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u/veloace

r/Stargate r/modeltrains r/FigureSkating r/iceskating r/FigureSkaters r/trains
▲ 27 r/FigureSkaters+2 crossposts

[UPDATE] Happy Skating Month! I made you guys something

This is an update to a post I made here 8 YEARS ago, so hard to think of it as a true update but I made a figure skating app for my Capstone project for my Masters degree in Web Development back in 2017. Then in 2023 I decided to take a deeper look into the app after getting more experience as a web developer and some experience as an LTS instructor....then for some reason I decided to get a second Master's degree in Cybersecurity. I also started coaching (just for beginner adults) and I decided having an app would make my life easier and help me to be skater-first.

So, all that to say, after a 2-year-long project, I have completely rebuilt my skating app into something that is modern, I am proud of, and I want to show off to you. It is a FREE web app (just go to the browser, no invasive downloads and you can add to the homescreen if you want). Here it is: SkateSync.com. In a way, it is my way of giving back to the skating community, since when I first started my career as a developer, it was small skating businesses that let me get experience doing dev work for them, which ultimately led to a portfolio that got me a full-time job.

The primary function for a skater is that it allows you to set goals, journal about your practices, and even plan them with a checklist. Coaches can join the app too, and they can manage their students, schedule lessons, and collaborate on lessons through joint note-taking with the skaters. I also have basic team functionality so that you can create a pairs, dance, or synchro team and schedule joint practices. This function is very basic now and one of the most recent features I've added, so if anyone has suggestions of features to add or things they'd like to see, let me know. Unfortunately, I don't have a synchro team here locally to try it out with.

I also have an option for a person to join as a parent, which allows you to have multiple skaters on you account and you can switch between them. The idea here being that the adult can manage the tracking and also supervise messaging between their child and coach. I'm not a parent, so I'm not 100% sure how useful that will be.

My plan is to keep adding features (and fixing bugs) and I have scheduled monthly releases with the next one scheduled for September 6 (unless I find critical bugs). I have a roadmap of my planned features here: https://www.skatesync.com/about/roadmap but if you have any ideas, I'd love to hear them.

Full disclosure: I do have a paid supporter option for the app, which is just for people who want to help keep the app up and running since it does cost money. Supporters DO get perks, but they are just fun things (like ability to change colors/themes) and I tried to make it so that you can get the full experience and benefit of the application without paying.

reddit.com
u/veloace — 8 days ago
▲ 149 r/modeltrains

Old 4-axel BNSF Dash-8 spotted outside of Wichita, KS

Trying to up my photography game; this is an Atlas silver series Dash-8 (DCC & Sound) that I picked up for $90 at the bargain bin (because it was "damaged").

u/veloace — 16 days ago
▲ 14 r/trains

Row of K&O Diesels outside their shop in Wichita, KS USA

u/veloace — 1 month ago
▲ 45 r/modeltrains

[Update] My First Attempt at a Custom Paint (Athearn Blue Box SW1500 in Watco Colors as WAMX 1528)

Not perfect, but I learned a lot and now I feel more comfortable getting to work and building out my K&O fleet.

u/veloace — 1 month ago
▲ 21 r/modeltrains

[Work in Progress] First time attempting a custom paint, spray cans only.

First time trying a custom paint, and I don't have an airbrush yet, so I had to use spray cans only. To be fair, it was Tamiya spray paint, so it worked really well.

I am modeling K&O short line on my layout, so this is my first WAMX paint job. Figured I'd try it out on my Blue Box SW1500 before working on the more expensive GP40s that I want to paint (and I'll probably get an airbrush for those).

I did a lot of research and WAMX is really inconsistent on how they paint their black/yellow scheme onto the SW1500, with most of the variation happening on rear with some not being yellow at all (WAMX 1525), whereas others are partially yellow on the back (like mine) and others wrap the yellow around the back to the side as well (see WAMX 1530).

Though it's not in K&O's fleet, I based this one on WAMX 1528 because I like the paint job which is similar to the GPs and SDs that K&O operates. As far as I can tell, the only SW1500 with K&O right now is a solid blue LLPX paint scheme--which isn't as fun to paint.

Now I just need to add decals, paint the rails, and install them. I also upgraded this loco to DCC before painting, so it should be a fun one to run.

u/veloace — 1 month ago
▲ 3 r/modeltrains

First test run of my HO Scale Earthworm

My friend just got me a Walther‘s grain hopper so I added it to my fleet of 9 LBF Hoppers (all led by my new-to-me Atlas Dash 8).

youtube.com
u/veloace — 2 months ago
▲ 109 r/modeltrains

Picked up my first sound-equipped locomotive this weekend. Cheaper than expected!

Stopped by a train shop while on a trip over the weekend and found this locomotive on the sale table because one of the sun shades was broken. It was marked down to $98! The helpful guy at the store also helped me pick out the decoder (Econami) and so I spent the last few days learning how to set it up with correct sounds and lighting.

u/veloace — 2 months ago