Archived VI Region News
The Campbell River Skating Club is jumping into the 2016/2017 season
with a new Team of Coaches, online registration and plans for an Ice Show.
Welcome to…
Head Coach CanSkate Coach Off Ice Coach and Freelance Coach
Rae Anne Hesketh Julia Bowles Keri Bemister
We are pleased to have Rae Anne as our Head Coach with over 35 years of coaching experience.
We also introduce Julia, a Senior skater who recently attended the CanSkate Coach training and is a coach-in-training being mentored by Rae Anne.
We are also pleased to have Keri join our team. Keri will be focused on implementing our Off Ice Program following the philosophy of Skate Canada’s Guide to Long-Term Athlete Development.
Our Off Ice Training Development goals for this season are….”Through providing Off-Ice classes that develop agility, coordination, balance, flexibility, cardio and strength training, to build a well-rounded skater following Skate Canada’s Long Term Athlete Development Module. To introduce and educate skaters on warm-ups, cool-downs, stretching, proper nutrition and hydration as an important part of an athlete’s daily routine.”
And…
We are excited to be able to offer online registration to our skating community. We were looking for something that would be a ‘one stop shop’ that would allow members to register for any of our programs, at their convenience, save our Club volunteers time with registration, fundraising/volunteering, email management and allow our Coaches a tracking mechanism for skater development. We found that Uplifter was exactly what we were looking for and it is far exceeding our expectations.
“Uplifter is a web-based club and athlete management system that makes it easy to create, track and manage the skill development goals and achievements of individual athletes, while greatly improving the efficiency of club operations and driving increased revenues.”
Congratulations to these skaters who finished strong at the Super Series competition in Parksville.
Megan Weber, Bronze Medal
Junior Silver WomenSierra Petrovcic, Silver Medal
Star 4 over 13 yrsCeleste Gale, Bronze Medal
Star 4 under 13 yrs
Campbell River Skating Club
It’s the friends we make along the way that we celebrate! skaters ~ families ~ Executive ~ Coaches.We are wrapping up the year with a jump in membership, great results at competitions-congratulations-the beginnings of a great off ice program and welcoming 13 CanSkaters to our STARSkate program.
Congratulations and Thank you Karen Mallon!
The VI Region Tri-Annual meeting was held on Sunday, April 2 in Parksville. Twelve of our seventeen island clubs were represented; The Region and Executive said good bye to an 18 year member, Karen Mallon. Karen has served in the Judges' Bureau Chair and has been a wonderful ambassador for the Region. Thank you Karen for all your years of dedication. Karen was presented with a beautiful 'Wolf' design earring and necklace/pendant set, in appreciation.
The VI Board welcomes Colleen Norton-Jones onto the Executive, replacing Karen in the Judges' Bureau capacity. Susan Morriss was re-elected in the First Vice Chair position, Patricia Anderson will be returning as Secretary and Laurie Coombs will continue in the Director-at-Large spot.
Announcements: The Kelowna Skaters Training Camp will be held April 14 - 16th
ISU Adult International will be held in Richmond, B.C., August 21 - 26, 2017
Autumn Leaves will be in Chilliwack this year.
BC/YK Sections is November 9 - 12 in Parksville, B.C.
Kerry Park is the host for Interclub in the Fall of 2017
Canadian Championships are in Vancouver in January, 2018 as a prelude to the Winter Olympic Games
**those wishing to volunteer for the Canadian Championships must volunteer prior to the event at either the BC/YK Summer Skate or the Adult International event
2018 B.C. Winter Games are in Kamloops. February 22-25, 2018
Grand Prix Final in Vancouver, December 2018
Online Safe Sport Webinars are available for coaches, officials and team leaders. The topic: 'Respect in Sport' is highly recommended. Entrance to the online programs is with your Skate Canada membership #.
January 2017
Happy New Year!
Our skaters have been very busy this Fall qualifying out of the Sectional Championships in Kelowna for the Challenge event in Montreal.
