Information in regards to Boston 2014

elle_e · Dec 10, 2013

Hello. Just posting here to get some information and advice relating to the U.S Figure Skating Championships in Boston 2014.

I've read through some of the threads, and the information there was most helpful, but hopefully this will allow me to get more targeted answers.

I will be at nationals in Boston with 2 members of my family. We're flying in just to see the short and free dance (and pairs free as well because of the ticket scheduling).

I've seen some of the rules, but was hoping someone could provide me with more information on how you are supposed to conduct yourself at one of these events. This is the first ever skating competition I am attending.

I am also wondering if Boston has any major attractions to visit, and am looking for recommendations. And also quite confused about the transit system.

So yes, I am pretty much clueless about this. I bought the tickets when they went on sale, and I've my flights and hotel room, but aside from that, I have no idea about this trip.

It would probably be helpful to you if I added that I'm from Australia, and I've never visited the US before. So our 3 day trip to Boston is a complete bamboozle. If anyone could provide information about the city as well, that would be must helpful!!

Okay, onto the shallow part of the queries:
Is there any chance that I'll get to meet any of the skaters? Travelling half-way across the world to see Meryl&Charlie (and several other talented US dance teams) is completely worth it, but it'd be great if I could meet them, or get a photo.
My next trip out of the country will not occur for at least another 8 years after this (budget issues), so it's basically my last chance to ever see them.
Will Nationals be like other events where fans throw gifts down onto the ice for them? I have a book full of sketches of M&C that I would like to present to them, they inspired me to take skating seriously and I (as you can probably already tell), am a huge fan.

Sorry for the long post,
Thank you in advance!!

altuixde · Dec 10, 2013

When I was at Skate America in 2006, after the medal ceremony, the medallists signed autographs and took photos with fans for a long while (until the staff started turning the lights out on us). It's possible that they might do the same in Boston at nationals, but there will be more fans at nationals so it may be harder to meet the skaters.

As for attractions, the Museum of Fine Arts is nice. Also, when I was a child, I really liked going to the Museum of Science. The MIT Museum has some neat stuff in it too, but it's not as grand as the previous two museums.

Mrs. P · Dec 10, 2013

elle_e said:
Hello. Just posting here to get some information and advice relating to the U.S Figure Skating Championships in Boston 2014.

I've read through some of the threads, and the information there was most helpful, but hopefully this will allow me to get more targeted answers.

I will be at nationals in Boston with 2 members of my family. We're flying in just to see the short and free dance (and pairs free as well because of the ticket scheduling).

I've seen some of the rules, but was hoping someone could provide me with more information on how you are supposed to conduct yourself at one of these events. This is the first ever skating competition I am attending.

I am also wondering if Boston has any major attractions to visit, and am looking for recommendations. And also quite confused about the transit system.

So yes, I am pretty much clueless about this. I bought the tickets when they went on sale, and I've my flights and hotel room, but aside from that, I have no idea about this trip.

It would probably be helpful to you if I added that I'm from Australia, and I've never visited the US before. So our 3 day trip to Boston is a complete bamboozle. If anyone could provide information about the city as well, that would be must helpful!!

Okay, onto the shallow part of the queries:
Is there any chance that I'll get to meet any of the skaters? Travelling half-way across the world to see Meryl&Charlie (and several other talented US dance teams) is completely worth it, but it'd be great if I could meet them, or get a photo.
My next trip out of the country will not occur for at least another 8 years after this (budget issues), so it's basically my last chance to ever see them.
Will Nationals be like other events where fans throw gifts down onto the ice for them? I have a book full of sketches of M&C that I would like to present to them, they inspired me to take skating seriously and I (as you can probably already tell), am a huge fan.

Sorry for the long post,
Thank you in advance!!

Wow, what an exciting opportunity and how wonderful you're able to come all the way from Australia!

One way to meet the skaters is to catch them at the host hotel, which I believe is either the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel or The Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel. Both hotels are in the Seaport District of Boston. After the competition is over, head over to one of the hotels and get a drink or coffee at the hotel restaurant, you can catch skaters at the restaurant itself or as you're walking around the hotel lobby. If that's a bit much for you, you're just as easily going to catch them walking around the arena or during practice sessions.

USFSA will also likely arrange meet-and-greets with the skaters throughout the week as well and I have no doubt they'll organize one with Meryl & Charlie, so that would be a great time for you to get that photo (and give them your book of sketches).

altuixde · Dec 10, 2013

To everyone traveling to Boston I should warn you that in the tunnels, cellular and GPS reception aren't always available. There are exits to navigate in the tunnels so make sure that you know which ones you're supposed to take, and don't rely on your smartphone to tell you exactly when to exit.

