Off to St. Louis!

[MusicSkateFan]

Just wanted to rub it in that I am off for the whole week at Nationals starting early Monday morning. Probably will get there in time for Jr. Mens Short. Cant wait to sit in my Row A seats! For those who know me, watch for me on TV this week especially on Lutzes and Strait-line footwork. My seats are right on one end of the ice!

Dont worry,I put in some extra practice time this past week to make up for all the skating time I will miss! I actually did an outdoor session on Sat night!
God the ice and crowds were awefull!

I will try to post some practice news while I am there. Probably do it in another section but let me know if you want me to post here!

Tah 8-)

[NoVa Sk8r]

MSF,
You lucky dog, you.
Please, some practice reports on the locals here, Craig R. (junior) and Tommy S. (senior)!!

[Debbie S]

See you Tuesday, MSF!

Nobody need look for me on TV. I'm in the 20th row (7th for the exhibition but they never scan the crowds during that) so the only way you'll see me is if that dreadful sky-cam thing goes haywire. (And I hope TPTB have come to their senses and gotten rid of it - the TV shots from that thing last year were a bit nausea-inducing.)

[Kevin Callahan]

Tim, my coach, is on his way there right now. Sadly, I cannot go, although all I'd be able to is watch :P

[mdvask8r]

All right MSF, turning green here. :mrgreen:

If you make it to any of the Junior Ladies stuff, how about some reports on Ashley.

[Terri C]

Enjoy,and we look forward to hearing all about your Nationals adventure!!

[dcden]

Please take as many creepy pictures as you can of you with various nationals competitors, and then post them on your website... oops, I'm confusing you with someone else!

Plus, I PM'd you with a tidbit that is quasi-Nationals related (re a certain senior competitor).

[garyc254]

If you're looking for ice time to skate in St. Louis, there's an adult only public session at the Kirkwood ice rink on Monday night from 8:00 to 9:30. From 7:00 to 7:45 is a freestyle session.

KIRKWOOD ICE RINK (http://www.kirkwoodmo.org/parks/rink/main.htm#Public%20Session)

8-)

[Skate@Delaware]

Yeah, you suck!! We'd better get Reports and Pictures!!!!

Enjoy yourself you!:)

Debbie-yeah, the skycam almost made me throw up---I don't know why they thought it would be good for any skaters beside ice dancers (they don't even televise the compulsory dances that it would be good for!)

[dcden]

Another suggestion... whenever a skater starts skating close to you during their performance, start overacting (wave your arms, put your hand to your mouth if they fall, give your friend high fives, etc.). It's always fun to watch The Price is Right and see the people behind the contestants screaming out prices, so I don't see why Nationals has to be any different.

I am anxiously awaiting your reports from the competition!

[jazzpants]

MSF: So hate yer face right now since I know I'll be stuck in my office working my @$$ off while you're at Nationals!!! So jealous!!! :twisted:

We better get reports... or I'll have Patsy from "Patsy's Parlor" send out Guido and Luigi after 'ya!!! :twisted:

Enjoy yourself, yer lucky bum!!! :mrgreen:

[garyc254]

Here's a link to the St. Louis Post Dispatch:

Post-Dispatch (http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/othersports/story/17A5ACBDCD097396862570F1001F3524?OpenDocument)

Check out some of the "related" articles in the column on the right.

8-)

[icedancer2]

Here's a link to the St. Louis Post Dispatch:

Post-Dispatch (http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/othersports/story/17A5ACBDCD097396862570F1001F3524?OpenDocument)

Check out some of the "related" articles in the column on the right.

8-)

Wow, your paper has done some amazing coverage!! I couldn't really start to get through it!!

[Debbie S]

Greetings from St. Louis! I got to the hotel about an hour ago (would have been here earlier if it hadn't been for a late flight - and then when we got here, the plane had to wait for a gate to be available, despite the fact that there seemed to be numerous open American gates that we could see from the window - grrrr). Anyway, not the greatest weather today - rain - so my mom and I decided to forgo visiting the Arch today and hope for sunnier skies tomorrow.

Skater/coach sightings: We were on the same plane as Shaun Rogers and chatted a bit w/ him and his mom at the airport while we waited for the plane. He seems so nice and down to earth. I hope he has another good year at Nats this year. In the hotel lobby, as we were checking in we saw Frank Carroll. Actually, my mom exclaimed that as I was talking to the desk person, and I turned around to see people wishing him good luck. We smiled at him as he walked past and he said hello to us - lol. I guess when you're a famous coach, you get used to the celebrity-like attention.

