I started skating when I was 28 while living in Atlanta. I had watched Dorothy Hamil win the 1976 Olympics and decided that I wanted to learn how to skate. I soon found out that I had some talent for it and moved on to private lessons. I skated for about 3 years doing a little competing, but gave it up once I got back heavily into showing horses.
I was off the ice for nearly 15 years. About 7 years ago, I decided to give it another go. I found that I still loved it, but I had lots to relearn and I needed to rebuild my confidence enough to compete again.
I had a fabulous coach/choreographer in Texas that put routines together for me and re-taught what I had forgotten. Soon I was nervously off to my first competition in 15 years where to my surprise I won the gold medal.
Well, that's all it took, I was back full force.
Since then I have won the gold medal at nearly every competition I have entered with the exception of a couple of silver and 1 or 2 bronze medals.
I usually compete in 7-8 competitions per year including the Florida State Games where I placed first. That win qualified me to skate in the State Games of America Competition to be held in Colorado Springs in 2005. I have also competed in the Ice Skating Institute's (ISI) Adult Figure Skating Championships for the last three years. They have been held in Las Vegas, Tampa and Cape Cod respectively. I won the gold medal all three years in the Artistic event. Events are judged by skating levels, I skate Free Style 2, and you are grouped in age divisions with skaters of similar age. This year's Adult National's will be in Breckenridge, Colorado and I will be competing.
I love competing! I love the pressure, the adrenalin rush, performing for the crowd, meeting and getting to know the other skaters and the reward that all the hard work and practice gives you. A lot of the competitions that I go to are mostly younger skaters with not too many other adults. That's the reason I go to Adult Nationals every year. There I skate with a wonderful peer group. We all cheer for and encourage each other. At this age, we realize that we are doing this for the fun and love of the sport and that none of us will be going to the Olympics.
Since moving back to Florida two years ago, I train at a 'World Class' training facility. The coaching staff is comprised of coaches with World, Olympic, National and International credentials either as coaches or skaters themselves. My coach/choreographer has international experience and she has brought me to levels of achievement that I would never think possible at my age.
I train 2-3 days a week, around 1-2 hours each day. We have national and international level skaters at our rink and in fact, one of our pairs teams won the Jr. National Pair's competition at the US Nationals in Atlanta this year. I am so privileged to be around and skate with all that talent.
I hope to continue this sport as long as my health holds out and I remain injury free. It is a very demanding sport and each year gets more difficult for me. When I go to Adult Nationals, there are skaters in their 70s competing. They are my inspiration.
SK8 GR8 Candi Shellenbarger
