Max Aaron: "I can't wait!" (Video)

[gsk8]

Hi all!

Ted interviewed Max Aaron in Colorado Springs - Enjoy!

Note: There was an audio mishap (Max accidentally turned his mic off) so you'll have to turn your speakers up.
As many of you probably already know, he plans 2 quads in the SP and four in the LP. This is going to be a cray cray season!! :hpull:

 

[mrrice]

Thank Bloody Gawd!!!! I have been waiting to hear from him and I'm very excited to see him this year. He has clearly been working hard and you can see that he is in perfect shape. I hope he has the right programs because, IMO, that's the only thing that will hold him back. He sounds confident and I truly can't wait to see him at Nationals......

 

[karne]

There was an audio mishap (Max accidentally turned his mic off)

He would, that adorable dork!

A lot of information here. So he had other issues in his life last season - that would explain a lot, but of course he kept it quiet, of course he never said anything til now. Unable to use his stomach muscles properly and dealing with emotional unrest - many lesser skaters would have crumbled completely with such a combination. And he tried not to say anything, tried to keep it quiet. He is everything.

Now. Someone with better ears than me help me out. Did he say he was going to try a quad Lutz? I think that would be perfect, actually (his triple Lutz is divine) but holy wow that would be great!

He sounds happy, relaxed, positive, upbeat. I want him to get that Olympic dream so badly. I don't think I could bear to see his sad, sad eyes again.

 

[Interspectator]

Thank you for this interview! Keeping the skating hype going through the summer.

 

[ice coverage]

Hi all!

Ted interviewed Max Aaron in Colorado Springs - Enjoy! ...

Many thanks to GS and to Ted for the interview .

... Note: There was an audio mishap (Max accidentally turned his mic off) so you'll have to turn your speakers up. ...

He would, that adorable dork! ...

Oyyyyy, Max, you adorable dork :hopelessness: :luv17:.

Don't know whether to or :sad4: in this case (cuz my ears really were struggling to hear him even at full volume).

... A lot of information here. So he had other issues in his life last season - that would explain a lot, but of course he kept it quiet, of course he never said anything til now. Unable to use his stomach muscles properly and dealing with emotional unrest - many lesser skaters would have crumbled completely with such a combination. And he tried not to say anything, tried to keep it quiet. He is everything. ...

... Now. Someone with better ears than me help me out. Did he say he was going to try a quad Lutz? I think that would be perfect, actually (his triple Lutz is divine) but holy wow that would be great! ...

I think(?) he said he has been working on the quad lutz ... but he does not know yet whether he will compete with it "this season."

(Which gave me some hope that he has not ruled out continuing to compete after this season?? I think Ted also tried to ask about his plans after this season, but Max said only something [I'm paraphrasing] about not thinking that way -- instead staying focused on the present day to day.)

... He sounds happy, relaxed, positive, upbeat. I want him to get that Olympic dream so badly. I don't think I could bear to see his sad, sad eyes again.

:agree: And he looked great. Go, Max :yay:.

ETA:

Forgot to say that I think(?) after referencing that Katherine Hill choreographed his two new programs, Max said [again, I'm paraphrasing] that Phillip Mills remains on his team -- which pleased me, although I did not catch any details.
Max seemed to emphasize that Katherine is local and available to work with him all the time. But I think the idea is that Phillip still meets up with Max for some training as well?​

 

[karne]

I think(?) he said he has been working on the quad lutz ... but he does not know yet whether he will compete with it "this season."

(Which gave me some hope that he has not ruled out continuing to compete after this season?? I think Ted also tried to ask about his plans after this season, but Max said only something [I'm paraphrasing] about not thinking that way -- instead staying focused on the present day to day.)

I also interpreted it this way, but I chalked it down to it being my long-held fear that this will be...and my rather selfish hope that it might be otherwise.

 

[skylark]

Max: "We're all artists, and we're all athletes" .... when presented with the eternal artist/athlete dilemma. I love:luv17: how Max said this, right up front at the beginning of his longer answer, with conviction. Then he went on to say that this is what he loves about figure skating, that there's something for everybody, all different kinds of artistry and athleticism, so much variety to enjoy. That really points to one of his remarkable traits; he really does enjoy the different performances, and he's happy to acknowledge when others do well.

Max's great answer cuts right to the heart of figure skating, IMO. There's no reason for all the division and heat about A. vs. A. Rather, the sport is a big tent and provides so much enjoyment to whomever is open to receiving it. And, even those who at heart want most to see emotion and artistry can also thrill to the excitement of great jumping and other technique. And vice versa, those who value athleticism most can also be moved and entranced by a great performance.

p.s. Did anyone else notice how Tom Z. walked through the background at 12 minutes, sat on the back of a couch, drank some water, and then presto ... VANISHED at 12:26?

 

[skylark]

(Which gave me some hope that he has not ruled out continuing to compete after this season?? I think Ted also tried to ask about his plans after this season, but Max said only something [I'm paraphrasing] about not thinking that way -- instead staying focused on the present day to day.)

The way Ted framed the question was (I'm paraphrasing) that many skaters think in terms of the Olympic cycle in their skating. A back-door way of asking about his future plans. I heard Max's answer the way you did ... he doesn't really think that way; it's the day-to-day journey for him.

 

[gsk8]

p.s. Did anyone else notice how Tom Z. walked through the background at 12 minutes, sat on the back of a couch, drank some water, and then presto ... VANISHED at 12:26?

He's magic (as is Zhou's mom)

Did he say he was going to try a quad Lutz?

