Shining Waters 2010

So, now that I have recovered from the event, it's time to blog about it! This competition is always a lot of fun, and I enjoy seeing my skaters compete, but it's also always a LONG day. I was at the arena for about 13.5 hours...and the majority of time is spent running around looking for kids, making sure they're ready to go on the ice, getting them to the right spot at the right time, etc.

This year I had 10 skaters competing at Shining Waters, five from Quinte FSC and five from Tweed & District FSC; and it was the first competition for two of my Quinte skaters. My 10 skaters competed in 33 events...and, brought home 23 medals! Yah! Four of my skaters medaled in every event they skated (three or four, depending on the skater)...one of these four not only medaled, but placed first, in all three of her events!

I experienced a first at this competition as well, I had to walk out onto the ice (coaches don't wear skates at competition, just like you see on TV, we work with our skaters from the boards during warm-up and then they go out and do their solo) to help one of my skaters off the ice. Once the announcer called her, she started skating out to her starting spot and tripped over her toe-pick...down she went, hitting her hip bone and elbow in the process. She burst into tears and couldn't even stand up :( So, she was supposed to have skated third, but took a few minutes to collect herself and dry her tears, and ended up skating at the end of the group...so, she still got to do her solo, which was good. I think she scared herself more then hurt herself, you don't expect to fall at that point.

A second skater also took a fall during her elements, and although there were some tears, she did manage to finish her last element. So, that wasn't as eventful.

Now for some pictures from the day...



Christina, Alex & Nicole (front to back)
Three of my Quinte skaters



Allyson, Alex, Taryn, Crystal & Christina (left to right)
Three of my Quinte skaters, and two fellow Quinte skaters, ready to compete in 'Team Elements' - they came in first!



A group of Advanced CanSkaters and Juniors from Tweed, ready to compete in 'CanSkate Showcase' - they came in third! They were a lot younger then skaters in the other groups.



Jillian & Britteny (left to right)
Two of my Tweed skaters, these two medaled in all four of their events. I think the most exciting medal for them was their third place finish in 'Similar Pairs'. This is the first time they competed in this event, and they were in a flight with ten other pairs, so there was some stiff competition.

Overall, it was a great day! I could tell my skaters had a lot of fun and they were all very happy with how they did. Days like these are another great part of coaching skating!