She glided across the ice with grace and beauty, swishing skates through the frozen rink with precision.
With arms arched on her back, 12-year-old Danielle Honas of Arvada whipped her small frame around and around and around.
Spinning with ever increasing speed, Honas made the complex move look simple.
Then she started with the flying jumps.
“I like skating, going really, really fast and going into a jump and just flying into it,” Honas said before demonstrating jumps for a panel of judges. “I am one of those people who if I land it, I land it, if I don’t, then I don’t. I just like to fly.”
Honas was one of more than 200 figure skaters from across the nation who competed at the Apex Center last week in the 2005 Colorado State Figure Skating Championships.
Male and female figure skaters competed at various levels in one of the state’s largest competitions. The contest is a warm-up for the skating season starting in October and ending with national championships in January.
Carol Zeles, who has been competition chairman of the event for 13 years, said she is proud to be part of a sport that develops both physical and mental abilities.
“The sport of skating has so many incredible pluses,” Zeles said. “You learn how to manage time, set priorities and goals. From a young age you learn to present yourself in front of people.”
Dedication is something Honas applies to most things in life, according to her dad Scott Honas.
She is a medal-winning Tae Kwon Do black belt, a straight-A student and an accomplished figure skater who won her first skating competition.
“It came easy at first, but the higher you advance the harder it gets,” Danielle Honas said. “There are a lot of girls that are trying as hard as you, so you have to work harder.”
Arvada resident Britany Nesladek said competitive figure skating is a challenge at any level.
“People think we can go out there and just jump, they don’t realize we are out there to compete and can get injured,” said Nesladek, 16, who has skated for seven years and practices about 12 hours per week.
After crashing to the ice last year and suffering a back injury, Nesladek was forced to drop out of the competition. She said she was excited to return to the ice this year.
Parents also encourage the sport — emotionally and financially.
Scott Honas, who took a day off work to support Danielle at the competition, said he finds the figure skaters’ work ethic inspiring.
“For (figure skaters) to skate to the same spot over and over and know they will fall nine out of 10 times, it is incredible dedication,” Scott Honas said.
Nesladek’s mother, Lisa, waits nervously for the inevitable falls. While watching each landed jump, she clenches and then cheers. With each hard fall, Lisa Nesladek — also the Apex Center’s ice arena coordinator — gasps and winches.
The sport can cost families $15,000 to $40,000 a year, Zeles said. Competition dresses, high-end ice skates and entry fees all add up.
“The average parent will have paid for at least four college educations by the time their kid gets out of skating,” Zeles said. “I spend a lot of time telling parents to get this in perspective. This is a wonderful sport when it is the skater’s sport and they do it for their reasons.”
Danielle Honas and Britany Nesladek said they definitely skate for their own reasons. Twirling, jumping and flying are some of Honas’ favorite things to do.
“I want to get as far as I can without destroying myself and just have fun,” Honas said. “I just want to do what I love best.”