Go Figure, Skater Molly Jumps from the NHL to the NFL’s Titans Cheerleaders

When Nashville pro sports fans noticed the dancer/cheerleader rosters for this season’s fall sports, there was a bit of sad news, followed by some GREAT news! First the sad, this season’s NHL Nashville Predator Ice Girls did not include Molly, who had been skating for the Preds since 1999 (reaction=’Awwwww’). But fans’ heads spun at the speed of a death spiral when seeing Molly was now a rookie member of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans Cheerleaders. What?! Molly, who has had an international career as a figure skater, traded in her blades for some boots? Molly shared with UltimateCheerleaders how this big switch happened, adding a new phase to a career that has taken her all over the world, including being a professional skater paired with a celebrity in the UK TV competition show, Skating on Ice, and being a character in a Wii game.

So much has happened to Molly, it is hard to know where to start. Reality shows, singing, picking catfish off of the ice for the Preds. So we better start at the beginning, during a time before Molly can even remember. Growing up in New Hampshire, Molly started playing on a hockey team with her brothers when she was three, so does she even remember NOT skating? “I really don’t remember not being able to skate,” replies Molly. “I feel as though I have been blessed gliding through life with graceful ease!”

Even Molly’s first hockey games showed her inclination to enjoy the spotlight and entertain the fans at rinkside. “I started out playing hockey at the tender age of three,” explains Molly. “My two older brothers played and the third kid was free, so my parents signed me up! We have an old VHS home video of all the kids on my team at one end of the ice, and little Molly in front of all the parents through the plexy glass posing and looking for attention. Thankfully, my parents recognized this and switched me over to figure skating around six/seven years old, where I then took Basic Skills classes, then on to private lessons and competing.”

It seems like world class figure skaters are so young, they must begin REALLY, REALLY young! Molly, what is the oldest someone can start lessons with a chance to be a world class skater like you? “You can start skating at any age, but chances are you’ll go further if you start young, because you will need time and experience to help you pass all the requirements needed for elite skating,” replies Molly.

Often skaters need to leave their hometowns to train away from their family, but in Molly’s case, her first time “away from home” actually made her less homesick. “At twelve years old, my father’s job transferred to the Hampton Roads, Virginia area,” describes Molly. “It was very sad and hard for me to leave friends and family in New Hampshire and head down south. My skating took a bit of a setback as well due lack of competitive skating in the area. My first summer after moving to Virginia (thirteen years old), I traveled back to my home rink in Acton, Massachusetts, to train with my coaches and skating friends, while living with my grandparents in Hollis, New Hampshire. It’s hard to say I was homesick being so busy training on the ice, as well as being with my friends and family for whom I was more homesick for while in Virginia, and knowing it was just for the summer.”

For a young person, committing to skating requires a lot of tough choices at a very young age, and these decisions eventually brought Molly to Nashville. After Molly’s training in Massachusetts, “Throughout the year competing, I had made new friends a little closer to home, so the following summer I trained at the University of Delaware (fourteen years old),” describes Molly. “Deciding which path my skating would need to take was very difficult at that age. My freshman year in Virginia was fun cheerleading on my school’s JV squad and playing indoor soccer, although my skating was suffering. I knew for my dream, I had to do something extreme! The following year I heard about an opportunity to audition for pair skating in Nashville. I went to a tryout during spring break with a boy named Bert Cording. The tryout went fabulous so, I decided to head to Nashville at fifteen. We had a great summer of training and we came along way in such a short time. Our future looked bright! As fall came around, I started tenth grade in Nashville. Soon after, having no family around, I was homesick. My mother moved (to Nashville) knowing that when I graduated from high school, she would go back to Virginia. During that time we housed other skaters who were living away from home.”

Though initially homesick in Nashville, Molly experienced the hospitiality that would someday make Molly embrace Nashville are her own hometown. “Nashvillians are AMAZING…I love calling it home,” comments Molly. “It’s a Mini L.A. or Nash’Vegas as I like to call it! I don’t know what it is about this place, but people are so warm and inviting. They will take their shirt off their backs for anyone. I think it’s the South in general. Being a Yankee and all, I really see the difference when I’m home in New England. The first summer I trained here, I was welcomed with open arms by my coaches, Olympian Bill Fauver, his wife Laura Sanders, and their daughter Christine, as well as all the skaters of the Nashville Figure Skating Club. They all took me under their wings.”

