Dare to DREAM

2012 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships

2012-03-08T16:00:00.012-08:00

This year’s U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships are definitely something we will remember forever. After not doing as well as we had hoped in Switzerland, the Haydenettes came home ready to prepare for Nationals. We worked very hard changing every element in our short program and rearranging and changing elements in the long. We were determined to improve our programs to ensure we would get things called. Spending countless hours on the ice, we worked with Saga to figure out the series of four turns with which we were most comfortable and best showcased our edges.

This past weekend, all our hard work paid off. We went into this National competition feeling confident that our “New Package” was better than ever. Wednesday afternoon we had our regular practice at the Hayden Recreation Centre in Lexington, and then we went to our teammates’, the Lapucks’, house for dinner. Mrs. Lapuck prepared a wonderful dinner of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and many other goodies. We had enjoyed Thanksgiving at their house so much (earlier in the season) that she decided to repeat it! After the team dinner we got on the bus with Lexettes and headed to our hotel in Worcester.

Thursday morning we had a great unofficial practice. We did sections of our programs, really focusing on being neat with the changes. After practice we ate lunch then went to the DCU Center to watch the day’s events. We were able to watch the Intermediate division and were so excited when the Star Mates won. They have overcome many struggles this season, with injuries and sickness, and it was amazing that at their National Debut they were able to secure the gold.

After the Intermediate Free Skate, we met up with our fellow Dreammates to do Juvenile Awards. Presenting medals to these teams is a very special opportunity and we were so happy that we got to give the Bronze Medals to our juvenile team, the Mini Mates. We had missed their skate earlier in the afternoon because we were at practice, but we heard it was amazing and everyone was very proud of them.

On Friday we woke up bright and early for short official practice. We did one run through and a of couple sections. The practice went very well and we were all excited to get to compete that night. Back at the hotel we did video review, ate, and rested until it was time for hair and makeup.

Finally it was our turn to compete. We were focused during our warm up off the ice and ready to show the Nation our great new program. On the ice we worked together and stayed calm. Our short program earned 64.26 points, a huge improvement from our score in Switzerland.

We were ecstatic.

Saturday morning we woke up ready to put on our Poker Faces and go Gaga. We drew to compete first after the ice make, and were happy to have the clean ice. Saga reminded us to stay relaxed. The ice was so smooth that all of our glides flew without any extra push. Official practice felt really great. After we skated, we rested and ate until it was time to prepare for the competition.

When we took the ice for our free skate we were focused and ready to perform. Our program is so crazy and fun. Saga has given us amazing choreography and we all love emanating Lady Gaga with our expression. Taking one element at a time, we skated strongly. We could feel the energy from the crowd while on the ice. The excitement built throughout the program as every element seemed better than the last. When we completed our pivoting block, the audience cheered so loudly. We got an extra boost to take us through the last minute and a half of our program. At the end of our moving circle and before our no hold step sequence is our favorite part of the program. We all get really into our Gaga character and do an awesome dance. At the end of the program we were so happy with our skate. Everything was left on the ice. Our hearts and souls were poured into that skate and it could not have been better. When we got our score we knew all our heard work over the past few weeks had paid off.

We are thrilled to have helped the Haydenettes to their 20^th national title this year. We are even more thrilled to be heading to Sweden in a few short weeks with the Crystallettes. We have a lot of work ahead of us, and cannot wait to update you all from Göteborg! GO USA!

Audrey & Tessa

Photo Credit: James Smith and Ted Castro

2012 Synchronized Skating Championships Recap

2012-03-06T13:57:00.005-08:00

What an amazing day it was at the US Synchonized Skating Championships today! With the Masters and Adult division up first, I had a ton of fun cheering with my old teammates on the Starlights, as well as marveling at how much the Adult division has grown. I was so impressed by the speed and precision of the top teams, and it was incredible to watch. Then came the collegiate division, another division that is just getting more and more competitive every year! I especially love watching these two divisions, a pleasure I didn’t always have when I was competing, and because of how much FUN the programs always are.

It was really great to see all of the familiar faces that I have missed being absent from the skating world this past year. I got to spend yesterday cheering with my fellow dreammate, Annaleigh, and then was able to spend today cheering with my fellow Starlights alum, Samantha. Here’s a picture of us, standing on the OTHER side of the ice this year J

Finally, it was time for the Senior Free Skate, always the highlight of the competition! It was really cool to see how widespread the music choices were for this year: from Charlie Chaplin to Trans Siberian Orchestra to Lady Gaga! This diversity really showed how coaches and choreographers are really stepping outside of the box and out of their own comfort zones to create unique programs that will catch our eye. Overall, it was a wonderful competition. Congratulations to the 2012 US World Team Members, Haydenettes and Crystalettes!

I have to admit, it is strange attending the Synchro Championships as a spectator, rather than a skater. Making the decision to attend Dartmouth College, where there is not a synchronized skating team, was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make. While I’m loving my time at college, watching everyone skate here in Worcester, seeing the excitement and passion of all the skaters, has reminded me how much I love to skate. Although I may not be competing at Dartmouth, I know that skating is going to remain a large part of my life for years to come. That’s the beauty of this sport: it’s a family, a community, of wonderful people with one common passion: skating!

Love, Bianca

Nationals 2012 - Day 2

2012-03-02T19:27:00.004-08:00

Today was a long and eventful day at the DCU Center! Novice Championship, Senior Short Program, and Junior Freeskate were all super fun and exciting to watch. Many of the teams were hundredths of a point away from each other which made it all the more thrilling to watch! Fellow DREAM-mate Bianca and I were reminiscing about our old synchro days while we watched the teams skate. We kept hearing songs that we've skated to and dresses that reminded us of old dresses. (Of course, synchro has come a long way from our Preliminary and Teen-Intro teams!)

My lovely west coast DREAM-ers, Emmy and Linnea, were able to meet up with one another after Senior Short and, of course, take a picture :]

Hope you all had as wonderful a day as me and I can't wait for tomorrow's grand finale!

-Annaleigh

Nationals 2012 - Day 1

2012-03-01T17:59:00.009-08:00

Nationals is finally here! After all the blood, sweat, and tears, teams from all around the country have gathered here in Worcester, Massachusetts to show off what they've been working on the past season. Some of the DREAM skaters had the opportunity of presenting the Juvenile awards! It was a lot of fun to see everyone's excited faces as we put medals over their bunned heads.

I then got to see my cousin who skates on Epic Edge Intermediate. I don't get the chance to see her that often, but the fact that we share this common love for synchro makes it even more special to see her every year at nationals.

The Opening Ceremonies took place after the awards ceremonies and featured all the teams organized by state from west coast to east coast. It was exciting for me since out of all of the nationals I've been at, I have never been able to sit down and watch Opening Ceremonies! It was a dignified and impressive event. The Skating Spectacular showcased national and international competitors from the U.S. and was quite entertaining!

After the opening ceremonies and the first couple of Junior teams, I ran off to dinner at Buca Di Beppo with my lovely California Gold girls. Fellow DREAM-mate Emmy and I snapped a picture in the midst of hundreds of other pictures that everyone on the team had to take with one another.

For me, Nationals is a whole new experience this year since I'm not here to compete. I really miss having a team to interact and share memories with (though I am lucky enough to be spending the majority of my time on this trip with California Gold) But it's amazing to see what bonds can be made in just one season. Tomorrow will be another long day, so I wish everyone a goodnight and congratulations to those who competed today!

-Annaleigh

Sweet Success in Switzerland!

2012-02-26T11:51:00.023-08:00

The Crystallettes were very excited to compete at the 2012 Neuchatel Trophy. For the past several years, the Crystallettes have competed in the Prague Cup or French Cup. So, getting to travel to Switzerland was very intriguing. Although this trip was full of challenges and obstacles, we had come to Switzerland on a mission and nothing was going to stand in our way.

We faced adversity before and during the event, but the Crystallettes persevered through illnesses and injuries and were triumphant at the international competition. One skater suffered a broken leg during a practice just 48 hours before we left and was not able to come on the trip with her team. However, we traveled with her picture and she was in every team photo. Another skater fell ill with food poisoning the night before we left, and two more were sick (pneumonia and bronchitis) after arriving in Switzerland. That wasn’t all though. During our official practice for the free skate, another skater got her hand sliced open and had to get 5 stitches after our practice ended. The Crystallettes want to extend a thank you to the Team USA Doctor, Doctor Kruse. We kept him very busy and he kept us on the ice!

Although we had challenges and minor setbacks, the Crystallettes always know how to have a great time. Switzerland was absolutely beautiful! The day we arrived, we went to see many different sights and toured the city shops. We all bought many souvenirs and lots of Swiss chocolate!

After our brief sightseeing tour, it was time to focus. We had many great practices (official and unofficial) and when it came time to do the short program we were more than ready. We were excited to show off our new program. This was only the second competition we would perform it and the first time in our brand new dresses. (The Crystallettes would like to extend a big thank you to Del Arbour for getting these dresses together so quickly and to our parents who helped bead them. The dresses turned out absolutely gorgeous!) We have a very specific warm up routine. We also have several before competition rituals. Once those were done, we were lined up along the wall ready to go. It was thrilling to hear our parents and the other USA teams support us. We ended up skating a wonderful, thrilling, and sassy short program and received good scores for it being an international competition. Our score ended up being 58.86 and it rewarded us with winning the event by 9.5 points! We improved from the London Synchrofest by almost 20 points. It was a remarkable feeling and we were very thankful and humble with the outcome because we knew that we had to do our best in the free skate on Saturday.

Our free skate official was more eventful then we anticipated. We lined up to do our first section and within the first thirty seconds a skater got her hand cut. However, that did not stop us, one of our other skaters jumped in her spot and we continued until the section was over. The skater who was cut was bandaged up and given a blue, surgical glove to wear for the rest of the practice. The rest of our practice was strong and powerful and it proved not only to ourselves, but to everyone there how mentally tough and focused we were. We warmed up later and were ready to go and even though we had a lot of distractions with the sicknesses and injuries, we knew what we had to do in order to stay in the top spot. We did not skate as well as we could have. There were 3 falls in the performance and many great elements too. We performed a solid program. We received a score of 98.80. As we waited in the locker room for the results, Holly began to give us the “you did your best speech” when Shannon called from the United States. She told Holly we won. Casey, our injured skater with the broken leg, watched the live feed and called Shannon. Shannon was at Tri State synchronized skating competition with our other teams. Holly yelled and we all cheered. Then, Chicago Jazz came busting in to our locker room to tell us the results. We were so excited. Apparently, because of our nine and half point lead in the short program it was enough to keep us in the top spot and we won the competition over all! It was one of greatest feelings! We felt like we were on top of the world. It was a very proud moment for the Crystallettes because we had all of the distractions a team could imagine, however, it did not break our focus and make us lose sight of what was important.

Switzerland was a great experience and becoming the 2012 Neuchatel Trophy Senior champions was a very humbling and rewarding experience. With nationals right around the corner, we know that we can’t let up now. We have to work harder and with more intensity because we have set the same goal for nationals that we had for Switzerland. We proved in Switzerland how mentally tough we are and how nothing will stand in the way of achieving our goal. We plan to continue to train hard for nationals. Nationals 2012 here we come! We look forward to seeing all of the teams and wish them good luck!

Haydenettes in Switzerland Part 2

2012-02-17T08:42:00.000-08:00

Short Program was an event to see. We took the ice confident and ready to perform. We had one fall, and a music deduction, but overall we were pleased with our skate. We finished in second place. After the competition, we went back to the hotel and did video review with Saga. We reflected on which elements had gone well and which we could be improved. Finally, we applied the changes in these elements to the long program and switched our brains to Lady Gaga.

Long official practice was the following morning. After slightly disappointing scores in the short program, we were determined to improve our marks in long. We focused on making our steps clean and truly expressing the essence of Lady Gaga. Practice went very well, and we were content moving into the long program that evening.

Representing your country is a true honor. We took the ice Saturday night ready to represent Team USA in the most dignified manner. Our long program skate felt very strong. We came together as a team and put all of our energy into giving off our best performance. We left the ice proud and excited. We ended up in second place, behind the Crystallettes, fellow team USA members.

Team USA also took the top two places in Junior. We are so proud of the Lexettes and Chicago Jazz. It was a great competition for Team USA. Seeing our flag raised four times and hearing the national anthem twice was very memorable.

After the competition, we headed to the competitors party for some great food. We watched video later that night, and prepared to head back to Boston the next day.

Nationals is only a week and a half away. We got great feedback in Switzerland and are ready to get back to work. Can’t wait to see you all in Worcester!

Tessa and Audrey

Neuchatel Trophy- Haydenettes Part 1

2012-02-10T06:54:00.001-08:00

Haydenettes arrived in Switzerland on Wednesday morning. We landed in Zurich and took a two-hour bus ride to Neuchatel. We checked into the hotel and headed to the official rink for a practice. We had a great practice then ate dinner at the hotel restaurant with Lexettes. Everyone was exhausted from traveling and skating, so we were anxious to go to bed.

On Thursday morning we woke up for another unofficial practice. The rink was freezing, but we skated well. After that we went into the town and did some shopping. There was a tourism center that had information about the competition with pictures hanging up from the Junior World Challenge Cup last year.

This morning we had short official practice. It was eventful, to say the least. Halfway through our first run-through the music started to skip. It was difficult, but we decided to push through the skate. It ended up being a pretty good run-through! We watched each other and stuck to counts. After we got the music working, we finished practice and headed back to the hotel. Now we are resting up before short program. We will update later! After shopping we had another great dinner at the Hotel with the Lexettes then got ready for bed.

GO TEAM USA!

Tessa and Audrey

Catching Up With the Starlights!

2012-02-08T09:00:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone! I know it has been a while since i last blogged, but I am now finding the time to FINALLY catch you all up on what us Starlights have been doing.

After the holiday season, we hit it hard with practices leading up to the Foot of the Lake Competition in my hometown of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. It was great to be able to compete in front of all my friends and family that have supported me over the years. After a long day of practice ice and critiques, it was amazing to have my mother and father host a team dinner at my house. Everyone, even our coaches Heather Paige and Jenna King, loved being able to taste some of my dads home cooked pasta and bread sticks. The next day was all about the competition for both programs. Our short program score wasn't what we had hoped for, but we had to keep on moving to make sure we were ready for long. Going from short to long in one day really made it difficult to concentrate on one event, but we made it work with placing first over all at the Foot of the Lake Competition.

Coming off the rough skates at Fondy, we all knew it was our time to start the rest of the season off right. We got extremely "motivated" and pushed ourselves to the limit when it came to practices leading up to Midwesterns in Michigan. Going into the competition we felt so ready to put both of our programs out there and show everyone what we had to offer. While warming up for the short program, we all became focused and tuned into what our coaches were saying. They gave us great advice to "just skate the program and do your job." Coming off the ice after skating that short program was one the the most amazing feelings I have ever had. We all united as a team that night and skated our hearts out to our new version of Madonna's Like a Prayer. The next day was all about our long program. We were all getting ready and goofing around making sure we were all prepared for the night. With some laughs in the the warm up area, it was time to get down to business. We got our skates on and went out there to perform our favorite program. It wasn't perfect, but it was an accomplishing weekend for both of our programs. Placing second over all, we had a very successful weekend as a Senior team.

The next stop for Starlights Senior is Milan, Italy! We are extremely excited to be leaving exactly one week! We wish all the teams competing over seas Good Luck and see you all at Nationals!

-Dana

French Cup

2012-02-03T00:20:00.000-08:00

Jet lag can be a killer, but so far California Gold has been holding up pretty well. Being all the way from the west coast of the United States, our time has been altered considerably. However, this didn't stop our team from having a great first day touring Paris, second day spent practicing and preparing for competition in Rouen and a third day in pre-competition spirits.

We have been doing considerable amounts of walking, keeping us fit and fatigued. On Tuesday we walked from Notre Dame to the Eiffel Tower, by way of the Musee d'Orsay. On Wednesday it was back and forth from the rink several times, in weather considerably colder than most California girls are used to. But this is what makes international travel, and competition, so exciting. Its about experiencing new and different things. Los Angeles is an area where many of us spend large chunks of time stuck on the freeway, not walking amongst centuries old architecture. Its a place where we rarely huddle for heat.

Thursday, after a particularly cold but productive practice, we had the opportunity to participate in the opening parade for the French Cup. We walked with teams from all over the world through the streets of Rouen and chatted with the other U.S. Teams here: Miami University senior, Team Braemar junior and Skyliners junior. All the teams performed a flash mob dance at the end of the parade. The U.S. Teams all went out to dinner together, hosted by our team leaders Robin and Bob, who gave all roses and beautiful cards. (One of my teammates began crying at this point, partially the beautiful quote on the cards, partially the jet lag catching up).

It has been a trip of firsts for many at this competition. For many members of my team this is their first time representing Team USA, for a few its their first time to Europe, it is my first time to France and I got to participate in my first international draw. This is part of why this opportunity is amazing. Skating is not only a gift in and of itself, but also gives us a context in which to exit our comfort zones and experience new things.

Latest Scoop on the Crystallettes!

2012-02-02T11:31:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody! Since the last time I blogged we have competed in two major competitions! The Senior Crystallettes got the opportunity to compete in London, Canada at the end of December with some of the top teams in the world. We had lots of hard practices to get prepared for this competition because we knew we were competing with the best of the best. We arrived on the 27^th of December and immediately got to work. We had just enough time to drop off luggage at the hotel and change into our practice clothes before we had our first practice. All of our practices were productive and went well.

The draw in London was exciting! In order to find out what number we were skating, we had the draw ceremony where myself and another member of my team, Meghan Quigley, were chosen to draw. The setup of the draw was absolutely beautiful! It was called “Synchro in the City” and was decorated incredibly girly with pink everything and wonderful chocolate covered strawberries that were gone in seconds.

