Max Aaron

[ice coverage]

Thanks to karne for your many substantive AC posts covering all competitors.

Congratulations to Max on the individual and team wins.

I will try to add more comments later, but for now just wanna mention that it was very sweet to see that quite a few of SnuggleBat's non-skater OTC friends showed up at the World Arena yesterday and today to support Max and all the skaters.

Dak (skeleton) and Lauren esp. posted a lot of fun Instagram stories. Last night, they were absolutely screaming their heads off :yay: .

Cuteness overload in the form of a post-comp (I think) video of Max from last night:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BVtb1zKhf07/?taken-by=lagibbs84 (Jun 23)​

:bmrk: 2017 AERIAL FIGURE SKATING CHALLENGE :bmrk:

 

[ice coverage]

Let's have a chat about Max in the Aerial Challenge because we actually learned kind of a lot?

I don't know how many people watched yesterday but the video of the team event today is archived on US Figure Skating's facebook page.

So, things:

- His triple Axel. The ones he did yesterday left me gasping. Huge, massive, good distance, and the rotation was so easy it looked like a double at first glance. ...

Data for one of Max's triple axels from the individual AC (not indicated whether from first or second round):

Aaron 3A .695 air time 1.947 feet in height

His was the second highest jump (right behind Camden Pulkinen's 3A).

https://www.facebook.com/AerialFigureSkatingChallenge/posts/740589692810132​

Overall results for the individual AC:

https://www.facebook.com/AerialFigureSkatingChallenge/posts/741289579406810​

Detailed scoring for each jump in each round of the individual AC can be seen here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152006478@N03/albums/with/72157682709315803​

Link for the USFS archived video of the team AC:

https://www.facebook.com/usfigureskating/videos/10154765492986342/​

IceNetwork's coverage:

Article re individual and team AC http://web.icenetwork.com/news/2017/06/26/238855610 (published Jun 26)

Gallery of "backstage" photos from team AC: http://web.icenetwork.com/photos/238850896 (including a good one of Max and Ryan B, as well as the team photo of Bradley's Brawlers)

Archived video of team AC: http://web.icenetwork.com/video/v1541728983​

---

Seems that the bobsledders and skeleton athletes left Colorado Springs on Sunday for a national team camp in Lake Placid.

So I think it was serendipitous that they had the opportunity to see Max compete on Friday and Saturday before their departure.
I hope that he in turn will have (or has had??) a chance to see his friends compete in their sports some day. I'm sure that he would love to cheer for them as much as they cheered for him :yay:.

 

[ice coverage]

Quotes from Max are in the newly-published article re Aerial Challenge by Brooklee Han (covering numerous skaters):

.... Aaron was the big winner at this year’s Aerial Challenge. Not only did he take the singles title, he was also part of Bradley’s winning team. His success helped buoy his spirits and confirmed to him that he is on the right path, after what he described as a frustrating season. Aaron’s main focus this off-season has been cleaning up the technique of his quads and the triple Axel. “I really want to give this season everything I have because coming in ninth place at nationals the year before an Olympic year isn’t something I liked or enjoyed,” he said.

“I have really taken time to go through my technique and focus on what I need to fix and address it. I have waited four years for the opportunity to make an Olympic team again, and I feel like nothing is going to get in my way. I am going to throw everything I have at it and hopefully my dreams will come true.”

Aaron said the Aerial Challenge was a great chance to practice a quad toe loop and Salchow back-to-back in a high-pressure situation. “Obviously, what I did was nowhere near a full program but it was something that I was really looking forward to testing myself with. I feel like it went pretty well. After this, I am feeling pretty confident and I am looking forward to the steps ahead that will lead to my fall events and eventually to nationals.” ....

https://www.ifsmagazine.com/aerial-challenge-twist/ (Jul 2)​

Go, Max :yay:.

