US Selections for Junior Worlds

[Nadine]

[Mathman]

Senior recreational skaters who are the ones that provide some of the money that goes to the enveloped skaters (through dues and test fees, although the majority of that envelope money comes from TV revenues) and who pay to be on the freestyle sessions alongside the Sectional competitor. Say a rink charges the club $250 per hour for ice time (which is actually on the low side where I live). In order for the club to break even, at $10 per hour per skater, they would need 25 skaters on the session. Where are those skaters going to come from if not from the recreational ranks?...

Thank you for all this information. I have a few questions.

(1) Do most skating rinks make the majority of their money from hockey leagues rather than figure skating?

(2) Do most skating clubs own their own rink?

(3) Don't skating clubs make a lot more money off children's learn-to- skate classes than free-style recreational sessions?

My favorite skating events to attend live are the local club shows. They start out with droves of little kids, then work their way up to the 8-year-olds, then the ten-year-olds, and after that they start having children who are pretty good and can take a solo, then on up to quite a few juniors and seniors (topping it off with Alissa Czisny or Jeremy Abbott or Davis and White.)

Sometimes there are also a couple of competitive collegiate or adult skaters in the mix. This is so much fun, especially to sit in the doting grandparents' section.

Edited to add: By the way, around here there are a respectable number of boys at all ages and levels.

[mskater93]

(1) Do most skating rinks make the majority of their money from hockey leagues rather than figure skating?

(2) Do most skating clubs own their own rink?

(3) Don't skating clubs make a lot more money off children's learn-to- skate classes than free-style recreational sessions?

1) Where I live, most rinks give premium time to hockey because they are better equipped to pay the bills which leaves FS with whatever is left. Hockey knows they have to co-exist with FS in order to keep rinks viable, since some hockey clubs have purchased their own rinks and have had to add FS in order to maintain solvency.

2) No. It's not cost effective. SCoB and DSC are two notable exceptions.

3) Here LTS is run by the rink, not the clubs. Many of the coaches in the LTS programs filter their skaters who are completing the LTS levels into the club they are members of if the skater desires to continue. There are a variety of LTS programs - USFS basic skills, ISI basic skills and home grown.