One of the best parts of the draw was prince charming that escorted Meghan and I to draw our number. Instead of drawing numbers, we had to select a fashionable pair of shoes. We were the third team to go up and select our shoe. There was this darling sparkly gold heel that we both did love and wanted to pick. However, something inside me told me because it was the prettiest shoe it was number one. So, I told Meghan that we should pick the black heel with the flower on top because I had a really good feeling about it. After a short huddle with prince charming, I picked it up and it was number eight, which meant that we skated last! We were so happy with our selection and relieved because, shortly after us, another team chose that gold sparkly heel and it was indeed number one. After taking many pictures with prince charming, all of the teams dismissed to get ready for the next day of competition.

Competition day was here! Official practice for the short program was in the afternoon and then we competed our short program to “Footloose’ that night. We had a fairly good skate and did not receive the scores we wanted. However, sometimes you have to roll with the punches because we still had a long program to do the next day. We went out to eat with the Haydenettes after the competition of the short program where I got to finally meet some of the fellow DREAMers! After our nice dinner, we returned to the hotel and went to sleep. The next morning we had official practice and then had time to rest and get ready for our free skate program. We skated earlier in this segment of the competition and performed a beautiful, spunky long program. At this point, we focused on our effort. We poured every ounce into that performance. No matter what happened, we were going to be proud of what we did. We received a good score and ended up 5^th for the free skate and 6^th place overall. The Crystallettes were pleased to have participated in this competition. It was a great experience and we loved meeting the different members of all the different teams. After our coaches spoke to the judges, they warned us that there would be big changes when we got back to Michigan and indeed there were.

We all enjoyed our couple days off for the New Year and then got back to work. At the end of our competition in Canada, our coaches said that there would be big changes and we were all dying to know what that meant! The following weekend we had the opportunity to work with Cathy Dalton. She was amazing! After 2 days and 10 hours on the ice, they dropped the bomb on us that we would be changing our music for our short program. All of our jaws hit the ice. We were stunned and weren’t sure how to react. I was personally sad because the program to “Footloose” was my favorite program. The coaches explained why we had to change the music and we all understood. Now, we were begging to know what it was going to be. Our coaches started to put on different pieces of music for us to try our choreographed short program to. Cathy Dalton suggested a piece of music when she was here to work with us and it is called “Mercy” by Duffy. As soon as they put on “Mercy”, we began the program and it fit like a glove. We only had two weeks to get this program ready for Midwesterns. It was a tough two weeks but we did it!

Midwesterns was in Plymouth, Michigan from January 26^th-29^th. That was a very busy weekend for me as a skater and a coach. My Open Juvenile team was also competing in the competition that weekend and trying to coordinate all of the practices between OJ and Senior was stressful, but I managed. The Open Juvenile competition was on Friday around the same time as the Opening Ceremonies. I was performing the Flashmob that myself and three members of my team (Donae, Poe, Alyssa Shomsky, and Sharon Neff) made up with our ballet constructor Simone Calvas. The Crystallette senior team led the stadium in this activity, which was part of our Opening Ceremonies. Seeing people doing the dance in the audience made all those hours of making it up worth it. Later that night was the senior short program competition. This would be the first time we were putting out our program with new music. We were very excited and ready to rock and roll. We skated a sassy, amazing short program that got the audience excited to watch us. We were incredibly proud of what we had accomplished in only two weeks! We were given our highest score of the season- 64.11. We got wonderful compliments from many different people about our new program and the judges LOVED it. After the short program, we were in first place and we were ready to attack our long the next day.

Saturday arrived and on to the free skate! Of course, we had official practice in the morning and drove back to Dearborn to practice. Competition time came quickly. We arrived at the rink, warmed up, did some last minute primping and lined up in the tunnel to take the ice. We had a couple minor mistakes in our skate, but besides those minor errors we had a fabulous performance. For our long program we received most of our calls and our overall total score was 177.98 We received 1^st place overall and we were excited with what we had accomplished that weekend, especially with a two week old short program! We ended our competition with a nice awards ceremony and a pizza party. Next stop for the Senior Crystallettes- SWITZERLAND!

French Cup Day 1

2012-01-31T12:07:00.000-08:00

Bon jour! Salut de France! It's been an eventful first day for the Skyliners. After landing in France at about ten this morning we loaded the bus for a full day of touring Paris. We visited the Arc de triomphe, the Eiffel tower, the champs-élysées, then grabbed some lunch at the hard rock cafe. Continuing on we passed the louvre, then visited notre dame. We were blown away by the beauty of the city. It's definitely not what we're used to, living so close to New York City. After our tour we began the two and a half hour trip to Rouen. Welcoming us were innovative advertisements for the French Cup that were posted around the city. Our whole team was excited to see that the entire town would be involved with this weekends events. We're looking forward to a fun filled week of skating and enjoying the fantastic sights of France!

Go USA!!

Sennett

Mozart Cup with ICE'Kateers

2012-01-30T07:25:00.000-08:00

After a twelve hour plane ride from California to Munich and a two hour bus ride to Salzburg; the ICE’Kateers have finally arrived at the Mozart Cup! We had a successful practice Wednesday morning, followed by a long day of traveling until arriving in Austria on Thursday night. Upon our arrival we settled in and enjoyed a delicious dinner prepared by the hotel employees, then headed off to bed. We also ran into several of our fellow U.S.A. teammates from Miami University of Ohio on our way in as well; it was nice to see some familiar faces.

The next day we woke up to another great meal at the hotel and then headed off to unofficial practice at the Eisarena Salzburg; not far from where we’re staying.

We arrived at the arena, first having a quick off-ice practice outside, and then preceding inside to our locker room to put on our skates. The arena was a lot of fun to skate in for us; just looking out small windows of the rink gave us a gorgeous view of the snow-covered Austrian mountains right outside. It was truly a beautiful sight. Our practice started off a little shaky; not at our full potential, but we were soon able to get back into synch with one another and ended the session on a good note. After practice we had a quick lunch at the arena, and then headed back to our hotel for a short time before our Sound of Music tour later that day.

The Sound of Music tour was really a great experience; we got to learn about all of the different places where the movie was filmed, right in the city where we’re staying, and all the while seeing the beautiful sights of Austria! The city of Salzburg is truly such a stunning city, especially during this time of year when everything is covered in fresh snow. From the old churches to the quaint country homes, it’s all just so beautiful. The people are all very nice as well; everyone has been extremely friendly and kind to us no matter where we go.

Tomorrow morning we have official practice for short program, and then we compete later in the day. We’re hoping to skate our best and really represent the U.S. well. We’re also very excited to get the chance to cheer on and support our other team U.S.A. members, Miami University, as well.

GO U.S.A. :)

Linnea

Mozart Cup 2012

2012-01-29T16:21:00.000-08:00

As a very exciting weekend draws to a close, team U.S.A. stands proud of many accomplishments made over the past few days in Saluzburg, Austria. ICE'Kateers senior team placed 6th with two strong skates against many world level teams. Miami University junior team; also with two very solid programs, placed 7th. The weekend, in conclusion, was a great success for team U.S.A..

Saturday morning the ICE'Kateers woke up early and headed down to the rink for official practice for short program. We focused a great deal on making sure the technical panel could see all of our elements clearly and correctly during the session. We had two solid run-throughs; leaving rink feeling very confident for that evening. Back at the hotel we rested for a short time, but began our hair and make-up preparations early enough so we would be able to get back to the rink in order to watch Miami junior team. The junior team performed wonderfully, and we were so glad we got the chance to watch and cheer them on. Following the junior division, we went to warm up, and then took the ice.
We were pleased with our short program that night; overall it was a fairly strong skate. Although we did have some small mishaps in the routine, the ending product was something we were very much proud of. We left the rink that night looking forward to coming back and competing in the free skate. I think it's also important to mention the support of our fans here in Austria, as well as from the ones back in the U.S.. Their enthusiasm was truly spectacular; we really could not ask for better friends and family to be there for us.

Today the schedule was pretty similar; we woke up, had breakfast, went to official practice, rested, cheered on Miami, and then competed. The free skate was another solid performance for us; we did have a collision on one of our intersections, but we recovered well and completed the program without letting it affect us. Following the senior devision, every junior and senior team entered the ice for the awards ceremonies. This was a really great experience for all of the teams. I believe that is one of the best parts about international competitions; the chance to meet and interact with skaters from different countries. We were able to talk to a lot of the girls from team Austrailia, among other teams, we took pictures with them and got to meet their mascot "Kevin the Kangaroo"; which was a lot of fun.

Tomorrow we're looking forward to a free day of touring and shopping around Salzburg! We had a really wonderful time here so far, and are definitely sad to leave such a beautiful place, but are excited to get back home and start working hard for nationals!

GO U.S.A.!

Linnea

December With the Skyliners

2012-01-19T19:10:00.000-08:00

December is one of the best and busiest times of the year. With two back-to-back competitions, a show, our winter boot camp and the usual holiday stress, things can get pretty crazy.

To start off the month, Skyliners Intermediate, Novice, Junior and Senior lines traveled to the Dr. Richard Porter Classic in Dearborn, Michigan. It was a great competition! We arrived late Friday night and left Sunday after competition. We woke up around 6am on Saturday and had our official practice. This was the first time we wore our new official practice dresses, which we were all very excited about. They looked great! Official went well and we were excited for the night ahead. Before it was our time to compete, we got to watch our Intermediate line skate an amazing swing themed program. They took our breath away! A few hours later it was finally time to load the bus for competition. We played our usual bus songs to get us ready to compete. We arrived at the rink and did some more floor, went to the locker rooms, and then it was finally time to take the ice for our energetic “The Edge of Glory” short program. There was a slight hitch at the beginning of our short program, but we quickly picked it up and completed a great program. We exited the ice and were extremely happy with our scores, and we ended up in first after the short program! After we competed we stayed to watch our Senior line compete. It was an amazing debut performance for the Skyliners Senior team, to their “Mad Hatter” music.

Sunday, once again, we woke up early for our long official practice, which went very well. During our hair and makeup, both the Senior and Junior lines gathered around the computer to watch our Novice line on the live feed of the competition skate a great program to their “42^nd street” themed program. While waiting to compete our long program later that day we got to spend a few minutes with former teammates, on collegiate, junior and senior teams. It was great to see them all once again! We skated a great long program and were ecstatic to be in first place overall! It was an amazing competition for all the Skyliner lines.

Next up was the Cape Cod Classic in Borne Massachusetts. This time the Pre-preliminary, Preliminary, Pre-Juvenile, Juvenile, Intermediate, Novice and Junior lines all attended the competition. Each team performed very well, and it was another great weekend for the Skyliners. Cape Cod is one of my favorite competitions, as it is one I’ve been attending since I began skating synchro in 2001. We competed against the Lexettes and Synchroettes who both had beautiful programs. We finished first in both the long and short programs and were very happy.

The next weekend, we found ourselves back in NY, performing at the Chelsea Piers rink for the annual “Holiday on the Hudson” show. It was nice to get our program out there once again without the pressure of competition, and a great way to start off the holidays!

Right after we had digested our holiday feasts, we started our annual holiday boot camp. For four days, we meet at the rink for six hours of on ice and off ice training. It is always a lot of work, but is one of my favorite times of year as it always brings our team closer together as we get ready for the Junior World Qualifier.

Sennett C.

California Gold and Miami: Friendship among Competition

2012-01-17T20:09:00.000-08:00

In synchronized skating, it is inevitable that you will meet lifelong friends with whom you will always be close. My friendship with Emmy is no exception. We first became good friends through cross skating on the Novice and Junior Hockettes teams in the 2007-2008 season. In spending an endless number of hours together, on and off the ice, it was a certain friendship. The year that we became the closest, however, was our senior year of high school and final season skating for Hockettes. Serving as co-captains for the Hockettes Junior team, we learned the virtuosity of true leadership and the awesome results that it can have. Working together through times of both success and adversity gave us a special bond that we will always hold on to. Leadership is about more than just holding a position; it is about teamwork and setting an example in effort to inspire others to strive to reach their potential. I know I can speak for the both of us when I say that the experiences we had skating for Hockettes are ones that will remain with us for the rest of our lives. We are so grateful for our time with the organization and know that it has and will continue to greatly contribute to our success as adults.

After Ashleigh and I graduated from high school, we both had difficult decisions to make. We individually decided that we both wanted to continue skating, but each of us had other important criteria for our education. I ended up heading out west to California and joining California Gold's senior team, while Ashleigh went south to Oxford Ohio, to skate with Miami University. Once we both had made these decisions we told each other right away, excited about the future. It was sad to part from a teammate who I had grown so close to, but our friendship didn't end there. We kept in contact over the phone, with plenty of skating news to share with each other about our new teams.

Competing against someone who you’re so close to and have worked together with on the same team in the past can definitely be hard. When Emmy and I chat in the time leading up to competitions, it always includes something about the huge hug we are going to give each other. At the same time, there is always that competitive fire between us. The other part of the conversation usually goes something like “You better be ready for some fierce competition.” Competing against each other drives both of us to always be our best and at the top of our game, but we are also so proud of each other for the accomplishments we have had with our new teams. Our teams sharing the podium at Nationals this past season was one of those incredible moments that I hope we will be able to enjoy in the future. We are both looking forward to the next event - travelling together to the French Cup in Rouen next month.

Ashleigh and I remain really great friends, despite also being competitors. Over this past summer, we saw each other nearly every day at the ice rink back in Michigan and would often coordinate our schedules to practice together. Being on different teams didn't stand in the way of wanting to help each other out. We worked on drills, challenging one another and giving pointers. Over this past holiday break, we met up again and performed our program footwork sequences for one another, to get some feedback. Ashleigh watched me do my short program no hold block and told me that she thought I could get a better entry edge on my rocker if I focused on my knee bend. While I think we both consider ourselves to be very competitive, we don't let the pettiness of competition get in the way of our friendship. We are both still fiercely loyal to our teams and are honestly trying to out skate each other, however, at the end of the day, I know that we both share a love of skating and a willingness to work hard that transcends competitiveness.

Ashleigh and Emmy

December with the Haydenettes

2012-01-03T09:53:00.000-08:00

December has been a very busy month for the Haydenettes. We've had many practices, a show, and two great competitions.

(Tessa and Audrey with DREAM alumni Noelle Pearson and Jenna Longo)

First, we competed at the Cape Cod Classic. We had an awesome time skating our programs. The audience was very supportive and we were pleased with our performances. It was very fun to get to see a lot of younger skaters who attended the Hayden Summer Synchro Experience. They gave us many good laughs this summer at camp, and were just as funny when we saw them at the competition. We also got to stay at a really nice hotel right on the beach. Although the sand and water were freezing, the beach was a great place for a photo shoot.

The following weekend was the Hayden Holiday Show. All the Hayden teams and some soloists performed their programs. The Haydenettes skated their short, long, and show program. This exhibition was a great way for us to practice our programs in a simulated competition setting. After the show we had a couple more practices, then everyone got to head home for the holidays.

After our holiday break, everyone met back in Lexington for one practice before we were off to London, Ontario for Synchrofest. We had a great practice and were excited to get to Canada for the competition. Upon arrival in Ontario, we drove two hours from the Toronto airport to London for our unofficial practice. We skated very well at practice and were looking forward to the next two days of competition.

(Audrey with fellow DREAMmate Katilyn Peterson)

Wednesday morning we woke up, had a great breakfast at the hotel, and headed to the arena for short official practice. We did a solid run-through and a few sections at official practice and we felt confident heading into competition that night. We went back to the hotel, ate, rested, and got ready for the short. We skated a great program and ended up in first place! We were so excited about our placement. After the competition we had a nice dinner with the Crystallettes then went back to the hotel for a good night's sleep before the long program competition.

(photo: Elina Paasonen)

On Thursday we woke up excited for Long official practice and competition. Our official was very strong then we went back to the hotel for a quick floor practice. The long was so fun to compete. The Crystallettes were cheering us on in the stands and we were very encouraged by their support. Competing our Lady Gaga program is always a joy. We focused on our expression and tried to imitate Gaga throughout our performance. We placed second overall and were very happy with the whole competition.

(photo: Elina Paasonen)

After the competition, we got to head back home for a short break. Those living in the Midwest did not have any complications. However, those wishing to return to the East Coast had a bit of a struggle. Half of the Haydenettes got stuck in Toronto overnight due to fog and flight cancellations. We got some great team bonding in at the Hockey Hall of Fame and spent some time at the mall. We made it home just in time to celebrate New Years Eve with friends and family.

We are looking forward to competing at Colonial Classic next weekend and watching the Junior World Qualifier!

Here's a link to our long program skate: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/19456010

the rest of the short and long programs are also available to view through that site!

Tessa & Audrey

Porter 2011 Crystallettes

2011-12-26T18:22:00.000-08:00

The Crystallette teams did well at the Porter competition that is annually held on the first weekend in December. My beginner 2 team that I coach won first place and my Open Juvenile team placed third! It was a proud weekend for me as a coach. I have to admit that it is harder to be a coach than a skater because, as you are standing at the side watching the program that you choreographed, you are shaking due to the nerves. When I skate I feel like I control my movements, when I am watching my teams I have no control; it is up to them. After my two teams were done competing it was time for me to focus on my competition skating with the senior team. We had two great official practices and skated a fun short and a sassy long. We ended up placing second in short with a score of 58.33 and our overall place was third with a final score of 163.93. Unfortunately, we gave away all of the points for our no hold step sequence because not all of our skaters in the back line crossed the goal line. They were inches away. In the words of Vince Lombardi, “inches make the champion.” I am confident that we will learn from that mistake.

We were proud of our skate. Our short score was higher than at Kalamazoo. Our goal is to improve our score at each competition and so far we have done that. We had an absolute blast performing our short program to “Footloose” by Kenny Loggins. It is fun and energetic and the crowd was responding very positively to our program. We were very proud of our skate. However, we knew that it was now time to direct our focus to our long program. Our long program is choreographed to Latin music and is a very upbeat, dance number. It was the first competition that we performed our long program and we skated it nicely. Overall, it was a good weekend for the Crystallettes and all of our teams were happy with the results they received.

Of course, there were elements that we could have improved, but we look at Porter as a report card. We learn about what we have to fix and we work hard to get it done. Since Porter, we have made many changes to our programs! All of the changes we made have definitely made our programs faster, stronger, and better. We have a competition in London, Canada after Christmas from December 27^th to the 30^th. We have been practicing very hard for the last couple of weeks in order to be fully prepared for this competition because we are competing against the top teams in the world. We are determined and put in hours and hours of hard work and dedication. We are excited to get the opportunity to not only compete against top ranked teams, but to show off our new and improved programs.

