Practice Reports

[AdamFan]

Are any posted yet? I can't wait to hear how everyone is doing!

 

[Oldies]

Out of the ladies practices I thought that out of the first warmup Zhang really stood out. I didn't see any falls from her, and I saw at least 4 clean triple flip triple toes. Definitely the most consistent out of the group. She has a different jump layout then the report, and she did a 3flip and 3loop double toe in the short.
Alissa did her long, and I saw a good triple lutz double toe. She is a beautiful skater. In the second group I was surprised by Joannie, she did a couple 3flip-3toe(possible UR) and beautiful footwork. Caro looked strong, great speed and flow across the ice. Takeda was inconsistent, saw a lot of falls from her. Can't wait for the short tomorrow.
I only watched the 1st pairs practice, I thought Evora and Ladwig looked pretty good, great lifts from them. Really liked the first part of their music. McLaughin and Brubraker didn't really shine, but strong lifts and throws. Good sbs 3sal.

 

[Tonichelle]

thanks for the report, Oldies

 

[Andalusia]

Thanks for the update, Oldies!

Did all the ladies practice both their SPs and LPs? And when you mentioned that Caroline's jump layout was different from the report, are you referring to her short or long? Could you provide more details as to the jumps she did in the LP practice (if she had one)?

I'd also love to hear more about Alissa and whether she did any 3-3s or had any falls. She's such a beautiful skater and I want her to do well so badly. And what jumps did Carolina do, if any?

I'm hoping practice videos will be up soon.

 

[Oldies]

Caroline did a short program runthrough clean, with some really nice transitions, 2 axel, 3flip and 3loop 2 toe. I saw a really nice 3 salchow from her. Alissa did a long program(not the whole thing) with a really nice 3 lutz and a good 2axel 2toe 2toe. Not too consistent. Caro has a really nice program, fast, GORGEOUS footwork, but not too consistent on the jumps Joannie looks pretty strong, seems to have gained some muscle in the thighs, it's really helping her! Fumie looked tired, but had a pretty good runthrough of her long. More reports later!

 

[HCOSurfer]

Caroline probably couldn't get the combo out of the flip so she added the 2T onto the 3R, just like Mirai did in her Skate America SP with her 3F.

 

[fumie_fumie]

Men's & Dance Report

Patrick Chan - LP

- He landed a lot of lutzs with good height and flow.
- He left out 3As in the run-through of the program. Obviously, getting concerned, he had a long discussion with Don Law and then practiced just 3As a number of times.
- His artistry is second-to-none and the footwork was masterpiece.

Shawn Sawer - LP

- I enjoyed it tremendously.
- still having hard time with 3lutz and 3As.
- His 3f-3t combo and split jump into 3Loop was definitely worth watching.
- His choreo was great: he hit all the musical notes

Jeremy Ten - LP
- He had a very inconsistent 3As and very cautious getting into 3As.
- He had very good speed across the ice, good speed and very polished footwork.
- He needs a bit of work on circular step sequence: there was a loss of speed.
- He reminds me very much of Sandhu: his program was very entertaining and he knows how to express the music.

Uspenski - LP
- 3A a few step-outs.
- He is a very lyrical, soft, yet athletic skater.
- however, his program is rather generic.
- He landed secure 3Lutz, 3loops with good height and tremendous speed going into the jumps.

Vonorov -LP
- A few quads landed, he stepped out a few of them.
- Very athletic, he did a good run-through and landed most of the jumps.
- His program is tango: I'm afraid that he is not mature enough to feel the tango though.

 

[Andalusia]

Caroline probably couldn't get the combo out of the flip so she added the 2T onto the 3R, just like Mirai did in her Skate America SP with her 3F.

Yeah, but Oldies mentioned she had landed 4 clean 3F-3Ts. Puzzles me why she would then be practicing 3L-2T in the short. Or perhaps she landed those 3-3s outside of her SP practice.

Thanks for the further reports, Oldies! Please do keep them coming.

 

[fumie_fumie]

Dance Free Dance - Practice group 2

Kimberly NAVARRO / Brent BOMMENTRE

- This program is supposed to be entertaining, but I found music cuts are too jarring, which kept me from enjoying the program.
- Their coach was very nice. I got their signature and she gave me a "Team USA" pin.