A.H.Black · Dec 10, 2013

How to conduct yourself -

Do NOT use a flash if you are taking pictures. It can be dangerous for the skaters. This rule is true whenever there are skaters on the ice.

Do not go up and down the aisles during skating performances. Treat the performances as though it was a concert - respect for the skaters is the name of the game.

Skaters and parents do not have assigned seats. Often spectators (all-event ticket holders) come for practice and don't sit in their assigned seats. It is not a big deal if someone is in your seat. Just mention to them that these are your seats. They will move.

Someone mentioned that a "meet and greet" is a good place to give the skaters your gift. That's a good idea. Things thrown on the ice often go straight to the local children's hospital or some such place and the skaters often don't see them at all.

Have fun. Enjoy. Relax. If you are friendly, you will make lots of new friends of those sitting around you.

Oh - try not to talk too much during the skating and be careful what you say - someone's mother could be sitting right in front of you.

CoyoteChris · Dec 10, 2013

Don't feel bad about not understanding the "T" (Subway). I have never taken it but I scratched my head for quite awhile until I started to catch on to their lingo over the web...
They don't say, "Go north on the Orange line from Downtown station to North Station". They say " From Downtown Station, take the Orange line Oak Grove to North station."
Oak Grove is the northern terminus for the Orange line, and therefore a direction to them. Use their trip planner and note just how fast each hop is....and the stations, from the photos on the web, aren't small cramped
drab dimly lit entities....they have food courts and some are very big. Read the directions and have a map of the system in your hand and it will start to make sense.
I am so sorry you have so little time after a long flight....where are you staying? Hopefully not way out....the trouble with nats is that it is in a very historic and interesting city with about no time to see any of it...there is
something going on all the time...
A.H. Black said all the important stuff...the autograph sessions on the concourse or fan fast can offer long lines but you can briefly meet the skaters....my own personal policy is that I pretty much leave the skaters alone
when I see them in the restaurants or in the arena, other than a quick smile or an at-a-boy.......they have a right to privacy and its sad to see a Todd or Brian have to run out of the arena after a practice or comp to avoid being mobbed by fans.

(I haven't check this out yet for Boston but at many practices at many events, it is open seating so someone CANT kick you out of the seat you have chosen even if it is theirs for the comp. My policy is that I just give them "their" seat if they want it.
Not worth bothering with. )

MFarone · Dec 11, 2013

Here is a suggestion for ensuring that Meryl and Charlie get the book of sketches. If there is a meet and greet at the arena, you might be able to present it to them personally. I would not throw it on the ice since I doubt they would ever see it - I think A. H. Black is correct and those items are bagged and donated.

If you are not able to present the book to them personally, I would suggest you mail it to them at their training rink. The hotel should be able to help you box it and send it through U. S. mail or FedEx or UPS. They train at Artic Edge Figure Skating Club, 46615 Michigan Avenue, Canton, MI 48188. Address the package to Charlie and Meryl and use that address and they should get the package when they return to Michigan. The phone number for the club is 734-487-7777. I called Artic Edge this morning to make sure this would be ok and they said it wasn't a problem and Charlie and Meryl would get the package with no problem.

Hope you enjoy your trip and seeing your favorite skaters.

elle_e · Dec 11, 2013

Thank you to everyone who responded, all of your answers are very articulated and helpful. :bow:

Apologies for making it sound like I'm just visiting the U.S for 3 days- that would be quite odd. It is a jammed trip though, because my mother is having about 7-8 reunions with old high school friends, so we have to go from LA to Vegas to San Francisco, back to LA, then to NY and then finally Boston. We're arriving on the 9th(hoping for some sightseeing) and leaving ASAP, so after the free dance I get to rush back to the hotel, and pack by bags for a morning flight back to Australia the next day.

We're staying at the Ames Boston Hotel- I'm naturally bad with navigation and maps so I'm not sure where that is. And as for the event, does anyone know how good these seats are? I just bought the first ones that showed up:
SD: Section 13, Row 9
FD: Section 109, Row E

To MFarone, thank you for the idea of mailing it to them, I might just do that!! If any huge meryl/charlie fans (like myself) are interested in seeing any of my drawings, I'm happy to share. I'm not an artist or anything, but I like to dabble. 2:30am... Time to sleep

:points:

to you all

ice coverage · Dec 11, 2013

MFarone said:
... If you are not able to present the book to them personally, I would suggest you mail it to them at their training rink. ...

elle_e, my best to you for a great trip.

