strobe. “Know this one?”

“This one” was a “Maltese Cross” so perfectly done that every loop was the same to an inch. Joe watched and sighed in envious admiration. “That’s dandy,” he said. “It’s like the ‘cross-cut’ only there’s more of it.”

“Yes, the ‘cross-cut’ repeated three times. It isn’t hard, really. You could learn it in an hour.”

“I couldn’t learn it in a month,” replied Joe disgustedly. “I can’t even skate backwards without bumping my head on the ice.”

“Well, I’ve bumped mine often enough. That’s part of the education. I’ve seen some perfectly wonderful stars in my time!” He started to skate and Joe joined him.