Katilyn

Happy Holidays from California Gold

2011-12-24T12:24:00.000-08:00

I finished up my semester with final exams last friday, but that didn't mean it was time for a break! California Gold had a busy weekend ahead, plus a few more days of practice before we went on our holiday.

On Saturday morning we had our early morning practice as usual and then all went home for a few hours, before heading to the home of our team manager, Cheryl. Since I had been kicked out of my dorm the night before, I spent the next few nights staying with teammates (shout out to the Austels for taking care of me!). At Cheryl's we held our annual Cal Gold Christmas party with the novice and senior teams and many team families.

After a great meal, the teams prepared for a Holiday show hosted by our home rink, the East West Ice Palace. We all drove together to Ontario for the show. Senior skated our short program with the added challenge of an ice surface shortened by about a fourth. I heard that Michelle Kwan was at the show, the rink being owned by her family, but I didn't get a chance to meet her.

The whole team was up again the next morning for practice. We cut our normal practice short in order to celebrate alumni day. On alumni day the team welcomes all former members of California Gold to come and eat breakfast at the rink, watch our programs, and get on the ice. It was so nice to share some time to think about where California Gold has been and where the organization is going.

At Alumni day I got to see several teammates of mine from the previous year and we had a fun time on the ice, being taught an easy program by Coach Cipresso and Coach Falkowski. I was excited to see my Dreammate and former teammate, Annaleigh, who now attends Berkley as well as former Dream Team member Lauren Bracken.

Happy Holidays!

Emmy

Miami University Dr. Porter 2011

2011-12-05T16:40:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone,

After many weeks of practice and anxiously awaiting our first opportunity to show off our programs, the competition season has officially begun. Early Friday morning, all three of the Miami teams gathered at the rink for a competition simulation. This gave us the opportunity to see the latest versions of our programs and give each other the final boost before the weekend’s event.

We arrived in Ann Arbor on Friday afternoon and headed to the Cube for a quick unofficial practice. Walking into the rink for the first time on Friday was almost a surreal feeling, as we had been anticipating this moment for a long time. Seeing all of our parents gathered in the small, cold varsity rink bleachers, decked out in red and white to cheer us on for just a short unofficial practice, made us feel so lucky to have our own little “fan club”. Their support means the world to us.

The next morning we had an early wake-up call for official practice. As we entered the Cube this time, it was crowded with teams and fans, giving us the competitive feeling we had been looking forward to. We were excited to put our programs out there on competition ice for the first time. The practice left us feeling very confident and excited going into the competition that night. It was a lot of fun to see familiar faces around the rink, including former coaches and teammates, friends, and family.

The short program competition was definitely one of the highlights of the weekend and a memory that will stick with us all season. The stands were completely packed and full of excitement, and it was so amazing to perform our high-energy short program for such an enthusiastic crowd. We greatly appreciated the overwhelming response that we received from the crowd as we exited the ice. It was a special night for us because it was our first opportunity to come together as a team and show everyone what we have been working so hard to accomplish. I think we can speak for the whole team in saying that the feeling we had after finishing our short program was exactly the one that we had been hoping for. It was even more special to learn that we had won the event that night, something that our coach alerted us that Miami hadn’t achieved since 2006.

Before heading back to the hotel, we went to the stands to surprise our collegiate team and cheer them on for their official practice. As they took the ice, we went crazy cheering them on as if it were the competition itself. It is such an awesome thing to have all three teams be so supportive of each other. We really are a close-knit family, and this is just one example that demonstrates Miami’s motto of love and honor. We went to sleep that night feeling like we had set a great tone for the season and fired up to compete our unique long program the next day.

We took the adrenaline and confidence from the first day of competition and channeled it towards our long program from the moment that we took the ice. We completely transformed ourselves into our Gypsy character and competed a strong, dynamic long program that we were very proud of. We were very pleased with our overall score for the weekend of 174.25 and ecstatic when we learned that we had won the senior division and were presented the Dr. Porter Cup.

It was definitely a “Golden” weekend for all of Miami Skating and a wonderful way to start out our season. We are so excited to get back to practicing and preparing for the next event. We can’t wait to see what this year will bring; it is sure to be a special one! Best of luck to all teams this year! The 2011-2012 synchro season is officially in full swing!

Over and Out from the Ice³,

A²(Ashleigh & Ashley)

Introducing Katilyn Peterson

2011-11-30T16:41:00.000-08:00

Hey guys! My name is Katilyn Peterson. I am a member of the Crystallettes senior team. I am currently a junior at the University of Michigan Dearborn and am majoring in early childhood education with a minor in language arts and science.

My whole family has been involved in figure skating. My mom and aunt are coaches of the senior team and I also have cousins involved in the Crystallette program. My grandma even plays music at U.S. Figure Skating events. I started skating when I was two years old and I joined the Crystallettes preliminary team when I was five. I have competed at the preliminary, juvenile, intermediate, novice, and senior synchronized skating levels. This is my seventh year on the senior team and my third year as captain. The Dearborn Figure Skating Club has an award named for a former coach, Tracey Venda. This award is for a member of the senior team who is a role model for the younger skaters, gives back to the synchronized program and is a leader. I have had the great honor of earning the Tracey Venda award twice and I am the first person to do so. Skating has always been a major part of my life. I love sharing my wonderful skating memories with my family.

This is my third year coaching singles and synchronized skating teams for the Dearborn Figure Skating Club. I enjoy helping younger skaters realize their dreams. I hope to inspire younger skaters to set goals and work hard to achieve them.Skating has taken me to the most wonderful places and I have met amazing people. I have made everlasting friendships due to synchronized skating. Performing on the ice with my team is an incredible feeling. Nothing can beat that adrenaline rush of excitement that you feel when you step onto that ice and I love sharing it with the members of my team. I hope my students also enjoy and experience the same opportunities that synchronized skating has given to me.

My favorite Team USA/skating memory would definitely have to be making the 2010 World Team. The feeling of making the world team is indescribable. There was so much joy, excitement, relief, and pride in what we had accomplished. Our hard work and determination had paid off and we had completed our goal of the season. The 2010 World Championships were held in Colorado Springs, Colo. Having the opportunity to compete against the top teams in the world, in our home country, was a very honorable experience. The sound of the crowd when we took the ice to compete was unforgettable! I still remember how hard my heart was pumping and the exhilaration that had built up inside of me. We ended up placing ninth in the world. The experience of making it to worlds and competing at the biggest competition of the season is something that I will cherish forever. I am thankful for everything U.S. Figure Skating, our club, and community did for us during our trip to the 2010 World Championships.The experience will never be forgotten.

When I am not on the ice, I am usually studying and keeping up with my classes. The endless hours of homework consumes most of my down time. If I am not skating or coaching, I am usually studying, helping my family, or hanging out with my friends. During the summer months, I love to go with my family to our cottage up north.We jet ski, ride the quad runner, shop, catch fish, read books and lay out in the sun. I have a very busy schedule between skating, coaching, and school but I wouldn’t change it for anything in the world.

Here are some of my favorite things:

Favorite sports figure: Michelle Kwan

Favorite sports team: Crystallettes

Favorite cities: Cabo, Paris, and San Diego.

Top five most played songs on my IPod right now: 1) “Good to you” by Marianas Trench, 2) “Call Me in the Morning” by Taking Back Sunday, 3) “Just a Kiss” by Lady Antebellum, 4) “Ashamed” by Jamestown Story, and 5) “Without you” by Usher.

Favorite musician/band: Skillet

Favorite movie: Pocahontas

Favorite books: Twilight Saga

Favorite TV show: Modern Family

Favorite magazines: Seventeen

Favorite vacation spot: Cabo, Mexico

Favorite food: Grilled cheese

Favorite place I’ve traveled for skating: Maine

Favorite program I’ve ever skated: This year’s short program to Footloose by Kenny Loggins.

Favorite quote: “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind”. (Dr. Seuss)

Introducing Sennett Cooke

2011-11-29T14:15:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! My name is Sennett Cooke and I am a member of the Skyliners junior team. I am currently a senior at Pelham Memorial High School in Pelham, New York. I will be starting college next fall, and I’m thinking about majoring in Athletic Training, a topic where I hope to stay involved with synchronized skating, and athletes in general.

I began skating at the age of five, when a family friend took me skating at a rink near my house. As soon as I got on, I fell in love, and made her bring me back countless times, until finally for Christmas that year, Santa brought me my first pair of skates and lessons at my current home rink.

About a year later, my mom found out my home club was starting a synchro team, something no one in my family had ever heard of, but in an attempt to get me into a team dynamic, my mom signed me up. The team was called the Skyliners and I have had the pleasure of skating for this amazing organization for my eleven years of being a synchronized skater. I have always enjoyed skating in general, but there is something about having the support of fifteen other extremely dedicated athletes behind you, any time you step on the ice, that really separates my love of synchronized skating from my enjoyment of other figure skating disciplines.

My favorite Team USA memory was definitely competing in Prague, Czech Republic at the Prague Cup. This was my very first time competing as a Team USA athlete, an achievement I had worked toward for many years. Prague is by the far the most beautiful country I have visited, (even in the middle of winter), and was an amazing place to travel to. We had one of our best skates that season in Prague, but the best part of the competition was stepping onto the ice and hearing the announcer say, “representing the United States of America” for the first time. There is no feeling that can compare to the pride one feels representing their team, their sport and their country.

When I’m not on the ice, which is very rare, I am usually spending time with family and friends, or catching up on homework. I enjoy baking and photography a lot, so anytime the opportunity arises I usually take advantage. I love the excuse of a birthday or major event to bake some cupcakes or a cake for my teammates! I have had the opportunity to participate in several community service projects, and greatly enjoy giving back to my community. I also have a job at my home rink! I do various jobs around the rink and once a week I teach group classes as well. I love working with my students. They are so much fun, and it always gives me a sense of pride that I could have some impact on a young athlete looking to begin this sport I enjoy so much.

Good Luck to everyone this season!

Sennett

Favorites:

Favorite sports team: New York Yankees

Favorite city: New York City

Favorite books: The Harry Potter series

Favorite TV show: Glee

Favorite vacation spot: Cape Cod, MA

Favorite place I’ve traveled for skating: Prague, Czech Republic

Favorite program I’ve ever skated: Skyliners Junior 2010-2011 free skate (Phantom of the Opera): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdgQ1x5dbkQ

Introducing Emmeline Weinert

2011-11-28T20:43:00.000-08:00

Hi, my name is Emmy and I am a member of California Gold senior. I am currently a sophomore at Loyola Marymount University and am a Dance and Political Science double major.

A few years after beginning skating in basic skills classes, I joined the Hockettes preliminary team when I was in the third grade. I have two older sisters and both were Hockettes before me, which inspired me to try out for the team. I ended up skating with the Hockettes for 10 seasons (5 of those spent cross-skating) and so my parents were Hockette parents for a total of 16 consecutive years.

All throughout my skating career I have juggled dance along with my team commitments and on several occasions told myself I would choose one or the other so that I could focus on it and become truly proficient. When heading off to college I decided that it would be cruel to make myself pick just one and decided I would just have to find a way to do both. That was how I came to skate for California Gold. California Gold draws skaters from all over the greater Los Angeles area and I knew that there I could find dance. At Loyola Marymount I am able to major in Dance as well as skate on a strong and challenging senior team.

My favorite Team USA memory is from the first time I represented the United States overseas in Milan, Italy, my first year on Hockettes junior (06-07). That first experience put me in awe of the honor that had been bestowed on me to represent my country. I was overwhelmed with the knowledge that few others get to experience the pride that I was experiencing. I still get that feeling every time I compete overseas and wear my Team USA jacket.

(Hockettes Junior in Milan, Italy after a third place finish, 2007)

When I’m not on the ice you will usually find me dancing or studying. I don't live the typical college life, going to bed before 10:00 p.m. most nights, so that I can wake up at 3:30 a.m. for practice, but wouldn't trade my life for the world. I love to hang out with my friends and we can often be found playing Disney Charades, arguing about the definition of magic or basically participating in any other nerdy pursuit. I am very interested in politics and am involved in several different political organizations on campus. I believe that one of the best forms of service is to actively engage in political dialogue and action, to make sure that institutions reflect what we care about. My constant goal is insure that my peers and I are becoming good and informed citizens of the world community. I also work part time at a private school here in Los Angeles, doing all manner of office work.

(Look! Its me and the President. Its a little hard to find me so I circled it....)

Favorite sports figure: Muhammad Ali

Favorite sports team: The Detroit Tigers!

Favorite cities: My parent's home town of Detroit and my own hometown Ann Arbor.

Favorite musician/band: I am a big lover of John Legend.

Favorite movie: I guess I'm a fan of trilogies, Star Wars, the Matrix and Lord of the Rings

Favorite books: Jane Eyre and Harry Potter

Favorite TV show: The West Wing

Favorite vacation spot: Green Gables; a cabin in the woods of northern Michigan that has been in my family for several generations.

Favorite place I’ve traveled for skating: Berlin, Germany

Favorite program I’ve ever skated: I have two, a Junior short program to “Pump It” by the Black Eyed Peas (06-07) and senior long program to “Robin Hood” (10-11)

Favorite quote: “There is no them, only facets of us.” -John Green

Introducing Dana Hall

2011-11-27T06:32:00.000-08:00

Hi! I'm Dana Hall. I am a member of Starlights senior. I am currently a Freshman at the University of Wisconsin--Whitewater. I plan on majoring in Athletic Training. This means that when I am done skating, I would like to be able to travel with teams that go internationally and be their team doctor/trainer.

When I was younger, I skated for Wisconsin Edge. After that I skated for the Fond du Lac Blades. I spent about six years with them until I went to where I currently am; with the Starlights. I first got into skating because my grandparents took our whole family to a rink. I was too small to fit into any skates so I had to wear my shoes. It was so much fun that apparently I was hooked and haven't stopped skating since.

My favorite Team USA memory would be from last year when I was in Austria. We had gone to the same restaurant every night for dinner. One of the time we went, we were all really tired from the day and one of the girls on the team felt like she needed to bring our spirits up. So, she decided that she was going to eat some horseradish. One of our coaches told her, "if you eat a spoonful of that, then you don't have to do the warm-up block when we get home." My teammate was so up for that. She took a HUGE spoonful, plugged her nose, and shoved it in her mouth. It was absolutely hilarious! She brightened the spirits of the team that night, but unfortunately she still had to do the warm-up block when we got back to the U.S.

When I am not skating, you can usually find me doing homework in my dorm room or getting involved on campus. I love going out with my friends on weeknights to go bowling. We always have so much fun. A pasttime of mine would be watching synchro on youtube, because I really enjoy seeing what teams have done with their programs over the years and how synchro has changed. If I am not out bowling or on youtube, I am most likely listening to music. It calms me down after a hard day of classes. Although skating is a huge part of my life, I was also involved in Color Guard at my high school along with softball. I enjoy sports and being involved in anything I can be involved in.

Favorites:
Favorite sports figure: Michael Jordan
Favorite sports team: Chicago Blackhawks
Favorite cities: Chicago, New York
Favorite movie: Dear John
Favorite place I’ve traveled for skating: Rouen, France
Favorite program I’ve ever skated: Starlights senior 2010, Music Box

Favorite quote: SKATING: It's the feeling you get at the end of a hard practice when you pushed yourself to the limit, the way the ice feels when you get back on it after a few months off. It's a part of YOUR IDENTITY, something you LOVE and something you HATE. A bond that NO ONE ELSE really understands, but that's okay, because every time you get out on the ice it isn't just you; it's all the friends and coaches over the years, all the practices, all the sweat, all the pain, all the tears, all the memories, all the laughter, all the "off" competitions, all the lifetime bests, and all the road trips. As individual as it may seem, skating is really a team sport, and even still, it's more than just a sport. IT'S A WAY OF LIFE.

Sincerely,

Dana

Introducing Ashleigh Ostin

2011-11-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! My name is Ashleigh Ostin. I’m from Farmington, Michigan, a suburb in the Metro Detroit area. I am a member of the Miami senior varsity team. I am currently a sophomore at Miami University and this will be my second season skating for the senior team. I am majoring in International Studies with minors in Spanish and Marketing. Ever since spending summers in Finland and Denmark when I was 11 and 13 through a children’s international program, I’ve known I wanted to pursue something related to these experiences. I hope to someday work in the business world for an international company that allows me to continue my passion for traveling and international affairs.

I started skating at the age of 3 after watching my older brother play hockey. I asked my mom if I could do that too, and it wasn’t long before I was signed up for group lessons. I’m not sure my parents knew what they were getting themselves into, as I think they expected me to play hockey like my brother. Obviously that was not the case. From then on, our second home became the rink.

I joined my first synchronized skating team at the age of 6. I skated for the Gems on Ice until 2007, winning national medals at the juvenile, intermediate, and novice levels. I then joined the Hockettes and skated for three seasons on the junior team. I graduated from Mercy High School in 2010, became a freshman at Miami University and earned a spot on the senior varsity team that fall.

My favorite Team USA memory was competing at the 2011 World Synchronized Skating Championships in Helsinki, Finland. Because Finland already holds a special place in my heart due to time spent there in previous years and close friends that live there, being able to compete in Helsinki was a dream come
true for me. The feeling I got stepping on the ice for the short program was the highlight of the experience and is something very difficult to put into words. The crowd and amount of cheering and noise in the arena was astounding. Being able to skate one of our best performances in such an amazing atmosphere is a memory that will remain with me forever.

When I’m not on the ice, you can usually find me in our local Starbucks enjoying a cup of coffee and getting some homework done. Otherwise I am probably spending time with my teammates. It’s an awesome thing to go to school and have classes with your teammates in addition to skating. You could say we spend just about every hour of every day together. I also coach group lessons here at Miami, which I really enjoy. It’s so rewarding to be able to give back to the sport that’s been such a big part of my life and given so much to me over the years.