Adding to what MFarone said, my two cents on the subject of gifts to any public figures (not limited to the lovely Davis/White, who I am sure sincerely appreciate anything from fans):

Even if I had the opportunity to show my heartfelt gift in person to Davis/White, I would ask them if they would prefer for me to then send it along to Arctic Edge (or to the address of their choice). You might be doing yourself and any recipient who is on the road a favor to ship the gift to her/his homebase.
Aside from the competition itself, D/W no doubt will be very busy -- with obligations to the media and to their sponsors, and with a thousand other things. Others will be offering all kinds of gifts to them too.
What do people like Davis or White do with all their newly received stuff before they head back home? Wouldn't surprise me if they are rushing like crazy to: (1) cram some of it into their own luggage; and/or (2) divvy some of it up among family members/friends to cram into their luggage; and/or (3) get someone to deal with shipping some of it home for them (even if the hotel will help, some family member or other "intermediary" potentially will take temporary ownership of a batch of gifts and make the arrangements with a hotel person on their behalf), etc., etc.
The point is that any gift, including yours, could easily get lost in the shuffle.

If you are the type of person who would hate to be left wondering whether/when a gift that you ship in fact was opened and enjoyed, an optional step:

You could try including within your package a stamped, self-addressed postcard with a polite, respectful, friendly message to the effect of: "I hope that you will have a moment to put this card into the mail so I will know that you have received my gift." (At usps.com, I think that you can look up how much U.S. postage is needed for a postcard to Australia.)
Or at least include a note with your e-mail address, so that they (or someone on their behalf) can dash off a brief thank-you msg.
As soon as Nats are over, D/W will be prepping for Sochi -- again meaning not only training, but giving interviews, etc. In a perfect world, they might love to drop everything the minute that they open your gift and sit down to leisurely write a personalized letter of gratitude, but you will make their lives a little easier by giving them an effortless way to quickly acknowledge your package to Arctic Edge.

Mrs. P · Dec 11, 2013

elle_e said:
Thank you to everyone who responded, all of your answers are very articulated and helpful.

Apologies for making it sound like I'm just visiting the U.S for 3 days- that would be quite odd. It is a jammed trip though, because my mother is having about 7-8 reunions with old high school friends, so we have to go from LA to Vegas to San Francisco, back to LA, then to NY and then finally Boston. We're arriving on the 9th(hoping for some sightseeing) and leaving ASAP, so after the free dance I get to rush back to the hotel, and pack by bags for a morning flight back to Australia the next day.

We're staying at the Ames Boston Hotel- I'm naturally bad with navigation and maps so I'm not sure where that is. And as for the event, does anyone know how good these seats are? I just bought the first ones that showed up:
SD: Section 13, Row 9
FD: Section 109, Row E

To MFarone, thank you for the idea of mailing it to them, I might just do that!! If any huge meryl/charlie fans (like myself) are interested in seeing any of my drawings, I'm happy to share. I'm not an artist or anything, but I like to dabble. 2:30am... Time to sleep

to you all

Wow, that is a fantastic trip! What a great opportunity to explore some great places.

Okay, so if you would like I do have food recommendations for Los Angeles, Vegas and NY.

Los Angeles
You must try to find the Kogi BBQ food truck. It's basically a Korean-style taco truck. So good. If you don't want to go truck searching, Roy Choi's brick-and-motor restaurant in Culver City, Chego is delicious as well! It's again a Mexican/Korean mix but basically emphasis on rice bowl.

Las Vegas
Strip food is super expensive and besides the better food is outside the strip! Lotus of Siam is an amazing Thai restaurant. You can get a lot of great dishes that you don't usually get at your local Thai joint. Another recommendation is Raku, a Japanese restaurant. Their speciality is grilled dishes.

New York
Wong in the East Village is great. Lots of fresh ingredients and interesting takes on traditional dishes. If you love spicy, Wu Liang Ye in Midtown is a good Sichuan Chinese restaurant.

I realize my recommendations are all Asian, haha. All those places have good non-Asian cuisine too, but my memorable food experiences in those cities happen to involve Asian food!

Looks like your hotel is in a nice location! You're near some sightseeing attractions like Faneuil Hall. You're also quite close to a subway stop so you'll be able to get to the arena quite easily. And your seats for both SD and FD are decent, though SD is slightly better.

I hope we'll get to meet in Boston, I'd love to hear about your adventures.

I'm sure we'll organize some GS meetup.

CoyoteChris · Dec 12, 2013

MFarone said:
... I would suggest you mail it to them at their training rink.
Hope you enjoy your trip and seeing your favorite skaters.

I would say that is an excellent idea...for instance, they and 40 plus skaters show up at the Friends of Figure Skating appreciation breakfast on Sunday morning and things are kind of a zoo with all the picture taking and flesh pressing....better that they don't have something to carry around and get lost or hurt....