Does the experience of being a young figure skater, living in new places, make one more independent and willing to try new things because of that time away from home? “I feel as though I had some different maturities than others my age,” responds Molly. “I was traveling the country for competitions and training, meeting new people all the time. I was out in the world which did make me very independent. But I never left home without my teddy bear. I was still a child. I do feel like I’m willing to try anything from being so independent.”

“‘You never know what you can do until you try,’ was my motto,” continues Molly. “My mom would write quotes down or post them in my room ever since I was little. All she wanted for me was to be confident! One of my favorites is, ‘How high I aim, How much I see, How far I reach, Depends on me.’ I love inspiring quotes. I live by positive ones!”

And Molly absorbed the strength from the positive messages, because, as a skater, she needed to have the strength to deal with the pressure of a demanding, individual sport. “That’s skating, an individual sport where it’s all on you, it’s all up to you, and that’s what makes you independent,” explains Molly. “In skating, you try NEW things all the time, you fall, you get up, you hurt, you push through, you fail, and you achieve goal after goal after goal. It is all on you. Heart and soul, you’ve got to want it and you can’t teach ‘want.’ Skating taught me drive, dedication, and determination, poise, presence, performance, perseverance, and most importantly, confidence at such a young age.”

Molly followed her skating dreams, both in individual and pairs competitions that took her around the globe. Among Molly’s achievements are winning the silver medal in The Golden Spin of Zagreb and placing fourth in the Newbelhorn trophy in Germany. Molly skated in Olympic trials and national touring ice shows (like Broadway On Ice with Dorothy Hamill, Nancy Kerrigan, and Brian Boitano), in addition to some unique skating opportunities, such as cruise ships, for extended stays in Mexico, and spending the summer seasons performing at Cedar Point’s massive amusement park in Ohio, providing a cool respite for weary visitors coming in from hours of waiting for roller coasters in the heat.

With all of these experiences, who were Molly’s childhood skating idols and was there a skater or skaters that Molly met for the first time that was an amazing memory? “As a child I did book reports about skaters, wrote journals, drew pictures, and admired lots of skaters,” answers Molly. “While skating in Massachusetts, Nancy Kerrigan and Paul Wylie were training for the Olympics at the same rink. While training there, a few times I was pulled aside to receive some instruction from Paul. He taught me my death-drop and I was on top of the world! It was really neat to have them there, as well as very inspirational. I had the opportunity at eleven years old to skate in an ABC clip with Nancy just before Nationals and the Olympics. Also that year, I was invited to skate at Harvard’s ‘An Evening Of Champions,’ which is held once a year with numerous past and present Olympic and World Champions. Again, I was so elated that I was able to be a part of it all. Later in my show career, I’ve had the pleasure of skating with Nancy and other famous skaters as an adult! My world has come full circle!”

If one follows and roots for a particular figure skater, you will soon learn from watching their long programs when the key points and combinations are about to happen, and these portions of the performance may make or break the judge’s scoring. Even a fan will get nervous, tied in knots, knowing this high pressure point is about to happen. As a skater, does Molly’s mind start thinking about those jumps long before to get psyched to nail it, or is it better to just skate in the moment? “You have to skate in the moment or you’ll psyche yourself out,” explains Molly. “I tell my students this all the time because they are so worried usually about their new hard jump or element, et cetera. So I tell them to be in the NOW, be in each and every little detail and make them ALL matter! Usually when you start thinking ahead, your body doesn’t function well. You’ll start tripping and messing up.”

And how about those super-fast spins, do you not get dizzy? “Spinning is like riding a bike, once you get it, you’ve got it! I remember when I was learning how to spin, I had trouble because in dance they teach you to spot (stop and look forward each revolution) and in skating to spin fast you just want your head to be straight and your view to be all blurry!” Molly smiles.

With the years of repetitive training and performing routines, does Molly ever walk through a store or listen to the radio and hear a song that immediately puts into her mind one of your ice routines? Molly replies, “Yes! I’ve skated to so many songs in my career! When I hear specific ones, it takes me not only to some of the choreography, but also to the age, outfit, rink, et cetera. It’s pretty neat how I could be anywhere and hear, for instance, ‘Love Shack,’ I will picture my little Molly-self in Dallas ISI Nationals, age ten, 1990, black leotard with fluorescent bandanas! I think I can say the same thing for my family.”

