BACK STORY ENCORE
Kristen Crandle Greater Kalamazoo Skating Association
P
eople who meet Kristen Crandle might be surprised to find out she is not an ice skater. A board member of the Greater Kalamazoo Skating Association, Crandle is co-chairing, with Amy Wood, the committee organizing the U.S. Figure Skating 2019 Midwestern & Pacific Coast Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships, which will be held at Wings Event Center from Jan. 31–Feb. 3. This event, hosted by the GKSA, will bring at least 155 teams to Kalamazoo to battle it out before the national competition, to be held in Plymouth, Michigan, less than a month later. A total of 7,000 attendees — including the 15- to 16-member teams, plus coaches, judges and spectators — are expected to come to Kalamazoo. Crandle, 50, is no neophyte at competitions of this type: She is also the organizer of the annual Kick-off Classic competition, which brings regional synchronized skating competitors of all levels to Kalamazoo each November. (continued on page 45)
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