At 8 years old, Elspeth Cunningham spends up to eight hours each week on the ice.

The North Allegheny School District pupil is part of a synchronized ice-skating team, a relatively new type of skating in the area that could be described as the Rockettes on ice with plenty of athleticism and art.

For the past two years, Elspeth, of Marshall, has skated with the Steel City Blades, a group affiliated with Robert Morris University that was started in 2004 to further competitive synchronized ice-skating.

The team practices at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center on Neville Island and travels for competitions. Its 35 members range in age from 8 to adult and live all over the Pittsburgh region.

The group is looking for more skaters to try out for the team. It is holding workshops at which coaches and team members offer introductory instruction and demonstrations. At a workshop last weekend in Mt. Lebanon, skaters were taught basic synchronized moves and were able to perform a short routine by the end of the evening.

Another workshop will be held at 2:30 p.m. today at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center and at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Iceoplex at Southpointe in Cecil.

The Steel City Blades have three levels of competitive teams: teenage skaters who skate at an intermediate level; a junior team for 8- to 13-year-olds who skate at a preliminary level; and the Free Spirits, an adult team.

A team called the Little Blades, sponsored by the Island Sports Center, is for 6- to 12-year-olds. It works in cooperation with the Steel City Blades but is separate from them.

The Steel City Blades teams consist of eight to 20 figure skaters and are formed based on age and ability.

Programs are set to music and include footwork, spins, lifts and a variety of precision maneuvers. Teams select music from a variety of genres, including Broadway musicals, Western music and classical pieces.

Synchronized skating teams are judged on technical skills, artistic interpretation and costumes.

Beth Sutton, of Squirrel Hill, skating director at Robert Morris and a Steel City Blades board member, said she hoped that skaters and sports fans will start looking at skating in a new way.

"Through synchronized, skaters can capitalize on what they're doing as an individual and be a part of a team,'' Ms. Sutton said. Synchronized skating is becoming an increasingly popular sport at the college level, she said.

The Steel City Blades teams participate in about a half-dozen competitions each year in different states, said Elspeth's mother, Teresa Cunningham. Last year Elspeth's team traveled to Michigan, Ohio and New Jersey. The season lasts from September to March.

Ms. Cunningham acknowledged that many people are unfamiliar with synchronized skating as a sport.

"Even my own husband, Lee, was skeptical at first,'' she said.

For those who have never seen the activity, she compared it to "synchronized swimming -- extrapolate from there."

The Blades practice on Sundays and occasionally Saturdays at the Robert Morris facility on Neville Island. In addition to group practices, team members are expected to continue to progress at an individual level, Ms. Cunningham said.

Most members spend a minimum of four hours each week on the rink, she said, and work with private coaches on freestyle and ice dancing skills. Elspeth, who is also a freestyle skater, spends about six hours each week with private coaches, in addition to two to three hours with the team.

"It's a big time commitment," said Ms. Cunningham, a homemaker with three children. But, she said, Elspeth loves the activity and the friends she has made from all over the area.

"This is the reason she gets up at five in the morning. It's not even a question in her mind whether or not she will continue,'' Ms. Cunningham said.

She said that after two years of skating with the Blades, Elspeth is as strong a skater as the boys on her 11-year-old brother's ice hockey team.

"It's definitely a sport that requires both strength and coordination,'' her mother said.

Mr. Cunningham, who works for Federated Investors, built an ice rink in the family's backyard last year to allow the children to practice their skills at home. The youngest child, Lily, 4, is just learning to skate.

Costs to join the Blades vary depending on the team. Ms. Cunningham estimated that she spent about $2,000 last year for Elspeth to participate on the junior competitive team. Costumes, which are purchased every two years, cost between $100 and $200, she said. Coaches, she said, range from about $20 to $36 for half an hour. Other expenses include ice time and travel.

In addition to the workshops, the Steel City Blades are holding pre-tryout and tryout sessions at the Neville Island center.

Pre-tryouts for youth skaters will be held May 3 and May 10. Youth tryouts are scheduled for May 17.

A pre-tryout for adult skaters will be held June 7, with adult tryouts scheduled for June 14.

For more information, call Beth Sutton at 412-397-4469.