Jennifer WESTER / Daniil BARANTSEV

- Nice routine, but very generic. I don't know what to make of the team.

Nathalie PECHALAT / Fabian BOURZAT

- Entertaining program, but lack the subtlety and sophistication that the team is known for.
- Lifts are very physically demanding: they practiced them a number of times.

Meryl DAVIS / Charlie WHITE

- This team has definitely stepped up from last year. I think they will challenge for US title and BA must watch out.
- The choreo of their FD is seamlessly woven together and they just kept on going.
- They have tremendous speed and carriage.

 

[missysays]

Thanks so much for the rinkside reports, fumie_fumie and Oldies.



This is soooo exciting.

 

[mystichaze]

Thanks for those great reports! I am beyond excited to see Davis & White!

 

[fumie_fumie]

People I saw

CBC booth

- Kurt Browning: he was in complete disguise, in a hat. He tried to keep a low profile.

- Tracy Wilson: she is a sociable lady, she was busy doing the behind the scene doing research, chatting with Patrick Chan's coach Don Laws, his parents and Zueva.

- Scott Russell: OMG, He is tall and handsome. I love you Scott.

Coaches

- Frank Caroll: he was sitting across from the volunteer information centre and watches the traffic going by. He looks a lot like John McCain (?).

- Don Laws (Patrick Chan's coach) : He was sitting two seats down from me. He is very calm, but still has such a presence. Patrick listened to Don very attentively during the practice. You can see that he is in total command of Team Patrick Chan.

- Annie Barabe: she is beautiful and very supportive of Shawn Sawyer. What more can I say?

Skaters

- Nana Takeda: she wears smiles all the time. Tall, but also cute.

- Yuko Kawaguchi: She looks like a very determined lady. Very petit (even shorter than I am).

- Yasuharu NANR: He is also small and has a baby face.

- Dube/Davidson: they look gorgeous together. Dube is a godess!

- Cynthia Phaneuf: you know TV camera doesn't do justice for this lady.

-------------------------------------------
I'm such a shallow person. lol...

 

[flying camel]

Caroline did a short program runthrough clean, with some really nice transitions, 2 axel, 3flip and 3loop 2 toe. I saw a really nice 3 salchow from her. Alissa did a long program(not the whole thing) with a really nice 3 lutz and a good 2axel 2toe 2toe. Not too consistent. Caro has a really nice program, fast, GORGEOUS footwork, but not too consistent on the jumps Joannie looks pretty strong, seems to have gained some muscle in the thighs, it's really helping her! Fumie looked tired, but had a pretty good runthrough of her long. More reports later!

Thanks for the reports. Did you happen to see Bebe practice?

 

[lmarie086]

Costume report on Davis and White from FSU:

My friend at practice says charlie in brown with biblical cording, meryl in goldish dress with beautiful beading.

Nothing to do with their skating I know, but it made me really happy .

Thanks to everyone who's reporting! It's much appreciated. I cannot wait until tomorrow.

 

[siberia82]

Patrick Chan - LP

- He landed a lot of lutzs with good height and flow.
- He left out 3As in the run-through of the program. Obviously, getting concerned, he had a long discussion with Don Law and then practiced just 3As a number of times.
- His artistry is second-to-none and the footwork was masterpiece.

Shawn Sawer - LP

- I enjoyed it tremendously.
- still having hard time with 3lutz and 3As.
- His 3f-3t combo and split jump into 3Loop was definitely worth watching.
- His choreo was great: he hit all the musical notes

Jeremy Ten - LP
- He had a very inconsistent 3As and very cautious getting into 3As.
- He had very good speed across the ice, good speed and very polished footwork.
- He needs a bit of work on circular step sequence: there was a loss of speed.
- He reminds me very much of Sandhu: his program was very entertaining and he knows how to express the music.

Uspenski - LP
- 3A a few step-outs.
- He is a very lyrical, soft, yet athletic skater.
- however, his program is rather generic.
- He landed secure 3Lutz, 3loops with good height and tremendous speed going into the jumps.

Vonorov -LP
- A few quads landed, he stepped out a few of them.
- Very athletic, he did a good run-through and landed most of the jumps.
- His program is tango: I'm afraid that he is not mature enough to feel the tango though.

Thanks a million for your notes!

