Mark Lund's "From The Publisher" column in May/June 2003 IFS

[IgglesII]

As a general rule, I don't read the "from the publisher" or "from the editor" column you usually find in the front of just about every magazine.

Flipped open the new IFS today, and did happen to read Mr. Lund's column...and he's not happy.

Not happy with the WSF for declaring that the USFSA endorsed the WSF, when in reality they have not.

Not happy with the USFSA, which "gave control of this (world) championship over to a local organizing committee that seemed to alienate everyone in the world of figure skating." ouch!

He specifically sites disorganized transportation, poor hospitality and non-existent events outside the venue for fans.

And I suppose disgust with the ISU over the judging system goes without saying.

I'm glad he took the time to write this (it's on page 10, btw). I've always had the feeling that the other big skating magazine, "Blades," tends to cater to the ISU and the USFSA. A publisher of a magazine like this, putting what he feels in print...very interesting.

[Mazurka Girl]

What does he mean by non-existent events outside the venue for fans? Can you give examples?

[IgglesII]

The only examples he really has is comparing 2003 Washington to 1998 Minneapolis and 2001 Vancouver. So - anybody who went to DC and at least one of the other two, any idea what he's talking about?

[Mazurka Girl]

I have been disgusted myself with ISU, WSF, USFSA at one time or another this year, although I often think Mark Lund likes to whine about silly things too. Thanks for the heads up, I will read it when I go to the bookstore this week.

[memememe76]

Well, in Vancouver we had SkateFest, which was a free event for fans that took place outside of GM Place. Was there something like that in DC and Minneapolis?

[Aaron W]

Originally posted by IgglesII
The only examples he really has is comparing 2003 Washington to 1998 Minneapolis and 2001 Vancouver. So - anybody who went to DC and at least one of the other two, any idea what he's talking about?

In Vancouver, they had Skatefest. It was set up just a block or two away from GM Place. Fireworks were set off each night beginning with Wednesday of that week (IIRC) and they had an internet cafe (from Iskater.com), a sort of museum of World Figure Skating memorabilia, Q&A with select skaters, and a second medal ceremony in which they gave out the medals to the podium finishers once again. It was a decent event and the internet cafe was nice to have. Fireworks were nice as well.

In DC, they did have some sort of make-shift museum set up in the arena with I believe some skating memorabilia. I never went in to check it out though.

Truth be told, I had an awesome time in DC and don't feel as if it fell short of Vancouver. Maybe they didn't have as many extra skating things to offer, but I would have rather spent my free time exploring the city and it's monuments & memorials rather than seeing more skating stuff. The skating itself was enough to satisfy me and I definitely saw plenty of it. :)

As for the transportation, the official hotel (the Marriott Metro) was just a few blocks from the main arena and I believe directly across the road from the practice arena. Maybe for the well known skaters it might not have been easy to walk back and forth without getting stopped by skating fans, but for the majority of the skaters who aren't as well-known, I don't see what the problem was. It's a measly 4 block walk.

[Louis]

Hmm.... I'll have to see if I can find it in the bookstore, too. When this fan goes to competitions, he wants to see SKATING and can do without any bells and whistles that are going to further drive up ticket prices! :) However, are timely results sheets (and not ones that cost $1 -- though the USFSA stopped the LOC from doing that after the first day, I heard) too much to ask for? :?:

[blades]

8-)

since i no longer subscribe and have no desire to give 'em cent one (issues always came four weeks late and resub notices came more often than the magazine from day one...)...maybe i'll check it out at barns and noble...

[Meredith]

Just an evil guess from when I did subscribe to IFS, but perhaps Lund was not given as many photo ops as he would have liked. There's something about a publisher whose face appears in skaters' pictures that just turns me off. Can anyone imagine the panic that would have ensued had they set off fireworks at that time in D.C.? :lol:

Nevertheless, I'll check it out at Barnes and Noble when I buy Blades. Love Blades' photography.

[SKfan]

>He specifically sites disorganized transportation, poor hospitality and non-existent events outside the venue for fans.>

Also Piseev was complaining about the transportation.

[RobinA]

Count me as another fan who doesn't need activities outside of skating. Fireworks? When would I be watching them? I had enough trouble finding time to sleep with just the skating.

Timely and free results would have been nice, but that seems to be a frequent problem. I thought things went rather nicely for this fan. Can't really say I had any major complaints, unless you count the ridiculous food prices at the arena, but there's not much the USFSA or the LOC could have done about that.

[Mazurka Girl]

I know someone who actually was assigned to pass out the results sheets on the days they were for sale, & according to that person it didn't sound like to me like it was an LOC decision. $1 for results, ugh.