My mom and I picked up our bus passes w/o incident or long lines and checked out the event merchandise shop at the hotel. I asked the woman if they had skating towels and she told me that I was the second person who asked but they hadn't ordered them b/c it was their first time doing the souvenir stuff and no one told them what to order. Bummer. My souvenir skate towels from 2002 Nats and 2003 Worlds are getting a bit worn.

Anyway, it's off to the Senior OD tonight and then practices and comps tomorrow. Hopefully, it will stop raining and we can fit in some sightseeing.

[garyc254]

Hopefully, it will stop raining and we can fit in some sightseeing.

It did stop raining sometime overnight and the sun is out, so Debbie should get in some sightseeing. That is once she gets up. Original Dance didn't get over until after 11:00 last night and by the time I got home it was well past midnight. Made that 6 am alarm mighty alarming. :lol:

The competition was excellent and since there were only about 4500 people in the stands, I moved to seats eight rows off the end of the ice next to the Kiss n' Cry.

8-)

[Debbie S]

Hi Gary! Yes, that was a long night last night, and I was a bit annoyed by the delays in announcing the scores - whatever happened to 1 minute? Anyway, I left w/ Jennifer Lopez's "Let's Get Loud" running through my head - eeek! 8O

Today, it was Senior Ladies practices in the morning at Savvis (I think I saw MSF in his front row seat :)), then the Junior Ladies SP at Family Arena. Family has pretty much no food available, so I had a pretzel for lunch - I'm very much looking forward to 5 p.m. dinner tonight w/Sk8pics. :) Between the senior and junior ladies that I saw today, I think I've seen enough Biellmann spins, catch-foot laybacks, and Biellmann spirals to last me a long time....and the Senior Ladies comps haven't even started yet! I would definitely vote for a revision of CoP/NJS in that area. Please...let's reward variety!

Junior Ladies were fun to watch. Rachael Flatt (currently 1st) will be tough to beat in the FS. Ashley Wagner (2nd) is an up and coming talent (does she train in D.C now?) and Melissa Bulanhagui (3rd) had probably the best "performance" in terms of choreo, but unfortunately fell on a 3 flip (I think that's what it was).

The buses were running pretty smoothly today. Our transit time between the hotel and Family was about 1/2 hour each way. We didn't have to wait too long for buses to Savvis or Family from the hotel, and there were plenty of buses waiting at Family at the conclusion of the event.

As for skater sightings, many skaters and coaches are hopping on the spectator line, depending on which bus comes first. I saw a well-dressed Robin Wagner chatting with Mark Mitchell, Emily Hughes (wearing a short-sleeved t-shirt and low-rise jeans - did she forget it's January?) and her coach making friends with a 2-year-old girl on the way back from practice - awww, and Jane Bugaeva and mom (I think?) sat across from us on the way back from Family. Parker Pennington and Shaun Rogers were hopping off the bus at the hotel as we were getting on.

Tonight, it's the Pairs SP and then tomorrow morning (it's supposed to be 59 tomorrow!) I think my mom and I will make our visit to the Arch. Then the men's and ladies' SPs. Better prepare myself for Biellmann overload - lol.

Hey Gary, are you going to be there tonight (or any other time this week)? I'm in section 102, row V, seats 1-2 (walk in the 101/102 entry and then turn to the left and go up the stairs, and I'm right there). Come say hi!

[garyc254]

Hey Gary, are you going to be there tonight (or any other time this week)? I'm in section 102, row V, seats 1-2 (walk in the 101/102 entry and then turn to the left and go up the stairs, and I'm right there). Come say hi!

I will be there for the men's SP, so will stop by and see you.

As for skater sightings, I saw a few of the old school favorites. Kurt Browning popped his head around the corner of the Kiss & Cry. Katarina Witt was about 10 feet from me on the announcers platform.

Another late night at the Savvis, but not as late as the precious night. I'll sleep when it's all over.

8-)

[icedancer2]

I'll sleep when it's all over.

8-)

And then you'll sleep some more -- going to competitions really wipes you out!!

In fact, I'm wiped out just thinking about it!!!

Have a great time.

Pace yourself.

