Skating Club returns to the ice
Many things were put on hold during the pandemic, and that includes the ascending Skating Club of Taos.
In June 2020, the Skating Club of Taos was awarded a $2,000 grant by the United States Figure Skating Association to help grow the sport of synchronized skating in Northern New Mexico.
“The club plans to implement the grant in the 21/22 skating season,” Club Director Vince Ann Wahlrab wrote in an email earlier this year. “We will use this grant money to bring a certified coach to teach our instructor and students basic synchro moves. We hope to generate the enthusiasm of adults and students to form this team.”
But soon after, the rink at Taos Youth and Family Center went dark and the rink went cold (and not in a good way).
“We really tried to keep skating going, but we could only do so much and it got closed down,” Wahlrab told the Taos News last week. “We are so excited to be back now, though.”
Though skating has been open as an activity for several months, the Skating Club of Taos has yet to officially start back up. Wahlrab said they intend to start with a bang.
As part of the grant funding the club received, they will be bringing in a skating instructor, Laurie Bates, from Rio Rancho to host a skating clinic at Taos Youth and Family Center on Dec. 5. The club officially begins again on Dec. 4.
“This is really an activity for everyone,” Wahlrab said, referring to the club’s opportunities for skaters starting in preschool and stretching all the way to senior citizens. “We are getting all of the levels back and really working hard to get synchro [skating] back in Taos.”
Sign ups to join the club will take place at the Taos Youth and Family Center on Nov. 6 and Nov. 13. Check the Skate Club of Taos Facebook page for more details.