Miami Worlds Update 3

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

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

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

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

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!

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