Here's an idea of what USFSA expects a skater to be able to do in each level:

http://www.usfsa.org/Content/Rules%20of%20Sport.pdf

Scroll down to page 55 to start. That should give parents and skaters a good foundation of what is considered competitive at even the most basic (no-test/pre-pre/prelim/prejuv) levels.

Also, it is important to know that at basic skill/no test competitions, the judges are not necessarily USFSA judges - they could be local coaches or more advanced skaters, without USFSA judge training. There can be a big difference in being at a basic skill competition compared to an open or regional event. It's always a good idea to check to see who will be doing the judging, and have a discussion with your skater about the differences between a bunch of high schoolers and friendly coaches compared to USFSA appointed judges.

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blades, gary, Lucy, Emily, take care of Aiden and Sami. Sami is my sweetest heart, and always will be, forever. RIP Cubby Boy, my hero dog.

Thanks for your posts! What you wrote, is pretty much what we are planning on doing. I talked to her coach last night and she said what you wrote in your 1st post. My daughter's coach started when she was 10 and is also a senior level skater(she's 22 now). She also LOVES the sport and is in it for those reasons. She still does ice shows and competed earlier this year. She doesn't do that too often since she is so busy coaching and also working. Anyway... thanks!

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skating mom to 3 angels on earth and 1 in heaven

Thank you for this link!! I appreciate it! As for judges, yup I've seen this already at smaller competitions. At the larger competitions, most of the judges we've seen are USFSA certified. At my daughter's last comp, there was one judge "in training" on my daughter's panel. The last competition was a larger competition, so they had better judges then some of the smaller competitions do. Anyway... thanks for that link! For now, we're going to have fun and enjoy this ride!

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skating mom to 3 angels on earth and 1 in heaven