Congratulations to all our region participants.
Moving onto the Canadian Championships in Ottawa we have 2 teams representing the Racquet Club.
Results from Canadians are:
Ravie Cunningham & Cedar Bridgewood competed in their first year in the Junior Dance event.
Short Dance place: 13th
Free Dance place: 10th Final placement: 11th
Tessa Jones & Matt Den Boer competed in their first year in the Junior Pairs event.
Short Program: 4th
Free Program: 3rd Final placement: 4th
Congratulations to our VI Region skaters for their great effort!
July 2016 The annual planning meeting of the VI Region Executive was held this past weekend in Parksville. As a result of this end of season wrap up and initiating the start of the 2016-17 skating season, the Region Directory has been updated and included in the EXECUTIVE Tab on the website. All names and contact information for the VI Region Board, Committee Chairs and Committee Members as well as the Executive portfolios are included in this tab.
Special Announcement:The VI Region's Annual seminar for Star 3 and higher skaters is now full. A waitlist is currently being taken. This huge response is due to the seminar leader for this year KURT BROWNING!We all look forward to this seminar and having Kurt share his experience and talents with our skaters.
**2016 BC/YK SECTION AWARDS **
The annual BC/YK Section Hall of Fame Inductions and Awards were presented at a sold out celebration banquet on Saturday, April 30, 2016. Hosted by Ted Barton and guest Tracy Wilson, and assisted by Liam Firus and Keven Reynolds, the banquet hall was filled with enthusiastic skaters, parents, coaches, officials, guests and many volunteers from all around our section.
Hall of Fame Inductees:
Coaching Category: Dr. Hellmut May – renowned Kerrisdale coach who came to Canada from Germany in 1954 and coached many national and international competitors
Official Category: Jean Heffernan – lifelong volunteer accountant, Chief Accountant at Worlds in Vancouver in 1960
Athlete Category: Tracy Wilson – B.C. native who along with her dance partner Rob McAll, won 7 Canadian Dance titles, 3 World Bronze Medals and a 1988 Olympic Bronze Medal
Athlete Category: Barry and Louise Soper- 4 consecutive Canadian Dance titles, 9th place at the 1972 Worlds
Awards:
Lifetime Achievement Award: George Hatton
Volunteer Award of Excellence: Gail Weber
Coaches Choice Award: Jane Sawbridge
Dogwood& amp; Volunteer Award: Margot Delorme
Audrey Moore Participation Award: Susan Morriss
Sections Officials Award: Cheyenne Irvine
Officials Award: Sherri McAndless
Susan Griffin Committee Chairman Award: Sharon Dahl
Elizabeth Swan Memorial Award: Lesley Morrison
Recreation Coach Award of Excellence: Marilyn Kreuzinger
Section Volunteer Coach of the Year: Colleen Laferriere
Competitive Coach of the Year: Joanne McLeod
Competitive Athlete of the Year: Sarah Tamura
Adult Skater of the Year: Nancy Edwards
CanSkater of the Year: Valen Collins
StarSkate Athlete of the Year: Claire Sibbald
Program Assistant of the Year: Sarah Wildy
Skaters Award of Achievement: Riley Condon
Youth Promise Awards: Aleksa Rakic, Olivia Gran, Vasilisa Matantseva
Retirement Notice ~ Jannine Ranniger
It is with mixed emotions that we announce Jannine’s retirement. We are sad to see her leave our team, and recognize her dedication to the sport of figure skating. But, we are excited for her and what lays ahead. We hear from her past students about the positive impact she has had on their lives as youths and how it helped them succeed as adults. It truly takes a ‘village’ to raise a child!
Jannine began coaching in the fall of 1977 with the Mt. Paul FSC in Kamloops after performing with Holiday on Ice. She then went on to coach with Valleyview, Logan Lake, Vernon and Enderby skating clubs in the Okanagan Region. Returning to VI coaching at her home club the Victoria FSC and finally at the Campbell River SC for the past 24 yrs; a total of 39 yrs.