All of the Miami teams have been very busy and working extremely hard over the past few months. We had a very successful parents weekend exhibition and loved performing our short program at a recent hockey game. We are looking forward to debuting our programs at our first competition of the season, the Dr. Porter Classic in Ann Arbor! See you all at the Cube!

Miami Senior performs during the the Miami vs. Michigan Hockey game

(photo by Pam Sutter)

Love & Honor,
Ashleigh

Fun Facts:

Favorite sports team: Detroit Red Wings

Favorite cities: Helsinki, Amsterdam, San Diego

Most played song on my IPod right now: Icey Queen by Milos Rosas

Favorite singer: Madonna

Favorite movies: Miracle, Beauty and the Beast

Favorite book: Wuthering Heights

Favorite vacation spot: Northern Michigan in the summertime

Favorite food: Coffee, Frozen Yogurt (especially from Yogurtland in California!)

Favorite place I’ve traveled for skating: Helsinki, Finland

Favorite program I’ve ever skated: 2008 Junior Hockettes free skate (“Flamenco”)

Favorite quote: “A great leader’s courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position.”

Introducing Linnea Barrett

2011-11-21T00:08:00.000-08:00

Hi, my name is Linnea Barrett and I am a member of ICE’Kateers senior team. I am currently a senior at El Dorado High School in Placentia, CA. I plan to attend a four-year college next fall; possibly majoring in psychology, while minoring in communications.

I started skating when I was about 5 years old. I had just moved to California from Connecticut the year before, and began to take an interest in the sport after becoming close friends with my next door neighbor, and DREAM alumi, Taylor Walker. I skated on several ISI teams growing up, and in 2002 I joined the ICE’Kateers; who I have skated with ever since. I also continued competing in singles skating over the years, and am currently a gold medalist in moves in the field and am trying to earn the same title in free skating as well.

My favorite synchro memory was a few years ago at the 2008 U.S Synchronized Skating Championships. This was the year the ICE’Kateers earned their first spot on Team USA. I remember standing with my teammates in the kiss and cry, seeing and hearing our scores, and being completely ecstatic when we learned we had qualified for the opportunity to compete internationally. I remember in the locker room, after we got off the ice, asking one of my teammates, “What does this mean, what does this mean?” and when they told me it meant we got to travel overseas to compete; I was overwhelmed with joy and pride in my team. We had come together and worked hard to create a product that earned us the honor of representing our country overseas, and for the first time in our organization's history! I truly cannot put together words to describe that feeling.

When I’m not on the ice, I'm generally pretty busy! Along with skating and school, I also work part time and am involved in various school clubs. I'm the president of my figure skating club's junior board and am a Link Crew leader at my school (a group that assists freshman throughout their first year of high school). I love spending time with my friends, as well as my younger sister; they have a way of making me laugh until I can't breathe. I'm obsessed with driving, something I can't really explain but I've been this way since the day I got my driver's license. You can usually find me driving around with my friends, listening to music, or having our own personal concert. I also love baking, traveling, and eating out with friends and family.

Looking forward to a great season!

Linnea

My Favorites:

Favorite sports team: New England Patriots

Favorite music genre: Country :)

Favorite book: The Outsiders, Harry Potter

Favorite movie: Pride and Prejudice, Slumdog Millionaire, She's the Man, and Tangled

Favorite TV show: New Girl

Favorite program I’ve ever skated: I actually really love our short program this season! The music is a tango piece; something I've always wanted to skate to.

Favorite place I’ve traveled for skating: Tennessee

Favorite quote: “If you never did you should. These things are fun, and fun is good.” - Dr. Seuss

“The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.”

2011 - 2012 DREAM members

2011-11-18T07:29:00.000-08:00

U.S. Figure Skating is pleased to announce the members of the 2011-12 DREAM Program:

Athlete (Hometown) - Team
Linnea Barrett (Plecentia, Calif.) - ICE'Kateers
Sennett Cooke (Pelham, N.Y.) - Skyliners
Dana Hall (Fond du Lac, Wisc.) - Starlights
Tessa Hedges (Grosse Point Farms, Mich.) - Haydenettes
Bianca Jackson (Glencoe, Ill.) - Starlights
Audrey McQuade (North White Plains, N.Y.) - Haydenettes
Ashley Mulhern (New Canaan, Conn.) - Miami University
Ashleigh Ostin (Farmington, Mich.) - Miami University
Katilyn Peterson (Dearborn, Mich.) - Crystallettes
Emmeline Weinert (Ann Arbor, Mich.) - California Gold
Annaleigh Yahata (Yorba Linda, Calif.) - California Gold

Please visit the DREAM section of the U.S. Figure Skating Website for complete bios of all DREAM Program Athletes.

A New Chapter

2011-11-09T10:42:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone,

This blog is long overdue, but I hope that it finds everyone well at the start of our 2011-2012 seasons. I just recently started a new chapter of my life as I moved out to Oxford, Ohio to start my freshman year at Miami University. One of the hardest things about this transition, other than moving 13 hours away from my mom, dad, and younger sister, was moving away from the other huge piece of my life, my 20 “sisters” and “family”, my team, the Skyliners. After skating with the Skyliners organization for the past 9 years, there were definitely a few tears shed as I had to say goodbye, but that being said, I was excited for the new opportunity that stood ahead of me. My Skyliners coaches, including Josh Babb, Jenny Gibson, and Sarah LeBlanc Blosat, could not have prepared me better as both a skater and person for the challenges that I face in college.

The first few weeks of college were surreal as I could not believe that after 10 years of attending Miami Summer Skating Camps and always dreaming of being a Redhawk, I was finally there. The week of tryouts took me by storm, with so many amazing skaters working for just 53 spots on the varsity teams. I was beyond thrilled when I was placed on the senior team, and it was clear that one of my life long dreams was really coming true.

So far, my experience on the team has been absolutely incredible. Being a varsity athlete at a division 1 university is something so special. Although each week is busier than the next, with classes, on-ice practices, off-ice practices, and much more, you always know that you have 52 other teammates standing behind you ready to support you and help you out whenever you may need it. The veterans on the senior team were so extremely welcoming and have really helped me get through these first 3 months of completely new experiences.

Although Miami Skating gets a much later start than many other teams throughout the country, we really hit the ground running right away. In just the second week of post tryout practices, choreographer Sarah Kawahara came in to piece together the senior free skate. This was a whirlwind experience for the rookies, but ended with a very fun, creative program and 20 extremely exhausted girls. Less than 4 weeks later, choreographer Scott Brown came in to to “Jazz up” our very enthusiastic short program. At the conclusion of fall break weekend, we had 2 programs that we were completely thrilled with and had gotten a great critique from 3 U.S. Figure Skating officials. In addition to all of our busy practice schedules, the Miami teams participated in the Susan G Komen Race for the Cure, supported other Miami varsity teams in their sporting events, held spirit days at practice for homecoming week, walked in the Miami University Homecoming Parade, and had a very successful skating Parents Weekend.

This past weekend was filled with skater-parent reunions, family skates, and crowd filled performances. I was so excited to see my parents after 3 months of not seeing them. I’m so grateful that they were able to make the trip out to see all 3 teams perform their 2011-2012 competitive season programs and be here for such a nice weekend. This coming weekend both the collegiate and senior teams are looking forward to our first opportunity to skate between the periods of the hockey games making the sport better known across the campus.

Best of luck to all teams in their last weeks of practice prior to the competition season. That’s all for now! Can’t wait to see everyone at Porter!

Love & Honor,
Ashley

October with the Haydenettes

2011-11-01T08:25:00.001-07:00

October proved to be a very busy month for the Haydenettes. The first weekend in October, the Haydenettes and the Lexettes participated in the Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in downtown Boston. Both teams enjoyed spending our Sunday morning making a difference right in our hometown. We decked out in pink and maroon attire and walked alongside the Charles River. The Haydenettes enjoyed a nice team lunch before heading to practice that afternoon.

The following week, the Haydenettes spent Columbus Day rinkside at our monitoring session. The practice went very well, and we received great feedback from the officials. After monitoring we had a great afternoon of team bonding. We had lunch together after practice then went apple picking. The weather was beautiful and we picked some tasty apples!

The third weekend in October, the Haydenettes debuted the short program at a very special event at Harvard, An Evening with Champions. The Haydenettes have participated in this event for fifteen years. It was an honor to skate between Rachael Flatt and Oksana Baiul. Another featured skater at this event was Olympic Gold medalist Yuna Kim. The audience was very supportive and responded well to our skating. We were all amused bythe “oohs” and “aahs” from the crowd when we stopped in unison at the end of our warm-up block.

The following weekend was the Hayden Synchronized Skating Teams Kick Off. All the teams skated their programs for friends and family. It is a great time of year to come together as a club and support one another. This was the first time the Haydenettes performed the long program for an audience. All of the teams looked amazing, especially for this early in the season.

The Haydenettes spent the final weekend of the month in New York City performing in the annual opening of the Citi Pond at Bryant Park. The Haydenettes love performing at Bryant Park. The audience was wonderful, not to mention the amazing rink-side scenery.

(All above Bryant Park)

photos: Mary Jane Hanlon, Ted Castro

The pre-season has flown by incredibly fast. It won’t be long until our first competition in December. We can’t wait to start the competitive season! We’ll update more as that time approaches.

-Audrey and Tessa

College Bound!

2011-08-14T23:37:00.000-07:00

This past spring, I was faced with a major question. “Which college should I go to?” Being the indecisive person I am, I struggled with this choice for a while. I made pro-con lists and looked at numerous websites explaining the ups and downs of each college I was accepted into. I eventually chose to attend University of California Berkeley. Each minute I spent researching the schools, I got more excited about Berkeley and studied less of the other schools. I went up to visit the campus and fell in love with the location and just the feel of a college campus with a lot of school pride.

With all the gains that came with going to Berkeley, there were also sacrifices I had to make. One being the fact that there is no synchro team for me to skate on. This is what made it an unbelievably hard choice to make. However, I prayed about it, thought about how I have had some amazing times with my teams, and I decided that my education came first in this situation. Luckily, Cal has a figure skating club that competes in intercollegiate competitions, so I still have the opportunity to skate!

I wish the best of luck to all teams this season and also to all high schoolers in your college choices!

Annaleigh

Summer Update

2011-08-11T10:00:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys!

This summer is much different than what used to be normal for me! I currently have an internship at Sonoco Products Company. The paper mill is located in City of Industry, California which is about 2 hours from my hometown in San Diego. This worked out really well because I am still able to see family and friends on the weekends while getting a great work experience in the paper industry, which is a specified field within my degree of Chemical Engineering.

At the mill, recycled paperboard is the final product produced. The paper machine runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. To create the product, Sonoco buys recycled cardboard boxes, newpaper, mixed paper, and tubes from both vendors and local customers. Then these resources are essentially ground up, run through multiple cleaners and refiners, and used to make brand new sheets of paper.

(Recycled books used for production)

(Final products consist of large paper reels even bigger than people)

I wish I could say that maintaining a full time job and training go hand in hand but I'm sure few have found that to be the case. Luckily, early morning skating sessions are available and I usually head to the rink to skate before getting to the office at 7 and then I head back for weights in the afternoon. It can be a challenging and hectic schedule but it also proves one of the countless beauties of being a Varsity student athlete. At school and home, on and off the ice, not only are we training to be the best at our sport, but also for all our future careers and endeavors.

I have learned an unbelievable amount after 10 weeks of my internship at Sonoco. It's hard to believe that the summer has flown by so fast. I have met so many incredible people and industry contacts already, from people at my office to other plants within Sonoco (I'm known as "the ice skater from Miami"). I've even given a presentation for the VP! I am very excited to see the results of my projects. It has been such a great opportunity and experience and I cannot wait to see what comes next for me! :)

Enjoy the rest of summer! And get ready for another fantastic synchro season! :)

Lauren

Choosing a School- My Journey

2011-08-09T06:00:00.000-07:00

The college selection process is an intimidating step in the lives of children and parents. Most people choose a school based on the academics and where they fit in best. I came into the process struggling with many questions, but most importantly, where could I go that fits me academically and will allow me to skate?

(photo: Boston College ice rink - Silvio O Conte Forum)

I started the process last summer via a long east coast tour with my parents. I visited Boston College, Boston University, Yale, Harvard, and Princeton. I came out of this trip slightly more stressed because I could see myself at many of the schools I visited. These tours shed light on which parts to highlight on your application, and on how to go about completing it. Later on, I visited Northwestern University and Miami University, and of course ended up loving both as well.

I began the Common Application in August, which was a smart decision because if you wait until school begins, homework begins to take over your time. I wrote many essays (mostly about skating experiences- which make great topics) and was done by December. After I sent in my last application, I had to endure the wait until March.

I did apply to schools at which I could not integrate skating. Even though I knew in my heart that I could not leave the sport at this time, my head told me that I should begin to concentrate solely on academics. It was after the U.S. Synchro Championships and the Dearborn ice show that I knew I wasn’t done skating. It had been a part of me for too long.

(photo: some Crystallettes at the Dearborn Figure Skating Club ice show)

I was granted acceptance to University of Michigan, Boston College, and Miami University. Each university would allow me to skate, but all were very different. After a long period of contemplating and pro-con lists, I finally realized that what was important was that I was comfortable and happy. I ended up choosing Boston College because it was undoubtedly my favorite campus and location. It meant leaving a lot of my friends and memories behind, but if my years of skating had taught me anything, it would be to take risks and chase after your dreams. I am forever thankful for the ongoing support from my parents and my teammates over the years.

Next fall I will be skating for the Haydenettes and attending Boston College as a biochemistry major. I could not be more excited about my choice, but I know that I would have been happy with whichever college I chose.

(photo: My mom and I at a Detroit Tigers vs. Red Sox game-- not to worry Tigers fans, my loyalty will always be in Detroit ;))

My best advice for rising seniors (or anyone anticipating the college selection process) is to breathe and remember that what’s supposed to happen, will happen. It is ok to take skating into consideration when you are choosing a school, as you have to take many different factors into account when deciding what school will make you happiest. Balancing college classes and an intense skating schedule requires extreme time management skills, another skill this sport instills in its participants.

Skating is extremely close to my heart. I am very fortunate to be able to continue my love for the sport and integrate it into my college experience.

I hope I shed some light on the process! Have a great summer, and I will update shortly with summertime activities with the Haydenettes and the DREAM program.

Tessa

Pacific Coast DREAM Camp

2011-07-20T14:14:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was the Pacific Coast DREAM camp in Anaheim, Calif. Taylor, Annaleigh, and I were the 3 DREAMmates to attend this camp along with Team USA coaches, Josh Babb (Skyliners), Pam May (Team Braemar), and Lisa Darken (Chicago Jazz).

We had a jam packed day full of various on ice classes including musical interpretation, lines and wheels, and circles and blocks. On ice classes were alternated with off ice classes consisting of dance, team bonding, and conditioning.

(Working on spirals with Pam and Lisa)

The athletes were split into separate groups which allowed all to really use this time to learn to their advantage. It was evident that the campers were having a great time and Taylor, Annaleigh, and I had an equally fun time demonstrating and participating in all the events. The day was finished off with a pizza party for all the athletes where they could sit and chat with all their new friends.

Now, it's almost time for the U.S. Figure Skating Synchronized Skating Training Festival in Strongsville, Ohio! Participating in the festival is always one of the highlights of the summer. The DREAMmates start off by participating in the Coaches College, where we learn more about the new IJS communications and get to interact with the top coaches and officials in the country. During the 2 day skating camp, we each take on various roles on and off the ice, serving as team leaders, on- and off-ice demostrators and helpers. We have fantastic time together and with all the campers participating. It is always such a neat thing to see how everyone comes together in such a short amount of time, regardless of where the individuals come from.

Hope everyone has had a fabulous summer so far and we can't wait to see you in Ohio next week!

Love from California,
Lauren

DREAM Alumni Update - Emily Saitta

2011-07-15T07:55:00.000-07:00

Emily Saitta was an original DREAM Athlete, serving as a member of the program from 2008-2010. Saitta has competed as a member of University of Michigan's collegiate team, as well as been a member of Team USA while competing with the Crystallettes senior team. Before college, Saitta was a skater with the ICE'Kateers Synchronized Skating Teams, from Anaheim, Calif., for six years.

Since completing my time with the DREAM program, I have done quite a bit of skating and traveling. I decided to apply to study abroad in Sydney, Australia for the second semester of my junior year and was accepted into the program! I focused and worked really hard on my singles skating and passed my senior freeskate test in November 2010, right before I left for Sydney. This was a huge accomplishment for me and I was then able to “hang up my skates” for a few months while traveling around Australia. But before I took that 15 hour flight around the world, I had to get my synchro fix satisfied! In the two months I spent at home before flying to Australia, I skated with the ICE’Kateers senior synchronized skating team. After a few short weeks of training, I competed with the team at sectionals in Minnesota. I had a wonderful time performing the routines and was able to spend my last few months in California with some great friends.

Before I knew it, I was off to Australia for an adventure of a lifetime. I lived in Australia for 5 months taking a full load of classes, interning with travel agency Backpacker World Travel, and learning how to budget extremely well. I made great friendships, navigated through unfamiliar lands, and studied in a new teaching environment. A quote from my final posting to my personal blog that I updated while in Australia sums up my time while studying abroad:

“This has been perhaps the greatest experience of my life. I can't imagine my college career being complete without studying abroad. It is a learning experience you simply can't get any other way. I have learned so much from this experience, including increased knowledge in economics and the marine environment through my courses. I worked for a local business with English and Irish people learning about their cultures and lifestyles. I learned how to live off the land, make a fire, and even play guitar. I made great friends and explored an AMAZING country.

Walking past the opera house and Sydney Bridge never gets old. I am in awe every time. By talking to and living with individuals from other countries, my eyes were open to what goes on in the rest of the world. I even changed my homepage to BBC international! I have learned how to relax here and value the time I get to listen and talk with friends. Making dinner and singing to a guitar is just as great as camping in the rainforest and swimming under waterfalls when you are with great friends. Being here was such a surreal experience. Everything around you is beautiful and you are learning so much at the same time. I am so glad I did it.”

