2008 Champion In Life recipient Brittany Perna offers her perspective on skating at her club banquet
By Brittany Perna
Take this pill... it's new on the market... they call it Skating. It helps build strong
muscles, strong bones, and an even stronger character. This pill may lead to increased
levels of perseverance, dedication, friendship, and personal responsibility. However,
side effects may include broken bones, torn ligaments, sprains, pulls, headache,
nausea, frustration, annoyance, 45-minute long fits of rage, and excessive tear
production. Skating should not be taken if you lack intrinsic drive, a strong
work ethic, a resilient personality, or have the inability to hit seven jumping
passes, three spins, and a footwork sequence in under four minutes.
Skating should come with a warning label.
My sister and I have skated since before we can consciously remember and I am sure
that not even my parents knew what we were getting into when they put us on the
ice for the first time. Skating has become more than just a sport to me. It is
a lifestyle. We sacrifice Saturday afternoons with school friends to go to conditioning
or dance classes. We take 27 pound backpacks filled with homework to Regionals
so that we don't fall behind at school, all the while trying to focus on skating our best to try and garner one of those illustrious podium positions which will take us on to Sectionals. Skaters are simply a different breed of athlete. Skaters blend the art of dance with the athleticism of gymnastics and more. We are truly fearless.
There is no team in skating. It is YOU who picks yourself up after that disastrous
fall into the boards, it is YOU who finishes the program after missing the
first four jumps. No matter how much we want to quit - we keep going. We keep
going because we know that although a rink is an oval, skating is a path, and that
even when the path gets foggy, and the road gets unclear, it leads us somewhere.
Somewhere may not be Nationals, somewhere may not be a JGP, and somewhere
may not be the Olympics, but rather somewhere is a place of acceptance and appreciation, where we see just how remarkable the feats that we have accomplished really are, and what amazing friends we have made along the way.
In the end, medals are only “matter” in the scientific sense of the word - they aren’t what really “matter.”
If I had to choose between either having more medals or having more friends, I would definitely pick friends, and although skating has brought me my fair share of medals, it has brought me even more true friends… whom I will miss in indescribable proportions next year.
They say that hindsight is 20-20 and looking back on over 14 years of skating, I can
say with complete confidence, that even if I had known the symptoms and side effects
of Skating beforehand, I still would have sat down and taken my medicine.
March 01, 2008
Flatt captures gold in ladies final at World Junior Championships in Bulgaria
Consistent performance earns Flatt first-place finish
Congratulations to G2C alumna Rachael Flatt and her coach Tom Zakrajsek on her victory at the 2008 World Junior Championships in Sofia Bulgaria. Rachael, who attended a seminar in 2003, won gold with two solid performances in a strong field that was dominated by the US.
Flatt was the only American to not make any mistakes, her only big mistake was when she jumped off from the wrong edge on her second Lutz. Her six other triple jumps, and the double Axel were nearly perfect.
Her interpretation of the "Romantic Rhapsody" by Mathieu got average component scores of 6.3. Flatt also had the highest speed of the three American skaters.
The newly crowned champion commented: "I am excited to be here and I skated very well. I really wanted to do all my jumps, and really skate my heart out. So, I did achieve my goal. For next season, I hope to include the triple Axel in my program. My Lutz is a bit inconsistent, but we are working on jumping off from the right edge. I will make my international senior debut next season."
February 29, 2007
Steenberg places 6th in the short and 9th overall at World Junior Championships in Bulgaria
Tommy Steenberg, finished sixth in the Men's Short Program. Seven of his elements were good, including a combination of a triple Lutz and triple toe loop.
"I am happy with my performance today," said Steenberg. "I am happy with my combination and that I could stay focused the whole time."
November 17, 2007
2008 Eastern Sectionals Senior Men
Tommy Steenberg prevails in intense competition
By Liz Leamy, special to icenetwork.com
The South Atlantic skaters prevailed once again in the 2008 Eastern Sectionals senior men's free skate today, and claimed the top four spots in this intensive, technically and artistically proficient competition. Tommy Steenberg (SC of Northern Virginia) won the gold; Parker Pennington (Washington FSC) the silver; Derrick Delmore (Washington FSC) the bronze; Shaun Rogers (University of Delaware FSC) rounded out the final four senior men who claimed coveted U.S. Championships invitations. [more...]
October 19, 2007
Tommy Steenberg wins his first
South Atlantic Senior Men's title
Viktor Pfeifer(Bronze), Tommy Steenberg(Gold), Shaun Rogers (Silver), Traighe Rouse
take the podium at the 2008 South Atlantic Championships
October 13, 2007
Parker Pennington wins free program performance at Finlandia Cup
By Jyrki Pirkkalainen
Colorado Springs skater Parker Pennington won the free skate, landing six triples. But he was not able to make up the 12 points that separated him and Verner after the short program, so he could only climb up to second overall with 185.08 points.
Pennington said he was totally focused on skating his own very best. "It was great, it went so smooth. This was my best performance since my very first senior season", he commented. His goal for this season is to land the quad and do well at U.S. nationals.
