- Joined
- Aug 27, 2003
Sorry, I can't hop on board with the Dave-hate! I think he has some quite perceptive & interesting things to say (when not gossiping). For example, recently he & Jenny were discussing Gracie and her artistry. And they were trying to analyze just what is lacking. Jenny said Gracie needed to "connect her soul" to the programs. And Dave commented that although there's nothing WRONG with Gracie's positions or movements, she just lacks that polish & finish that we expect of our American ice queens, and I very much agree. I also loved his point this week about a problem with current skating coverage (I think on Universal Sports & IceNetwork). He pointed out that oftentimes, cameras show the skaters' performance, then skip straight to the kiss 'n cry, without showing the skater as they're coming off the ice and interacting with coaches. Thus we miss seeing the skaters' and coaches' initial reactions, which can reveal much. I think he is so right about this, and it IS one reason that we're not getting to know these skaters as we did in the past.
Anyway, I enjoyed the Ashley interview, she was pretty open and candid! I was amazed that she just came out and admitted she's not a naturally graceful or "artistic" skater! I wouldn't have thought any skater would have been willing to admit that! It actually makes her progress in that area more impressive. I enjoyed her comments about Mr. Nicks and what he's like as a coach. Was especially interested to hear that he focuses a lot on polishing and refining the programs--as she said, finding those special "accent" moments to really reach out to the audience. None of this surprised me, as I feel this is the area where Ashley has improved most since joining him (that & jump consistency). What Nicks has given Ashley is a sense of phrasing in her skating; he has helped her bring out the max in her programs by finding the low & high points and building a narrative and really emphasizing the dramatic points. Prior to him, Ashley just plowed through programs with everything at the same pace. She wasn't really feeling and expressing the different shades of the music. Now she does this very well. (And I think this is also exactly what Gracie needs.)
Anyway, I enjoyed the Ashley interview, she was pretty open and candid! I was amazed that she just came out and admitted she's not a naturally graceful or "artistic" skater! I wouldn't have thought any skater would have been willing to admit that! It actually makes her progress in that area more impressive. I enjoyed her comments about Mr. Nicks and what he's like as a coach. Was especially interested to hear that he focuses a lot on polishing and refining the programs--as she said, finding those special "accent" moments to really reach out to the audience. None of this surprised me, as I feel this is the area where Ashley has improved most since joining him (that & jump consistency). What Nicks has given Ashley is a sense of phrasing in her skating; he has helped her bring out the max in her programs by finding the low & high points and building a narrative and really emphasizing the dramatic points. Prior to him, Ashley just plowed through programs with everything at the same pace. She wasn't really feeling and expressing the different shades of the music. Now she does this very well. (And I think this is also exactly what Gracie needs.)