Fireworks in D.C. & not on the Mall. Just what's needed during our troubled times. Mark Lund must have too much free time on his hands. Fireworks sound like a nice idea under ordinary circumstances, also if it's in a city without a lot of other things to do. But when you can walk a couple blocks from MCI & get to numerous museums & attractions, I can't feel sorry for anyone who was bored while standing outside the MCI Centre. I had a great time & was busy with plenty to do every day I was down there!

[manleywoman]

Originally posted by Mazurka Girl
Fireworks in D.C. & not on the Mall. Just what's needed during our troubled times. Mark Lund must have too much free time on his hands. ... But when you can walk a couple blocks from MCI & get to numerous museums & attractions, I can't feel sorry for anyone who was bored while standing outside the MCI Centre.

Exactly Mazurka Girl!

There is so much within walking distance of the MCI Center and Convention Center, other events for the fans were certainly not necessary, and would have been money wasted. And yes the Convention Center and MCI are just blocks from each other, so skaters could have walked easily if they chose to do so. And a lot of them did. I saw them walking around the 'hood every day.

As for Piseev's comments: what hasn't he complained about? I can't take that guys comments seriously. He wasn't happy with anything. All sour grapes from him.

I was one of the many volunteers who worked really hard to make sure everything I was supposed to do ran smoothly. And frankly, all of us volunteers felt the same way. We worked our butts off for the fans and skaters, and it's upsetting to hear so many complaints (not necessarily in this thread but others). A lot of things were not in the LOC's control, and we did the best we could. I can't imagine the LOC alienated anybody, since it's my home club and we are pretty well known for running programs really well. Maybe Lund himself felt alienated, and therefore has decided that ALL of the skating community was alienated.'

If Lund has any other specific complaints besides the three cited at the beginning of the post, then he should talk about those. I'll concede the gripe about the transporation because I've heard other complaints, but as stated over and over, the skaters could have walked 4 blocks if they felt so inclined. But griping about non-existant events for fans is pointless, and poor hospitality I find difficult to beleive.

Overall I think it ran pretty well. For once I'd like to read a thread on any message board that thanks the LOC and volunteers for all their hard (and FREE) work. :??

[Debbie S]

I had a great time at Worlds. However, I do think that the LOC could have done a better job communicating with the arena staff about security and re-entry issues, and articulate that policy clearly to fans in advance. When I asked the security person in charge at the door on (first) Sat practices about whether re-entry would be allowed during events (specifically the qual rounds), he looked at me like I was speaking another language. The issue was worked out, and everyone who attended knows that re-entry was not a problem (although on Monday, we were told to just show our tix on the way back in and Wed we were told that we had to stop at the turnstiles before we left to have a hole punched in our tix - why they couldn't do it while we were standing there for the first time I have no idea), but it was one example of how it seemed that someone was asleep at the switch.

The deal about having to show tix every time you walked back to your seat from bathroom breaks was another, and from what I've gathered that "policy" was unevenly applied, and the general hyper-alertness among the arena staff about everything people did - like waving flags during the medal ceremony or standing in the aisle to BRIEFLY talk to friends during a resurfacing break - just made it seem like a hassle at times. And Louis is absolutely right about the results sheets and starting orders - I've been to 2 Nats and I've never seen "blackouts" like this.

I like the fact that the USFSA set up a computer at it's booth for people to check articles and pics. Hopefully, they'll realize that if they're serious about providing this service to fans, for it to actually be accessible to the masses, they need a few more computers, and making them available during practices would help, too. I wish all comps could have a setup like I heard SA had this year. One computer isn't going to do it. I have no problem journeying to the official hotel for a cybercafe and adhering to time limits.

As for outside activities, I thought there was plenty to do in D.C. Since I live near the area, I was grateful to be able to focus most of my time (save for a visit to the Spy Museum) on the skating. That's what I paid money for, anyway.

If it's true that the LOC alienated people and was perceived to not have done a good job by those in authority, then that's a definite bummer b/c I've heard that the USFSA is already anti-Baltimore after '89 Nats and if they're going to be anti-D.C as well, then I guess it'll be a long time before we get any comps in this area again. I guess I should be happy that South Atlantic Regionals are going to be in Laurel this year - it's probably the only comp I'm going to be seeing for a while.

[Meredith]

Originally posted by manleywoman
Exactly Mazurka Girl!
For once I'd like to read a thread on any message board that thanks the LOC and volunteers for all their hard (and FREE) work. :??

So would I, and I was not a volunteer. Kudos to everyone who spent their time and effort and money to donate their services for this event.

I would like to see a list of everything the volunteers did, just to note what it would have been like had thse individual not been there. You were appreciated.

