My older sis was a gingerbread girl at the Stroking level.
I was a lollipop at the Beginner level under the N.S.T. stream.
The carnival theme was Days of Wine and Roses.
In my first ice show, I was a lollipop.
All I remember is touching my toes because my long hair fell in front of my face.
I was a Beginner under the National Skating Test (N.S.T.) stream. This changed for the 1983/84 season when the Canadian Figure Skating Association (CFSA, now Skate Canada) rolled out the CanSkate and CanFigure Skate programs – eliminating the 12-badge N.S.T.
Under the N.S.T., skaters were judged by a panel, not the coach. Quite different than its replacement.
The CanSkate stream had eight levels – Beginner, Elementary, Basic, Novice I, II, III, and IV, and Proficiency. Then you advanced to CanFigure or private lessons. There were skaters who stopped taking CanSkate and entered hockey or ringette.
Continue reading “CanSkate Then and Now – Retro CFSA Badges to Skate Canada Levels and Ribbons”
Skating Scene 