---

BTW, a photo of Max's handsome four-legged fan :luv17: at Aerial Challenge:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BVvEfQsDY_9/?taken-by=haleyberanbaum (Jun 24)​

Mowgli the service dog belongs to Allysa Seely, who is a Paralympic gold medalist in triathlon. They are Max's friends from the OTC. Allysa and Mowgli attended AC on both Friday and Saturday.
Thanks to Haley Beranbaum, another Paralympian, for posting the photo and for supporting Max too.

---

Happy Fourth of July to Max, always proud to represent Team USA .

 

[karne]

Clever strategic move from our CleverBat. Do what you do well, and force them to mark it well. I'm guessing this will mean a 3-quad FS though as the Zayak rule will hamstring him considerably otherwise.

Trying to think about this...

4S-3T
4T-2T
4S
4T
3A-1Lo-3S
3Lz
3Lo
3F/2A

Actually, that's not a bad layout. So it could be done with four, but it would mean the sacrifice of the second 3A.

 

[ice coverage]

So .... right before leaving for 2015 TEB, Max had broken a blade .

With his typical stoicism , he had never mentioned it at the time.

Only in today's Q and A from USFS does it finally come to light:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWSdy24Fbls/?taken-by=usfigureskating (Jul 8)​

 

[karne]

So .... right before leaving for 2015 TEB, Max had broken a blade .

With his typical stoicism , he had never mentioned it at the time.

Only in today's Q and A from USFS does it finally come to light:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWSdy24Fbls/?taken-by=usfigureskating (Jul 8)​

And so this explains everything, but especially, why his imperious, dominant SP from SkAm was not repeated at TEB. And of course, he said nothing, he did not complain, he did not make excuses, even though his not making the GPF was all the excuse the USFS needed to rob him blind at Nationals.



EDIT: 100 pages of SnuggleBat!

 

[ice coverage]

... EDIT: 100 pages of SnuggleBat!

:hap36:

Thanks to karne for starting the thread and to all who have participated in the thread.

In honor of Max and this milestone, I plan to work on a little self-assigned project to create a not-too-elaborate index of "highlights" from the first 100 pages of the thread.

I will keep coming back to edit this post to gradually generate the index here.

Right now this post is just a placeholder -- will be easier for me (and for anyone else who cares) to remember that the index is on page 100.

What is within this box is very much a work in progress. Just starting to take baby steps and playing around with how to structure an index and what highlights to include.
I have gone back and started adding hashtags to my posts to help me figure things out.
Some topics are discussed on more than one page, of course. Listing only the first major mention of each topic.
Competitions are in red, and they get placed on a separate line.

2013

page 1

> karne starts thread on June 13.

The TSL interview link (from June) now is dead, but Dave Lease's vimeo channel has an audio-only version (50:39). (I do not see any version on TSL's YouTube channel.)
A screenshot of Max during the interview is on the Cached TSL page, where the vimeo audio-only is embedded.​

> Skate For Hope (June) | > Reddit (July) | > Grassroots To Champions Super Camp (July) | > Skating Magazine cover story (August/September issue)​

page 2

> Ice Dreams Tour (throwback) | > S.T.A.R.S. Combine (throwback to July)
> U.S. International Figure Skating Classic (September)​

page 4

> Liberty Mutual Insurance sponsorship (announced in September) | > USOC media summit (September)
> Skate America (October)​

page 6

> NHK Trophy (November)
> Disson Tribute to American Legends of the Ice (December live show) | > Disson Skating and Gymnastics Spectacular (December live show)​

page 7

> Throwbacks to 2013 U.S. Nationals
> 2014 U.S. Nationals (teleconference on Dec 27)​

More TK ...

 

[ice coverage]

A bit of intrigue :

Max (unknowingly) chose music that Mirai also wanted to skate to. So she ended up deciding on Miss Saigon instead.​

Mirai said so in reply to a question from Ted Flett, who interviewed her in Colorado Springs for Golden Skate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4WlMw_WTIQ​

The interview was published today, and must have been conducted very recently -- evident b/c Ted asked Mirai about Medvedeva's choice of Chopin.

