It is no secret that UHS is home to many student-athletes who participate in various sports, from lacrosse to cross country, and flag football to color guard. However, amid the hustle and bustle of school sports, some tend to overlook the abundance of UHS students who participate in unique sports that are not offered at school, such as figure skating.
Known for its impressive combination of artistry, athleticism and, of course, sparkly dresses, figure skating is an excellent sport in many respects. However, it is also extremely time-consuming, causing many competitive figure skaters to turn to homeschooling. Thus, finding a balance between sports and coursework is an impressive feat for UHS figure skaters.
One of these skaters is senior Ayla Eagar, who was first introduced to skating at a “Bring a Friend Day” at The Rinks Yorba Linda, where skaters could bring their friends to take a beginners class for free.
“Figure skating requires practice very often,” Eagar said. “You could lose some progress by not being on the ice for just a few days. It’s a sport that requires you to travel to rinks because you can’t just practice skating anywhere, you need to be on the ice.”
Eagar explained that some rinks only have ice available for figure skaters in the morning, causing many skaters to have to wake up at extremely early hours to skate. Such rings true for competitive figure skaters who wake as early as 4 a.m. every day to practice before school.
“[Waking up early] becomes very inconvenient when you go to a competitive school like UHS that also requires dedication and countless hours of studying or doing homework,” Eagar said.
Sophomore Natalie Ponn, who skates at Great Park Ice, started skating when she was five. Out of the plethora of figure skating tricks skaters can learn, her favorites are scratch spins and backspins. Ponn agrees that being a figure skater and a full-time high school student comes with its challenges.
“I’m either always extremely tired or barely have time to practice,” Ponn said.
Nevertheless, the unique nature of figure skating makes it a great way to clear your head. After all, the feeling a skater experiences from flying across the ice with the crisp, chill air brushing against their face is rare in any other sport.
“I love gliding and spinning on the ice,” Ponn said. “It’s also something I can do when I want to escape from [the pressures of] school.”
Figure skating is all about continually pushing yourself to learn new skills while perfecting the ones you already know. From jumps and spins to spirals and spread eagles, there is never a shortage of things to work on. Similar to those of other visually appealing sports like gymnastics and dance, most figure skating skills require an incredible amount of flexibility to master, something Eagar is currently working on improving.
“It’s a very excruciating sport, but once you can master a new skill or learn a new move the feeling is unmatched,” Eagar said. “I love how graceful and elegant my sport is.”
Junior Adriana Lee, who had once been afraid of the ice, started skating through her sister, who also participated in the sport.
“I haven’t had as much time to skate, but I really love it,” Lee said. “Even when I fall over thirty times, I still want to try new skills. Ice skating makes me feel more relaxed and fluid.”
All in all, what’s striking about talking to these figure skaters is discovering how dedicated each of them is to their sport as they balance the rigors of high school. Like any other student-athlete, they deserve credit for all of the hard work and perseverance they demonstrate, both on and off the ice.
