Back on blades again

When I quit figure skating six years ago to work in TV, I never thought those two worlds would ever come together again for me. I was a competitive figure skater for over 10 years and stopped at the end of high school so I could attend Ryerson for television and concentrate on working in TV. 

After years of freelancing with Insight Productions I received an e-mail from my producer saying that they were teaming up with CBC to create a new entertainment show called Battle of the Blades. Not only were they looking for a floor director, but they were looking for someone to do this from ice level. I couldn't believe what I was reading. This job had my name written all over it. The question was, could I fit back into my skates again? (The answer is no, but luckily my sisters always had bigger feet than me). 

Walking into the Maple Leaf Gardens for the first time in over ten years immediately brought back all the memories. The smell of the arena, the runny noses, and the sweet sweet sound of my blades crunching edges into the ice. I felt right at home again.

We had our first meeting on ice with the participants when suddenly I was surrounded by hockey legends and figure skaters I looked up to growing up. 

I think the general feeling at that moment was shared by all of us; we were excited to get going and bracing ourselves for the long days ahead.

Even though we've never done a show like this before, I felt completely comfortable knowing I had such an great team around me in every dept who I've worked with in the past. From the producers to the TVA's, I knew we had such a solid group on board.

I mean, look at this Leafs Dressing Room: Peter and Sandra brought life to a room that's been boarded up and vacant for years!

Before I knew it, it was our first show day. The audience started piling into the Gardens and really brought life to the arena again (some even sporting their leafs jerseys). As I skated around before the show, I thought to myself, 'Wow, I get to do the two things I love to do tonight: Skate and help run a live TV show.' And of all places, the Gardens!

So if you haven't booked your tickets yet, get on it. Tickets are $5 through Ticketmaster and are selling fast. Then let me know what day you're coming and make sure we get some embrace time. I'm only here for one more month before I head off the Aussie to conquer more TV. 

and stay tuned for more pics from the rink!