As Mirai referred to Max, she looked in his direction -- he apparently was standing nearby (although out of camera range).

She mentioned him a second time later in the interview, again looking in his direction. The context was that they apparently have been in some of the same college classes.

And now my burning question is:

While in Colorado Springs, did Ted Flett conduct an interview with Max as well???​

---

ETA:

Lest anyone wonder, by "intrigue," I meant only that we were left hanging as to what piece of music Max chose. Mirai did not identify it.​

 

[Tavi...]

Just dropping into say that Max looked great at the benefit! It was a program I've never seen - I think but not sure it was a new SP rather than ex. Jazzy vocals, great jumps, much improved spins and edges! He ended with a really good scratch spin.

I think at the end Ryan asked him if he split his (very tight) pants and he nodded yes. I couldn't tell if it was a joke!

 

[charmblade]

Yeah, I loved this program. It really shows how far he's come in his attention towards improving his performance capability. I also was wondering if it might be a SP, he seemed very comfortable with the moves of a program that's a little outside his normal style so surely that means he's been practicing it an awful lot? I would be very happy if this was a new program.

 

[elbkup]

Very nice program from Max. The jazzy style seems to suit him and he seemed to enjoy skating to the music, natural, organic, grace and fluidity. Hope to see this again!

 

[ice coverage]

Yeah, I loved this program. It really shows how far he's come in his attention towards improving his performance capability. I also was wondering if it might be a SP, he seemed very comfortable with the moves of a program that's a little outside his normal style so surely that means he's been practicing it an awful lot? I would be very happy if this was a new program.

Max did *not* show a competitive program today at the fundraiser, per Zach Donohue on Insta Live.

Zach said it was an ex. He mentioned that he knows what Max has chosen for competitive music, but Zach understandably did not spill the beans.

I too thought that Max looked great with this program :dance2: (although I am not a Buble fan in the least).

Applause to Max and Zach and all the other skaters for supporting Lucy and Jeremy and Watson .

---

ETA:

This photo shows the names of all the individual performers, including the G2C campers selected for the show:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWapo7FBiQj/?taken-by=pcfclub (Jul 11)​

And with a hat tip to karne, the link to the archived streaming:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loowWO9sXTU (1:24:15, which includes the warm-up before the show itself)​

Max's program starts at approx. 1:05:25.​

Nice photos of Max, Madi/Zach, Mirai, and Jason at the autograph session after the show:

https://twitter.com/PCFclub/status/884928248387436545 (Jul 11)​

 

[karne]

I wound up sneakily playing the live stream on my computer at work and listening to it, and only watching when Max skated. Even though it was glitchy, I'm glad I did, because the archive stream is so out of synch that when the vision of Max skating starts, the music from two programs before is playing.

I loved this new ex and I hope we see it many more times!

 

[Ross74]

I loved this new ex and I hope we see it many more times!

I was fortunate to be able to be at the benefit yesterday. This is the same EX Max did at the Denver FSC's Showtime on Ice in April. I like this program a lot!

 

[karne]

I was fortunate to be able to be at the benefit yesterday. This is the same EX Max did at the Denver FSC's Showtime on Ice in April. I like this program a lot!

I'm so glad you liked it!

...did he really split his pants?

 

[Ross74]

I'm so glad you liked it!

...did he really split his pants?

I don't think so. . Ryan B did the same shtick with him at Showtime on Ice.

 

[karne]

I don't think so. . Ryan B did the same shtick with him at Showtime on Ice.

Ryan's just jealous he can't fill out a pair of jeans that well.

 

[babyskate]

This one is for Karne
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWkyj59nIES/
Enjoy!!

 

[karne]

This one is for Karne
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWkyj59nIES/
Enjoy!!

:


....


(Also, Mirai's t-shirt is fab in this pic)

 

[karne]

The Youtube channel for the Jeremy and Lucy show posted a cleaned-up version of the show video! Max is at 36:10 and the program is so pretty