Press Release: April 25th, 2008

Terrace Figure Skating Club Holds High Test Day to end the 2007/2008 Season

The Terrace Skating club held a High Level Test day April 18th in Terrace. These dedicated skaters had the opportunity to practice their ice dancing with partner Graham Casey who flew in to skate with them from the Arbutus Club in the lower mainland. They spent the day prior to the Test Day tweaking their dance and getting tips from Graham who has years of experience in figure skating. He also partnered skaters while a Skate Canada evaluator judged their dances. The Terrace Figure Skating Club offers the STARSkate program which gives opportunities for skaters of all ages to develop fundamental figure skating skills in the areas of ice dance, skating skills, free skate and interpretive skating. Unique in Canada, this program teaches figure skating skills in a group and/or private lesson format in a progressive and sequential manner and includes specifically designed awards and incentives. As skaters progress through the STARSkate program, they take tests sanctioned by and judged by Skate Canada. Test days are set-up by the clubs within each Test Group so that skaters have numerous opportunities throughout the season to try tests.

Consisting of seven levels of tests, the Dance Test program teaches timing, musicality, rhythm interpretation, structure as well as basic skating skills such as edges, flow, control and unison.

The dances in the STARSkate Program can be tried in any order but a candidate must pass the required number of dances in a dance test before proceeding to the next level. In addition to the traditional compulsory dances, there are also Creative Dances to challenge skaters' creativity, artistry and originality.

The Dance Tests are as follows:

Preliminary / Junior Bronze / Senior Bronze / Junior Silver / Senior Silver / Gold / Diamond
Dutch Waltz / Swing Dance / Ten-Fox / Keats Foxtrot / Paso Doble / Viennese Waltz / Ravensburger Waltz
Canasta Tango / Fiesta Tango / Fourteen Step / Harris Tango / Starlight Waltz / Westminster Waltz / Tango Romantica
Baby Blues / Willow Waltz / European Waltz / American Waltz / Blues / Quickstep / Yankee Polka
Rocker Foxtrot / Kilian / Argentine Tango / Rhumba
Cha Cha Congelado / Silver Samba / Austrian Waltz
Golden Waltz

When trying a Skate Canada Test Program dance, evaluators using the following criteria assess candidates:

Dance Rhythm

  1. Timing: the proper relationship of the strokes and other movements to the music.
  2. Expression: the quality of dancing that interprets the character of the music that designated the type of dance (waltz, tango, march etc.)
  3. Unison: the mutual coordination of the movements and positions as a couple

Execution

  1. Accuracy/Flow: the steps, timing and movement of the dances must be skated in accordance with the regulations.
  2. Style/Form: in general, carriage should be upright but not stiff, with the head up.
  3. Pattern/Placement: the skating of the prescribed patterns and its intelligent location within the skating area.

The Terrace Figure Skating Club is proud to acknowledge the following skaters for passing their Dance tests on April 18th.

Preliminary / Junior Bronze / Senior Bronze / Junior Silver / Senior Silver / Gold
Dutch Waltz / Swing Dance / 10 Fox / Keats Foxtrot / Paso Doble / Viennese Waltz
Hannah Jay / Kelsey Anderson / Erin Rose / Lateesha Wriglesworth / Jorden Hendry / Jenna Pavao
Canasta Tango / Sydney Desjardins / Reighann Moi / Harris Tango / Starlight Waltz / Julianne Lenuik
Hannah Jay / Fiesta Tango / 14 Step / Desirae Desjardins / Rayven Algor / Westminster Waltz
Karie Anderson / Kelsey Anderson / Rocker Foxtrot / Blues / Jenna Pavao
Sydney Desjardins / European Waltz / Lateesha Wriglesworth / Rayven Algor / Quickstep
Willow Waltz / Shae-Lyn Desousa / Kilian / Kelsey Owen
Reighann Moi / Hailey Hendry / Ashley Thandi
Jesse Thandi / Jorden Hendry / Julianne Lenuik
Shannon Stone / Argentine Tango
Ashley Thandi

The Club is also proud to announce that the following skaters passed the following Skate Canada Tests as well.

Introductory Interpretive / Junior Bronze Free / Preliminary Skills
Jesse Thandi / Shae-Lynn DeSousa / Sydney Desjardins
Shannon Stone / Senior Bronze Free / Junior Bronze Skills
Brixton Sandhals / Hailey Hendry / Reighann Moi
Kelsey Anderson / Senior Silver Free / Karie Anderson
Bronze Interpretive / Ashley Thandi / Senior Bronze Skills
Jorden Hendry / Shae-Lyn DeSousa
Desirae Desjardins / Kelsey Anderson
Shae-Lyn DeSousa / Erin Rose
Silver Interpretive / Lateesha Wriglesworth
Alex Lissimore / Junior Silver Skills
Gold Interpretive / Desirae Desjardins
Julianne Lenuik / Senior Silver Skills
Jenna Pavao / Kelsey Owen
Alex Lissimore
Gold Skills
Rayven Algor

For a comprehensive list of achievements in skating for the 2007/2008 Season, feel free to contact the Terrace Figure Skating Club at for more information.