I have just returned home to California and am spending time with friends and family before I head back to the University of Michigan for my final year as a senior! This has been such an incredible journey and it proves to me that one can accomplish all of their desires including skating, studying abroad, being involved in clubs, attending sporting events, knowing professors personally, meeting incredible people, and being happy knowing that many doors are available just waiting to be opened!

--Emily Saitta

Summer Update From Wisconsin

2011-07-04T20:52:00.000-07:00

Summer in Wisconsin is always just as busy as my school year. I’m grateful that I have such a supportive skating club where I can come home and coach 6 days a week, while taking 12 credits of summer school, preparing for tryouts in the fall, working on a senior free program, staying in shape, running 5Ks & 10Ks and making a profit by pursuing my passion for photography through family portraits, senior pictures and an upcoming wedding. I guess there is just a little bit of free time in there to enjoy spending time with family, friends and three little nephews.

As a communications major, I’ve started job searching for life after graduation. I’d like to do something where I can incorporate advertising, photography, graphic design and/or sports marketing. The options seem endless and I’m still not quite sure what sort of company I can see myself working for, but for now I’ll continue investigating and see where life leads me come next May.
I suppose I really like to make use of every ounce of my day and continuing to do what I love and loving what I do. I think it’s important to soak up the time that I have while I’m still in school and enjoy it all. I guess you could say “busy” is my middle name, but I’ve never had any regrets on how much I take on. Living the life of a student-athlete at Miami teaches skaters many life skills, and one of the most important is time management. You truly can pursue anything you want with focus and perseverance.

I’m off to New Jersey next week to coach a DREAM Camp with Jenna Longo and Audrey McQuade while also visiting visit teammates Christina Lee, Martha Buckley and DREAM member Ashley Mulhern. At the end of the month myself and the nine other DREAM members will head to Strongsville, OH for the annual Training Festival.

An update from one of the camps will be coming soon!

Love & Honor,

Sarah

My College Process

2011-06-06T16:12:00.000-07:00

Going into this season and school year I did everything I could to avoid thinking about college. All summer long my mom bugged me about starting essays and applications, but I kept rolling my eyes and ignoring her. I did not feel ready to leave high school, and possibly the Skyliners behind, so I avoided the college process at all costs.

In the fall I began to crack down and really tried to figure out where I wanted to go to school. There was no doubt in my mind that I wanted to skate. My guidance counselor printed out a list of every school in the country that had a Synchro team. Then, my mom and I added schools to that list that had teams in areas surrounding them. As application deadlines approached, I was very stressed out and upset. In hindsight, I should have listened to my mom and gotten all my essays done over the summer. The whole process would have been a lot less stressful. I ended up applying to six schools; Loyola University in Chicago, Dartmouth College, Miami University of Ohio, the University of Michigan, Fordham University, and Northeastern University.

I applied to Loyola in Chicago because when I went and visited the school, I loved it. Chicago is an amazing city, similar to New York, and I felt that I would enjoy spending four years there. Also, going there would have given me the opportunity to skate for Heather Paige and the Starlights who are just outside of Chicago. I have worked with Heather for many summers at various skating camps and I knew I would love skating on her team. She is an amazing coach and person and I really loved Chicago, so I was very pleased when my acceptance letter arrived from Loyola. It was my first acceptance and I was so excited!

I applied to Dartmouth because my cousin is a student there. Hanover is a beautiful rural town in New Hampshire and Dartmouth is an awesome school. There is no synchro team there, but there is an intercollegiate freestyle team, and a nice rink. Hopefully my fellow Dreammate Bianca Jackson will be able to start some sort of synchro Program there as she will be attending in the fall! Sadly, I was denied admission.

I applied and was accepted to the Honors College at Miami University. Growing up I went to Miami every summer for camp and I always had an amazing time. When I was younger I looked up to the Miami skaters that were my counselors. I considered them skating gods. I felt so blessed to be accepted to the Honors Program at such a beautiful school that also offered an amazing synchro program with coaches I had grown to love while spending my summers there.

I applied to Michigan because two ex-Skyliners and great friends of mine are current students there. Hearing them talk about their experiences socially, in classes, and with the skating team, I felt I had to apply. Upon acceptance, I decided to go to the skating team’s “Wolverine Weekend.” I stayed in the dorm with one of my friends and attended admission events and a clinic with the team and their coach Erin Donovon. It was so much fun and added to the stress I was feeling about having to make the decision about where to go.

When Skyilners announced it was having a Senior team, I hastily applied to Fordham University in the Bronx. My mom had gone there, and its vicinity to Manhattan and the locations where Skyliners practice was perfect. Also, it is only twenty minutes from my house so I could go home to visit my sisters whenever I felt like it.

Last, but certainly not least, I applied to Northeastern University because I wanted to apply to at least one school in Boston. I chose Northeastern because I liked how it is right in Boston but has a defined campus. Also, it has a great Criminal Justice program that appealed to me and I could potentially skate for the Haydenettes.

After the Junior World Challenge Cup, I knew it was time to make a decision. I was torn into fifths. I could picture myself at every school. Academically, they all had things I liked, and each school came with an amazing skating option. At the Skyliners year end party I ended up in tears because I was so emotional and stressed over making a decision. The next day I drove to Lexington with my dad and tried out for Haydenettes. Soon after, I found out I had made the team. I was ecstatic. Making the team was a huge honor and I was very proud.

Finally, after weeks of stress and deliberation with my parents, I decided to go to Northeastern and skate Haydenettes. I eliminated other schools by examining myself. I am a true city person so Oxford, OH was not my ideal setting. Also, I come from a very small high school community, and Michigan seemed a little too big for me. Fordham just is too close to home, while Loyola is just a little too far. Northeastern is a perfect location, and financially works very well for my family. I feel like the world has been lifted off my shoulders since I made the decision. I am sad to be leaving Skyliners. It has become my family over the past eight years and I love my teammates and coaches more than anything. Everyone has been so supportive of my decision, and for that I will be eternally grateful. I am so relieved to be done with the college process and excited for my future as a Husky and a Haydenette!

End of the Season Sorrows

2011-05-19T18:19:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! We both simply cannot believe that another season has come and gone. For Jenna, it feels as if she is beginning her first season as a Haydenette, not starting her sixth! Where has the time gone?

The Haydenettes busy schedule becomes rather scarce in April and May. Upon returnig from Worlds we get a small break before the end of the season preparation begins. That small break has never stopped us from seeing each other! Whether it be on a freestyle session at Hayden, hanging around in Boston, or even just grabbing a quick meal, we simply can not get enough of each other.

The Hayden Synchronized Skating Teams held their annual banquet on May 1st this year. This is always such a special event where all the Hayden Synchronized Skating Teams gather together to have a meal and celebrate the season. We get to be with the entire HSST club, including coaches, skaters, parents, and beloved honorary members. At the banquet we were able to watch our skates from Worlds, which we hadn't seen yet. It was great to watch the skates with our other teams; it was a bit of deja vu. Each team presented gifts to their coaches and managers, and the senior plaques were awarded as well as the coaches awards. It was finally time to separate into our own team huddles and give out superlatives! This is a small tradition that has been with the Haydenettes for quite some time. The superlatives always bring back bittersweet memories from the season. As the banquet was wrapping up, there were plenty of hugs and tears to go around, but with a great season behind us we still had one more
opportunity to skate our seasons programs.

Hayden Recreation Center holds an annual end of the year ice show called Ice Time. All the Hayden teams participate, and practices begin two weeks before the show. The Haydenettes are always reluctant heading into these practices as they are bittersweet, and we always fear our lack of stamina from our small break after worlds. There is no way to stay in shape for synchro besides skating together with your team! It is always fun to get back on the ice with no pressure, and skate the programs again. With the two Wednesday practices behind us, it was
already show time! We had plenty of fun skating our programs for the last time, and it felt good to be back on the ice with such a great group of young ladies.
Erika Hoffman reminded our team before the seasons end one of our team quotes:

"Love the sport for the pure joy of accomplishment. Love the sport for everything it can teach you about yourself. Love the sport for the feeling of belonging to a group endeavoring to do its best. Love the sport for being involved in a team whose members can't wait to see you do your best. Love the sport for the challenge of working harder than you ever have at something and then harder than that. Love the sport because it takes all team members to give it life. Love the sport because at its best, its tradition will include your contributions. Love the sport because you belong to a long line of fine athletes who have loved it. It is now your legacy. Love the sport so much that you will pass on your love to other athletes who have seen your dedication, your work, your challenges, your triumphs... and then those athletes will, because of you, love the sport. "

To the past and future synchronized skaters, keep this quote alive and always remember the person skating has made you into.

On behalf of the Haydenettes, we would like to thank each and every person who has had faith in us and who has helped us accomplish our goals. We honestly could not have reached our highest potential without the support from our families, friends, fans, and especially U.S. Figure Skating. Thank you all very much for a great and unforgettable season!!

With love,
Jenna and Noelle

Miami Worlds Update 3

2011-04-09T04:16:00.000-07:00

Well, we can certainly say skating our first World Championship performance lived up to our expectations.

As we walked toward the entrance to the ice for the short program both of us couldn’t help but shed a few tears. It was overwhelming and a true honor to be standing rink side realizing as we looked out into the stands with a packed audience that we are participating in something that is so few and far between. We were truly honored and humbled as we stepped foot on the ice and they announced “Team USA 2.”

We kept hearing from our teammates that had been to worlds before that the experience was one that couldn’t be described, and until now we didn’t know what that meant. After competing short we truly understand now that words really don’t do it justice, it’s just something you need to be a part of.

We saw lots of Finnish flags swarming the arena, along with large sections of proud U.S. parents and fans. The music began and instantly the entire audience began clapping in time to the music. It was really incredible to have the whole arena cheering us on, rather than just the USA section. Everyone obviously has their favorites, but for the most part, they’re all here because they share a common love for skating. That was something that really made the experience unique. For 15 of us, this was our first World Championship skate. We put out a solid performance and were happy with the way we delivered.

After we skated, we got to sit in the stands and cheer on the Haydenettes. They, along with the rest of the last group, did an awesome job. It was an incredible evening of skating and we’re looking forward to what the free skate has to offer.

Back in the hotel today after our free skate official practice, we were stopped in the lobby for a pep talk from Scott Hamilton. He had great words of advice, as always, but one of the best parts of our conversation with him was talking about the similar experiences we shared working with choreographer, Sarah Kawaraha. We talked about how in painting the picture of our free skate, at first it seems like a confused mess full of choreography that we have no idea how to do. Then all of a sudden we look back on the season and realize we finally got the steps down and the heads and arms all work together the way they’re supposed to! It was an amazing moment to cherish, and something we certainly won’t forget. With just a little bit left the competition, we’re really soaking it all in, enjoying every moment.

Love and honor,

Taylor and Sarah

Worlds Update: Miami Day 2

2011-04-07T21:42:00.000-07:00

Hello again,

Wednesday’s practices were off to a great start. It was nice to get our feet under us and see the arena. We had practice at 4:30 and 9:00 pm. In between we sat in the arena and watched the Japanese, Russian, and Swedish teams practice. By the time we got back to the hotel it was 10:00 pm. We had a late dinner with fantastic food and lots of variety. After dinner we went straight to bed.

Thursday mornings’ practice went well too. We practiced the short program full run-through and sections on the main ice. . It was nice to cheer on the Haydenettes as they took the ice immediately after our practice. After our first practice we came back to the hotel for video review and lunch. Our second practice was later in the afternoon, and we focused on the free skate. We’ve been really pleased with our progress at each practice and feel good about going into the competition. After a short break at the hotel, we headed back to the arena for the draw. It was an awesome ceremony with more than one hundred Finish skaters taking part in the event. From pre-juvenile through senior, the skaters were on the ice together performing a program with neon tank tops, black tights and glow lights. To top it off, the skaters were accompanied by a live singer performing at the side of the arena. As for the draw, the skaters formed a human number of the skate order for each team. Miami drew 15th and Haydenettes 16th. What are the odds we’d be skating back to back?

Dinner was a bit chaotic tonight, as all the teams were filing into the hotel at the same time after the draw. It’s interesting to have so many teams from multiple countries all packed into one area, all speaking different languages, coming from different backgrounds, but all here for the same reason. Hearing a mixture of Italian, Swedish, Finnish, and more being spoken around us is such a great experience because we’re thrown into something bigger than we’ve ever been a part of. It truly reminds us of how honored and excited we are to be here to represent our country! We’re looking forward to getting the competition started tomorrow evening with the short program!

Stay tuned,

Sarah & Taylor

Miami Worlds Update: Day 1

2011-04-06T03:33:00.001-07:00

Mao from Finland!

After traveling from Ohio to Detroit, followed by Amsterdam and then Finland, we finally arrived in Helsinki. We weren’t sure if we were going to make our flight from Amsterdam, as we had barely any time to catch the next flight. Some of us were sprinting through the airport while passerby cheered us on!

Although we were a bit jet lagged when we arrived, we had the afternoon to walk around, grab lunch and do some shopping. It was great walking around the downtown area, immersing ourselves in the culture. After touring the city in our groups we came back together for dinner at the hotel, a quick team meeting and then off to bed.

This morning we got to sleep in a little, we had breakfast, offering a large assortment to choose from. We had a team meeting with Haydenettes and did some stretching and off-ice later in the morning. It felt good to get our bodies moving since we don’t skate until later tonight. This evening we have our first practice at the practice arena, and then a second practice in the main arena. We’re looking forward to seeing what the rinks look like and getting on the ice for the first time in Finland!

That’s all for now. More updates to come.

Love and honor,

Taylor and Sarah

JWCC - An Amazing End to an Even More Amazing Season

2011-04-03T08:13:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,

First I just want to start out by apologizing for the extreme delay in my posting this blog. These past few weeks since the Junior World Challenge Cup have been spent hard at work, trying to finish piles of makeup school work I have from missing 2 weeks in a row between the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships and the JWCC. That being said, the week spent in Switzerland for the 2011 JWCC is one that I know I will never forget.

The morning of the free skate, we were ready to go and knew that the points between 2^nd place and 8^th place were extremely close, so there was definitely room for movement. We skated an official practice that we were all very proud of, and were just hoping for a repeat performance with a little more expression that night. Before we knew it, our last day in Neuchâtel had flown by and it was time to start our final hair and makeup of the year. Soon we were on the bus and heading to the rink, following tradition by singing the songs that we always sing. We had a fun and energy filled warm-up outside of the rink before heading into the locker room. Our expression was brought out during that warm-up and we knew we were ready to “get the job done!” To end our time outside, we gathered in a tight circle and belted “Proud to be an American” at the top of our lungs. This was just what we needed to remind us of the honor that we have been given to be able to represent our country in such a high level competition. In the locker room the energy continued as we sang and were read good luck wishes from skaters and families of the younger Skyliner lines. This meant so much to us and got us completely ready to take the ice.

Taking the ice was unbelievable. You could just feel the whole crowd behind us, hoping that we skated our best. For me, this performance was so important and special because it was my last skate with this team, which really became like sisters to me. After doing the signal and hitting my opening pose, I just had to slip in an “I love you girls!” before the music began. The program felt very strong and the performance factor seemed higher than ever before. I was literally skating my heart out and trying to leave it all out on the ice. Getting off the ice after another performance of a life time, I could not have been more proud of my teammates. Personally, I am not someone who ever cries, no matter how happy I am, but that night, after that program, with those teammates by my side, I cried. It was such a special performance and an amazing way for me to end 4 amazing years with the Skyliners junior team. We were all so proud of each other and all that we accomplished this season. It truly was the best season ever, and at that point it really didn’t matter to us where we ended up overall that night.

We quickly headed up to the stands to watch the final group of teams compete. As Braemar took the ice, we went wild and displayed our USA pride for our teammates. They skated their “Alice in Wonderland” program beautifully and it was absolutely the best performance of their season. We were so proud of them, and when their score came up, it was almost certain that they would receive a World medal. We could not have been happier for them. As the competition came to an end and Team Braemar took the ice to get their bronze medals, we all stood at the railing and cheered at the top of our lungs once again. This was amazing for both Team Braemar and the U.S. Congrats again Team Braemar! Way to make our country proud!

Looking back on my final season on Skyliners, I could not have asked for anything more. A National Championship and 5^th place in the world… Wow! This was an unbelievable season filled with memories and friendships that I know will never fade away.

From Junior World Challenge Cup to the World Synchronized Skating Championships, from Switzerland to Finland, I want to wish the Team USA World Team, Haydenettes and Miami University, safe travels next week as they head overseas. Good Luck and I know that you girls will be beautiful and represent us well! I wish I could be there, but will be watching and cheering from home!

Love Always,

Ashley Mulhern

From Miami: A Post-Nationals, Pre-Worlds Update

2011-03-31T09:50:00.000-07:00

Hello Followers!

An apology on the delay, as life’s marathon has been rather challenging to keep up with.

First, let’s have a quick recap on the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships from our perspective.

The event was amazing! There was so much energy the whole week that we couldn’t help but to feed off of it when we competed. After placing second in the short program we were completely ecstatic at the chance to come back again the next night and claim our spot on the world team!

Leading up to the free skate we were all so fired up to skate. We couldn’t wait to get out there and show everyone our passion for this sport. We will never forget that moment in the locker room when we found out we were in second place - we don’t think we’ve ever cried such tears of joy in our lives!

For Taylor, it was a really awesome experience to have received this honor in her home state. She loved being supported by both current Miami teammates and old ICE‘Kateer teammates throughout the week.

At awards it was a great privilege to be given our medals by former Miami skater, and DREAM program founder, Becky Search! Afterwards we went to the World Team meeting where we were given our sweet new USA jackets! We heard from a few officials what they had to say about the competition and a few words on Worlds. We finished up the night with a celebration dinner with our parents and headed off with high spirits into Spring Break.

As second semester of school is speeding up, with four weeks left in the semester, so has our training on and off the ice. We’ve made great progress since U.S. Championships and are moving forward in the right direction everyday. Monday, Dan Krueger came to our practice to give us constructive feedback to focus on with our few practices left before the World Championships. For fifteen of the twenty skaters, it will be our first time as World Competitors. We are humbled and overjoyed to be apart of such a special honor and look forward to representing the United States in Helsinki next week. We’re excited to see the atmosphere of the World scene, as we’ve heard it will be like nothing we have seen before. We ordered some new apparel, just for the event and of course can’t wait to put on our World Team jackets.

