A Beginners Guide to CESC

A Beginners Guide to CESC

Welcome to the Cleveland Edges Skating Club! This guide is meant to help answer some basic and frequent questions that new comers to the club often have. It is not all-inclusive; there are certainly things that we may have forgotten. The club is family oriented and anyone will be more than happy to help you with questions that you may have. We have all been new! FAQ s What is CESC? Cleveland Edges Skating Club (CESC) is Cleveland s longest established Synchronized Skating Club under the direction of Head Coach and Program Director Jeff Marshall. What is Synchronized Team Skating? Synchronized skating or synchro is a discipline of figure skating recognized by the US Figure Skating, in which 8 20 (the number of skaters on a team depends on the level) skaters skate on the ice as a team, moving as one flowing unit. For a synchronized team to flow in unison, individual skaters must be competent at a variety of skating skills, including speed, footwork and ice presence. The team performs a program set to music, with required formations including circles, lines, blocks, wheels, and intersections. Is Synchronized Team Skating a winter sport? The CESC competition season starts in September and ends in March, however the club skates 11 months a year. Your CESC annual dues covers spring clinic, summer clinic, and a summer boot camp. There are various parties and get together's throughout the year both on a club level and a team level. How often do we have practice? The frequency of on and off ice practices is dependent on skating level and team. For example a beginner skating team will practice once a week. There may be more practices on the ice the week before competition. The Beginners 1 team usually does not have off ice but if skills need to be developed it may be added. The Beginner 2 team will have a few off ice practices mid season. Higher level teams practice on the ice 2 hours a week with 1 hour of off ice.

Is Practice Mandatory? Absolutely! Team Skating is a sport that when 1 skater is missing it affects the entire team, especially for younger skaters. Skaters get used to who they hold on to (height, weight, and idiosyncrasies to how they kick, start out, etc.) who they intersect with, and whom they cross through. What is my commitment level? Commitment is essential for Synchronized Team Skating. Commitment of each skater to come to practice and to perform his/her best 100% of the time is essential. Parental commitment is also crucial for the success of your child, team and the CESC. Parents must understand that it is important to get their child to practice and competitions on time every time. Synchronized Team skating does require a time commitment. I pay dues, why do I have to volunteer? CESC is a club built on volunteers. Your dues go toward ice time, coaching, competition fees, and competition dresses. For the club to be successful we need our members to volunteer for fundraising and events. Each team is assigned an event throughout the year; examples of events may include the welcome back picnic, Christmas party, Ice show, end of year banquet, and Night at the Races. This is not an all-inclusive list but rather a sampling of events. Although your team may not be in charge of a particular event, your help as a club member is needed for volunteering, food donations, etc. Each team will have a Team Manager, voted in by the team, that will need assistance with the bulletin board, travel, competition pre-orders, pins, team building events, etc. There are plenty of opportunities to help! Is fundraising mandatory? Yes and No. Individual fundraising is not mandatory, but CESC fundraising is. This is where your volunteerism is needed. How do I get involved?

Raise your hand and ask questions. Help is needed for everything from the bulletin board to playing music at practice to being a Team Manager! How am I notified of CESC events? The CESC website has club information. Weekly Blast: An email blast that goes to the entire club reminding club members of events that are occurring. Team Manager: Will keep your specific team current. Parent Meetings: Twice a year Jeff Marshall and the Board will hold parent meetings, these are usually in the fall and spring. The coaches will also hold impromptu meetings after practice How do I get information? www.cleveland-edges.com Your team manager The coaching staff The weekly Email Blast The CESC Board How much does it cost? Cost varies depending on team level, days on ice, and whether fees go up. The more fundraising we do as a club, the less likely our fees will go up! What is a private coach? In addition to being on a Synchro team, your child will need to obtain a private coach in order to pass tests in order to advance. These tests will be required as your child gets older and advances. When do I obtain a private coach? That is dependent on child, age, and skating level. Communicate and ask the coaching staff when they feel your child should start private lessons. How do I get a private coach? Again, the coaching staff can recommend private coaches within the CESC.

March/April: Spring Training sessions Season May: Tryouts (for the next season) Ice show June: Team selections and notification Team Registrations Summer Camps: 1 week long (included in fees) Welcome Back Picnic July/August: Summer session: 1 hour a week for 6 weeks September: The Season Officially starts The Coaching staff will let you know which day your practices are. Usually only 1 day a week at the beginner level. The week of a competition, there will be additional practices, but you will be given this information as it comes. October: Halloween party and skate November: Kick Off Classic: Kalamazoo MI (Beginner team participation TBD) December: Christmas Party and Season Debut January: The height of competition season to include the Mid America Classic in Fraser MI and Sectionals