Eat the best food you can find at the moment. :lol:

[Debbie S]

What an exhausting day! But it was a good one. My mom and I started out visiting the Arch - we went to the top (gee, those windows were small!) and then visited the museum. The weather was great - it was supposed to be in the 60s but I'm not sure it got there - hey, I was in a rink most of the day - but it was still nice and I didn't even need a winter coat (I wore my fleece jacket that I usually wear when I skate over a ribbed turtleneck). Unfortunately, it's supposed to get more January-like tomorrow. :(

It was great to meet Gary this afternoon. As for the skating, I'm sure everyone's seen the SPs on TV so I don't have much more to add. I was glad to see Sasha, Emily, Bebe, Johnny, and Michael step it up and deliver under pressure. While Kimmie and Evan didn't have their best performances, they're still in a good position and I hope they can each put out a great skate on Saturday.

As I wrote yesterday, catch-foot and Biellmann positions were numerous. The problem is that some skaters are doing them that have no business doing so - some of the positions were so labored, I was worried the skater was going to tear something in their knee.

Notable moments:
Kurt Browning standing in the broadcast booth showing a production asst the arm movements from a program he skated as a pro, as Stephanie Rosenthal skated to that music ("Rockit" by Herbie Hancock). Actually, I didn't think the music was well-suited to an (Oly-eligible) SP, but I give her credit for doing something inventive and unusual.

Bebe Liang's coach (the Ken half of "FrankandKen") wiping tears from his eyes after she hit all of her jumps.

Kristi Yamaguchi shown on the jumbotron, holding her new baby in her arms. She sat in the section directly across from us, and a little later, we could see her mother and sister (I think?) join her with Kristi's 2-year-old daughter, Keara. Keara clapping (or trying to) for the skaters was an adorable sight.

Brian Boitano was also there, in the same section as Kristi - I think they showed him on TV.

My mom and I were in the same elevator at the hotel this morning as Peter Oppegard (also known as Mr. Karen Kwan - lol). He saw me carrying my program and asked me where one could get one (uh, the arena? and also in the event merchandise shop on the lower level of the hotel, which I also mentioned). I also wished him good luck - he's coaching about a half-dozen pairs teams and other entries.

[garyc254]

It was great to meet Gary this afternoon.

Great to meet Debbie S and her mom, too. Always fun to put a face to a name.

:D

[mikawendy]

I just LOVED Stephanie Rosenthal's hip hop short program. She really SOLD it and looked like she was having a great time. And what a treat to see Jane Bugaeva and Rohene Ward on national TV!!!!! And I love Matt Savoie's short program to Barber's Adagio for Strings. It's really nice that they showed more skaters than usual on TV, at least for the men's and ladies' short programs (though since some stuff was live, they must have decided ahead of time--based on practices? based on warm up?--who they were going to chack!).

[Debbie S]

Well, January returned to St. Louis today. It was snowing a bit this morning, and then a little this afternoon when I got back to Savvis from the Family Arena. I decided to skip the Junior Ladies SP in favor of the Senior Men and Ladies practices at Family. Unfortunately, I missed a bus to Family by about 2 minutes, so I had to get the next one a half hour later and only got to see the 3rd men's group - grrr. Saw Evan Lysacek, Derrick Delmore, Matt Savoie, Ryan Bradley. Evan looks good, Ryan his usual ham self - his LP is to "Saturday Night Fever", Matt skated well and so did Derrick - I wish he had done better in the SP.

Then came the ladies. Sasha came about 5 minutes late to her group and they had already started playing someone's music. She skated toward the center to practice something and noticed several skaters in the middle of various spins or choreo and stood still for a few seconds looking around trying to figure out whose music was playing (and therefore who had the right of way). She didn't do any jumps, but ran through parts of her program when her music came on - just the choreo and some spins and footwork. She looks frighteningly thin - I've seen her in person at '02 Nats and '03 Worlds, as well as COI shows for the past few years, and I think this is the thinnest I've seen her. As for the other ladies, Emily and Alissa struggled with their jumps a bit - doubles for Emily, falls for Alissa. Bebe looked good. Kimmie landed some 3-3s, including one in her run-through - she also only did parts, I believe. Most skaters take it easy the day before the long to conserve their energy.

Due to a 20-minute wait for a bus to leave Famly and 2 traffic jams on the highway, I missed the first 2 Senior Pairs groups - I'm told I didn't miss much. It was great to see Inoue/Baldwin skate so well. I'm not sure if this was shown on TV, but John went over to hug his parents before leaving the ice at the end of their program, and then Rena followed. Scott/Fein were awesome - I hope they got shown on TV. It was also a thrill to see Jamie Silverstein and her partner skate so well in the Dance event and get to the Olys, after everything she has gone through.

