MFSC Synchronized Skating Teams Compete at Ann Arbor's Porter Synchro Classic

Congratulations to MFSC's Synchronized Skating Teams on their recent performances at the Porter Synchro Classic in Ann Arbor, December 3, 2005.
Nexus (Open Juvenile Division) - 4th place  (view pictures 1 2 3)
Turning Points (Masters Division) - 3rd place (view pictures 1 2)

GRASSROOTS TO CHAMPIONS SEMINAR SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 23, 2006

The Midland Figure Skating Club is excited to present Audrey Weisiger’s Grassroots to Champions Seminar, April 23, 2006.

This one-day seminar is available to skaters of all ages in Pre-Preliminary through Senior levels and their coaches.  Parents are encouraged to attend as well.  Skaters should feel free to attend this seminar with or without their coach.

The Grassroots mission is to raise the technical level of US skaters over the next 4 years. The seminars focus on teaching coaches and their skaters how to develop from the first steps on to the ice into a championship caliber competitor.

The main topics covered in this seminar:

• jumps from singles to doubles to triples to quads

• off-ice jumping for correct air positions

• correct take-off prints and landings

• alignment of body positions

• how to use the jumping pole with Nick Perna

• how Dartfish can speed the learning process with Chris Conte

• proper equipment fitting

• how to prepare for competition

• Grassroots to Champions lecture on the process of becoming a skater in full bloom

• select tots, how to identify talent in your group lesson programs

• conditioning the body for skating at the elite level

• how to create the total package

Enrollment is limited - sign-up today!

SENIOR FREESKATE!

Maryellen is pictured here with her coach Kathy Collings.

On November 13 2005, Maryellen Tighe  conquered the top of figure skating's test structure.  

Passing the Senior Freeskating test and the 15 tests that must precede it is a tremendously difficult task that requires years and years of dedicated work, and a great deal of skill.  Only a small percentage of skaters can claim this great prize, and very few among the general public can claim any other accomplishment of comparable effort.

To every skater that successfully meets this challenge, and especially to Maryellen on this special day, Congratulations !!!

SKATE MIDLAND 2005 BASIC SKILLS COMPETITION A HUGE SUCCESS!

A great huge thank you to all of you who made our Skate Midland competition run so smoothly and be so much fun for the kids.  Everyone had a wonderful time, and many out of town competitors and their families congratulated us on a well-run event!  The Club really pulled together to make it happen.

View results
View pictures (thanks to Don Korte for taking such great candid shots and posting them to his website)
View pictures (thanks to MFSC's Linda Bagley for taking these great candid shots)

We’ve moved!  To a new date, November 12, and a new location — Midland’s new three-surface arena on Fast Ice Drive, at the Bay City Road exit from Route 10.

The Midland Figure Skating Club is proud to sponsor the 3^rd Skate Midland Competition at this new venue. The competition will be held on Saturday November 12, 2005 from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm.

The competition is open to ALL skaters who are registered members of the Basic Skills Program and/or are members in good standing of a USFS Club, or are ISI members.  Events are offered from Snowplow Sam through Preliminary Free Skating.  Consult with your coach or Basic Skills instructor if you need help in selecting which events to enter.

Download registration form & competition announcement
Registration deadline is October 15, 2005

Nicki Hayes is leaving MFSC to move to Cleveland. Parents, skaters, volunteers have all enjoyed working with Nicki over the years, and wish her the best of luck in her new adventure.

MFSC Pro, Jessica Gullan, competed in the 2005 U.S. Collegiate Championships, August 9-12 in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Way to SK8, Jess!!

Club members: We need your contributions to these committees and the ones below. We know there are good ideas out there that we need to capture.

The second need is to grow the financial wherewithal of the Club. The goal is to supplement the current year end balance of $29,000 with an additional $100,000 over the next 3 years. This will allow the Club to resist ice fee increases, pursue scholarships, and investigate professional administrative assistance. The growth in membership will contribute, but it will be necessary to implement significant fund-raising as well. The following people agreed to form ad-hoc committees to come up with ideas and the starts of plans:

In addition, we need to examine the committee structure of the Club for possible holes or redundancies. Anne Shuff and Hedi Allis will form another ad-hoc committee to define what we have now and options for the future.

