Harkaway and Larcum

[mkcrazy02]

They use to train out of AAFSC with Jackie and Joe Mero. But the competed out of the Eastern section. But Shelia competed out of Eastern Great Lakes in singles(jUV) while Brandon cpmpeted in novice in south alantics. So are the still training with the meros and competeing out of easterns for a better chance at nationals, or do the train on the east coast.

Has anybody seen them train lately. What elements do the have.The must be pretty to get a JGP.

This doesnt go with this topic but has any one seen Castile and Olkiski, skate. What do the like like and elements do they have. What about any other AAFSC pairs teams.

[Sylvia]

Someone originally posted the link on the Skatefans mailing list to this 5/17/02 local Michigan article on National Novice pair silver medalists Sheila Harkaway & Brandon Larcom:
http://www.mlive.com/sports/aanews/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/sports-0/1021646413193900.xml
(hope this link still works!)

Here are some excerpts from the article, with my comments added:

<< Larcom and Harkaway won the gold medal in junior pairs at the 2001 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. In this year's competition in Los Angeles, they earned the silver medal in novice pairs (a level up from juniors). >>

What the reporter *meant* to write was "[Sheila] Harkaway & [Brandon] Larcom won the gold medal in _intermediate_ pairs at the 2001 U.S. _Junior_ Figure Skating Championships. In this year's [Senior national] competition in Los Angeles, they earned the silver medal in novice pairs (a level up from intermediate/down from juniors)."

<< At the 2002 competition in Los Angeles, the two were fourth following the short program, during which they performed to the music from the movie "Schindler's List." They grabbed the silver medal by winning the long freestyle program, during which they skated to the music of "Les Miserables." >>

I enjoyed their free skate in LA. My notes say they opened with a lift in a nice back split position by her, did a split double twist with a shaky catch, pair spin of sit-camel-upright, throw double loop, sbs double loop-mazurka-double flip sequence (he fell out of the flip landing), sbs spin of camel-sit-back sit (lost some unison), lasso lift to one hand by him, back inside edge death spiral (low position by her), pair camel spin, throw double salchow, sbs double flip, straight line footwork, forward inside edge death spiral (low) to end.

As far as I know, H&L continue to train in Ann Arbor with the Meros (it's not that unusual for pair skaters to compete out of different regions in singles). There's a Junior Pairs SP event at Skate Detroit later this month, and perhaps they are entered? If not there, they're scheduled to compete in the Junior pairs NACS event August 8-11, in Dieppe, NB, Canada, along with the other top Novice pairs at Nationals (Boxwell & Sears, Vise & Kole, Harris & Sanders).

If they feel ready, Brooke Castile and Ben Okolski might make their debut at Skate Detroit... or, more likely, at the Indy Pairs Challenge in Indianapolis, August 16-18, together with some of the other AAFSC pairs.

[Trillian]

As far as I know these two still skate in Ann Arbor.