It was a golden moment for Arctic Edge Skating Club member Rachel Pettitt at this year's B.C. Coast Regional Championships this past weekend in Surrey.

The nine-year old figure skater placed first overall in the introductory interpretive and came within an eyelash of winning the bronze medal in the pre-juvenile ladies freeskate event.

Pettitt ended up in fifth place in the freeskate and was less than .02 from coming in third.

"It felt pretty good to me," Pettitt said about winning the gold medal.

Besides the Arctic Edge Skating Club, the B.C. Coast Regional Championships featured competitive figures skaters from the Greater Vancouver area.

Pettitt wasn't the only Yukoner at the figure skating event, which also included 16-year-old Amelia Austin.

Austin had an impressive showing at the event, placing ninth in the short program and 11th in the freeskate for an overall 11th place finish in the novice ladies category.

Austin scored 22.57 in the two and a half minute short program and 39.60 in the three-minute freeskate for a total of 66.17. Her group included 18 skaters.

This has been a successful season so far for Austin, who is training this year at the Vancouver Skating Club with former Polish skating champion Adam Zalegowski.

Earlier in October, she placed first in her novice women's group at the 2008 Saskatchewan Open.

Austin finished second in the short program with a score of 27.16 and first in the freeskate with 43 points to place first out of 16.

The Arctic Edge Skating Club is sending six athletes to the B.C./Yukon BMO Skate Canada Sectional Championships, which are being held in Nanaimo, B.C. from Nov. 12 to 16.

Besides Pettitt and Austin, the club is sending Kevin and Teneil Caron, Michelle Gorczyca and Bryn Hoffman, who are all in the process of training for the competition.