How many holds to be IR current?

Question

14 CFR 61.57(c)(1)(ii) requires "Holding procedures and tasks" to be IR current.

Within the 6 calendar months preceding the month of the flight, that person performed and logged at least the following tasks and iterations [...]
(i) Six instrument approaches.
(ii) Holding procedures and tasks.
(iii) Intercepting and tracking courses through the use of navigational electronic systems.

I have seen some people interpreting this as:

1. you need to fly one hold every 6 months
2. you need to fly at least 2 holds every 6 months (because of the plural "procedures")

I guess flying a hold involves several procedures, including entry into the hold, flying in/out bound, turning procedures etc. and each of them consist of several tasks. So 1 would seem to work, but everybody seems to have their own opinion on this.

Is there a definite official guidance on whether you need one or two holds in the past six months to be current?

Answer 1

According to this AOPA article, quoting the FAA person who actually wrote 61.57, it’s one hold:

When paragraph 61.57(c)(1)(ii) [i.e., "Holding procedures"] was written it was not intended to mean multiple holdings. The emphasis is on the word procedures. There is more to holding than just flying circles in the sky. There is the planning for holding, slowing the aircraft down prior to entry, entering the holding pattern correctly, correcting for winds, establishing the one-minute inbound leg, etc. That is why I wrote it as 'Holding procedures.' So no, I never intended it to be multiple holdings.