programs

Basic Skills Competition Series

Maureen Dalton (L) and Ginni Phillips at a Michigan Basic Skills Competition Series event

The Basic Skills Competition Series continues to be a huge success for beginning skaters and their families in many areas of the country. The format of a series is at least three or more local competitions joining forces and sharing one standard announcement, and all participating skaters earning points for their placements, which are totaled up throughout the series (loosely modeled after the ISU Grand Prix Series). During the last competition of the series, the top three point-earners in each level receive an additional award for their participation.

Each competition is a stand-alone event, and skaters must participate in the minimum number of competitions to qualify for the additional awards. Please check with each series for specific information on eligibility requirements.

Placement	Point Total
1st	6
2nd	5
3rd	4
4th	3
5th	2
6th	1

If an event has 2-6 skaters, points are awarded as if there were six skaters in the group. If there is only one skater in the group, he or she will be awarded three points. If last-minute changes cause groups to become larger than six skaters, then all skaters finishing lower than sixth will receive one point. Skaters may receive bonus points for advancing in level during the course of the season.

Some additional benefits to the series are the collaboration of the participating programs and clubs on the master schedule, allowing skaters and their families to plan their travels as soon as the announcement is posted with the competition dates and locations within the series. The competitions in a series share one standard, consistent announcement so skaters, coaches and judges know exactly what is expected of them in each level at each event. Programs and clubs advertise and support each other and, hopefully, earn a profit from a well-attended competition.

Basic Skills Competition Series medals

Click on each series link to find out more:

Florida: http://basicskillsflorida.com
Michigan: http://mibs.sk8stuff.com
Colorado: Contact Linda Alexander at linda.alexander@coloradocollege.edu or Lisa Landon at lisa_landon@comcast.net
Wisconsin: http://www.fscouncilwisconsin.org
Minnesota: Contact Elizabeth Harty at meharty@usfamily.net
Central Minnesota: Contact Kris Juettner at kjuettner@charter.net
Ohio: http://www.clevelandskating.com/disciplines/basicskills
Illinois: Contact Brigitte Carlson at brigittecarlson@rockfordparkdistrict.org or visit www.skatingcouncilofillinois.org
Texas: Contact Andrew Foland at andrew@spacecityice.com

If you would like to learn more about organizing a Basic Skills Series in your area, please contact Maureen Dalton at msdskating@aol.com or Susi Wehrli at swehrli@usfigureskating.org. It only takes three Basic Skills programs to get it going, and many, many benefits will be realized!


"We have found these competitions to be well organized, staffed with exceptionally helpful and friendly volunteers, and very affordable for beginning skaters. It has also been extremely helpful to have consistent guidelines within these competitions. My daughter has been able to practice her free skate, compulsory and artistic showcase events, and see improvements with each competition. She has been able to spend her time learning and perfecting her skills rather than creating new programs for each competition."

- Jenifer VanZanten