[dr.frog]

Originally posted by IgglesII

Flipped open the new IFS today, and did happen to read Mr. Lund's column...and he's not happy.

Not happy with the WSF for declaring that the USFSA endorsed the WSF, when in reality they have not.


Whatever Mark Lund might say, the WSF never claimed that the USFSA endorsed the WSF as an organization, only in principles. Jon Jackson's exact quote from the March 25 press conference is included in this press release on the WSF web site, along with the exact quote from the minutes of the USFSA Executive Committee meeting held on the same date.

http://www.worldskating.org/news/usfsa-endorsement-31mar2003.shtml

[Mel On Ice]

Call me crazy, but Lund turned me off when he said "those who mattered in figure skating" were not aware of what was taking place regarding the controversy. Keep putting yourself in some elitist bubble buddy, figure skating has enough problems without you pissing off the "little people", who honestly, make these little events run.

[terisalyn]

I still don't get the transportation issue; I saw buses sitting outside the official hotel and MCI all the time. I also saw skaters walk past them in both places, choosing to walk the four blocks in the beautiful weather instead. Maybe Lund and Piseev were annoyed that the LOC didn't lay on limos for them! :twisted:

And as far as outside activities are concerned, it sounds like the LOC had the sense to realize that they would be poorly attended, with all that there is to do and see in Washington! Although I must agree, a cybercafe would have been nice, and there was plenty of room to set one up in the Convention Center. Maybe the costs were prohibitive.

[donnamarie]

Originally posted by Mel On Ice
Call me crazy, but Lund turned me off when he said "those who mattered in figure skating" were not aware of what was taking place regarding the controversy. Keep putting yourself in some elitist bubble buddy, figure skating has enough problems without you pissing off the "little people", who honestly, make these little events run.

I had the same reaction. It sounded arrogant.

[donnamarie]

I wasn't impressed by this column at all. It sounded petulant, and its conclusions were not very logical or well-thought-out. I didn't understand why Lund sounded so peeved with the WSF (and only later on in the article did he mention the USFSA connection). He almost sounded upset that the WSF didn't let "the people who matter in skating" in on their plans beforehand. And I disagree with his comments about the D.C. event - I also don't expect or need "outside events" to entertain myself, the skating is enough. Besides which, there is so much to do in D.C. simply by walking or hopping on a subway.

I agree with whoever said that the ushers at the arena were hyper-vigilant, but ever since 9-11, I think people in DC might be a bit extra vigilant, and with the war going on, maybe even more so. Usually I find that after the first day or two, the ushers relax more, but many of them did not relax at all during this event.

[IgglesII]

If skating fans cause the MCI arena staff to act in a hyper-vigilant manner, they must be one big ball of tension during Wizards games when Michael Jordan is pulling 18,000+ beer-drinking basketball fans into the building.

[olivia]

Lund? Lund who? lol Actually, I lost all respect for the man during that fiasco of an event in NYC to announce the most influential folks in figure skating. What a ripoff that was!! It was, in effect, an opportunity for Lund to promote whatever book he was slogging at the time.

Never was I happy with IFS' business sense (or lack of it). Although I sort of enjoy the magazine, I too was extremely turned off by the constant subscription notices and the late arrival of the magazine. Realizing that a magazine is a business first and foremost, it is rather insulting to constantly have that fact shoved in your face.

Worlds was one of the most incredible experiences in my life ... to date! IMHO, everything was convenient and everyone was friendly. I would suggest to Mr. Lund that you get what you put out there. If you're walking around expecting to be treated like some sort of a skating somebody/celebrity, maybe you'd have been disappointed with the "hospitality."

One of my friends used to say, "If you have to keep telling people who you are ... you aren't." Hint to Lund.

O-

[dmr65]

Mark Lund.. Ha! :roll: He turned me off after the 2002 pairs Olympic programs.. It just seemed he was on any news program with his :evil: face and one sided comments... LOL But the extra turn off was noticing IFS seems to be very selective about what skaters are mentioned or featured in that magazine :??

[GrapeSoda]

For once I'd like to read a thread on any message board that thanks the LOC and volunteers for all their hard (and FREE) work.

Hey Manleywoman -- as someone who attended her first Worlds (and first live skating competition!) in DC, thanks a lot for your hard work. I had an absolute blast, even if I'm not someone who matters in figure skating. :roll:

[Jenny]

Here's another yahoo invoking "the fans" when it's really about his own personal agenda. Sounds to me like he's whining because the red carpet wasn't rolled out for him and his little magazine.

In Vancouver, didn't IFS have a little shindig for the skaters at the skaters' hotel? Perhaps Mark & Co. were miffed that they didn't get to have their little schmooze fest this year.

Jenny