View Full Version : Skate America 2005
Just a few words about Thursday:
Compulsory Dance: Ravensburger Waltz is impressively difficult. Belbin & Agosto in 1st. Julia Golovina (& Oleg Voiko) has the weirdest swing rolls I have ever seen. Should swing in one smooth movement from hip. Hers go from hip with knee bent, then knee extends at end of forward movement...blech!
Men's Short: Lysacek skated with some feeling, but botched something or other, don't remember what. Goebel fell on two jumps. Van Der Perren was fun and skated well. Daisuke Takahashi won the hearts of the audience, and is in 1st after the short. Someone near me commented that he is like a male Michelle Kwan, but I think he is more like Kwan, Cohen, and Weir rolled into one, while maintaing a totally masculine persona. His circular footwork was the only one that lit a fire, same for straight line footwork. Everyone else seemed to be doing easy elements at a crawl. I hope he comes through in the long.
Pairs Short: Zhang & Zhang in first, no surprise. Strong, fast, amazing height on throws. Got out of sync on spins. Surprise of the night was Hinzmann & Parchem, who so very clearly belong together. Their performance was moving and they got a standing ovation. They are in second at this point.
Sorry I don't have more details. We arrived late due to a terrible accident on the Garden State Parkway that delayed us an hour, and most surely killed some unfortunate motorist. I'd rather be late.
sceptique
10-21-2005, 02:48 AM
Can't find Jenna McCorkell in the skating order list - did she withdraw?
Schmeck
10-21-2005, 05:01 AM
Thanks for taking the time to give us a review, dbny, and thank goodness you arrived safely.
MusicSkateFan
10-21-2005, 08:31 AM
:) I heard Van der Perren landed 4t,3t combo....wow cant wait to see that...probably wont be shown on TV.
skaternum
10-21-2005, 09:28 AM
:) I heard Van der Perren landed 4t,3t combo....wow cant wait to see that...probably wont be shown on TV.His choreographer told me that he's just beside himself! He's so happy -- first time in ISU competition. And since he's in second, they'll probably show him on TV, unless he blows it in the long and finishes low. <I hope I didn't jinx anything.)
MusicSkateFan
10-21-2005, 10:33 AM
In the ladies I have to root for the skater that I think I am becoming....Yoshie Onda......alll jumps and no moves!
Go Yoshie!
oh yeah...and Bebe too!
jazzpants
10-21-2005, 11:26 AM
[QUOTE=MusicSkateFan]In the ladies I have to root for the skater that I think I am becoming....Yoshie Onda......alll jumps and no moves![QUOTE]Yeah, right! And this is coming from someone who pass Bronze Moves with pretty decent scores at a very tough skating club too!!! :roll: :frus: :P
Go Bebe!!! Show the Oakland crowd you can kick so' ice-butts!!! (Wait! She's moved back to S. Cali...) :P
His choreographer told me that he's just beside himself! He's so happy -- first time in ISU competition. And since he's in second, they'll probably show him on TV, unless he blows it in the long and finishes low. <I hope I didn't jinx anything.)
It was spectacular. Everyone went wild. The long is going to be the challenge for everyone, of course. I'm rooting for Takahashi, but would also love to see Van Der Perren win. Oh, who am I kidding - I would love for almost anyone to skate a clean & awesome program!
Can't find Jenna McCorkell in the skating order list - did she withdraw?
She's listed, but I don't have today's handout with the skating order, so I can't be sure at this point. We were going to go over and watch the ladies practice, but woke up late. I haven't really figured out how to manage eating and sleeping and seeing everything!
Today's report is very, very brief.
Ladies Short: Jenna McCorkell did not skate. Emily Hughes is a wonderful skater, graceful, and used lots of interesting connecting steps. Katarina Witt was comentating for ABC and sitting in the front row in front of me. When Emily Hughes went from a Charlotte into a camel with an incredible swoop, Katarina turned around to us and went "oooo" with raised eyebrows! Even she was impressed. Look for that in the short.
