I woke up at 5am today to watch the pairs SP at Finlandia. Danny and Ellie did really well! The throw loop wasn’t quite behaving, but she didn’t fall and they got their first 70+ SP of the season. The program looked a lot more comfortable than at Skate Canada. You can tell they’ve been able to work hard on solidifying things now that they’re finally healthy.
1st-4th are all separated by a few tenths of a point. The downside is that it’s basically a tie going into the FS so Danny and Ellie are really going to need a great skate to maintain their

position. The positive is that the judges seem to like them pcs wise, so if they do skate (relatively) clean, the score should be good. (I’m still a bit annoyed that they got some of their lowest ever pcs on their perfect freeskate at Skate Canada

.)
I’m probably more nervous than I should be about tomorrow’s FS. It’s still early in the season but everything just feels more important during the Olympic year

. Finishing as the top US team and making GPF would go a long way in securing their Olympic spot… It’s very doable for them, but ice is slippery and throws are hard and anything could happen

. Luckily, I think Danny and Ellie have a healthier mental approach than me and seem to just be taking things one day at a time instead of worrying about the future

.