SUNDRE – Although numbers for the Sundre Skating Club’s 2023-24 season are a bit down compared to last year, the group continues to accept registrations and may yet grow a little more.
Last year, the club saw its roster of skaters – which ranges from the CanSkate level for learners to the more advanced StarSkate program that caters to figure skaters – increase to more than 30 skaters following averages of about 20-25 prior to the pandemic.
This season, there are about half a dozen CanSkaters, who are usually about the age of five and under, as well as about 10 skaters in the StarSkate program, said Lyndsay Edgar, the club’s head instructor.
“We actually started skating yesterday,” Edgar said on Sept. 20 during a phone interview with the Albertan while on a visit to B.C.
However, those numbers could potentially yet grow depending on late entries.
“We accept registrations all year,” she said.
Practises for the CanSkate group are held every Tuesday at the Sundre Arena, while the StarSkaters are on the ice every Tuesday and Thursday, she said.
In response to a question about whether the club might be looking for additional helping hands, from coaches or general volunteers to board members, she said, “we’re looking for board members to help the club run.”
The board does not need to meet every month and the required time commitment is not overly onerous. Anyone who might be interested in getting involved is invited to sit in on a meeting to learn if they might be a right fit for the group, which schedules meetings as they come up at the arena on a Tuesday during the CanSkate practice. The next meeting was tentatively set for Oct. 3, she said.
As for upcoming plans, Edgar said the first fun meet is coming up in December.
“And then we’re hopefully attending the ones we did last year, which is Olds and Stettler,” she said.
Asked if perhaps there might be any upcoming special skills development clinics conducted by recognized Canadian athletes or coaches, she said, “the cities host those. It’s just expensive for us little guys to bring them out.”
The club is also already considering plans for the season windup carnival, which is schedule for March 3, 2024, she said, adding the theme will likely be Toy Story on Ice.