Dance: Belbin & Agosto are still in 1st after the free dance. No one really impressed me, but then no one has since Torvill and Dean.
We are staying at the Sheraton with the skaters. Tonight at dinner afterwards, we saw Audrey Weisiger and Evan Lysacek. Leaving the restaurant, I didn't see two steps down in front of the cashier (it was dark and I had a glass of wine). Don't know how I did it, but my friend said I very gracefully put my arms out and landed on my toe. She thought I did it on purpose. I would have been soooo humiliated to trip and fall there! We also happened to be in the elevator going up with Kevin Van Der Perrin, who is a doll. Even cuter off ice, and very, very polite and gracious to complete strangers. We actually followed him off the elevator :oops: .... because we are on the same floor.
Pairs Long: No spoilers here, but I must say that there were three standing ovations, and one of them did not make the podium. The level of skating was simply exceptional. I was very, very happy. Don't miss the broadcast.
loveskating
10-25-2005, 08:21 AM
In ice dance, I was there, and I totally agreed with the top three placements at Skate America (I LOVE Tanith and Ben, they are such remarkable skaters and performers, just gorgeous, both of them, incredible flow, everything is so great by them) but I did not understand why Wing and Lowe were above Silverstein and O’Meara and I don’t much like the Beiers....they have good elements, but they are so “dead ahead” I find them a bit boring.
Jamie informs everything she does with her own special personality and interpretation, and I love that. So does Tiffany Stiegler, but they are still a bit slow. I thought Wing and Lowe were very slow, there was lots of hesitation points, and overall the program seemed very dated. I know they have lots of fans due to longevity, but I honestly just find their skating old fashioned and not finished off.
I loved Siobhan Karam and Joshua McGrath from Canada...they were so musical and really fun to watch. They are my favorite up and comers, along with Tiffany and Sergei.
legallyblond271
10-25-2005, 07:21 PM
I also attended Skate America, and it was fabulous. Some of the best skating I've seen in an amateur event. I should qualify that, however. Skate America was my first *live* amateur competition (I've previously only attended Champions on Ice and Stars on Ice.) It was an unforgettable week. As a huge NBA fan, a sport in which the players aren't all that great with their fans, I can't get over how laid back the atmosphere in Atlantic City was and how gracious and kind all of the skaters were with their fans. I now have a picture of myself with Tanith Belbin on my desktop at work - people keep walking by and asking who that beautiful person is. They are quite surprised when I tell them how famous she is and also how completely nice. (I did, however, come back from New Jersey with a raging cold - I wonder if I got it from her! [(Probably not, but it's a funny thought anyway:)]) It was so fun seeing Katerina Witt at Starbucks and Julia Obertas and Sergey Slavnov picking out purses at the Guess outlet and literally running into Tim Goebel both at the Sheraton and the venue.
I also met dbny from this board, and she is truly one of the nicest people I've ever met. (Hi dbny, this is Kristin - the lawyer from California! It was so nice to meet you!) Skating fans really are the best.
Anyway, if you haven't caught any of the competition on TV, it's really worth watching. It's not anywhere as good on TV as it was live, but the competition was fierce with a lot of skaters scoring personal bests. I am now officially hooked, and will probably be traveling to Hartford for next year's event.
I also met dbny from this board, and she is truly one of the nicest people I've ever met. (Hi dbny, this is Kristin - the lawyer from California! It was so nice to meet you!) Skating fans really are the best. ...
I am now officially hooked, and will probably be traveling to Hartford for next year's event.
Aw, you made me :oops:, :lol:. I have to send that compliment right back at you, and your mom too! Welcome to the best fan forum online! It's great to see you here. I'm going to try to go to Hartford also, but can't buy my tix quite yet.
dewey
10-28-2005, 03:45 PM
Skate America was my first *live* amateur competition (I've previously only attended Champions on Ice and Stars on Ice.) It was an unforgettable week.