CoyoteChris · Dec 12, 2013

elle_e said:
If any huge meryl/charlie fans (like myself) are interested in seeing any of my drawings, I'm happy to share. I'm not an artist or anything, but I like to dabble. 2:30am... Time to sleep

to you all

Hey, I am not a photog but that doesn't stop me from posting pics here! LOL! We would love to see them...
Lots of skaters at the friend's breakfast
http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/dd385/CoyoteChris303/Omaha2013/skaterphotosmall_zpse59d75fb.jpg
http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/dd385/CoyoteChris303/nats 2012/shibs.jpg

CoyoteChris · Dec 12, 2013

elle_e said:
We're staying at the Ames Boston Hotel-
to you all

Wow...you have it made! REf the "T". You get on the orange line north at state street 100 ft away from your hotel and two stops away is North Station...and the TD! Easy as pie, as we say in the states...even I could do it...You are smarter than I am. I have two transfers...

dorispulaski · Dec 12, 2013

I can verify that Charlie & Meryl do keep fan art-they have posted photos of some they have received on their twitter accounts.

These vary in skill from this one from a young fan from their Classroom Champions group

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BbKvtzeCQAAMmo_.jpg:large

To this very professional one of them skating to Giselle
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/A8ouvOgCQAAgv0Z.jpg

Have a great time in Boston!!

elle_e · Dec 13, 2013

CoyoteChris said:
Hey, I am not a photog but that doesn't stop me from posting pics here! LOL! We would love to see them...
Lots of skaters at the friend's breakfast
http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/dd385/CoyoteChris303/Omaha2013/skaterphotosmall_zpse59d75fb.jpg
http://i1217.photobucket.com/albums/dd385/CoyoteChris303/nats 2012/shibs.jpg

There's one here from a while ago- my new computer does not scan the pictures well so :/
I also haven't updated my profile since I made it ><
http://idaringx3.deviantart.com/art/Phantom-of-the-Opera-360529105

Thanks to everyone again!!

CoyoteChris · Dec 13, 2013

Cool! I admire people with artistic talent.....probably cause its not one of my gifts....(OK, if I have any).
D and W's POTO program was my favorite and probably still is, although the flying mouse was wonderful in its own way....
(Don't listen to anything Doris or Mrs. P says about me when we all meet up at Nats....its probably true! :laugh:

)

elle_e said:
There's one here from a while ago- my new computer does not scan the pictures well so :/
I also haven't updated my profile since I made it ><
http://idaringx3.deviantart.com/art/Phantom-of-the-Opera-360529105

Thanks to everyone again!!

SaraM · Dec 17, 2013

Can someone post the schedule?

ice coverage · Dec 17, 2013

SaraM said:
Can someone post the schedule?

http://www.boston2014.com/event-info/schedule/

That page currently links to a two-page PDF that is dated Dec 13.

http://www.boston2014.com/wp-content/uploads/2014USFSChampsMatrixScheduleDraft1.10.pdf

MFarone · Dec 17, 2013

I'm thrilled that the schedule is out so I can take a look and do some planning. Probably I won't print it out until closer to the end of December as there always seem to be minor adjustments made and I end up needing to print it again or write in changes.

Also, fairly soon there should be lists which show the skaters by group. When Michelle Kwan was skating I always wanted to see her practices, so I would mark her group on the practice schedule. It is funny, now that the schedule is out I'm getting more excited!

MFarone · Dec 26, 2013

Here is some miscellaneous info about Boston - covers driving, alcoholic beverages, subs and sodas! I copied it with permission from a post on FSU:

You will encounter a rotary or two. The law in Massachusetts is to yield to the traffic that's already IN the circle. Not everyone does this, but most do. If you miss your exit, keep going around and get it again on the next try.
- Carbonated soft drinks are soda, unless you're in certain parts of New Hampshire where they call it tonic. Restaurants have contracts with either Coke or Pepsi, but not both.
- A sandwich served in a long bun is a sub or grinder. Grinder is more prevalent along I-84 through Connecticut and western Massachusetts.
- A place to purchase alcoholic beverages is a package store or packy. With rare exceptions, grocery stores in Massachusetts do not sell beer or wine.

Nationals is getting closer!

Information in regards to Boston 2014

elle_e

altuixde

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!

altuixde

A.H.Black

CoyoteChris

MFarone

elle_e

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!

CoyoteChris

CoyoteChris

CoyoteChris

dorispulaski

Wicked Yankee Girl

elle_e

CoyoteChris

SaraM

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605

MFarone

MFarone

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