Our understanding is that he is practicing it and was inspired at how easy Chen made it look.

 

[Sai Bon]

He would, that adorable dork!

A lot of information here. So he had other issues in his life last season - that would explain a lot, but of course he kept it quiet, of course he never said anything til now. Unable to use his stomach muscles properly and dealing with emotional unrest - many lesser skaters would have crumbled completely with such a combination. And he tried not to say anything, tried to keep it quiet. He is everything.

Now. Someone with better ears than me help me out. Did he say he was going to try a quad Lutz? I think that would be perfect, actually (his triple Lutz is divine) but holy wow that would be great!

He sounds happy, relaxed, positive, upbeat. I want him to get that Olympic dream so badly. I don't think I could bear to see his sad, sad eyes again.

Great to hear about Max. For those of us without time to watch the whole interview, can anyone provide a summary of his "other life issues"?

 

[karne]

Max: "We're all artists, and we're all athletes" .... when presented with the eternal artist/athlete dilemma. I love:luv17: how Max said this, right up front at the beginning of his longer answer, with conviction. Then he went on to say that this is what he loves about figure skating, that there's something for everybody, all different kinds of artistry and athleticism, so much variety to enjoy. That really points to one of his remarkable traits; he really does enjoy the different performances, and he's happy to acknowledge when others do well.

It's one of those moments again, where I am completely and then I wonder, how is it that anyone can possibly dislike him?

Great to hear about Max. For those of us without time to watch the whole interview, can anyone provide a summary of his "other life issues"?

He doesn't elaborate. He just says he had some personal stuff (or "family stuff" I can't remember the exact wording) to deal with and then he glosses over it and talks about controlling his emotions when he's on the ice and moves the answer on.

 

[ice coverage]

Max's new SP is Bring Him Home from Les Mis.

I thought he looked very good in practice.

(Max won the U.S. juvenile boys championship with a Les Mis program.)

 

[karne]

Max's new SP is Bring Him Home from Le Mis.

I thought he looked very good in practice.

(Max won the U.S. juvenile boys championship with a Le Mis program.)

Oh my god, Max with Bring Him Home? I'm already welling up just thinking about it!

(I'm so happy for you that you're there, ice coverage!)

 

[mrrice]

Max's new SP is Bring Him Home from Les Mis.

I thought he looked very good in practice.

(Max won the U.S. juvenile boys championship with a Les Mis program.)

This is good news...With Max's big jumps and speed, I truly think that what he needs to push him over the top are strong programs with a blend on artistry and athleticism. I can't wait to see him perform.

 

[charmblade]

Max's new SP is Bring Him Home from Les Mis.

I thought he looked very good in practice.

(Max won the U.S. juvenile boys championship with a Les Mis program.)

Oh, I just saw this after wondering in the Philadelphia thread what his programs are. This seems like an excellent choice for Max. Powerful and dynamic but also emotional. Thanks so much for the info!

 

[skylark]

It's one of those moments again, where I am completely and then I wonder, how is it that anyone can possibly dislike him?
.

I haven't heard anyone say they dislike him as a person. Not everyone likes his skating, but that's true of every skater. Or virtually every skater/team.

I thought of another bit to share from this interview. Max was talking about working on his artistry, and he said something like (I'm paraphrasing wildly, because the sound was in and out and garbled) .... I've been working on quads for about 10 years now, and I've been working to improve in artistry for a few years.

So the idea was, of course he's better at the parts he's worked on longer, and he's doing his best to balance the two. Very reasonable.

I'm on shaky ground here, but I think that was the gist. If anyone has a better memory (or understanding) of what he said, please correct me.

 

[Skater Boy]

Good for Max.
Some ambitious programs especially technically but so many people are planning lots of quads but can they execute them - time will tell. But if we took everyone who says they are planning say six quads in total well you would have a list a mile long. But while I see Hanyu, Chen, Boyang, Javier, Shomo with lots of quads skaters like Aaron, Brown, Ten, Chan, Rippon, Reynolds, Yan have failed to land that many in one competition.

 

[karne]

Max and the Warhorses make an amazing combination. His Les Mis SP (Bring Him Home/One Day More) was outstanding, and so was his POTO free skate. Like, this is the best I've ever seen him move. And better yet, he rotated both quads in the SP and three quads in the FS (popped the fourth to a 3S instead of a 4S). For August, he looks amazing. He looks better in this August than he did in October last year.

Can't wait to see what he's going to wear!

 

[Sasha'sSpins]

I really like Max's new SP! Jumps not all quite there yet but then it's barely August! I think this is a winner for him!

 

[Weathergal]

I haven't heard anyone say they dislike him as a person. Not everyone likes his skating, but that's true of every skater. Or virtually every skater/team.

I thought of another bit to share from this interview. Max was talking about working on his artistry, and he said something like (I'm paraphrasing wildly, because the sound was in and out and garbled) .... I've been working on quads for about 10 years now, and I've been working to improve in artistry for a few years.

So the idea was, of course he's better at the parts he's worked on longer, and he's doing his best to balance the two. Very reasonable.

I'm on shaky ground here, but I think that was the gist. If anyone has a better memory (or understanding) of what he said, please correct me.

I think that was part of it. I believe he was also talking about skaters in general not just himself. I think he said that people assume skaters aren't working on their weaknesses but that it just isn't true--it takes time to change and improve upon a weakness.

He's just such a nice guy, so level-headed, so mature. I've always rooted for him and seeing the way he handles interviews makes me like him even more (and er, uh, the way he looks in that t-shirt doesn't hurt either! ).