The Capital Ice Synchro team, the Chips, who placed second in the United States Championship. (Submitted photo).

Dustin White
Editor

Gracefully gliding over the ice, one local team recently took the nation by storm. Showing that skaters from the midwest have a great amount of talent, the Capital Ice Chips Synchronized Skating Team has made their way to top spots in both the sectionals, and nationals.

The Chips are one of the seven teams that compromise the Capital Ice Synchronized skating teams,  which is part of the larger Bismarck Figure Skating Club.



Capital Ice began 13 years ago when Rebecca Gallion, the skating director, returned to Bismarck.

“I was coaching in Minot at the time. When I came back to Bismarck, I wanted to start the synchro program up again,” Gallion said.

Picking up the phone Gallion got busy calling local skaters to jump start the program.

With a team beginning to form, the program eventually took off. After just five years, Capital Ice made their way to their first sectionals in 2008, and in 2011, they had made their way to nationals.

Dedication

To become a top athlete in any sport, a great deal of dedication is needed. Synchro is no difference. With many of the skaters having been involved in the sport for over a decade, these athletes have reached the top levels of the sport.

Guiding them along the way has been a team of coaches that are just as dedicated to seeing these young athletes succeed.



“We have a small coaching staff,” Gallion said. “It allows us to make sure everyone is learning correctly, throughout the different levels. It is something special and unique about our program.”

With coaches who move with the skaters, these athletes get an extra bit of security knowing that they have instructors that are fully away of their levels, and can help them continue to progress, without having to take any steps back.

That progression doesn’t come easily though. With practices before and after school, spanning six days a week, these athletes are putting in many hours to prefect their skills.

Competition

While other cities in North Dakota have synchro teams, the Chips, Capital Ice’s advanced skaters, are the only team at the upper level in the state, which comes with its own difficulties.

“Our older team has to travel farther to compete,” Gallion said. “The closest competition is Minneapolis. Just this season, the Chips have had to fly three times for competitions.”

For the younger teams, the travel is a little less, with Grand Forks being the closest. Yet, wanting to push her skaters, and give them a different sort of experience, the younger teams often attend the larger events as well.

This year, one of those trips was to the 2016 Intermediate Championships at the Midwestern Sectional Championships in Portland, Oregon. For all their effort, the Chips came home with a major win. For the third consecutive year, they scored a first place finish.

However, it was a larger milestone than just winning the sectionals. Scoring a 73.08, the Chips made the record books by gaining the highest score ever given to a team of their level.



That score secured a place at the 2016 United States Synchronized Skating Championships. Flowing like a well oiled machine over the ice, the Chips took home the silver medal at the championships, proving that their dedication is paying off.

Ending the Season

With the season ending, Capital Ice Synchro is preparing for a different sort of presentation.

“Skate All About It,” a themed ice show presented by the Bismarck Figure Skating Club, the community will have a chance to see these talented skaters in action. Centered around positive news, the skaters have been busy preparing for the show.

Kicking off this Friday, March 18, a total of four shows will be featured: Friday at 2 p.m.; Saturday, March 19 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.; and Sunday, March 20, at 2 p.m. All shows will be at the VFW Sports Arena. Tickets are $12 for adults; $8 for seniors and students; and free for 4 and under.

For more information about the Capital Ice Synchro, or to get tickets for the ice show, go to www.BismarckFigureSkatingClub.com. For a video of the Chips at sectionals, go to The Chips