In the case of my club's mega-test session last year, there were just so many tests signed up that if they (except for Pre-pre) had been done singly, we would have needed 2 days or 2 rinks. That's expensive. Actually, originally the test session was scheduled from 9 to 3, but fortunately the test chair was able to arrange for 3 additional hours once the applications came in and it was clear 6 hours wouldn't be enough. Still, there were a few skaters(all guests who turned their apps in very close to or past the deadline) that had to be turned away. There were 9 judges there that day, although most weren't there the whole time (some judges were scheduled just for the morning, some came around noon or 1, some were there most of the day but had 1 or 2 breaks where they weren't judging for a while, depending on their credentials and what was needed).

As I said, this test session was co-sponsored with another club - 1 club got the judges and did the dance schedule, the other (the host club) handled the logistics and the registration and result recording and did the MIF/FS schedule. Between the 2 clubs, there were a lot of skaters wanting to test. Test sessions that large are unusual around here. The test chairs wanted to accommodate as many as possible so everyone had to be squeezed in.

In the case of Washington FSC, it's a huge club, with lots of skaters testing at any given time, and double-paneling is the only way they can get everyone in. They have test sessions monthly (I think?) but there's just always a big demand.

Doubletoe, the skaters do the power circles at opposite ends - they just start at some spot between the hockey circles and blue line, and spiral outward from there, so their circles never overlap. I saw a skater fall on the power circles during one of these tests, but she just got up and finished the move a bit behind the other skater who hadn't fallen. It wasn't a big time difference and the other skater just had to stand in starting position for the next one a few seconds longer. No biggie.

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Terri C is a Bronze lady!
Gold Moves, here I come!

Wow, that would have thrown me for a loop as well, having only practiced them around the center circle! Our club is either the 2nd or 3rd largest in the country, but we have two FS/MIF test sessions per month (with the exception of the 6 weeks starting mid-November, when there are none), so I guess that makes the number of skaters manageable.

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics