SKATE MUSKOKA GOES OUT IN STYLE WITH 75TH COLOURFUL CARNIVAL SHOWCASE

Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

BRACEBRIDGE — “Through the Eras” was an apt description for Skate Muskoka’s 75th and final figure skating show at the Bracebridge Memorial Arena.

And Diane Lloyd and her daughter Susan were with them all the way.

The former skating coaches — Diane 30 years starting in 1969 and Susan in the 1970s — were just two of the hundreds who turned for one more night of spectacle skating on Tuesday.

With all their kids grown up they the sat by themselves in the west end zone taking in all the colours and basking in wonderful memories they said of other great shows gone by when it was the Bracebridge Figure Skating Club alone.

Today with the Gravenhurst and Baysville club joining in Bracebridge there are 150 boys and girls taking to the ice each week.

And Wednesday was the annual showcase was the culmination of another great year before skaters pack up their toe picks and head to the new rink being built across town.

The skaters were in our hearts from the start of ‘Through the Eras,’ a carnival dedicated to 75 years of Muskoka figure skating.

Diane was still holding a red carnation she received when she entered her old home away from home.

She remembers long hours and booking guest artists with the help of the CFSA who decided which towns got which stars.

Both recalled lots of summer coaching and amazing coaches who came to town.

It was a night to celebrate more than seven decades of outstanding skating.

With more great years to come the Lloyds say.

Susan Lloyd, of Port Carling, and her mom from Bracebridge enjoyed every minute that reminded them of past, present and future carnivals at the new arena complex.
There were great solos, dance routines and cute CanSkate kids all over the ice.
The levels of skating varied from junior to senior skaters who performed perfectly on this night of nights.
What a lineup again this year in this coloufual Canada-wide salute.
Memorial Arena was full of proud parents, family and friends who enjoyed the show from every seat.
Some old scrap books showed pictures of the grear synchronized teams that brought frame to Muskoka.
This black and white workout routine featured the club’s best intermediate skaters in an intricate and entertaining routine start to finish.
Senior skaters surround one of the star skaters in this celebration of figure skating at its best.
And who can forget Barbie’s influence this year? Not these girls who chat with a friend while waiting for their Ken.
After the star-studded show Islay Bush, 10, and her sister Hadley, 5, pose for a photo-op with their dad Sean and proud grandma Marion Purvis.
Kiel McPherson, left, and Gabi Griffiths-Wigg, right, congratulate three of the club’s four competitors who went to provincials last week: Lark Shirk-Luckett, Dexter Lee and Regan French. Missing is fellow provincial competitor Maddie Whyte.

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