Jannine plans on spending time painting watercolour, a bit of travelling, fishing with her husband, Mark, and being able to have more time with her granddaughters Piper, Quinn and Adelaide. Of course she will be teaching them how to skate - goes without saying! She says that she will not miss the crazy coaches’ schedule but does wonder if she can do a ‘normal’ schedule after so many years.
"Will truly miss the skaters who really love to skate. Skate your heart out ~ Live Love Skate ❤️" Jannine
September 2016
KURT BROWNING SKATER DEVELOPMENT SEMINAR
The Vancouver Island Seminar was a huge success. 102 participants had the opportunity of a life time when Kurt Browning led the annual event.Below is the article that appeared in the Parksville Qualicum News.
When Skate Canada Vancouver Island organized its annual figure skating clinic at Oceanside Place Arena last weekend, it bypassed the hiring of a head coach.Instead, it brought in a legend.Kurt Browning, the four-time world champion and three-time Canadian Olympian, held a sell-out crowd of 100 young skaters rapt while headlining his first appearance at the local clinic Saturday and Sunday.“I’m not one to get star-struck, but I do appreciate how fortunate we are to have him here,” said Micia Kanstrup of Victoria, who brought her daughter and two other members of their skating club to the clinic. “He’s signed autographs for the kids and really engaged them. We’re so lucky to have him here.”
Browning, 50, claimed the men’s figure skating world championship four times in a five-year stretch from 1988-93 — and placed second the other year. The flag-bearer for the Canadian Winter Olympic Team at Lillehammer, Norway, in 1994, Browning turned professional that year and remains active as a skater, choreographer and a CBC commentator.But he attends only “two to five” clinics a year of the type held last weekend in Parksville.“Kurt Browning is not a professional coach at all; he doesn’t actually coach like the rest of us who make our living from coaching,” said Elizabeth Kines, a longtime North Island skating coach. “But he has some incredible ideas, breaking down skating back to the basics of the running edge. And giving his love of skating back to the kids.”While not officially a coach, Browning last weekend earned high marks from skaters, parents and coaches for his approach to young skaters across a variety of ages and skill levels.“My seminars tend to be a little more casual,” Browning admitted. “They’re a little bit more fun, and oriented toward making sure they appreciate their own skating and know how to analyze their own skating from a realistic point of view.”Tyler Bidnyk, director of skating for the local Sandy Shores Skating Club, agreed Browning’s approach was less “serious” than skaters would typically get from a professional coach in a clinic setting. But he said that approach had plenty of value — for both skaters and coaches.“Part of what I was watching was his teaching tactics, and seeing how can I deliver a lesson better,” said Bidnyk, who served as one of the clinic’s three coaches.“So it was kind of inspiring for me to see him naturally adapt to these younger kids and do stuff they can do. If he’s not a coach, well, he delivers very well. Everyone’s loving it; he’s hilarious.”
Clinic organizer Matt Willis, director of skating development for Skate Canada Vancouver Island, said the turnout for this year’s clinic brought “record numbers.” It actually sold out its maximum available 100 slots and left a waiting list of skaters wishing to attend.“When I got the email, I’m like, ‘I’m signing up for this now,’” said Olivia Bau, a skater from Nanoose Bay.Skating with and demonstrating for groups of skaters, Browning kept up a constant stream of patter — much of it humorous.“There’s stuff about jumps and spins, of course,” he said. “But a lot of what I’m trying to give the kids is about their self-worth. There’s a lot of opportunity, if they have the right attitude, to come out of this sport with a lot of confidence and a lot of tools to tackle life away from the arena.”While local skaters like Bau and teammates Tabitha Devaughan and Indianna Berg of Parksville said they knew of Browning before the clinic, he was not a household name for all the young skaters.“My daughter didn’t know him. We had to Google him,” Kanstrup said with a laugh. “But then they were impressed.”
