Going to nationals

After impressing judges with their flips, spins and lifts, two Coeur d’Alene ice skaters are setting their sights on the national scene. Chris Anders and Kalie Budvarson, with the Inland Northwest Skating Club, qualified to compete at a national competition in January. “This is the whole shebang that we’ve always wanted,” said Budvarson “We just want to lay down two good programs. That’s all we can do.”

The pair took first at regionals and fourth at sectionals, making them the 12th-ranked team in the nation. Anders and Budvarson will have the chance to compete for the top spot Jan. 9 and 10 in Portland.

With the competition nearing, their coach, Karin Kunzle-Watson, is looking forward to seeing them perform against the best in the country and sharing it with the team.

“You can’t forget the feeling when you stepped off the ice,” Kunzle-Watson said. “You know you went out there, you conquered your fears and you did the best you can.”

But now there’s no weak teams and staying on their toes won’t be enough. Kunzle-Watson said most competitive pair teams have been skating pairs for much longer, and will be harder to upstage at the national competition

“The whole level of their skating has to be pushed up,” she said.

Anders and Budvarson got their first nibble of pairs after a regional competition while they were both competing as single skaters. They started to mock another team by doing a lift off the ice. When their coach saw how easily it came to them, they started pair-skating on the ice.

Anders said they practiced together at first to surprise his parents during the club’s annual Christmas show. They took their first tests and started competing for the team as a pair two years ago and now compete at a novice level.

Budvarson said the change to pair-skating has helped boost her confidence and opened up opportunities beyond the mass of other girls skating singles and wanting to be the top star.

Now, with more opportunities facing them, they are working harder to fine-tune their routine to show their best.

“You can’t miss a day of practice,” Budvarson said. “You accomplish something every day, even though it’s brutal.”

Both skaters knew most of the skills and jumps, which helped them pick up pair moves and coordination quickly. Most pair moves take years to land, but the couple are performing lifts and jumps that pair skaters wouldn’t typically do until after five years of hard work, Kunzle-Watson said.

But the sport is a top priority and their dedication is starting to set them apart from other pairs in the Northwest.

Anders and Budvarson work at Planet Ice in Spokane 20 to 25 hours a week, train on the ice about 20 hours a week, and work with weight training at least twice a week. Around their busy skating schedule, They fit full-time schedules as students at North Idaho College in around their busy work and training schedules.

“They only have 24 hours in a day and it seems like 18 of them are always busy,” Kunzle-Watson said.

But they keep room for a sense of humor and joke about doing just about everything at the same time.

Even bathroom breaks come up at the same time.

They’ve known each other for 13 years, building a trust and friendship similar to a brother and sister. Anders said sometimes they introduce each other as siblings.

“We’re like twins, but not,” Budvarson said.

Both hope their mirror personalities will help them at the national competition, but they’re glad to have a chance to compete whether they place or not.

After their performance at sectionals, they were chosen as Olympic hopefuls for the 2010 team. They also received an invitation to an international competition which will include skaters from Canada, South America and the United States.

Next year, they hope to compete at a junior level, and are on track to compete in the upcoming Olympics at the senior level, Kunzle-Watson said.

“We hope to go as far as we can go,” Anders said.