Homick, Buelow gaining international experience

After returning from an ISU Junior Grand Prix in Italy, Summer Homick and Nicholas Buelow will be competing at their second grand prix of the season in Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 24-27. (Chris Grimo Photo)

Chris Abbott, Post Correspondent

Ice dancers Summer Homick, from Tillsonburg, and Nicholas Buelow, from Barrie, will be skating together at their first 2025-26 ISU Junior Grand Prix of the season in Varese, Italy, Sept. 3-6.

A few weeks after returning to the Mariposa School of Skating in Barrie, the two 18-year-olds will once again head overseas with a coach to compete in a second Junior Grand Prix event in Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 24-27.

“Going into the (2025 NextGen) event, we already had our Junior Grand Prix in Italy, but we had to qualify for our second Junior Grand Prix,” said Homick. “When we got back, we found out we are headed to Azerbaijan. So it worked out well in that way.

“It’s hard to get two – you have to earn both those spots. So it’s a huge accomplishment, getting two, and a big step up for us from last year.”

Homick and Buelow had first officially skated together in April 2024, and after the NextGen that year competed at their first Junior Grand Prix in September 2024.

“I think it was a good learning curve for us,” said Homick. “It was our first event together and I think we took so much in, and brought so much out of it at the same time. It was beneficial for us, for sure.”

Italy will be Homick’s second Grand Prix with Buelow, who will be going to his fifth Grand Prix – three with a previous ice dance partner, including a ‘double’ in Turkey and Hungary their second year together.

“For us, we’re just focused on getting that international experience,” said Homick. “It’s a new season, a new program. I think we learned so much from our last one, I hope we take all of that experience with us.”

Homick said her goal is to improve any way she can – and have fun.

“These events are so fun, and to represent Canada, that is the most important part.”

Buelow said they want to treat every competition as a learning experience – no matter where it is – but especially at a Grand Prix.

“It’s international, so the judging is going to be a little bit tougher, and the competition is going to be different – it’s not people you compete against all year,” said Buelow. “It’s just going out there and focusing on yourself at a Grand Prix and not really getting caught up on who’s doing what.”

“It is always changing for us,” said Homick. “We are still learning, of course, the rules and new criteria for rhythm dance specifically, but I feel like we’re always trying to improve our technical skills… We’ve been focusing on that a lot in the last few weeks, and I think a lot of the time it comes to speed, which is a big one for us.”

“We like to say ‘we’re just working on everything,’” said Buelow. “Just fine-tuning and finding the efficiency in it, figuring out how to do it, but also using less energy to do it as well. Those technical things, the levels, and yes, obviously speed and performance.”

During ‘run-throughs,’ he said they try to maintain a high level of speed and performance throughout the entire skate, not letting it fade toward the end.

“There are definitely teams out there that are still faster and we’re trying to catch up to them, speed-wise,” he said.

“When we get back from Azerbaijan, the end of September, we’ll take the week off from training,” said Homick. “That’s kind of like our mid-season break – a little bit of a mental and physical break – and then we’re coming back to get ready for Sectionals after that.

“It’s a very emotional whirlwind, the two Junior Grand Prix’s, and quite exhausting, so our bodies will need it by then,” added Homick, who is still proud to represent the Tillsonburg Skating Club.

“I have represented the Tillsonburg Skating Club my whole life and I think it’s something I never want to change. I owe so much to them, so I’m going to keep it that way.”

Ice dance was a completely new experience for Homick in 2024. She had transitioned from exclusively singles skating with the Tillsonburg Skating Club to singles and pairs in Brantford, instructed by coaches including Alison Purkiss at the Brant Skating Club.

“I feel like we definitely had chemistry the first tryout we had,” said Homick. “I was kind of new to dance so I was just learning the process of everything, kind of exploring it. I felt like I had so much chemistry with Nick, which kind of drew me into the whole ice dance discipline.”

“On the ice, too, everything kind of worked pretty well together,” Buelow agreed. “Usually there are kind of some struggles with a new partnership – learning how to skate with someone new – but I didn’t notice that quite as much with Summer. She was pretty good.”

Buelow got his start in ice dance at a much younger age.

“I think about 10 years ago, about when I was eight. It was fairly young,” he said. “I have an older brother who skated as well, and our coaches wanted him do a (ice dance) tryout. We were really attached at the hip… and my parents said, ‘if you’re going to get him to do it, you’re going to have to get Nick to do it as well.’”

Both continued in singles while skating in their partner disciplines.

“I did both until about 2018-2019, then it (ice dance) just took over naturally,” said Buelow. “I was probably about 14-15 and I didn’t have a double axel. Only really up to my double loop, double flip. By then, I was higher in dance.”

During the school year, they would skate from 6:30-10:30 a.m. in Barrie, followed by a few hours at school, then a few hours off-ice training (workouts, ballet or hip hop classes).

Homick, who graduated from high school in June, is taking the next school year off to focus on skating, training and competing.

Buelow also graduated Grade 12, and will return to school this fall to finish up a few credits.

chris@granthaven.com