The BC/YK Section Annual General Meeting was held on Saturday, May 2nd, 2015. Norm Proft from Skate Canada, in charge of Membership, was in attendance. He summarized the programs currently being implemented at Skate Canada and offered the National Skate Canada Strategic Plan. Skate Canada is becoming the service provider to the Sections and Clubs. Online training is being developed. Ted Barton updated the future offerings on the Section website "Virtual Hall of Fame" where inductees are profiled with past news articles, photos and history.
**A reminder to all Clubs and Coaches to register for voting (in person or online) at the National AGM to be held May 30th, 2015.
The 2015 BC/YK AGM Awards Banquet was a wonderful event and the summary is below. Congratulations to our VI Region recipients of Section and National awards!
The Hall of Fame and Awards Banquet was held on Saturday May 2nd, following the 2015 AGM. The banquet evening was a chance to celebrate the accomplishments of our athletes and give thanks to officials and volunteers for their efforts on behalf of the skaters and the Section during the year. The hosts for the weekend were Tracy Wilson and Ted Barton.
The following were this year’s inductees into the B/YK Section Hall of Fame:
1. Bill Lewis, Builder
3. Audrey Moore, Official
4. Victor Kraatz, Athlete
The following awards were recognized:
1. SC Program Assistant of the Year: Amareet Bains, Sunbowl SC
2. SC Canskater of the Year: Ariana Robertson, Juan de Fuca SC
3. SC STARSkate Athlete of the Yea: Hunter Bezak, Fernie SC
4. SC Club and Recreational Coach Award: Joanne McNair, Williams Lake SC
5. BC/YK Section Coaches Choice Award: Susan Heffernan, Sunshine Coast SC
6. BC/YK Section Dogwood and Volunteer Award: Louise Reeve, Kelowna SC
7. SC Section Volunteer Coach Award: Dawn Ladret, Comox Valley SC
8. BC/YK Section Youth Promise Awards:
1. Female: Olivia Gran and McKenna Colthorpe, Kelowna SC
2. Male: Brian Le, CISCBC
3. Team: Aslynne Stairs and Lee Royer
9. Elizabeth Swan Award: Julie Kivinen: Langley SC
10. BC/YK Section Adult Skater Award: Audrey Clearle, Cheam SC
11. Susan Griffith Committee Chairman Award: Gail Weber, Fort St John SC
12. SC Section Officials Award: Wayne Sutherland, Cheam SC
13. BC/YK Section Skaters Award of Achievement: Phoebe Kemp, Mount Boucherie SC
14. SC Section Volunteer Award of Excellence: Lynne Henderson-Drake, Campbell River SC
15. SC Competitive Athlete Award: Rachel Pettitt, Arctic Edge SC
16. SC Competitive Coach of the Year Award: Karen and Jason Mongrain, Kelowna SC
17. BC/YK Section Lifetime Achievement Award: Ev Pochay, Valleyview SC
Congratulations to all
SEPTEMBER 2014 ** NEWS **
The skater's development seminar, featuring Olympic Coach Ravi Walia, set for the September 20th weekend in Parksville, has filled up fast and will be an exciting learning opportunity for those taking part. We look forward to hearing about their experiences.
The annual Coach/Judge/Officials update clinic will be held on Sunday, September 21st, also in Parksville.
The VI Region's Fall meeting takes place on Sunday, September 28th at Sunrise Ridge Resort in Parksville. Test Chairs and Presidents meet at 10:00 a.m. Triannual meeting begins at 1:00 pm.
The Fall and Winter Test Days have now been posted under Test Days on the website.
International competition news: Susan Morriss recently judged at the Salt Lake City International Classic event. She was pleased to see our former Vancouver Island skaters Leonardo and Pilar Maekawa competing in the dance event there. The brother and sister team are returning to Victoria next month, after training with Marina Zoueva in Detroit this summer. They will be competing the International Event in Barrie, Ontario and then to Mexican Nationals, later in October.