Best of luck to our Team USA counterparts, the Haydenettes, as they prepare their final week before Worlds as well! We look forward to being in Finland with them and will be sure to report to everyone how the week is going.

Love and honor,

Taylor and Sarah

Road to Helsinki!

2011-03-30T17:36:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,

Just thought I'd give you readers an update on how the Haydenettes are preparing for the World Synchronized Skating Championships in Finland in a week!

After the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships in California we came home with much work ahead of us before going to Finland. For the past few weeks we've been training hard as usual, fixing details and video reviewing our programs. We've also had several spirit practices including St. Patricks Day, Hope for Japan day, Neon Day. (see pictures throughout). We are also very excited for this weekend's spirit practices as well :-)

Another exciting event on the Haydenettes March calendar included a visit from one our local news stations, Channel 7. They did a segment on our team and our training for the World Synchronized Skating Championships in April. It was a very cool experience having a news crew at our practice and on the ice with us. Here is the link to the news story: http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/sports/12003861830136/meet-the-haydenettes-of-lexinton/

The Haydenettes also paid a visit to the State House in Boson on March 30th. We had a great time meeting our local representatives and were also honored with several certificate citations from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' House members. One our teammates works at the State House and we were lucky to see her office and meet her boss. The Speaker of the House also announced our accomplishments this season to the current House members, as she spoke of how our hard work had paid off this season we received a standing ovation! It was a very exciting day for all of us.

We have only a few practices left before the World Synchronized Skating Championships, and we are all excited to compete in our coach's home country of Finland!

We will keep you updated while were in Finland! Keep your fingers crossed and GO USA!!!

Jenna and Noelle

photo credit: Erika Hoffman

California Here We Come!

2011-03-19T17:55:00.000-07:00

The Miami University Collegiate team arrived in Ontario, Calif. Thursday afternoon, just in time to come cheer on our junior team at the junior Short event. Before the event started, the DREAMmates had a very special opportunity to present the awards for the juvenile and intermediate medalists. It was very exciting to share such great moments with the younger skaters and honor all the teams.

After the awards, the competition returned right away with the junior short programs. The Miami junior team was full of energy and excitement druing their skate and we were so glad we could be there to support them. The team had a great night's rest and definitely enjoyed sleeping in on Friday morning. We headed to one of the unofficial practice arenas that afternoon, where we had a great first practice getting back on our feet after traveling. That night, we went to watch the senior team perform their short program, as well as the junior free skate event.

Up bright and early Saturday morning, it was finally time for the Collegiate team to take the official ice. Our practice ran very smoothly, which helped fuel our motivation to perfrom later that night.

We headed back to the competition rink that evening ready to take the ice. Everyone loved being able to warm up outside in the California sun in just a T-shirt instead of layers of jackets. After walking through the program off ice, we entered the locker with great anticipation to perform our "Brazilian Carnival" program. We stepped onto the ice, and before we knew we were already hitting the ending pose! The team had a clean skate, full of emotion, fun, and interaction within the team and with the audience in the arena. We waited for the last two teams to skate and then we found out the most incredible news- we had won the 2011 U.S. Synchronized Skating collegiate title! This marked the 7th consecutive win for Miami University in the collegiate event, which is the highest consecutive record for any team in the United States. Excitement and thrill ran through the team and we couldn't wait for the awards ceremony and to see all of our supporters that had come to cheer us on. This competition was extra special for me, being from San Diego, CA, because many family members and friends were able to see me skate and to share this joy with me!

Spring break was the week after the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships for us, so I was super excited to stay home in California and to bring some teammates with me! We had a fun filled week up and down the coast of Southern California, touring various places including La Jolla Shores, Julian, downtown San Diego, and DISNEYLAND!!

This has been such an unforgettable season. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL TEAMS! Now we wish the Miami University senior team and the Haydenettes the best of luck at the 2011 World Championships next month in Helsinki, Finland. GO USA!

California Dreaming

2011-03-18T18:22:00.000-07:00

Hi Followers!

So sorry it has taken so long to get out our U.S. Synchronized Skating Championship blog, but it has been a busy few weeks!! Plus, now that all of the synchro chat has died down it will give everyone something to read and reminisce on!

The Haydenettes left for California EARLY on Wednesday morning; we had to meet at the Hayden Ice Rink at 4 am. The local skaters from the Ice Mates, Lexettes, and Haydenettes boarded the bus and headed towards Logan Airport. We met the rest of our teams at the airport, and checked in. We had an extremely long flight to LAX. We landed and were all anxious to get out in the California weather! We boarded buses and headed out on the hour drive to Ontario, our final destination for the weekend! The Lexettes and Haydenettes had Panera for lunch before heading to the competition rink to cheer on our juvenile team (Mini Mates) at official practice. We were able to rest up before heading to our own practices. We had practice late at a rink about a half hour away. Both the Lexettes and Haydenettes had strong practices and we were more than ready to get in bed!

Thursday the Haydenettes had a long day! We woke up and ate a nice breakfast and headed to the rink. We watched Ice Mates and Lexettes official practices. Both were very strong and we were excited to see the 2011 U.S. Syncrhonized Skating Championships had really begun. We then enjoyed a bit of fresh air and lunch before heading back to watching the Mini Mates compete. We were so proud of them! This was their first U.S. Synchronized Skating Championship since 2008 and following their second place finish at the Eastern Sectional Championships, they had a beautiful skate. We returned to the hotel to prepare for our practice. We did hair and make-up and packed our suits for the nights junior competition. We heard the Mini Mates placed 3rd which was incredible and well-deserved. We had a solid 45 minute practice and felt anxious to compete the next day! Noelle and I headed to the rink to participate in the award ceremony for the intermediate division. It was such an honor to distribute medals to the other competitors and be a part of such a great experience. Personally we both felt distributing medals to competitors was an honor because it made us appreciate and realize how far we have developed. We both can remember our first U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships! After the ceremony we changed into our suits and headed to dinner to meet the rest of the Haydenettes. We finished the night with watching the junior Short flight. The Lexettes sat in third place, with a fabulous skate!

Friday morning begun early! We headed straight to the rink for official practice! We got to warm up in the sunshine and slowly began to wake-up and focus ourselves on the task at hand. We skated an extremely strong official practice that felt dynamic. It was great to stretch out our skating on the official surface. We were on fire and ready to compete! We returned to the hotel to eat some breakfast and relax. We were able to watch Lexettes free skate official and eat lunch before having to start our competition preparations. We added some more beads to our normal make-up and had to leave extra time to ensure we were able to apply everyone's beads correctly. Short program day at U.S. Championship is always very exciting for the Haydenettes. We get to wear the "CB" jackets. These jackets were donated to the Haydenettes in the 80's and we have been wearing them since then! It is incredible to see all the names on the insides of the jackets, it makes you feel a part of long tradition. While wearing the jackets you feel proud to represent all the past and future Haydenettes! On top of all that its so fun to sport such a retro jacket! Upon following our normal traditions, we headed to to competition rink, where we got to congratulate the Ice Mates, the new U.S. novice champions, before opening to senior competition, skating first out of nine. We were very pleased with our skate and were thrilled to hear our scores! We took some great pictures in our CB jackets, ate dinner, and headed back to the rink to cheer for the Lexettes free skate and watch the junior event. The Lexettes skated what we thought was a flawless skate, having the entire Hayden crowd mesmerized, we are very proud of them and their fourth consecutive 3rd place finish at the U.S. Championships.

Saturday we had a later wake-up call, which was nice. It allowed us to catch up on some much need sleep since the week was wrapping up! We had some breakfast and headed to the competition rink for our official practice. We were scheduled to skate last in the senior event. We had a great official practice and left the rink in high spirits! Saga always likes to make sure that we get fresh air before we compete, instead of staying confined in our hotel rooms, and since we were in California it was perfect! As a team we headed to the Victoria Garden's, an outdoor shopping mall about 15 minutes from our hotel. This allowed the team to get the fresh air we needed, keep active, and clear our minds for the competition later that night. Some of our team members even took a horse and buggy ride around! We really enjoyed ourselves in the California atmosphere. We were sporting our new Burlesque t-shirts with our new names! We were really in the spirit and more than excited to compete.

Heading back to the hotel, we had a quick dinner and some rest time to really settle in the competition mode. We prepared as we normally do with our traditions and our hair and make-up. We were dazzled up in our competition make-up with our new Burlesque hats to get into the mood. It was our time to compete and everything felt just right, we were ready as a team. Skating last, the ice was a bit rough, but we were fired up and had been anticipating this night the entire week. With just a few small and minor mistakes, we were extremely pleased with our skate. It was one of those skates that is just so much fun to skate and enjoy. We heard the scores, and were ecstatic. We found out we were the 2011 U.S. champions, and which added up to make the Haydenettes 19 time U.S. champions. Our team had such an amazing experience from that point on. The award ceremony was special, following with a new World Team photo, a cover shot, and lastly the World Team reception!

More is to come from Noelle on our preparations for the World Championships in Helsinki, Finland!!

Jenna

2011 JWCC Neuchatel, Switzerland Update 2

2011-03-11T14:52:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone!

Thursday was an awesome day. We celebrated three birthdays here in Neuchâtel; our team doctor, Dr. White, Skyliners’ Brooke Abbott, and Team Braemar’s Lily Schroeder. Braemar woke up early for practice, but Skyliners got to sleep in and have a nice relaxing breakfast. Then we headed back into town for more shopping. We explored chocolate shops and clothing stores and enjoyed the scenery of the town. At lunch, we sang and had an amazing chocolate cake for Brooke’s birthday. After lunch we went back to the hotel to prepare for practice.

Our practice was about a half hour bus ride away, in the mountains. The drive was beautiful. When we got to the rink, there was a small debacle over the ice. A Swiss citizen was under the impression that there was a public session, even though we were on the rink’s schedule. He did not take the news well when our teammate Paige explained to him in French that he had to leave the ice and, no, we could not share it. Other than that practice went extremely well and we were confident going into the start of the competition.

The event officially started Thursday night with the draw. We all enjoyed the performance by a local Swiss marching band. To chose skate order, the captains grabbed chocolate bars that were numbered. Originally,

This morning we woke up nice and early for official practice. Our practice went very well and we were so excited to compete. Walking back from the rink, we took the scenic route by the lake and got a lot of great pictures. We spent the rest of the afternoon resting and preparing for competition.

Going to the rink we felt our normal competition emotions; excitement, nervousness, but most of all, pride. We love hearing “Representing the United States of America. . .” and were anxious to be introduced that way. In the locker room we relished putting on our short program competition dresses for the last time. We have grown to love the bright orange and pink costumes, so getting dressed was a little bitter sweet. On the ice, we performed very well, but technically it was not our best. Team Braemar is currently in fifth place and Skyliners are in sixth. Tomorrow, Skyliners skate thirteenth and Braemar seventeenth. We are looking forward to getting to cheer on Braemar after we skate!

Now, it is bedtime in Neuchâtel.

GO USA!!!

Audrey and Ashley

2011 JWCC Neuchatel, Switzerland Update1

2011-03-09T13:30:00.000-08:00

Bonjour from Neuchâtel,

We arrived in Switzerland at around 7:30am on Tuesday morning. Both Skyliners and Team Braemar were excited to get off the plane after a surprisingly short flight from Newark to Geneva. We went through customs, added another stamp to our passports, and then hopped on a bus for the 2 hour ride to our hotel. Once at the hotel we got settled in just in time to take a trip to the local super market and get some much needed cases of water for the week to come. Soon it was time for lunch and a walk to the rink just to get a lay of the land.

Everything here is beautiful, especially the view from our hotel which is right on the water. Before we knew it, we had changed into our practice clothes and were headed back to the rink, but this time for our first practice of the competion. As we were all exhausted from the travel and being awake for so long, the practice went well. Before we were finally able to let our heads hit the pillow, we filled ourselves with a pizza dinner. Once back at the hotel we were more than ready to go to bed and get some much needed sleep.

Waking up Wednesday morning, we were all very excited to try the breakfast at the hotel, and it was clear that none of us were left disappointed. After breakfast, we walked over for the rink and warmed up for our first practice of the day in the official arena. This practice went well and we were happy with our progress from the night before. We then enjoyed a short 1 hour break before we took a walk down the street for lunch. Before going back to the rink for our second practice, we were able to spend a little bit of time shopping downtown. The area was so cute and there was a lot of fun shopping. Our time there ended way too quickly and we are all hoping to go back and explore the rest of the town tomorrow. We then returned to the rink and hopped onto the ice. Our run-throughs started off a little bit shaky, but by the end we were feeling great and expressing to those watching in the stands.

Back at the hotel we had some time before dinner where about half of us went to check out the art museum across the street from our hotel. Later, we met team Braemar in the lobby of the hotel for an all Team USA dinner at the hotel restaurant. We had a lot of fun mixing up the teams and laughing and telling each other stories the whole time. By 8 o’clock we were all tired once again and headed up to our rooms to relax and get ready for bed.

Excited for another fun day in Switzerland

Goodnight,

Ashley and Audrey

2011 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships

2011-03-09T02:25:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone,

From the moment that we got off the plane in California, it was clear that this competition was going to be a special one for the Skyliners. We were confident and ready to compete. We started off the week with a few unofficial practices at both the arena and at a local rink. They all went very well and helped us to feel very comfortable going into the competition.

As Thursday rolled around, so did our short program official practice, the juvenile and intermediate competitions, and the junior short program competition. We were very happy with our official practice and knew that we just needed to turn up the expression for the competition that night. Later in the day we headed back to the rink to watch the juvenile division. It was great to see the competitors just having a ball out on the ice without a care in the world. This was a wonderful reminder of where we all started so many years ago, and how far we have come since then. The Skyliners juvenile team put out their best skate all year, full of enthusiasm and expression, earning them the gold medal.
This was extremely exciting for all of us, as it was the first National gold for the Skyliners organization.

As we waited for the intermediate competition to begin, we got the chance to walk around the rink and visit with friends from all over the country. Returning to our seats we heard the familiar tune of the flash mob, which we then preformed alongside several teams in the stands. The intermediate competition was very strong and the Skyliners intermediate team was able to finish with a silver medal in their first season ever as a team. As the rest of the team went back to the hotel to begin hair and makeup for the short program, Audrey and I stayed at the rink and were honored to have the opportunity to hand out the trophies for the juvenile and intermediate champions. This was a very cool experience that we were able to share with our Dreammates. Finally it was time for the junior short program and we were so excited to be skating last in the event. Getting off the ice, we were all happy with our performance, but most pleased with the amount of expression we were able to bring to it. As the scores came up, we could not believe that we had just earned a 63, our highest score all year, and were sitting in 1st place.

Friday morning we skated a strong official practice and knew that we would need to keep up the same energy all day in order to achieve our goal of improving upon our 2nd place finish from last year. In the middle of the day, we went back over to the rink to watch our novice team compete. We cheered loudly as they entered the ice and hoped for a great skate. They put out an extremely strong program, which made us very proud and landed them in 4th place. At this point we could not have been more thrilled with the Skyliners organization as a whole for medaling in every level so far, and now it was our turn. Waiting in the locker room before walking rink side, the spirit and enthusiasm were unlike anything I has seen before. I knew that this was our time and we were ready to go out and skate the program of our lives. From the minute that we stepped out onto the ice, the crowd roared, and it was clear that they were behind us 100%. The program flew by and before I knew it we were hitting the ending pose in shock of how we had just skated. Although there were still 3 more teams to skate after us, when our score of 127 came up, we all went wild in the kiss and cry. It was unreal to us. Waiting in our locker rooms for the final teams to skate, we opened to curtains in between them, joining together to perform the flash mob dance once again, this time in our skates and with Chicago Jazz and Team Braemar. Soon Josh came in and relayed the amazing news that we had done it, and we were now U.S. champions. It was unbelievable to us all. Standing on the podium, so many things were running through my head, but two of the most important were how extremely proud I was of my team and what we had just accomplished, and the second was the fact that dreams really do come true with hard work, determination, and passion. We then had a blast taking our Junior World Team picture with Team Braemar, and heading up to a reception where we received our World Team jackets. It was an incredible experience and certainly one that none of us will ever forget.

As I sit here on the plane to Switzerland with all 39 of my fellow Team USA teammates, it is still so surreal what happened last week, but none of us are stopping there. We are all ready to go again and show the world what we’ve got, feeling even more confident than before. I am extremely honored to be representing our country in the coming week, and hope to make everyone at home proud.
More from Neuchatel and the 2011 JWCC,

Ashley Mulhern

2011 Spring Cup Final Update

2011-02-20T09:32:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone,

Back in the States and a week later, and I can still feel the energy and excitement that all 4 US teams brought to the 2011 Spring Cup.

Saturday morning, we woke up in Milan to skate our short program official practice. The practice went well, but we knew that we could perform better that night for the competition. The rest of the day we waited, until finally hair and makeup rolled around and the excitement started to flow through us all. On our walk to the rink we blasted our Bose box and belted out our traditional pump-up songs. Before we knew it we were lined up rink side. Then we took the ice, enthusiastically expressing our way through the short program. We were very happy with our score of a 55. We quickly took off our skates and headed for the stands where American flags were handed out. As Evolution and Hockettes took the ice, we cheered loudly and waved our flags proudly for their great skates. Once all 3 junior teams were together, we were ready to cheer on Miami University, who had a wonderful senior short program skate. Soon it was time to sleep and prepare ourselves for the long.

Sunday morning it rained as we walked to the rink for our official practice, but as our performance the night before showed, “nothing could rain on our parade!” So we all trudged to the rink with 20 umbrellas over our heads. Later, as it continued to rain, we went back to the rink, once again blasting our music, ready to compete. As we took the ice, I looked up into the stands and spotted Evolution and Hockettes cheering us on. Their cheers meant so much to us and pushed us even further in our performance. Once again we were very happy with our score of 102, but even more than that, we were thrilled that the Hockettes had moved up after the short program and all 3 U.S. junior teams had just swept the podium. Back up in the stands we cheered on Miami as they skated through their free skate, earning the bronze medal.

