November 9, 2005

Hi Everyone!

I had so much fun in Sofia, Bulgaria where I had my second Junior Grand Prix assignment. However, before my flight to Bulgaria actually took off, I was really worried how I was going to make it there. Days before my flight, Hurricane Rita became a category 5 hurricane, and it was headed straight for Houston where I live. Many businesses boarded up and shut down for about three days including the ice rinks, and many flights were postponed for days. I wasn't able to practice for three days. Even though at the last minute the hurricane turned and missed us, we had other problems to deal with due to the storm. We began experiencing power shortages, and there were 100 mile traffic jams and shortages of gasoline due to the massive evacuation of Houston. Luckily, everything worked out including our flight which was the first and only international flight to leave Houston that day. Even my homecoming dance was rescheduled, so I was able to go to it when I returned from Bulgaria. It was quite a challenge, but I know many skaters have had to deal with a lot of different challenges.

Bulgaria was really different from the other places I've been. We saw gypsies, and the people at the market were really quite the salesmen-in your face constantly! Juliana Cannarozzo went sight-seeing with my mom, my coach, and me, and we were a little uncomfortable. Our hotel and the rink were really nice, but the practice rink was in the basement, and it was one of the coldest rinks I've ever been in. We called it the dungeon. The food wasn't that bad, but the bright green chicken that my mom and coach received at one of the restaurants was a little scary. Surprisingly, they both ate it and said it tasted good.

The whole team was great, and we had so much fun together. Everyone skated really well, so it made it an exciting week. We brought home 7 medals! I was happy with how I skated. My short program was great both artistically and technically. My only mistake was I only did triple flip/single toe instead of triple flip/double toe. I definitely did not skate my best in the long, but it was still good enough to get the silver medal. I fell on my opening triple flip which is always a bummer when you miss your opening element, but I kept pushing through landing a double axel and 5 other triples. Overall, I was pleased with both of my programs and my placements.

I thought maybe my fourth place and second place finish might be enough to make the Junior Grand Prix Final this year, but once again I am the first alternate. I was really upset to see that I didn't make the final again and worst of all the results came on my 16th birthday.

My 16th birthday was really great anyway! My parents took me out for a really nice dinner, and then I celebrated with my good friends. I've always wanted a minnie Hummer (H3), and even though I'm not going to get one, I got to test drive one on my birthday! It was so cool!

I am now training for Sectionals in Colorado, so I have to prepare for the altitude with senior programs. I am skating really well, and my coach and I are working my back to back programs for the altitude. I can't wait to compete again as a senior lady!

I will be back in touch once I get back from Sectionals. Wish me luck!

Katy

September 19, 2005

Hi Everyone!

Welcome to my official website! I am so excited to have an official website and so thankful to the webmasters for all their great work! Sorry it has taken me so long to write after the site came up, but my school and skating schedule haven't left much time.

I finished my freshman year of high school, and I am now a sophomore. I am working hard to stay in the advanced classes. My class work load is very intense, but I am proud to say I finished my freshman year with a 4.1 GPA!

I would like to take the time to update everyone on my skating. I guess I'll start by summarizing my last two years for those who may not be familiar with my skating.

The past two years were very busy with all the traveling, but I loved every minute of it! Everything I have sacrificed has been so worth it! I love traveling and skating in different places around the world, and I love all the new friends I've made all over the world!

Well, it all started after winning the silver medal at the 2003 U.S. Nationals in Dallas, Texas as a Novice. That was so exciting because so many of my family and friends were able to come and cheer for me since it was in my home state! Because of my placement at Nationals I received my first international assignment to compete at the Triglav Trophy in Slovenia where I won the silver medal! I'll never forget my first international experience! Everything about it was so exciting and fun, and Slovenia was so beautiful! It is in The Alps, and they are so amazing to see! We also took a side trip to Venice, Italy where we rode in a gondola through all the canals. What a memory! A few months later, I competed as a Junior at the North America Challenge in Canada and won the gold medal! That trip was amazing also, and because it was summer we got to stay four extra days. We went to Banff and Lake Louis. They were so beautiful! We also went up and walked around on a real glacier! It was so incredibly cold even though it was summer!

Then, I found out I would get to compete at my first Junior Grand Prix in Bratislava, Slovakia! It was such a great event for my first JGP and such an awesome experience! After placing fifth in the short program, I had a great skate in the long program and ended up winning the silver medal! Medaling in this event earned me a second JGP in Japan. Japan was amazing, but the flight was super long! I thought we would never get there! Our plane was struck by lightning while sitting on the runway which was a very bizarre experience I can do without in the future. Once in Japan, I was able to do some sightseeing, and we had our team dinner at a Japanese restaurant where we sat on the floor to eat after taking our shoes off at the door. It was so cool!

The competition was very strong, and I skated really well, but the Japanese swept the podium. I took fourth place in a very strong field that included Miki Ando. Once I was back home, I learned that I didn't make the JGP Final, and instead I would have to settle for being the first alternate. Although I was disappointed, I made a positive out of it by pushing harder for the 2004 Nationals. So, I went right back to training for the trip to Atlanta.