Competitive skating events are so much more fun for spectators than shows. I have learned more about skating and skaters from several years of being in the arena for practices at Nationals, Worlds, and Skate America than from all my years of watching skating on TV. It just feels different when you're there, doesn't it?
legallyblond271
10-28-2005, 06:35 PM
It just feels different when you're there, doesn't it?
Absolutely! I couldn't believe the difference, especially sitting 2 rows up in practice - it's as if you're skating with them!
I was so moved by the performances in Skate America. A friend of mine said to me today, "skaters are the most unbelievable combination of artist and athlete." That was so clear to me watching them both in practice and competition. I can't wait to go to my next event!
loveskating
10-31-2005, 08:38 AM
I much prefer live skating...but it is demanding. We were on a bus a total of 5+ hours to go from NYC to Atlantic City and back to see only Saturday of Skate America. We got home about 2:00 a.m. It was well worth it, I'd do it again and again, but I'm really glad I had Sunday to recuperate for work the next day.
Seeing a full ompetition requires you to take a vacation...thus the large number of retirees and others with, well, very flexible lives, who attend them.
Bondo, girls like to talk...so when the Zamboni is on the ice, etc. we girls are happy as clams taling about the previous skating, etc.
P.S. I wish the USFSA had advertized for Skate America -- I feel sure the venue would hvae been packed on Saturday and Sunday...because so many people go to Atlantic City anyway, they would not have been afraid to venture out for this. I saw almost no adverts at all!
With competitions you have such long days with big gaps for zamboni and warm-ups...it really gets tiring.
What loveskating said, and the ice cut is bathroom time!
jazzpants
10-31-2005, 01:42 PM
Well, I agree being there is better than watching on TV (well, in many cases) but I found the CoI and Hallmark shows I went to probably as much fun as the GPF and certainly compared to Southweterns. With competitions you have such long days with big gaps for zamboni and warm-ups...it really gets tiring. I'd always choose to be at a show than watch one on TV, but for competitions, if I could have coverage of all skaters, I'd almost prefer to watch it on TV just to avoid the tedium (at home I can find things to do in the breaks).If you have the money and broadband network connection, you sound like a good candidate for the Figure Skating Channel thingie.
I just videotaped a bunch of GP stuff and I still haven't had a chance to watch it yet. Maybe I'm just bored now with Sasha and MK out with injuries and all... (Actually, it's more b/c I'm too busy with my OWN upcoming competition. :twisted: )
mikawendy
10-31-2005, 06:36 PM
If you have the money and broadband network connection, you sound like a good candidate for the Figure Skating Channel thingie.
I just videotaped a bunch of GP stuff and I still haven't had a chance to watch it yet. Maybe I'm just bored now with Sasha and MK out with injuries and all... (Actually, it's more b/c I'm too busy with my OWN upcoming competition. :twisted: )
Me, too, Jazzpants! I taped some of Skate America, and I'm slowly making my way through it, but I've still got a bit to go! And this past Sunday, if any skating was on TV, I didn't even get a chance to set my VCR to tape it! I tumbled out of bed and got ready to drive down with flo to get my skate sharpened before I even realized that I might have been missing skating on TV! I debated about getting the Figure Skating Channel, then I realized I'd never have the time to watch it!
legallyblond271
10-31-2005, 10:43 PM
Another thing nice about going to the event is actually getting to see things. I've been very disappointed with the coverage of Skate America (I was especially disappointed that they did not include Putnam & Wirtz's long program yesterday), but I'm realizing that that's probably how it's always done. I'm so glad I went to the event this year, because, otherwise, I would have missed out on some incredible skating.
P.S. Dbny, I just saw you on ESPN, sitting behind Katerina Witt!
P.S. Dbny, I just saw you on ESPN, sitting behind Katerina Witt!
Yes, I'm famous now! :lol: :lol: :lol:
legallyblond271
11-01-2005, 01:20 AM
Yes, I'm famous now! :lol: :lol: :lol:
They showed you and Ellie A LOT! All you could see of me was my lap! :lol:
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