We took the ice for the awards ceremony with huge smiles on our faces. Standing on the podium we were handed a beautiful blown glass trophy that was much heavier than we expected. Turning and putting our hands over our hearts, we watched 3 American flags rise in synchronicity as we proudly sang our nation anthem. I was overcome with pride in our country and honored to be a part of Team USA. We took picture after picture with our own teams, our friends from other teams, and then as a full Team USA team.

The competition and trip as a whole were amazing and all of the US teams did a phenomenal job. I had such a great time traveling with, catching up with, and making new friends on Evolution, Hockettes, and Miami. Looking forward to seeing everyone in California for the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships in less than 2 weeks!

Ashley

Spring Cup: Miami Day 4

2011-02-15T05:31:00.000-08:00

As we walked into the arena on Saturday evening we were very excited to compete our long program and perform for a large audience once again. We were thrilled to hear our Junior teams took first, second and third on the podium, giving us confidence going into the free skate.

During our performance we started off really strong, and had one unexpected fall during one of our lifts. The girls reacted really quickly and got right back into the program with more energy than ever and skated the rest of the program strongly. It was a great learning experience and gave the team a chance to know how to deal with the unexpected and recover quickly.

We placed third and were very proud to be standing on the podium at the award ceremony. It was great to be on the ice with our other US teams and take pictures with everyone, especially our other DREAM-mates, Ashley and Audrey. We also had a great time interacting with the teams from other countries every time they asked to get a group picture with us!

Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel for a buffet dinner with our parents and in the morning headed home with Evolution on our plane.

We had a great time in Milan and were proud to represent our college and country oversees. We look forward to seeing all the teams at the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships in just two and half weeks!

Love and honor,

Taylor and Sarah

Spring Cup: Miami Day 3

2011-02-13T05:00:00.000-08:00

Hello again,

Yesterday morning we woke for breakfast and had left the hotel for a strong official practice. We came back to the hotel to have lunch, pasta with marinara – our favorite! Afterward, we had some down time for relaxing and homework, and then later got ready for the short program competition. We had dinner, also our favorite meal, and then left the rink to compete at 7:45 pm.

The competition was pretty late; we didn’t take the ice till 9 p.m. We had a strong skate and saw improvement in our performance and are in second place after the skate! The other Team USA members and our parents were very loud and showed their spirit and enthusiasm as we skated. They were so excited for us we couldn’t hear the count off in the warm-up block!

A highlight to the skate was looking up into the stands during our moves-in-the-field section and seeing skaters from Hockettes, Skyliners and Evolution cheering loudly to support their country. One thing we appreciate about international competitions is being welcomed and wished good luck by the other countries with goodie bags of candy and chocolate. Skyliners were nice enough to offer us their extra pizza when we came back to the hotel. I think everyone can say it was one of the highlights in terms of food for the weekend.

After a good official practice this morning, we’re excited to perform our free skate today and see how the competition plays out.

Love and honor,

Taylor & Sarah

Spring Cup: Miami Day 2

2011-02-12T04:41:00.000-08:00

Hello again!

Yesterday we had our first practice and had the opportunity to warm up outside with the sun beaming down on our faces. Our practice went well but didn’t go exactly as we had hoped. We had minor injuries during our practice and two of our alternates had to jump in. They did a great job and were on their toes ready for anything. With 15 minutes to spare, our injured skaters put the pain aside and joined us back on the ice to finish practice.

After our time at the rink, we went back to the hotel had lunch, did homework and relaxed. In the evening, our captain went to the draw for the short program, where she drew first. Afterward, we had a big Team USA dinner with Hockettes, Skyliners and Evolution. We took a team picture around the staircase banister in our Spring Cup T-shirts designed by Skyliners and DREAM member Ashley Mulhern. We finished our evening with a stretching session with our dance instructor.

We look forward to competing first in the short program tonight.

Stay tuned for results!

Taylor & Sarah

Spring Cup Update 2

2011-02-12T02:54:00.000-08:00

Ciao Tutti (Hi Everyone),

Giovedì (Thursday) started off with a delicious Italian breakfast and walk to the rink for our first practice of the day. The practice went very well and we started feeling more comfortable with the ice. After practice Marlena and Ashley went to a press conference at the local library, where we met the mayor and we able to say a few words about the competition in both English and some broken Italian. The rest of the team enjoyed some time shopping and gelato. Our day ended with a team dinner at our favorite restaurant in Milan, Muccae e Farina.

Venerdì (Friday), we woke up for another day full of practice. First we headed over to the competition rink, the Palesesto. We had a good practice and were excited when Miami University entered the stands to watch a few sections. After practice we went back to the hotel for a quick lunch before we were back on road for another practice of the day. This time we enjoyed a change of scenery, as we went to a new rink in Lecco. Lecco è molto bella (Lecco is very beautiful). About an hour north of Milan, and near Lake Como, we had our final unofficial practice of the trip.

Returning to the hotel, Audrey and the rest of the team enjoyed a relaxing break before dinner and indulged in a sweet treat at the gelateria, while Ashley and the other U.S. team representatives headed off to the draw. Personally, we are very excited for our draw of fifth in the skate order, as it will allow us to cheer for the rest of the US teams. Evolution skates seventh, Hockettes skate eighth, and Miami University competes first in the senior division. We changed into our matching Spring Cup t-shirts and went down stairs for an awesome all team, Team USA dinner. It was a great way to meet new people and catch up with some old friends. The night came to a close with a Team USA photo in matching t-shirts.

Looking forward to a great short program competition! In bocca al lupo a tutti le squadre!(Good luck to all teams!)

GO USA!

Audrey and Ashley

Spring Cup: Miami Day 1

2011-02-11T01:48:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone,

Greetings from Milan! We are excited to be here for the Spring Cup and are looking forward to competing tomorrow and Sunday.

Our journey to Italy began on Wednesday afternoon. After an early morning practice, time in the dance studio and a few morning classes, we boarded the bus in Oxford around noon and were on our way. We flew from Ohio to the JFK airport and then took a direct flight to Milan. When we got to Milan it was about 9:30 am and we were off to tour the city for the day.

Fortunately for us one of our skaters on Miami's collegiate team is from Milan. Her mom met us in the city and provided us with some yummy European snacks and helped to guide us on our way. We toured through a castle, met up with our parents for lunch and some shopping, saw La Scala (the most famous Opera house in THE WORLD, where, we learned, our dance coach once performed a ballet number!) and saw the ‘Last Supper’ painting. After a full day of touring directly off a 6-hour flight, we were exhausted and fell asleep immediately after getting on the bus.

We checked into the hotel, had dinner and then went straight to bed.This morning we went to breakfast in the hotel feeling well rested and ready to go. Also enjoying the delicious pasties, fresh fruit and nutella were some of our fellow U.S. teams, the Skyliners and Evolution. This afternoon we have our first practice. We’re excited to see the rink and step foot on the ice.

Look for more updates from Milan as the weekend progresses.

Ciao!

Taylor & Sarah

Spring Cup 2011 Day 1

2011-02-09T12:54:00.000-08:00

Buon Giorno from Milano! After weeks of anticipation, countless hours of practice, and 7 and a half hours on a plane, we finally arrived in Milan for the 2011 Spring Cup. We are thrilled to be back once again, as several of us had the opportunity to compete here in 2009.

After gathering all of our luggage, we headed straight for the hotel to change for our first practice. Soon we were out in the fresh Italian air and making the 10 minute walk over to the Palasesto, where the competition will be held. Since the weather here is the complete opposite of what we have been experiencing at home on the East coast, we were exited to warm up outside in the sun. Heading back into the rink, we jumped on the ice for a quick one hour practice. Although we were very tired from our travels, and the rink is a slightly different shape, we had a very successful practice.

Back at the hotel, we met up with Evolution to head into downtown Milan. We had fun and some good laughs riding the Metro, immersing ourselves into the Italian public. The locals seemed to be a bit shocked by the invasion 40 American teenage girls. Saying goodbye to Evolution, we prepared ourselves for the climb of a lifetime. As tired as we were by the time we got to the top of the Duomo, it was all worthwhile getting to see the amazing architecture and snagging some great pics above the action of the Piazza and the Galleria. After some delicious gelato and quick souvenir shopping, we went back to the hotel for dinner and bed. We are so excited for the arrival of the Hockettes and Miami University tomorrow!

Arrivederci,

Audrey and Ashley

The Last Day in Rouen

2011-02-07T07:45:00.000-08:00

Saturday morning was bittersweet; we were anxious to show our long program to an international audience, but we also did not want to go home the following day. Because we skated in the latter portion of the flight that evening, our official was mid-morning, which made for a happier, more alert team.

Our official practice was a little shaky at times, but overall a good, solid showing. We had reviewed our mistakes on video after the short program, and tried to apply these same technical corrections to our free skate official. Both the skaters and coaches were pleased with that morning’s practice.

Later that afternoon, we bussed to the rink to cheer on our fellow teammates in the junior free skate. This event was so exciting to watch, as there were many impressive teams from many different countries. However, Team USA again prevailed, and Team Braemar took home the gold. I had not seen their long program yet this season, and I was absolutely blown away. The Alice in Wonderland theme was interpreted and presented extremely well, and their skating skills were far superior to the rest of the flight. I was honored to be traveling with such a dignified, talented group of girls. Congratulations again, Team Braemar!

The audience for the senior free skate was very energetic and supportive. Stepping on the ice as “Team USA” is rewarding no matter how many times a skater has competed internationally. We felt like a different team in our newly beaded dresses and new hairstyle. Our program began with two falls in the angled intersection, but most of the rest of the program went along swiftly. With another fall at the end of the program, we left the ice disappointed. It is always difficult to recover from these types of performances, but I believe that we responded quite well to the scores. It was a learning experience for us, and I hope that it will only make us stronger in the future.

Team USA left the competition with a bronze and a gold medal, which we believe to be a favorable result. It was one of the best international competitions I have ever attended, and I was fortunate enough to share the experience with 18 girls that I love. We will be back to work shortly preparing for the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships, which are approaching quickly!

Hope to see you all in Ontario!

Twenty Americans in Paris (Rouen)- Short Program Day!

2011-02-04T16:43:00.000-08:00

I’ll begin with our day on Thursday. It began with a few practice sessions, which were extremely strong. We took the ice with confidence and pride as we sported our black Team USA tank tops. The competition arena is amazing- we were thrilled to have the chance to skate on that surface before our official practice. While warming up, we started the flashmob dance, and before we knew it, we had teams in the crowd standing up and joining us. This was a fun, short preview of the events to come later that night.

We also had the chance to explore Rouen, which is absolutely gorgeous. The architecture is just stunning and the stores surrounding our hotel are adorable. The shoes here are what caught our eyes most frequently. Almost every girl on the team ended up with a new pair of French shoes!

Later that night, the competition held a special welcome parade and ceremony. They had a small marching band that played popular tunes while the competitors sang along. The parade featured all of the athletes, and we walked around the streets of Rouen chanting USA cheers behind our beloved flag. (Team Braemar and Crystallettes below)

Once we all returned, the fun really started. The song “The Time” by the Black Eyed Peas blared through the speakers, and Team USA immediately ran to the front to lead the group in the flashmob dance. Watching every country and every team perform the dance together was very special- a memory that none of us will soon forget. It was remarkable to see what a simple youtube video could produce- people from all around the world united as one.

After this day of fun and excitement, we had to calm ourselves down and approach the next day with a focused attitude. Friday morning began with our official practice, which was very smooth and confident. We left the arena in high spirits, with a restored sense of security and trust in one another. We were overjoyed to hear that Team Braemar had conquered the Junior event. We are even more excited to cheer them on in the long program tomorrow!

It seemed like a very long day, but finally it was our time to shine. We entered the arena in our beautiful royal blue dresses, ready to perform our “Rhapsody in Blue” and “I Got Rhythm” short program. Our skate was similar to our practice- smooth and connected. Our presentation (the element of our performance we have drilled the most) was top notch tonight. We left the ice excited and proud, which was our ultimate goal. The (mini) French fans asked for our autographs as we left the ice, which was another rewarding aspect of the experience. We are pleased with our scores, but are looking to move up in the free skate tomorrow!

Needless to say, we’re pretty exhausted from this eventful day. Make sure to tune into the livestream video tomorrow! We skate 10^th, the first team in the third group.

here's a link to the video of the flashmob:

http://player.vimeo.com/video/19539490?title=0&amp%3Bbyline=0&amp%3Bportrait=0

(this one features the USA teams)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWHFXXPAJ7s

(this one includes more views)

à demain (see you tomorrow)!

"Pillow Pets" Pave the Way to France for Crystallettes

2011-02-02T14:35:00.000-08:00

We kept a running countdown measuring the days, hours, minutes, and seconds before we boarded the plane for the French Cup. This Sunday, however, these long awaited plans took a sudden turn when Mother Nature threw a severe snow storm our way.

On Monday, our managers worked all day long and were able to change our flight to 6 AM the next morning in order to avoid the upcoming midwest storm. We frantically packed and slept as much as we could before our 4 AM meeting at the airport.

The next leg of our journey took place in our nation’s capital, Washington D.C. Our newly altered travel plans included a 10-hour layover in this airport. This time was spent venturing through the complex transit systems and relaxing in the terminal. It was a long day, of course, but it was great time for team bonding. We practiced our “flashmob” dance and got some homework done before we finally boarded the 6.5-hour flight to France.

We attribute our optimism partly to our collection of pillow pets, which provided a great way to relax within the short intervals we were given.

By the time we arrived in Paris, we were absolutely spent. But we knew that we had to revive our energy and reap the benefits of our daylong tour. We took hundreds of pictures and learned a lot about the beautiful city of Paris before we boarded the bus to Rouen. Needless to say, the group was silent for the entire two-hour trek.

Tomorrow we have a few practices and then the competition welcome ceremony. Hopefully in between we can explore Rouen. We are extremely excited to get some sleep tonight and to finally skate on the competition ice tomorrow!

Talk to you later this week! GO USA

Smuckers Skating Spectacular

2011-02-02T07:43:00.000-08:00

Walking into the 2001 U.S. Figure Skating National Championships in Boston, MA at 7 years old with my parents holding my hands was such a cool feeling, and I remember loving every minute of being awestruck by the figure skaters, ice dancers, and pairs skaters as they ripped deep edges and flew through the air. Ten years later, walking into the competitors entrance at the 2011 AT&T U.S. National Championships in Greensboro, NC with my team by my side and an all access pass around my neck, I had a completely different feeling.

As we arrived the first night in Greensboro, we waited in the lobby of the official hotel and all eyes were on us. These eyes were not on us in quite the same way that they were during our exhibition at that 2011 Smuckers Skating Spectacular though. They were eyes of people staring at us and wondering what 20 girls dressed in identical clothing could possibly be doing at that hotel with all of the other very well known figure skaters. As people asked what type of group we were, we explained that we were a synchronized skating team and we would be skating in the exhibition following the competition on Sunday, but it was clear that they were still unsure of our ability and would not truly understand until they saw us skate.

Soon we arrived at the rink and were greeted with amazing southern hospitality. Walking through the underground world of the championships was something so interesting and so different from what we are used to at our synchro competitions. The atmosphere seemed much more tense as figure skaters walked around very focused and subdued with their headphones on pumping them up for their performance, as opposed to boom boxes blasting from each locker room as they are in synchro.

Heading upstairs more eyes were on us as we filled in the empty seats in time to watch the last two groups of the ladies free skate competition. A definite team favorite was the winner of the competition, Alissa Czisny, who skated a beautiful and emotion filled program. We all really admired the talent and confidence that all of the ladies had getting out on the ice by themselves.

We woke up early Sunday morning for a 6:30 am practice session on the official ice. Once we stepped on to the ice and looked up at the huge arena around us, the adrenaline kicked in immediately. We had a great practice and could not be more excited to skate on that same ice with the seats completely packed that night. We then spent the majority of the rest of the day relaxing and preparing for our performance.

Arriving at the rink for the mens competition, the attitude of the arena seemed to be a little bit different and more energetic. Watching the men skate was unbelievable. As the excitement built, the final skater in the competition, Ryan Bradley, took the ice and the crowd went wild. He skated an amazing program with expression that all of us admired and would love to put into our own programs as a team. As the scores came up and he had placed first, we went wild.

Soon it came time for us to get ready for our own performance. We treated this opportunity as we would any competition and completed our usual rituals in our locker room before lining up in the hallway. As we waited in the hallway across from the athlete lounge, we saw, waved to, and chatted with many of figure skating’s top stars including Ryan Bradley, Evan Lysacek, Mirai Nagasu, Rachel Flatt, John Coughlin, Jeremy Abbott, and Meryl Davis.

Finally it was our turn to take the ice. As we stood in our warm-up block they gave the audience our bio and explained that we would be performing our long program. As we skated our warm-up block the crowd was silent, but it gave me the chance to think what an amazing opportunity this was not only for myself and my team, but the sport of synchronized skating as a whole. When we skated our death spirals, 135’s, and our spread eagles, the crowd cheered loudly, very impressed. We skated a program full of emotion and hitting our ending pose, the crowd went wild and gave us a standing ovation. This was an overwhelming feeling for me as I realized that what we had just done was a step towards making synchronized skating a better known sport.

Walking back upstairs to watch the rest of the show, we were stopped by countless athletes and spectators to tell us what a great job we had done. I couldn’t help but smile when a few young girls asked all 20 of us for our autographs on a poster from the competition. This was a completely new experience for us all. Entering the hotel lobby, all eyes were on us once again in our matching Team USA warm-up suits, but this time it was with eyes of admiration and knowledge of exactly who we were and what we did.

Leaving North Carolina, I was filled with pride in myself, my team, and my sport. We had accomplished exactly what we had come here to do. We wanted to push synchronized skating further on to the scene and get it recognized by those who had never seen it before, and we had done just that. About 7,000 people had been in that arena Sunday night and 7,000 people had stood up and cheered not only for our performance, but to say that they enjoyed the sport of synchronized skating. For me personally, I was honored and extremely proud to be a part of that. I would like to take this chance to thank U.S. Figure Skating for this once in a lifetime opportunity and for helping us to promote synchronized skating.

