Take Me Out to the Ice Rink

It might be January, and still feel like fall outside, but it really doesn’t matter. Those Houstonians who love winter sports will still find ways to seek their thrills. Some winter sports fanatics may need to take flight to the Rocky Mountains or other slopes around the globe to get their fix, while some enthusiasts may be fulfilled right here in Space City.

You will find the Doll family of Memorial at the ice rink a minimum of five days a week. David may be coaching a Pee Wee ice hockey team, Graham may be practicing or playing on his Houston Hitmen Squirt ice hockey team, Erin Elizabeth may be practicing her spins as she trains as a figure skater, and it seems Heidi is always at the rink, supporting whichever family member is on it.

Graham, 9, a third-grader at Frostwood Elementary School, has been playing ice hockey since he was 7 years old. He loves the game and thinks ice hockey has taught him a lot about sportsmanship and teamwork. “I like the contact and since I now play defense, it is even more important to protect our goalie.” What Graham has also learned from his present coach, Bob Perugini, whom he reveres, is that “one person cannot win a game. We all play different positions and have to be able to cover the entire ice if need be. Staying in your position and doing your job is important, but the game is so fast that you can rotate around if the situation calls for it, and then a teammate has to rotate to your position to cover it—like when a defenseman makes a rush-up and a winger rolls back to cover for him. All of the players need to play together so that the team does well. Even when you are on the bench, it is important to be ready to go on the ice and to watch what is going on.”

Graham’s enthusiasm for his sport has greatly impacted the rest of the family. In fact, his sister, Erin Elizabeth, 10, who is a fifth-grader at Frostwood Elementary, took up ice skating because of him. She was tired of sitting at the rink watching Graham have all the fun. “I had done gymnastics (which she still does once a week) and cheerleading, so after I came back from summer camp last year, I started taking skating lessons. My mom and dad signed me up for classes and then found a coach to help me learn more about figure skating. My mom had skated as a kid, so she knew about the sport,” says Erin Elizabeth, who is taking her sport just as seriously as her brother. She has three individual lessons and seven skating classes per week, and is at the rink four days a week.

Graham not only inspired his sister to embrace a winter sport, he also did so for his dad. David had played ice hockey as a kid growing up in upstate New York, but had not had a stick in his hand since he was 14. “With us, it is the opposite of what you think generally happens,” says David. “Usually it is the dad who played ice hockey when he was a kid and who gets his son interested in the sport, but Graham did this on his own. Then he got me to put skates back on and take to the ice.”

David coaches a Pee Wee team for the junior hockey league that Graham plays with. Besides coaching, David plays in a men’s “for fun only” league. Graham is thrilled that he got his dad back into the sport. “I like to go to his games and watch him play. Sometimes I give him advice from the bench,” says the 9-year-old.

The commitment to figure skating is huge, but Erin Elizabeth truly enjoys her sport. (Photo: www.solarisstudios.com)

How does David, CEO of Kanaly Trust Company and Heidi, who is involved in David’s company and highly committed to charity work, find time to do it all? Talking to them, they seem unfazed by the commitment that is needed for their children’s pursuit of sports. Some of Erin Elizabeth’s skating lessons on schooldays end at 7:30 a.m., making it a close call before the bell. There are so many practices and games between the two children and David’s coaching commitments during the week, the family cars could find their own way to the rink. This doesn’t even include weekend travel to out-of-town tournaments and competitions.

Besides the time commitment, there is the expense. Equipment for a hockey player runs around $500 to $600 and rental for an ice rink costs around $300 per hour. “This gets spread across team members, but still, it ain’t cheap,” says David.

For those interested in starting out with ice hockey, the general advice is that kids need to start on rollerblades. Graham started out with roller hockey at age 5, and switched to ice at age 7.

Heidi—who also grew up in New York, worked as a professional ski instructor, and was a figure skater for years—feels that she never reached the level that Erin Elizabeth is at after only one year of instruction. “When kids are involved in different sports and activities, the learning curve for a new sport is decreased. They still need to get their balance factor and be able to transition from balancing on the ground, to ice or snow, but generally kids who are good at one sport will be good at another,” says Heidi. This mom makes a conscientious effort not to interfere with her daughter’s training. “She’s mine when she’s off the ice, but when Erin Elizabeth goes out on the ice, she belongs to Inna Shaposhnikova, her coach,” says Heidi.

Erin Elizabeth’s recommendation for that those who want to be good at figure skating: practice, practice, practice. “We work on all elements of a routine to put them together to make a good presentation. I have learned that little things add up. It is important to really practice well since this is where a good performance comes from.”

She doesn’t sugarcoat the commitment though. “It’s a lot of hard work, but a lot of fun. If you really like it, you need to find a coach to help you one-on-one as all the moves, jumps, and spins are not as easy as they look,” she advises. No matter what sport their children are playing, Heidi and David have a family rule – the second this doesn’t become fun is the time to stop. “My kids are doing something that they love. It enables them to be individuals, as well as part of a team,” Heidi says.

Simply put, the Dolls encourage each other to enjoy being active. The kids have nicknames for one another—Erin Elizabeth affectionately calls Graham, “Puck Boy,” and he has named her “Twirler Girl.” Whether the kids are playing hockey on skates in the driveway, whizzing across the ice at the rink, or just enjoying the rush of snowboarding in New York when visiting family, the Dolls love sports—especially winter sports.

Editor’s Note: For more information about junior hockey teams, visit www.houstonhitmen.com or www.junioraeros.com. For more information on ice skating lessons, visit www.skatememorialcity.com.