A local academy is sending 14 skaters to the national championships for artistic roller skating, a sport without the cache of ice skating but equal in competitive spirit.
By JOSH ZIMMER
Published July 18, 2003
[Times photos: Brendan Fitterer]
Taylor Allen, 10, skates across the floor at SpinNations in Port Richey. Next week she'll be performing in the national championships in Lincoln, Neb., for USA Roller Sports, the sport's governing body. This is Taylor's third consecutive appearance in the championships
Brandon Frazier, 10, of Westchase practices for his fifth appearance in the USA Roller Sports national championship competition. Brandon's events are boys singles, elementary pairs and figures.
Taylor Allen practices her complex routine. She qualified in nationals for creative solo dance and figures, a demanding exercise that requires following a figure eight.
KEYSTONE - Taylor Allen skates across the floor, dancing the tango.
Dressed in a black, sequined leotard, she sways to the music. Her expression oozes focus and determination. In captivating rhythm, her long arms sweep across her body, reach out toward invisible partners and finish quick-footed moves with elegantly upturned wrists.
Then, with a high-speed turn, the confident 10-year-old from Keystone fades into the shadowy recesses of the Pasco County roller skating rink. She'll reappear soon, practicing one of her steps for the umpteenth time this day, this month and this year.
On a recent July day, SpinNations in Port Richey is a whirling mass of young, athletic bodies seemingly bound for a traffic accident. Only skillful skating prevents hard collisions on the unforgiving wood surface. A few falls resonate over the loud music, but the victims always get right up.
This is home away from home for Taylor and other athletes who practice the sometimes lonely sport of artistic roller skating. They spend dozens of hours each week honing their talents for fun and competition. For any age, they are unusually focused and hard-working. It pays off. In a matter of days, they'll be performing in the national championships, which get under way July 21 in Lincoln, Neb.
Taylor already is a seasoned performer in a sport that has the misfortune of competing with the wildly popular figure skating on ice. So is 10-year-old Brandon Frazier of Westchase. This is Taylor's third consecutive appearance in the championships; for Brandon, his fifth.
Although roller skating is not an Olympic sport, their ambitions are no less meaningful. Taylor and Brandon both dream of glory under the winner's spotlight.
"My goal is to go the world championships," Taylor said during a practice break.
So five or six days a week, while other kids their age obsess about toys and television shows, they drive long distances, strap on heavy shoes and put up with relentless coaching.
Harried parents say the discipline their kids gain transcends the rink, in school and in life.
Today, the nationals. Tomorrow, who knows?
* * *
On any given day, the energy level at SpinNations is high. But leading up to the championships, the buzz is palpable.
"The kids are getting excited," said Dan Littel, a former world champion who is head coach at the Florida Skating Academy.
The Academy, which Taylor and Brandon belong to, is based out of SpinNations. Although artistic roller skating is popular in Florida - it's in one of the nation's most competitive regions, according to USA Roller Sports, the sport's governing body - and the academy is just one of a handful serving the state's west-central region. The club overall is sending 14 skaters to Lincoln.
USA Roller Sports expects about 1,500 athletes at the championships, said Janine Ferreira, the group's national director of figure skating. They'll perform in more than 200 events.
After a dip in popularity during the 1990s, Ferreira said the sport is making a comeback. Inline hockey, speed skating and Gen X-style games are attracting more followers to roller skating in general.
But in the arena of public opinion, artistic roller skating still doesn't hold a candle to figure skating. One is an Olympic sport; the other isn't. And although roller skating is recognized by the International Olympic Committee, it's competing with many other sports for a spot in the Games, said Bob Condron, spokesman for the United States Olympic Committee.
It doesn't matter that top roller skaters also perform triple, even quadruple jumps, Ferreira said. Roller skating is like the smart, not-unattractive girl at school who has trouble getting a date.
"People think ice skating is more elegant," she said.
But try telling Taylor and Brandon that roller skating is a secondary sport.
For Brandon, all it took was seeing some kids on roller skates. Before long, he fell in love with the speed and the skill involved.
"And I liked it so I kept doing it and I got good," said Brandon, a Bucs fanatic who plans practices around the team's games. "It took me a lot of lessons before I got good."
Brenda Allen, a legal secretary in Tampa, was looking for an inline skating partner. She got more than she bargained for when her daughter Taylor took to the sport.
"I didn't want to leave her at home while I exercised," Allen recalled with a laugh. "I had her take some classes, and it turned into this."
Now she follows Taylor around.
Sharing all the hopes, successes and failures that come with tournament life breeds a strong fraternity.
Taylor and Brandon have a lot of skater friends, and look forward to making new ones at the tournaments. The parents sometimes joke about who spends more on outfits - an event dress can easily cost $500. But it's not uncommon for parents to praise other youngsters while egging on their own.
Brandon wouldn't make many practices if not for Allen. She drives Taylor and him to SpinNations. Beth Frazier-Peterson, his mother, comes later, watches him work out and takes him home.
* * *
Thousands will be crowding the Pershing Center in Lincoln to watch Taylor, Brandon and all the others compete. Taylor qualified for creative solo dance, a discipline in which the skater performs a complex step routine; and figures, a demanding exercise that requires following a figure eight. Brandon's events are boys singles, elementary pairs and figures.
How do they deal with pressure?
As quiet as she is, Taylor has a way of blocking out the distractions, Allen said.
Taylor laughs about the video her father recently took at the regionals. He is screaming, she says. But she didn't hear a thing.
"It's like I block out everyone," she said.
Brandon tries to erase negative thoughts, though he knows all the other skaters in his categories got better since the last championships, too.
"This year is the best year I ever skated," he said optimistically. "My goal is to make the finals for first, second or third."
Who's to tell him no?
- Josh Zimmer covers Keystone/Odessa, University North and Citrus Park. He can be reached at 269-5314 or zimmer@sptimes.com
