They spend at least ten hours every week spinning, jumping and, yes, sometimes falling. Hard.

And they absolutely love it.

The women of the synchronized skating team spend as much time together as some of us spend working a part-time job, but they spend that time working on their routine. For a minimum of ten hours a week, they have off- and on-ice practices together.

During off-ice sessions, team members stretch, run, do aerobics and work on the details of the choreography of their routine, to perfect the angle at which they tilt their heads or how they move their arms. While on the ice, they warm up, work on areas of their routine that need improvement, and then do a few complete run-throughs of their routine.

In addition to these group practices, each individual member practices by herself on her own time.

All this practice is no big deal for Julia Bancroft, a sophomore in her second year on the team. According to Bancroft, her ice skating days began the week after she learned how to walk.

“My dad plays hockey and my mom is Canadian, so really I had no choice,” Bancroft said.

Bancroft and her teammates are currently preparing for the U.S. Figure Skating Nationals. The Nationals will be held in Boston, Mass., from Febuary 26 to 29. Last year, the team placed seventh out of eighteen teams at the competition. This year, they will be competing against 24 other teams.

“The sport itself is growing,” said team president Sydney Sigler. Sigler, a junior, has been skating with the team for three years.

Before the Nationals, the synchronized skating team will compete in the Tri-State Synchronized Skating Championships, which will be held on February 12 at the Ice Arena. The team will be competing against other synchronized skating teams from schools such as Western Michigan University and Miami University. Individuals will also compete at the championships. Those competing include skaters of all ages, from children to adults.

The championships will serve as a sort of practice for Nationals, said Sigler.

“We need to have competition experience,” Sigler said.

At the Tri-State Synchronized Skating Championships, the skaters will be rated by judges from the United States Figure Skating Association in a variety of categories, including the degree of difficulty in their routine, how well the routine is executed and overall synchronization.

“The judges look for specific elements,” Bancroft said.

The University team will be performing a routine to the music of Swan Lake at the competition.

“Our [routine] is ballet-like,” Bancroft said. “It has a soft, graceful feeling.”

Although the Tri-State Synchronized Skating Championships will last all day, the college-level portion of the competition is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. on February 12. For more information about the event or the Synchronized Skating Team, visit the team’s website at http://www.bgsu.edu/studentlife/organizations/skate.