Talk to you from Milan,

Ashley

2011 Smucker's Skating Spectacular

2011-01-31T17:44:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, the Skyliners had the privilege of performing at the 2011 Smucker's Skating Spectacular that took place in Greensboro, North Carolina after the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

Saturday, we went to the rink for our normal practice, but instead of walking next door to the gym after we got off the ice, we all piled into our parents' cars and caravanned over to Newark Airport. Upon arrival in North Carolina, we went to the hotel for a quick dinner then went to the arena to watch the senior ladies free skate. The stands were packed. As we watched each competitor enter the ice, we realized how nerve racking and intimidating it must be to get on the ice all alone in front of so many people, including judges, spectators, and television cameras. At this moment we knew why we are synchro skaters. We love taking the ice as a team.

Sunday morning we had an early wake up and went to the arena for practice. Although it was very early, we had a strong practice and felt confident for our performance that night.

After practice, we went to a Waffle House for breakfast. I was hungry and in the mood for pancakes. Without checking the menu, and wrongfully assuming that all breakfast places had pancakes, I asked the waitress for chocolate chip pancakes. She replied, "This is Waffle House..." Oops! Then we went back to the hotel for nap/homework time.

After our rest, we went to the rink for the Men's Free Skate. We all especially enjoyed Ryan Bradley's program. His expression was amazing and you could tell he was really enjoying himself. I was so happy for him when he won. When the competition was over we walked around the arena and did a little shopping, then went down to our locker room for hair and makeup. When we finished getting ready, we put on our dresses and skates and did our usual locker room pump-up routine.

Finally, it was time to skate. On our way from the locker room to the ice we saw all the other skaters that were performing hanging out in the Athlete's Lounge. Jeremy Abbott and Ryan Bradley wished us luck, and when Even Lysacek asked us what we skate to, we all replied, "Phantom of the Opera." He laughed and said, "You speak in unison too?" We were star struck.

Skating was surreal. The audience was huge, full of people who had never seen synchro before. They especially enjoyed our moves-in-isolation and moves-in-the-field elements. The crowd responded to our program with a standing ovation.

Overall, going to Greensboro was an awesome experience. Watching the skating was amazing and performing was incredible. We had so much fun. And to top it all off, we got a picture with Tara Lipinski at the airport on our way home!

Ci vediamo a Milano! (See you in Milan!)

Audrey

2011 Junior World Team Selection Competition

2011-01-26T10:00:00.000-08:00

Getting off the plane in Milwaukee on Wednesday night, it felt like just another competition, but in the end, it turned out to be so much more than that. Going into the Junior World Team Selection Competition, we all knew that there was a lot on the line, and we were hoping to earn a spot once again on the World Junior Team. Still, we were extremely excited and knew that we were ready for the intense competition that the weekend was sure to bring.

We woke up and headed to the rink, soon finding out that we would be skating fourth in the first flight. We were very excited about this because it meant that we would get a chance to watch the teams that were competing after the ice cut. We got on the ice for our official and were very pleased to skate two clean run-throughs before getting off.

After lunch and another quick practice, we could not wait to get back to the hotel to start hair and make-up and put on our brand new team USA warm-ups for the first time. Walking into the rink for the short program, we were beyond excited and so ready to compete. We took the ice with confidence in our short program and turned on our over-the-top expression the minute the music started. Hitting our ending pose, we were thrilled to hear the crowd respond so positively to our bright and exciting short program. As we stood in the kiss and cry, we couldn’t have been happier with our score of 56.72.

Once we got out of the locker room, we headed for the stands and cheered loudly for our friends on the teams still competing. As the night came to an end, we sat in first place, but we knew that it was not over 'til it was over, and we would need to keep up the energy we had in the short if we wanted to stay on top.

The next morning we woke up to learn that we would be skating third in the second flight. We were off to the rink once again and getting ready for our free skate official practice. It went well, but not everything was exactly the way that we wanted to perform it that night, so we were happy to have one more practice, directly following our official, before we were to compete that night. We completed our hair and make-up and a quick warm-up at the hotel before going over to the warm-up area near the rink. Entering our locker room, we could not have been more pumped up to compete. Yet somehow we were able to psych ourselves up even more as we waited ready in the locker room for almost a half hour. We danced and cheered, until finally we were told that they were ready for us.

As we stepped onto the ice, I knew we were ready and we all had a new confidence that I hadn’t seen before. Going through our “Phantom of the Opera” program I could hear Josh’s screams of joy getting louder with each element. As we traveled our moving wheel, our last element, that’s when it all hit me: we had just given it our all. Kneeling on the ice in our ending pose, I was completely overwhelmed with pride from the way the team had just skated. As our scores were announced, our jaws dropped with shock as we heard 120.94, and then the screams came out. We were all so proud of ourselves and each other. We then headed over to the end of the rink, where both Team Braemar and Miami were standing.

As we waited for the competition to end, we cheered on the other teams. Once the competition had come to an end and it was determined that we would be going to the Junior World Challenge Cup in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, along with Team Braemar, we were beside ourselves. Our two teams jumped up and down congratulating each other. We were then called back onto the ice and announced as Team USA1. This was an amazing feeling, and I was filled with so much pride when handed a bouquet of flowers for my team.

We spent some time on the ice taking picture after picture with Team Braemar as the 2011 World Junior Team. To finish off an extremely exciting competition, we took the bus to a restaurant where there was a DJ playing music. There, the Skyliners and Team Braemar danced the night away together, celebrating our success.

This was an extremely exciting and very successful competition for us. We know that there is a lot of hard work ahead of us, but we are looking forward to every minute of it. We could not be more thrilled to be going to Switzerland with Team Braemar. We are already very close friends, but I know that the friendship we have will grow even that much more.

Talk to you soon,

Ashley

Free Skate from Austria

2011-01-25T12:06:00.000-08:00

Hi All!

Drawing last for the free skate, the Haydenettes got to sleep in for the first time all week! We had a wake up call to head to the rink and watch the Lexettes official practice. The Haydenettes were so proud of them! Their official practice was so strong and impressive and we knew they were determined and ready to compete! Upon return to the hotel the Haydenettes completed our hair and make-up for our official practice. Official practice went very well, and we returned to the hotel anxious to watch the video to see what we could improve on for the night's competition.After our competitions preparations, we got to the rink and heard the Lexettes had improved to a third place finished, we were thrilled for them! We had a nice warm-up and we were so excited to put on our fishnet tights! With our new favorite quote from free skate, "It's a life, it's a style, it's a need, it's Burlesque." we were ready to debut ourfree skate to an international crowd! Our skate was extremely expressive, we have improved in our second marks and are thrilled to improve with the expression. We had two falls in the no point intersection but our skaters got up and back in so fast, the team saw no effect the rest of the program. We ended the competition with a second place finish behind Finland's Marigold Ice Unity. They Haydenettes are so proud to be able to compete for the United States and we thought our USA team at this competition was so strong!

After award ceremony we were able to go back to the hotel and have some dinner and hang out at the hotel with the Lexettes and some parents! The Haydenettes and Lexettes left for Munich Airport early the next morning en route to Boston!

Salzburg was beautiful! The Alps were visible from the windows at the Eisarena in Salzburg. Being able to compete in such a beautiful country was incredible!

Keep Posted for our blogs from Easterns!

-Jenna and Noelle (photo credit: Erika Hoffman)

Free Skate Program in Austria!

2011-01-23T13:33:00.000-08:00

What a day! As I write this, I'm sitting with my other Starlights teammates relaxing together after our post-competition dinner. We got to sleep a little extra this morning, with official practice starting at noon. We came off of the ice feeling ready and anxious for the competition. Hair and makeup began as soon as we got back to the hotel. Thankfully, the Lexettes were nice enough to lend us some sewing supplies for our hair!

At our floor practice before heading over to the arena, we worked a lot on expression and performing for both the judges AND each other. After our warm up and floor run through, we were in the locker room! Leading off the freeskate competition was a whole new experience. While there were some shaky pieces of the program, we are really excited to build off of it in the coming month before the U.S. Championships. We ended up with a fifth place finish, and were very happy with this, especially at an international competition!

We were SO proud of our U.S. teammates, with Miami Junior's 6th place finish, the Lexettes taking home the bronze medal in junior, and especially the Haydenettes and their silver medal! It was so much fun to be standing in the stands cheering 'USA!!' as loud as we could. I take a lot of pride in those three letters and representing my country is a HUGE honor!

The Mozart Cup was such a wonderful competition, and it was awesome to compete in its inaugural year. I really hope that teams in the future have the opportunity to attend and have as great an experience as I did!

-B

Short Program in Austria!

2011-01-22T13:29:00.000-08:00

When I woke up this morning, I could already feel the excitement building! Today was the day of our short program at the Mozart Cup. After a good breakfast, we headed over to our official practice. It was strong and we were able to accomplish what we had been working especially hard on during prior practices. We left the arena in high spirits, and anxious to come back this evening! After a carbo-load pasta lunch at a nearby Italian restaurant, we headed back to the hotel for a bit of rest before we began getting ready for the competition.

After hair and makeup, we all got together and each wrote down our fears and what we were nervous about for that night on a sheet of paper. Then, all together, we ripped them up and threw them away! It definitely calmed a lot of our jitters, and we began our floor practice with new confidence. We carried this new confidence into the arena, did our floor practice run throughs and warm up, and before we knew it we were in the locker room lacing up our skates!

The skate was so exhilarating! Even from our first step on the ice, we saw all of our U.S. teammates on Haydenettes, Lexettes, and Miami junior cheering in the stands, and we completely fed off of their energy. We skated a strong, clean short program, which we were extremely proud of. There is no better feeling than skating a program that you know you can be proud of, and its definitely a great way to head into both the free skate as well as the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships. We are extremely proud of our Haydenettes teammates for their second place finish and of our fifth place after the short program.

And now there is the free skate tomorrow! My teammates and I are SO excited to show off this program on the international stage tomorrow evening! At the draw ceremony, we picked lucky number 1, so make sure you tune in to the live broadcast early!

-B

Short Program Day in Austria!

2011-01-22T12:09:00.000-08:00

Today the Haydenettes and Lexettes woke up to sunny morning in Salzburg. We ate breakfast and immediately started our hair and make-up for official practice. Once getting to the rink we were able to cheer on the Lexettes at official before we headed to warm-up. Our official practice did not start off so nice, however, we recovered and ended on a strong note!

We headed back to the hotel to watch video, and then were directed to grab lunch at the local supermarket, and rest-up!! Afterwards we started our hair and make-up and our normal traditions and we were off to compete. Taking the ice first in the senior event, we had a very energetic and strong skate, and we all came off the ice very pleased. Our goal is always to improve on our previous skate, and we felt we have done just that!

The Haydenettes then joined the Lexettes and Miami University junior to watch our fellow Team USA members the Starlights. Their short program was also beaming with energy and very crisp!

We drew to skate last in tomorrow night's free skate competition. We are very excited to debut our free skate internationally!!

Goodnight from Austria,
-Jenna and Noelle

Mozart Cup 2011 Haydenettes

2011-01-21T12:37:00.000-08:00

Hey its Jenna and Noelle!

We arrived in Munich on Thursday morning and then drove two hours to Salzburg. All of the Haydenettes were excited to be in Austria for the first Mozart Cup! We had our first practice Thursday afternoon at the official arena, where we worked on both the short and long programs. From the ice surface you can see the beautiful mountains topped with fresh snow. It's a gorgeous sight.
After practice we went back to the hotel for dinner. Everyone on the team was amazed at how pretty the sights of the city and countryside of Austria were. We then had a Team USA meeting with the Starlights, Lexettes and several of the USA officials. Off to bed.

Friday
We woke up early for our drive to the unofficial arena an hour and a half away. We watched Nexxice junior for a couple minutes before watching our own Lexettes practice. Then the Haydenettes took the ice for an hour. We had a great practice full of energy for the competition. After our practices we took the bus to the Chapel from the Sound of Music where
the Von Trapp's got married in the movie! The town where the Chapel is located is very cute. All the buildings are different colors and the architecture is stunning. After, we went into downtown Salzburg for some shopping. Throughout the city, there was a large carnival going on where tons of marching bands from all over Europe came to play. They were wearing jester costumes and tons of face paint! We also saw the Croatian and Finnish teams while shopping in some of the popular destinations such as Zara and H&M. After a couple hours shopping we headed back to the hotel for rest and dinner.

Tomorrow is the short program! We are all excited for the competition to start! Good luck to all the teams :-)

Jenna and Noelle

Our First Day in Austria!

2011-01-20T13:00:00.000-08:00

Hi, everyone! We’re finally here in Austria! After a relatively smooth flight across the Atlantic, my Starlights senior teammates and I arrived in Salzburg around noon. We grabbed a quick bite to eat, and then were on our way for a walking tour of the city (to take in some of the amazing sights as well as to keep ourselves awake!). The tour was a lot of fun, and the snowy weather made it all the more beautiful! After dinner, we had a team meeting with our team leaders, Bob Bauer and Karin Sherr, U.S. judge Jeannette Davey, the Haydenettes and the Lexettes; now, it's off to bed for us, as we’ll be up bright and early for our unofficial practice tomorrow morning! I’ve included a couple of pictures from our tour today.

-B

Cup of Berlin Update!

2011-01-17T17:00:00.000-08:00

Hey, it's Annaleigh again!

On Saturday night, we stepped into our character the minute we began off-ice warm up at the hotel. You could feel the excitement rising in our team. After a short walk to the ice rink, we then practiced our intense facial expressions and ended our off-ice with a loud “USA!” Our long program felt spectacular when we were on the ice. There were, however, a few bobbles here and there and we ended in fourth place. We were disappointed about being so close to third, but the improvement in our component scores made us proud.

The funny thing about this trip was that Chicago Jazz junior and California Gold were so alike! First of all, we both drew third at the draw for short program. Then, we both placed third after short. When the draw for long program came around, both teams skated fifth. And finally, we both ended up in fourth place. I was so baffled by the coincidence of it all!

After six days in Berlin, we are headed back to California. International competitions are always such amazing experiences, and this one is not to be left out! From touring the famous sights to stepping onto the ice for long program, the emotions we felt ranged from feeling very jet lagged to becoming ecstatic after ending our programs.

Love, Annaleigh

Willkommen in Berlin

2011-01-13T11:26:00.000-08:00

I am pleased to announce that California Gold and Chicago Jazz junior have made it safely to Berlin! We have already had a few hours on the ice at the practice rink that got us out of our travel daze and into competition mode. Our practice this morning was extremely productive and we had some great run-throughs.

After our practice this morning, we had the opportunity to go out and tour the brilliant city of Berlin. We bought day passes for the "Bahnhoff," Berlin's subway system, and visited major sights such as the Brandenberg Gate, the Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie. After seeing the streets of Berlin, we just had to stop in a chocolate shop called Fassbender & Rausch and have ourselves a nice cup of hot chocolate.

Tonight, we had an amazing time skating our short program. The fun and swanky program is always a blast to get into with our ridiculous surprised and smiley faces! Going into free skate tomorrow, we are sitting in third place and are ready to push ourselves to skate a fast and clean program. GO TEAM USA!

December Madness

2011-01-01T12:25:00.000-08:00

Typically, December is a month filled with shopping, preparing for the holidays and hanging out with friends and family. Well, this month definitely was a busy one, but filled with so many exciting synchro events, that there was minimal time for shopping. Still, with all of these events came several reunions and countless hours spent with teammates.

The month started with a trip to Michigan for the Dr. Richard Porter Classic. The Skyliners junior team was excited because it was the first time we would get the chance to compete against the midwestern junior teams and a few teams from Canada. Before competing the short program, we headed to the rink to cheer on our intermediate team. As they took the ice, we (the novice team, too) cheered as loud as we could to support our fellow teammates. They wowed us once again with their fast and fun "Glee" themed program and won gold in their group.

Finally it was our turn to compete and we were so excited to show the crowd our energetic and bright program to “Don’t Rain on My Parade.” We skated well with just one small fall and were BEYOND ecstatic with our second place finish.

As we waited to perform our long program the next day, we spotted three former teammates, who now compete on two different collegiate teams, coming to cheer us on. We were very happy with the way we skated while still knowing there was room to improve. Hearing our score of 101, we were thrilled and could not believe that we had won the long program and came in second overall to one of the top Canadian teams, Gold Ice. We were extremely proud of our performance that weekend and had a wonderful experience at the Porter competition. Throughout the weekend, we were happy to reconnect with several friends we hadn’t seen in a while, as well as catch up and take a few quick pictures with our Dreammates.

The second weekend of December was upon us and we were off to Cape Cod for the second competition weekend in a row. We once again competed against the East Coast junior teams including the Lexettes, Team Image and the Synchroettes. We were really happy after competing the short program. The next day we had some time before we competed, where we were able to help the younger teams prepare for their competitions including sewing in the juvenile skaters hair pieces for their “Hairspray” program.

As the last division that night, we competed our “Phantom of the Opera” long program placing first. Cape Cod is always a fun competition that brings back so many memories of competing there year after year in the younger divisions.

Weekend number three put us into our favorite city, New York. That Friday, directly after school, we all raced to the train stations in our towns, just in time to board extremely crowded trains and meet each other at Grand Central Terminal. From there, we traveled together to the Chelsea Piers rink, home of the Skating Club of New York, for the annual "Holiday on the Hudson" skating show. We had a great time spending the night together as a team and performing under the spotlights in front of a crowd that doesn’t often get to see synchronized skating.

Finally, this last week of December has been spent busily preparing for the Junior World Team Selection Competition to be held next week in Fond du Lac, Wis. We have spent this week at the rink, once again, for our “Christmas Bootcamp,” as we like to call it. It has been hard, but a lot of fun and we have loved getting to spend so much time together. We are extremely excited to compete again next weekend and cannot wait reunite with friends from all over the country.

See you all at Fondy,

Ashley and Audrey