February: Continued competitions (2-3) March Final Competition Competitions Competitions are events in which skating teams skate in front of judges. The judges rate teams using a number system. Depending on the competition, medals are given for 1 st, 2 nd, and 3 rd place and sometimes 4 th. Teams competing at the Basic Skills (beginner) level may compete at any U.S. Figure Skating synchronized skating non-qualifying competition or U.S. Figure Skating Basic Skills competition. Teams competing at the developmental levels of preliminary, pre-juvenile, open juvenile, open collegiate or open adult may also compete at the Eastern, Midwestern or Pacific Coast Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships, held annually at the end of January. Teams at the competitive levels of juvenile, intermediate, novice, junior, senior, collegiate, adult or masters compete first at their respective sectional championships. A placement in the top four at sectionals earns them a spot at the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships. Top-performing teams at the junior and senior levels at have the opportunity to earn a berth to the U.S. Synchronized Skating Team, with the top two senior teams going on to represent the United States at the World Synchronized Skating Championships. Competitions can be local or out of state. All teams stay in the same hotel. As teams progress, they come up with traditions specific to their team The CESC is a team and thus we participate and cheer each of our CESC teams on. The days can seem long at the ice rink, but when every one of our CESC teams gets on the ice, the club is there to cheer them on with the CESC cheer. Our club often is the largest presence in the rink cheering on each and every one of our teams, good or bad, wearing our red and black proud.

In between events families and skaters can go something to eat, shop, rest but it is the expectation that when a CESC team is on the ice, your skater is in his/her seat supporting that team. Little Tidbits for travel: Door Decorating: Most teams, from beginner to novice decorate a teammates hotel room door. Before the out of town competition the team manager or another parent will have the skaters draw names. The fun is trying to figure out who decorated your door! Some skaters decorate everyone s doors.. Pin Trading: There will be a pin mom for each team who has CESC pins. At competitions girls often like to trade CESC pins for pins of other teams. Many girls place these on their bags, jackets, scarves, or in a book. Outings: Teams often will arrange an activity whether it is team building such as a game or craft or an outing such as bowling or dinner. Hotels The club chooses the hotel and the travel coordinator makes hotel arrangements. You do not make your own reservations. You do however communicate with the travel coordinator your preferences for a single or double room and whether you are sharing a room with another skater. Your credit card information was supplied at the time of registration to make your hotel reservations. SKATERS AND FAMILIES CANNOT MAKE THEIR OWN RESERVATIONS OR CANCEL RESERVATIONS OR ROOMS. We often get a group rate and a contract and are required to stay a minimum number of nights. Making your own

reservations or canceling rooms/nights/reservations causes problems for the club and may prevent us from getting rooms at a particular hotel the following year. Most often we stay at hotels that have continental breakfasts so skaters can grab a bite to eat before they get on the ice. WHAT SHOULD I WEAR??? PRACTICE: Black leotard and black skirt (purchased at registration) May wear a black LS Under Armor type shirt underneath CESC fleece jacket or vest may also be worn Competitions: Remember YOU are representing the CESC. As a club we want to have a professional, neat, and polished appearance! Competition day: The day your team skates Your CESC pants and red shirt Your CESC winter jacket Tennis shoes (for off ice and warm ups) Other days (When you are cheering but not competing) CESC attire (red and black) Tennis shoes NO competition hoodies, t-shirts, team t-shirts etc. TEAMS Once the regular practice season begins in September, your team will vote on a Team Manager. The team manager will keep you and your team organized. The coaching staff will have meetings throughout the year for parents with updates, but general information will come to you through your team manager. Each team manager will do things slightly different, but basic things to expect from your team manager Correspondence: Emails to update you on practices, schedules, competitions, waivers, and any information from the coaching staff. Keeping the attendance roster (make sure your skater gets checked off, at the end of the season there is recognition for perfect attendance). Forms: You will be asked to sign waivers for EVERY competition. Your child will not be able to skate w/o this form. Usually these are time sensitive.

Coordination of your teams event (as stated in FAQ s) Locker Room: The team manager will assign a helper to assist with skates, hair, and makeup in the locker room. The only parent(s) allowed in the locker rooms at competitions are the team manager and the helper she has selected. The locker rooms are often very small with little to no room. Some are even closets converted into locker rooms. EQUIPMENT Equipment each skater should have: Skates Towel: To dry your skates off Soft guards also known as soakers : These are the guards you should put on your skates when you store them or place them in your bag Hard Guards: To be worn only when walking from the locker room to the competition ice (Do not store your skates with the hard guards on) Extra set of laces: In the event a lace breaks at competition CESC skate bag Garment Bag: To hold your competition dress Extra pair of tights (in the event your tights run at competition). The coaches and team manager will notify you of special make up or hair requirements. SKATES Skates should only be purchased at a store that specializes in figure skating. The closest ones in the Cleveland area are: Skaters Edge on Lorain Rd in West Park (West Side) Skaters Edge on Mayfield Rd in Cleveland (East Side) Sharpening of skates should only be done at these locations as well Skates should be sharpened every 2-3 months.