Certainly, it must be difficult to get some of these songs out of one’s head after a while. “More recently as a show skater I’ve had the privilege to perform these numbers in front of millions, in thousands of shows,” says Molly. “For instance, 200 shows in one summer at Cedar Point Theme Park in Ohio; ‘Hit Me with Your Best Shot’, ‘Kokomo,’ and ‘Let’s Get it Started” get a little old by September! I’ve been to Mexico for a month at a time skating to ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ and ‘Womanizer.’ Or all the shows I’ve done on Cruise Ships to ‘Black Magic Woman’ or ‘She Loves You’ by the Beatles. Man, crazy to think about how many shows I’ve actually done. Roughly two thousand shows and I’ve had roughly over two million impressions with my skating!”

But in 2010, one single skating job allowed about nine million viewers to see Molly perform. Molly was part of the cast of the UK television show, Dancing on Ice. With a similar format to Dancing with the Stars, a celebrity is paired with a professional skater, and Molly was the pro and she skated with British actor and comedian Bobby Davro. Legendary skaters and Britain’s best-known ice-skating duo, former Olympic champions Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, help training the aspiring dancers, and also appear throughout the show with comments and advice.

When asked how the opportunity to be on Dancing on Ice came about and how her celebrity Bobby progressed, Molly answers, “A few of my close friends had been on the show and I had heard such amazing things about it! ITV’s production assigned us to our celebs. Bobby and I were training about two hours a day five times a week. When we first started, he was pretty wobbly and could barely stand up on his own! Kinda ‘Bambi-like,’ if you will. After a few short months, he was moving backwards, spinning a bit, and trying a waltz jump! Not bad for a first timer in his fifties!”

Dancing on Ice is hugely popular, so Molly was able to experience quite a unique experience. “I thoroughly enjoyed my time in London!” Molly describes. “It’s really neat having your friends by your side with you during an experience like this! I did a lot of site-seeing and met some wonderful people! We were treated like celebs ourselves. Personal drivers, tabloids, fans, et cetera! You can even ‘be me’ on the Dancing On Ice Wii Game! Needless to say, I loved it to bits!”

Closer to home, Molly started being part of the NHL’s Nashville Predators game day entertainment in 1999 soon after the Predators came into existence. Over the years, Molly has seen hockey’s popularity grow in the Nashville area. “I skated with the Nashville Predators on and off for about twelve years as on ice entertainment. In 1999 when I started, there was NO (local) high school hockey. In New Hampshire when I was young, I grew up with my brothers playing high school hockey with many teams and rinks. Nashville had youth leagues but there was only one rink and very little interest. Since the Preds, high school hockey here has grown into roughly fifteen teams. It’s very exciting for the sport. We also have a player on the Preds, Blake Geffrion, who grew up skating here in Nashville. Not many players are Americans, so the fact that he came from here is quite astonishing!”

Part of the Ice Girls game activity is going out to make sure the ice is clear during Pred games. Has Molly found anything, hmm, interesting on the ice, perhaps inspired by Detroit fans who like to throw eight legged creatures onto the ice? “We Ice Girls have had some pretty unique things happen to us,” remarks Molly. “Most recently, during this year’s 2011 playoffs versus Vancouver, I had to skate out and scoop up a Catfish that someone had thrown on the ice. Funny how I found the picture, tweeted by ESPN! The Detroit Red Wings fans throw octopus, and so somehow we, being that we are from the South, thought it was a good idea to throw catfish. So it became a thing to do. Usually if there’s a hat trick (three goals by one player in a game), fans will throw the hats off their heads to them in congrats. It’s very rare but kind of neat; snowing hats!”

So with a successful skating career and years with the NHL Predators, how did Molly end up taking off the skates and trying out for the Titans? “I grew up cheering Pop Warner football in New Hampshire, and I had always wanted to try out ever since Cheerleading in high school. It’s the BIG LEAGUES of cheerleading,” smiles Molly. “And also as a season (Titans) ticket holder, I’ve been to so many games over the years, that I was wishing I could be on the field. I wanted to wait until I wasn’t touring with skating shows in order to commit to football season.”

Compared to other auditions Molly has been participated in your life, on the ice or otherwise, how intense and competitive was trying out for Titans? “Auditions were intense and pretty competitive,” responds Molly. “There are qualifying rounds to making the team which is very different than skating, where we audition while a show is in town or send an audition video to the shows casting director. A lot of it is word of mouth because the skating world is so small. And during tryouts, everyone fends for themselves and it can be a little overwhelming if you’re not used to that. I did know a few of the girls prior to tryouts. Past and present Titans Cheerleaders and/or Preds girls. Nashville is a small town and think it’s wonderful that we have two professional teams that girls here can experience performing in two completely different worlds of sports.”