Parker Pennington took the men's silver at the Finlandia Trophy.
October 1, 2007
Chrissy Hughes Continues to Impress
By TOMMY STEENBERG
Seventeen-year-old Chrissy Hughes of Issaquah, Washington continues to amaze onlookers with her competitive spirit and excitement for skating just eight months after her standing ovation at the US Figure Skating Championships. Hughes earned herself a spot on the Junior Grand Prix Circuit for the first time, and she seized the opportunity by winning her event, JGP Romania, which took place from September 6 through September 9. Emphasizing her personal performance over placements, an excited Hughes exclaimed weeks later, “I still cannot believe that I won my first Junior Grand Prix event. Since I skated last in the freeskate, I knew the standings after my skate would be my final result. It was very exciting to see my name pop up on the Jumbo-Tron screen behind the number one!”
This victory deems truly impressive because of the nagging foot injury Hughes overcame in order to make her performances possible. She explained, “I had about two months to prepare for my JGP after I returned to the ice in early July. I knew I was under a time crunch, so I never took a session or a lesson for granted.” Perhaps this instance helps define the incredible assertiveness and belief with which this teenager carries herself. Hughes stands out as being particularly easy to watch even though an audience usually finds themselves a bit nervous while watching what are often high-pressure skating events. Describing her comfort zone while competing, she put in plain words, “I love the feeling of being on the ice while everyone else is watching me. However, I do get very nervous. I think I am just used to the nerves because they come to me at every competition.”
Darin Hosier, her coach of over four years, stands beside the rising athlete during daily practice and through competitions. His feelings about Chrissy’s victory over a large group of international ladies were easily summed up, as he simply remarked, “In one word—thrilled.” Hosier took Hughes on as a pupil when she was just a second year intermediate lady, demonstrating the impressive ability of forming and creating champions. He informed, “I have an eclectic clientele with students ranging in age (4 to 65) and abilities (tots through Senior).” With such a diversity of students, he has one common goal and enjoyment that he claims motivates him most—“Bringing their goals to fruition.” Hughes has also had many years of experience with her choreographer, Corrie Martin, who has worked with her for over seven years.
Hughes demonstrates perspective in describing her goals as, “similar to those going into Romania,” as she looks forward to her next competition, JGP Bulgaria. She then elaborated in sharing, “I hope to skate two strong programs that will help me place high enough so that I advance onto the JGP Final. I am also focusing on landing my triple loop in my long program and earning a level 4 on my combination spins.” Of course skating is not the only experience that Hughes gains from competition to competition. She sincerely stated, “I am so glad that I had the chance to meet other skaters from across the country.” Although figure skating can often be a very individual sport, it appears as though Chrissy Hughes has already discovered the complete meaning of being a part of Team USA.
May 3, 2007
USOC Awards 2006 Coaches of the Year
By USOC.Staff // U.S. Olympic Committee
G2C specialty coach Kat Arbour won the "Doc" Counsilman Award for innovative sports science awarded by the US Olympic Committee. The “Doc” Counsilman award recognizes a coach who has created innovative ways to use sports science.
Arbour is a rated figure skating coach through the Professional Skaters Association (PSA), a licensed physical therapist, a certified personal trainer and off-ice strength and conditioning coach, and a current PhD candidate in biomechanics and movement science. She is able to bring a level of knowledge to working with figure skaters which few coaches possess. Currently, Arbour is using sports science in her coaching to help skaters acquire the ability to skate their programs at their best, identify injuries early to minimize the interruption to training, and to educate skaters parents and other coaches. Although Arbour is not the head coach of any athletes, the number of elite athletes with whom she works with including Kimmie Meissner speaks volumes for her ability as a coach and her expertise in off-ice conditioning and injury prevention.
[more...]
January 24, 2007
Hughes wows 'em at skating nationals
By DEBERA CARLTON HARRELL
SEATTLE P-I REPORTER
Chrissy Hughes of Issaquah skated a storybook performance in the long program Tuesday night at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Spokane, taking fourth place for an overall sixth-place finish in the junior ladies competition.
Hughes, who was eighth after Sunday night's short program, hit all four of her planned triple jumps and performed a clean program to pull up in the standings. Her efforts will likely qualify her for international competition at the junior level, coach Darin Hosier said.
"This is a personal best for her. She has never skated two clean routines -- short and long programs -- back-to-back at this elite level," Hosier said. "She just put it all together -- a very storybook night for the hometown girl. The crowd went wild."
Hughes, 16, who trains at Highland Ice Arena in Shoreline, was the local favorite at the Spokane Arena -- the only competitor from Washington state in the highly competitive junior ladies level. It was her first trip to nationals as a junior skater.
Hosier said Hughes outperformed skaters "she has never beaten before."
Mirai Nagasu, 13, from Arcadia, Calif., who led after the short program, won the championship with a first-place long program over the heavily favored Caroline Zhang, 13, of Los Angeles, who finished second.
