Miami Ohio University Athletics
Breaking the Ice with Kyleigh Gaff
11/3/2011 12:00:00 AM | Synchronized Skating
Nov. 3, 2011
This is a continuation in a series of Q&A's with members of the 2011-12 Miami University synchronized skating team that will run periodically throughout the year. Today's segment is with junior Kyleigh Gaff, a member of the senior team from Lynnfield, Massachusetts who is majoring in mass communication.
What is your pre-skate ritual?
My pre- skate ritual is that I always have to put my right skate on first and then my left skate goes on after that. I also have to chew a piece of gum before we warm-up at any time.
What kind of music or artist do you listen to prior to a competition?
I usually listen to music that gets me excited to skate and to shake off everything except the skate.
Why did you choose Miami?
I chose Miami because I am able to get a college level degree and I am able to continue to do what I love. I was unsure if I wanted to skate in college and when I visited Miami's campus I took a tour with three of the girls that were on the team. They gave me some good insight and knowledge to why they chose it. I am so glad I made right decision because I am able to go to school, go skating, and be a college student all at the same time!
What is your favorite hangout on campus?
I would have to say sitting in the locker room. Before and after practice the team is usually here, and we either catch up on extra sleep or we try to get some homework done.
What is your greatest accomplishment off the ice?
My greatest accomplishment off the ice I think was coming from a different school in eighth grade and transitioning into high school. Everyone at the new school had all gone to school together for three years and they all knew each other. I was coming in from a totally different direction and was very nervous come the first day. The outcome, although, turned out to be great. I made friends that first day that I am very close with now, and I am very grateful that I was fortunate to switch schools.
What is your favorite skating memory?
Freshman year when the junior team traveled to Switzerland to compete in the Neuchatel Trophy, we skated two very good programs that earned a silver medal. When we got on the ice for awards, we were expecting to get silver medals because that is what normally happens. When we got on the ice, they gave us boxes and in those boxes were coffee mugs. So we dug a little deeper and thought the medal was in the mug, but sadly there was no medal and all of our faces looked to our parents and they were laughing at us. At the end of the year at our banquet, the parents gave us medals that have the Neuchatel Trophy logo on it. It was just a funny moment and taught us that not getting a medal does not mean that we did not come in second.
What is your favorite skating move?
My favorite skating move is the 135 and spins. Even though we rarely do spins in our programs this year, I still always like to practice them.
On a road trip, what snacks do you bring with you?
I usually love to bring animal crackers, the chocolate kind, with goldfish and Gatorade. The animal crackers are really good with peanut butter, but I don't usually bring that on trips.
What is something people might be surprised to know about you?
I skipped kindergarten, and I also played softball for 13 years.
What is the most notable thing about your hometown?
The most notable thing about my hometown is that you can get from one side to the other in six minutes.
Who inspires you the most?
My mother and father are the people that inspire me the most. They have given me everything that they could, and they have allowed me to do whatever I wanted in succeeding in the sport that I love. They encouraged me to go to Miami and it has been one of the best experiences of my life. Being from Massachusetts, it is hard not seeing my parents every day and it is hard not talking to them, but I always try to call every day just to ask what's going on with them and my brother and how everything is going. They have come to every competition and my mother actually came to one of our Dr. Porter competitions last year even though it was right in the middle of her favorite season, which is Christmas.
What did you do on your summer vacation?
This summer, I took a statistics class back home in Massachusetts and then I came back to school for a month to help with the skating camps that we hold every year. Directly after that, I traveled to New York with my roommate and helped a synchronized skating team choreograph their program for four days.
When did you start skating?
I started skating in group lesson at the age of three. I kept the same coach for over 15 years and actually helped her daughter's open juvenile team with choreography this summer.
How did you get into this sport?
My mother and father signed me up for lessons when I was three and they could tell how happy I was to be able to be out on the ice and to be able to do skating rather than soccer!
Players Mentioned