Titans Cheerleader Director Stacie Kinder loves having Molly on the squad, saying, “With all that Molly has already accomplished, I still find it hard to believe that she is now a Titans Cheerleader! We are so privileged to have an athlete of Molly’s caliber on our team. Knowing how hard she’s worked to achieve at the highest athletic level, I think makes ALL of us want to work a little harder, just by being around her.”

Molly’s first experiences as a Titans provided incredible moments, even for someone who had experienced so much since childhood in the figure skating spotlight. “Putting on my Titans uniform for the first time was somewhere between a rare privilege and a high honor,” Molly shares. “I was very anxious before the first game, and soon as I stepped out on to the field, I was in awe. I really wasn’t nervous at all like I’m sure most of the rookies were. As I soaked it all in, I knew that this was as BIG as it gets! What a crowd! What an unbelievable feeling as a performer and also as a big fan! The view and sounds of thoroughbreds, as I like to call the players, up close are nothing like sitting in our Club Level seats! It’s fun thinking, ‘I have the best seat in the house,’ as I wave to our section at my hubby,” smiles Molly.

So as someone used to icy rinks, does Molly prefer, dancing on the Titans sidelines during the heat of summer or the cold of winter? Molly says, “I love summer, but I also love football in the crisp cool air, as long as I’m dressed for it!”

In this new phase of Molly’s dance career, what is she working on most: weight training, cardio, dance technique? “I’ve been very blessed and fortunate in so many ways with ability and physique,” answers Molly. “As of right now, my weakness is my flexibility. I struggle with it because I’m not training rigorously like I had done as a competitor. I believe after years of a ‘daily grind,’ weight training, plyometrics, and off-ice conditioning, my body is stuck in an athletic build, which I am very thankful for.”

So with such a life of experiences and travel, what are Molly’s future goals and are there places in the world that she has never been that she would love to visit? “I hope to continue performing, as I am a performer at heart,” shares Molly. “I would love to travel and see more of the world, of course. I’d like to see all seven continents before I die! I am really loving the place I’m in right now with all that I’m blessed doing. I hope for continued success and achievements with my students as I currently choreograph for the 2011 Collegiate Champion and 2010 Senior Ladies Regional Champion, a title I held back in 2001, as well as a few other National and Junior National competitors. Also, as a wife and woman in my thirties, I am also thinking about children. Hopefully in a few years, my wonderful supportive husband Joel and I will start a family.”

Molly spends time choreographing and coaching her young students, and also teaching hockey. As someone who has never skated, roller or ice, in my life, is it too late to learn and what joy would come from learning to skate? “It’s never too late,” Molly answers. “My oldest student is 79! She has skated throughout the years and she is fabulous! You never know what you can do until you try! You may be glued to the wall at first, but give it a go and you never know! When skating, you get this sense of flying! It’s incredible and addictive.”

So besides skating all over the world, being broadcast on Dancing on Ice, and now being part of the Titans Cheerleaders, we did not even cover things like Molly being a contestant on CMT’s The Ultimate Coyote Ugly Search, singing, et cetera. For someone who is a wee lass, and a Wii character, there is nothing “little” about Molly’s life. As she looks back at it all, what does Molly think about all she has done and accomplished? “Well, when you put it like that, I’m still in awe, I’m very grateful and proud. I know I’ve made my family proud as well. I have an attitude of gratitude and I feel as though I could die happy. I can’t wait to share my accomplishments with my kids and I can only hope that they are proud of what their mom did!”

Inspiring her skaters and her Titans Cheerleaders teammates, Molly is a walking, and skating, inspirational and positive motto. As she spins through life, jumping from adventure to adventure, Molly is at the top of the podium of achievements, and we are glad that now Titans supporters can be the latest fans to see her perform. Thank you Molly for sharing some of your life’s jumps, spins, and triple toe walley’s with UltimateCheerleaders!

We are so thankful to Titans Cheerleaders Director Stacie Kinder, and Titans media staff Robbie Bohren and Alex Garmezy for all of their superb assistance. Here are some more photos, including photos of Molly at the October 23rd game. Left click to see the entire photo, then left click on that to see full size.