After the comps, there was the USFSA Hall of Fame induction ceremony - Tara Lipinski was the only inductee this year. Excuse the sarcasm, but while it was great that she actually showed up to a USFSA event, it would have been a nice idea if she had worn less trashy attire (a lacy, flowing shirt with a low neckline and a tie around the waist, a black pleated miniskirt, black tights, and knee-high boots with what looked to be at least 4-inch heels). Sorry Tara fans, it's just an opinion. OK, sarcasm off.

Speaking of thinness, I saw Kristi Yamaguchi at the hotel restaurant at breakfast this morning with her kids and her mother. You would never know she just had a baby 2 months ago - wow! One of the perks of being in athletic shape, I guess.

I'm skipping the warm-ups tomorrow in favor of sleep. Senior Men start at 1 here, Senior Ladies at 6.

[Debbie S]

Wow - what a competition! Saturday night, someone I know pointed out that it was really the end of an era, with many retirements expected. I was glad I had one more chance to see Ryan Jahnke skate, along with Tim Goebel (I felt bad for him) and Michael Weiss (I felt bad for him, too - yes, I know he's had his insufferable moments during his career, but he did skate well at this comp - I thought he would get the 3rd spot but I knew he'd get negative GOE's for the quad combo, 3 axel (that he did land) and some other jumps, so I guess I wasn't that surprised - but hey, at least he stood up on his quad). I was sorry to see Alissa Czisny struggle after having such a great season, and it was disappointing to see Orscher/Lucash not make the Oly team after winning Nats the year before.

Of course, Sasha, Kimmie, and Emily were amazing to watch, as were Johnny, Evan, and Matt. I was worried after Evan's SP that I'd jinxed him by predicting to a few people that he had the momentum to win Nats, given his fall season.

It was great to spend time w/Sk8pics and friends on Saturday night, and I also had the chance to chat with MSF (and check out the view from the front row). See you guys at NYI (hopefully, I won't have lost all of my jumps and spins after a week off the ice)!

Now, for the not-so-good: My mom and I were quite irritated that after spending $75 for the VIP-level exhibition seats, we had to leave over an hour early because we were worried about making it to the airport in time. I don't know whether it was the USFSA or ABC, but someone made the decision to televise the exhibition live (on the east coast anyway). The problem was that the start time was 2 p.m., and since the 4-6 p.m. east coast air time meant that it had to end at 5, what is normally (and has been so for the past oh, 10 years at Nats) a 2 hour 15 min (or so) event had to be dragged out to 3 hours. We didn't know this until we arrived at the arena and picked up a minute-by-minute schedule. For the first half hour, we were shown a montage of videos that had been shown on the jumbotron during ice cuts all week. :roll: Then, we saw 4 skaters and then there was an ice cut (obviously not necessary but done to fill up time). Then after about 10 minutes of nothing, Emily Hughes skated out on the ice a few minutes after 3 (now live on TV). After a few skaters, there was another video montage to (I assume) eat up time for commercials, then a few more skaters and then another ice cut at 3:45.

At that point, my mom insisted we leave b/c we were sitting in the middle of a row so it would be hard to get up between skaters (I proposed we stay until after Kimmie - about 4:30). We missed all of the champs, Kimmie, Michael Weiss, Scott/Fein, Gregory/Petukov, and a few others. Grrrr. :evil: :evil:

Later this week, I intend to send an e-mail to whoever handles comps at the USFSA to express my extreme displeasure. When the start time was announced, I assumed the exhibition would be the same length as the other Nats (and Worlds) exhibitions I've attended. Judging from the number of people leaving the arena when we did (and negotiating with the bus driver and LOC volunteer to take us back to the hotels then and not at the end of the ex), I assume others did too. From the reaction of the people sitting in the seats around me, I could tell I wasn't the only one who was not thrilled about arriving for a 2:00 show to find out it wouldn't start for a half hour.

And IMO, there really isn't a reason to televise an exhibition live - a comp yes, but not what is basically a show. When I watch exhibition performances on TV, I don't care if the skater is skating at that instant, 2 hours ago, or 2 weeks ago. Yeah, TV contracts are important, but there is no drawback for viewers to see the exhibition on tape delay - the USFSA's first responsibility needs to be to the people who paid money to attend the event in person.