Everything about the 2004 U.S. Nationals in Atlanta was amazing! My practices were awesome, and I was so consistent! I also remember being so excited about my credential not expiring until the last day since the Junior Ladies competed on the same day as the Senior Ladies. That meant I could go back stage during the Senior Ladies freeskate! Anyway, after skating a clean short program, I was in first place! I was thrilled! My long program was great too however, I placed second and won the silver medal for Junior Ladies! That night at the Nationals party, I was told that I had made the 2004 Junior World Team! I can still remember being so excited, and I will never forget running upstairs to my hotel room to tell my parents! The 2004 Junior World Championships were held in The Hague, The Netherlands.

The U.S. team for Junior Worlds was an amazing team that year, and I had so much fun with everyone! The location of the competition was so awesome! It had a speed skating rink, mountain climbing, snow skiing practice hill, and go carts along with the competition arena and practice rink. Practices went very well, and after one of the practices we went to Maduradom. Maduradom is a miniature village of The Netherlands. The buildings are scaled down, so I was a little taller than most of them. It was very cool to see, and I took a lot of pictures!

We had to compete three rounds at Junior Worlds and qualify each time. My initial round went extremely well! I had a few shaky landings, but I did not miss anything. My short program was perfect! Everything was solid, and I skated with speed and confidence. I came in second right behind Miki Ando! The final round was tough with 2 Americans, 3 Japanese and a Hungarian. Even though I didn't skate as well as I did in the initial round, I still did a great job. Waiting for results was nerve racking, and I could not believe it when I found out I was the bronze medalist! It was so exciting and the whole trip is something I will never forget!!!

My second year on the JGP circuit was fun and exciting also. I received two JGP assignments from the start due to my medal at Junior Worlds. I went to Budapest, Hungary and to Chemnitz, Germany and won the bronze medal at both events. My long program from Germany was my best long program of the season! After two mistakes in the short program I was in 12th place, but with a near perfect long program I won the long program and pulled up to win the bronze medal! It was a little too exciting!

Both countries were beautiful and my teammates were so much fun! While in Budapest, I was able to see Parliament and several castles. It was so much fun and a great learning experience at the same time. There was not much free time in Germany, but we did walk around in their shopping square and bought souvenirs. A couple of weeks later I found out I didn't make the JGP Final. It was really hard to be the alternate two years in a row, but I used it as something to push me even harder!

Anyway, I started training for the 2005 Midwestern Sectionals which would be my first Senior competition. I skated really well in both my short and long programs. After being in second in the short program, I pulled up to win the free skate and win the gold medal! It was a great way to go into my first Senior Nationals!

I couldn't wait for my first practice ice at the 2005 U.S. Nationals in Portland, Oregon, especially since I would be in the same practice group as Sasha Cohen! It was such a great experience competing with Sasha Cohen and Michelle Kwan! The audience for practice ice was packed, but it was nothing compared to competition nights. My short program was great, not to mention I was the second to last skater right before Michelle! She even told me that I skated great! I'll never forget that! I skated clean, placing sixth which put me in the final warm-up group for the long program! That was my ultimate goal!!!

The final night was practically sold out, and TV cameras were everywhere since the long program was going to be aired live. I was so nervous, especially since I had been struggling with a growth spurt all year. I never knew how I was going to skate because I couldn't rely on my jumps like I could before. Unfortunately, I didn't skate my best, and I was super bummed! However, I was still proud of myself for making the final warm-up group after a fantastic short program, and I did meet my goal of making it in the top ten of the Senior Ladies at U.S. Nationals!!

Not being assigned to the 2005 Junior World team may have been a blessing in disguise because I really needed the time to work through everything and gain back my consistency. I have worked really, really hard on everything this summer especially with the new system.

I have a new long program to Forrest Gump Suite, choreographed by Lee Ann Miller. It was so much fun working with Lee Ann in New York and visiting New York City. I love my new long program! I am keeping Rhapsody in Blue for my short program however, it is choreographed totally different from when I skated it at Nationals

Well, the new season has already started! I competed at Liberty in July which was my first competition since Nationals. It wasn't my best, but it was a great opportunity to work out the nerves and kinks in my programs. After Liberty we completely re-choreographed my short program. I really like the change!

My practices at home are going really well with clean run-throughs of my programs! I really feel like I'm getting my consistency back and with that comes more confidence!

I just got back from my JGP event which was a return trip to Bratislava, Slovakia. The competition there was really tough! I missed my triple flip- double toe combination in the short program, but besides that it was a really good short program. The long program was even better with a clean skate minus a few bobbles! I placed third in the long program and fourth overall. The one mistake in the short was too much to pull up to a medal, but it was close! The good thing is I earned another JGP assignment! I'll be competing in Sofia, Bulgaria September 30- October 2, 2005.

I'll be leaving for Sofia in one week… Yay! I can't wait! I feel very well prepared! In the three weeks I had in between my JGP assignments, I worked really hard to increase the levels of my elements which didn't receive some of the levels we expected in Slovakia. I've also added a few different jump elements, so I hope to increase my personal best score!

Well, now that we are all caught up, it will be easy for me to update you more regularly. I'll check in once I get back from Bulgaria, and let you know how it went.

Bye for now, and thanks for all the support!!!

Katy Taylor