This is a lot of ad hoc committees! But it is a wonderful opportunity for many folks to become a part of the solutions. We expect the committees to be goal oriented and work quickly to identify the next steps which will then be assigned to permanent committees. Please consider being involved in these ad hoc committees. Contact the ad-hoc leaders directly or me.

Ann Ward
President, MFSC

If you're interested in Synchronized Team Skating - this is the clinic for you!!

Any skater at the Learn-to-Sate Gold Star Level or above, regardless of age, is welcome to come out for this session.  Skaters will be separated into groups, based on age, skill and team experience.  Both individual and team skills will be taught.

We have a variety of goals:

Please register ASAP so we know how to set up our training program!
Contact Hedi Allis if you have questions (phone: 989-835-8477)

The MFSC membership held the annual meeting on April 22 at the MBS Airport SkyRoom.  A big THANK YOU to Fran Santoro-Revard for organizing and hosting the banquet.

Following Club Bylaws, voting was held and the new Board was seated.  Thank you to those club members who volunteered to lead the Club through the next two years!

In addition, the Club owes a huge thank you to outgoing Board members:  Past President Jon Evans, Deb Gubbins, Secretary Carrie Schaller, Cathy Tighe, and President Fran Santoro-Revard. 

With the move to the new rink in sight for this fall, our Board and Committees more than ever need everyone’s input and support.  There are many opportunities to become more involved in helping the Club navigate this exciting and challenging time.  These range from planning for the new locker room to fund raising for our Learn to Skate Program to synchronized skating ... you name it!  Please get in touch with Ann Ward (835-3624) to discuss what might be of interest to you.

Congratulations to the MFSC High School team on their 9th place finish at the 2005 State Championships!! View results View pictures  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Chemic-Charger Skating Team Qualify to Compete at State Championship

Representing Michigan District 5, the Midland Area High School figure skating team recently competed in a high school competition held in Kalamazoo. High School Figure Skaters in Michigan compete in 5 Districts, each composed of 6-12 teams. Each school may field a High level team, and a Low level team, which compete separately. Skaters participate in 3 initial-round competitions within their own District, then the top 3 teams from each district meet in the State Final Championship Competition.   The Chemic-Charger team is split into two teams, an A team and B team.  In this recent competition, Team A placed 4th in Jumps, 2nd in Moves and 2nd in Spins, giving them a 2nd place overall finish. The B Team placed 8th in Jumps, 9th in Moves, and 9th in Spins, giving this team a 9th overall finish. Kate-Alice Martin placed 1st in the "Longest Element" event for the B team. The A team received a 3rd place overall placement in the District qualifying them to compete in the State Final Championship Competition on March 19th at the Detroit Skate Club. Members of the 2004-2005 Chemic-Charger Skating Team are:   Margaret Bakke, Stephanie Deprest, Ashley Partlo, Kate-Alice Martin, Maryellen Tighe, Amanda Sutton, Jordan Evans, Kathleen Revard, and Jodi Bartlett. The team is coached by MFSC Professional Jessica Gullan.

Turning Points Place 11th at 2005 U.S. Synchronized Team Skating Championships

Congratulations to the Turning Points who skated their way to an 11th place finish at the 2005 U.S. Synchronized Team Skating Championships, in Boston, MA, February 23-26, 2005.  Way to SK8 GR8!!

	Congratulations to MFSC skaters who competed at the 2nd Annual Skate Midland competition, February 19, 2005. View results View pictures A huge thank you to all of you who made our Skate Midland competition run so smoothly and be so much fun for the kids.  Everyone had a wonderful time! The Club really pulled together to make this event a success.
Thanks to Don Korte for posting the results and pictures on his web site so quickly!!

Splice Place Third at Tri-State Meet
	Ten Members of MFSC's synchronized skating team, Splice, followed a fourth-place finish at the Fraser Invitational with a third-place performance at the Tri-State Synchronized Team Competition in Bowling Green, Ohio, recently. Splice competes in the Teen division and consists of skaters from the Tri-Cities area ranging in age from 13-23 and in skill level from Preliminary to Junior.  Splice is coached by MFSC professional, Hedi Allis.
Splice will conclude its season with a handful of show performances and will begin working on its new competitive routine during the summer.  The team will host the Midwestern Sectional competition next year. Splice's counterpart from the MFSC, the Petite Goldenettes, took seventh in the Youth division at Bowling Green.  The Petite Goldenettes are coached by MFSC professional, Nicki Hayes.

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