There was more of the same in the men's FS event - since the USFSA and ABC realized the event wasn't going to use up the 4 hours they allotted, they didn't start the event until almost a half hour late, then had an ice cut after each group, and had the Scholastic Honors presentation during a break, before a cut. How about simply starting the event later? (They did that in Boston for the ladies FS after several withdrawals meant that there would be 3 groups and not 4.) I did enjoy the tribute to the Oly champions during the ladies final - I was in the process of moving down to get in better "picture position" so I missed Dick Button's near trip. Scott Hamilton's facial expression when he walked out was priceless! Later, he sat right behind the judges in my section and when people starting calling out his name, he turned around and waved. :)

I'm starting to wonder if there isn't that much of an advantage to attending the event live vs. staying home. Yep, it's true that you get to see more skaters and get to go to practices, but considering the expense, the inconveniences (sitting in a tiny arena seat with very little room in front of you for hours on end - geez, what do tall people do at these things? - no food at the practice rink, mobs of people on Saturday night overwhelming the food stands), and all the time filler, I think I'm going to think long and hard about buying tix again. I have no interest in Spokane or St. Paul - if Nats comes back to the east coast in 2009, maybe I'll consider it, but it would have to be an interesting location that I could fly to easily and cheaply. And given that my seat was way, way up in what was technically called the lower bowl (and we were surrounded by people who ordered their tix in November or had single-event tix - annoying since we ordered a year ago), I'm thinking the best thing to do is pay for the highest-priced seats - but with the ever-increasing cost, it's hard to justify the expense.

Now, it's back to the rink to work on my program for NYI, and get back to working on those dratted Bronze moves!

[garyc254]

what do tall people do at these things?

We get up and walk around a lot. I had to get up during each warmup and walk around.


`

[MusicSkateFan]

Sorry for no postings, I decided at the last minute not to take the laptop! I did write down jump elements and some comments on all the events. The front row seats were great! It was amazing to see and hear the skaters breathing! Some of the lutz jumps were landed right in front of me! I am sure some of the skaters thought I was some sort of stalking freek for being at all the practices and performances and sitting in the same spot!!

IT WAS FREEZING COLD!! The Savvis center never really warmed up until Friday. I had a coat and gloves on for the Mens and ladies shorts I think! But it was great!

Probably my last nationals for a long time. If I do an event again I think I would like it to be worlds or even a GP event. I was fortunate to be there all week but dont think I will do it again!

I was dissappointed in the two venues being so far apart! I also did not like the fact that so few consessions were open in the arena. I mean, one gourmet coffee stand for that many people? It was a bit rediculous! I did see Robin Wagner and she recognized me from the Adult Clinic. I rode a bus back from practice with Weiss and his wife. I am not a fan of his but he looked very good in practices and was ready to compete! Tim did too, I thought he might do better. Matt Savoie was truly focused. He was so focused in practices and would be drenched in sweat after they were done! Both his programs are simply amazing. Scott Smith looked great too. He landed many clean 4sal 3toe combos in practice. He has developed so much more speed. I think he could be a future US Champion.

Well it is good to be back.
I am ready to hit the ice tonight!

[sk8pics]

I, too, had a great time at Nationals. Lots of good skating, lots of interesting story lines, and lots of socializing with friends I don't see very often. Especially fun Saturday night with DebbieS and others and a very hilarious waiter. Too much fun because I didn't get to bed until close to 3 am and I had a 6 am shuttle to the airport! 8O

And, I got to skate while I was there! My coach rented an SUV and four of us students of his (me and 3 part-time adult students) piled in with him and drove to a wonderful rink about 20 minutes away in Illinois and he taught each of us for 45 minutes. They treated us great at this rink, the ice was good, and we were sometimes the only ones on the ice! We were able to get away to do this twice during the week and it was just fabulous. My poor coach, though, teaching for 3 hours straight without a break! :bow: :bow:

[Blosmbubbs]

I had a pretty good time at nats too. It was freezing in the Savis maybe because I was so close to the ice. I had different seats for all the final events so it was better. That coffee line was ridiculous and the food sucked the price and quality. I still can't believe I paid so much for that crap. I wish there had been more to do in that town, it was so dead. On top of that no where to shop. Seeing all the skaters made up for that though. So sorry that Alissa isn't going to the olympics though she was my fav. The senior pair event was awesome. Of course the men are always pleasing to see.