Speedskating is a tradition for family
Sport has taken the Walsh clan across the continent
From trips to Sault Ste. Marie to Lake Placid to Kelowna, speedskating has taken the Walsh family across the continent.
Christina (Walsh) Acton remembers the annual trips to Sault Ste. Marie well, where the Kitchener family stayed in the same hotel with a water slide and made the same stops en route to the Ontario Provincial Long Track Championships, Ontario Winter Games, or North American Long Track Championships.
For the Walsh family, the passion for speedskating has always been about family, and they were recognized for it in Calgary on June 15.
The Walshes received the Gagné Family Award presented to a family who has made an outstanding contribution as a part of Speed Skating Canada’s annual awards.
Patti and husband John, along with Christina, Julie Walsh and David Walsh were all in attendance to receive the designation — a family reunion of sorts.
“In truth, this family has always gathered based on speedskating events,” said Patti, a mother of three adult children.
“It was really great. I’ve been involved in speedskating for (a) long (time), and to be recognized for our involvement, it was fantastic,” said Acton.
Patti, John and Julie live in Kitchener, while twins Christina and David, 33, are stationed in Kelowna, B.C. Christina is a technical director for the B.C. Speed Skating Association.
“We don’t often get together as a whole family; when we do, it’s usually because there’s some speedskating event involved, so it’s kind of fun,” said Patti, who began skating and coaching when her children took up the sport.
“To have the whole family get together halfway across the country in Calgary, one of the biggest things for me was how special that was. It was kind of a logistical nightmare to get everyone there, but quite cool to get everybody there, “said David, who coaches at the Kelowna Speed Skating Club and officiates at the provincial level.
The Walsh family’s entry into the speedskating world started when David and Christina were looking to participate in a sport where they could compete together, at the age of six, eliminating things like hockey. All three kids are still recreational skaters. The journey has taken them through Ottawa, Abbotsford, B.C., Prince George B.C., Montreal and Winnipeg among other places.
Julie, 28, naturally grew up at the rink, following in her siblings’ footsteps.
“I pretty much grew up at the arena. My mom was coaching, my dad was the equipment manager, and my siblings were skating, so I didn’t really have a choice. I was pretty much going to be speedskating from the time I was born,” Julie said with a chuckle.
Julie now coaches skaters at the K-W Sertoma Skating Club, from the ages of 12 to 19 at the elite level, and the Ontario Speed Skating high-performance program. She believes her sevenmonth-old daughter Audrey will inevitably tie up laces for the clap skates, as well. Christina hopes her daughters, four-year-old Kenzie and two-year-old Maelle, both take up the sport, as well, continuing a strong family tradition.
The family has skated and volunteered at events at national, local and provincial levels, such as the Ontario and Canada Winter Games, while attending numerous speedskating camps across the country.
“My husband and I have always skated — that was our date nights,” Patti said.
John is an official timer at the provincial level, and Patti has coached for 25 years.
“It’s fun to be able to speak at that level with all my children and always have had an intellectual conversation about the sport, and to see them choose to continue something that we brought them up with, I think it’s just so great a feeling,” said Patti.
“I think it’s safe to say we all love what we do and the people we meet. Over the years, as we travel across the country, it is always nice to be able to reacquaint ourselves with members of the ‘speedskating family.’”
John and Patti just celebrated their 35th anniversary, and what better way to celebrate the milestone than with another speedskating-based trip — this time with an award.