- Kurt Browning: he was in complete disguise, in a hat. He tried to keep a low profile.

Are you sure he wasn't just trying to hide his bald head? Was he successful with his disguise? Somehow I have a hard time believing he could "hide" from crazy Canadian figure skating fans.

- Scott Russell: OMG, He is tall and handsome. I love you Scott.

Beauty is wholly subjective, of course, but I never would've guessed anyone could have a crush on Scott Russell.

 

[lmarie086]

Out of the ladies practices I thought that out of the first warmup Zhang really stood out. I didn't see any falls from her, and I saw at least 4 clean triple flip triple toes. Definitely the most consistent out of the group. She has a different jump layout then the report, and she did a 3flip and 3loop double toe in the short.
Alissa did her long, and I saw a good triple lutz double toe. She is a beautiful skater. In the second group I was surprised by Joannie, she did a couple 3flip-3toe(possible UR) and beautiful footwork. Caro looked strong, great speed and flow across the ice. Takeda was inconsistent, saw a lot of falls from her. Can't wait for the short tomorrow.
I only watched the 1st pairs practice, I thought Evora and Ladwig looked pretty good, great lifts from them. Really liked the first part of their music. McLaughin and Brubraker didn't really shine, but strong lifts and throws. Good sbs 3sal.

Thank you for your report! I'm really excited to see the changes that Caroline Zhang has made in her skating, as well as Alissa Czisny! And Joannie...great to hear she's doing well; just hope she gets those 3-3s under hand.

Also glad to hear that McLaughlin/Brubraker had good sbs triples, as they seemed to struggle with them a bit at SA, or so I thought (SA feels like such a long time ago now...).

 

[fumie_fumie]

Thanks a million for your notes!

Are you sure he wasn't just trying to hide his bald head? Was he successful with his disguise? Somehow I have a hard time believing he could "hide" from crazy Canadian figure skating fans.

Beauty is wholly subjective, of course, but I never would've guessed anyone could have a crush on Scott Russell.

Kurt wasn't successful with his disguise. People were all over him. You can see Canadian skating fans are all about Canadian men, men and men, unlike this board where people are far more interested in ladies than any other disciplines. I don't think there are many Canadian fans around this board and maybe I should look for other boards where I can talk to more Canadian fans.

 

[PolymerBob]

You can see Canadian skating fans are all about Canadian men, men and men, unlike this board where people are far more interested in ladies than any other disciplines.

In fact, we Americans are so into the ladies, we make screen names from the ladies' names. :scratch:

 

[siberia82]

Kurt wasn't successful with his disguise. People were all over him.

Ha ha ha, thought so! Kurt is a beloved Canadian icon; it's impossible for him not to be mobbed by his fellow countrymen!

You can see Canadian skating fans are all about Canadian men, men and men, unlike this board where people are far more interested in ladies than any other disciplines. I don't think there are many Canadian fans around this board and maybe I should look for other boards where I can talk to more Canadian fans.

You know the rule: when it comes to figure skating, America LURVES its Ladies, but Canada is MAD MAD MAD about its Men. I agree that there doesn't seem to be that many Canucks on this forum, but I still like to hang out here occasionally since there are some interesting discussions which are not available elsewhere.

I recommend you check out FSUniverse. There is an active thread called "Canadian Men Discussion" (you'll notice I'm one of the more talkative posters ) where I'm sure you'll feel right at home: http://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/showthread.php?t=60959&page=16

Those are currenly the latest postings, but if you're patient enough to read the previous messages, I recommend you don't go further back than Page 7 because I got into a looooooooong debate with several people which ended in a stalemate. You probably don't want to waste your time reading it; it's VERY painful and it goes nowhere!

In fact, we Americans are so into the ladies, we make screen names from the ladies' names. :scratch:

 

[fumie_fumie]

:chorus::chorus:

Haha,

Anywho, Scotiabank place has internet connection, so I'll see if I can do pbp live at the rink.

Other interesting fact, Zamboni guys are unionised in Scotiabank and were really against hosting a skating event. Apparently, the management had a hard time getting them to agree with them to host Skate Canada International at Scotia Bank, as the ice guys perceived it is not a man's job to run a zamboni after figure skaters. Zamboni guys told the management that they are not there to clean up after "girly" sequence and spangles.