Oh, dear; that's not promising to hear. I like to remain optimistic (and my hopefulness for Caroline Z. is starting to pay off), but from your observation, Mirai doesn't sound as if she's completely ready for prime time this season.
Ashley or Gracie?
- Thread starter skateluvr
- Start date
Oh, dear; that's not promising to hear. I like to remain optimistic (and my hopefulness for Caroline Z. is starting to pay off), but from your observation, Mirai doesn't sound as if she's completely ready for prime time this season.
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2005
OT: Mathman: you were close with your second guess, it's our NATCh bar and Championship ribbon (which is actually purple). 
My BC mix and I do dog agility and we achieved the fourth major milestone (but the one everyone covets and not everyone achieves) about 6 weekes ago (the first is Novice titles, the second is Open titles, the third is Elite titles, the fourth is NATCh (NADAC Agility Trial Champion) then there's the multiple NATChes which we are now working towards). The bar is a tradition that started as the last bar on your championship run was given to you as a symbol of that run, but now they order a special one with the team's names (human and dog) and NATCh and then it's left out at that trial and everyone writes congratulatory messages on it. Our particular bar is pretty fancy and is now hanging on the wall in the building we train in as an incentive for newer students (heck, the dog was scared of tons of things and when THEY started out trialing, their first year, they couldn't even finish courses, but in the three years since, they've become a great team and got a NATCh!). Our ribbon is hanging on my dog's section of our agility wall of fame at home (we have two dogs that do agility but right now only one with a NATCh - the other dog is close, though).
Back on topic: still think Ashley will get the nod with smaller errors.
My BC mix and I do dog agility and we achieved the fourth major milestone (but the one everyone covets and not everyone achieves) about 6 weekes ago (the first is Novice titles, the second is Open titles, the third is Elite titles, the fourth is NATCh (NADAC Agility Trial Champion) then there's the multiple NATChes which we are now working towards). The bar is a tradition that started as the last bar on your championship run was given to you as a symbol of that run, but now they order a special one with the team's names (human and dog) and NATCh and then it's left out at that trial and everyone writes congratulatory messages on it. Our particular bar is pretty fancy and is now hanging on the wall in the building we train in as an incentive for newer students (heck, the dog was scared of tons of things and when THEY started out trialing, their first year, they couldn't even finish courses, but in the three years since, they've become a great team and got a NATCh!). Our ribbon is hanging on my dog's section of our agility wall of fame at home (we have two dogs that do agility but right now only one with a NATCh - the other dog is close, though). Back on topic: still think Ashley will get the nod with smaller errors.
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2011
Any fan of Caroline should check out her twin Angela Wang. She did very well at Lake Placid and is beautiful to watch. She looks so much like Zhang, rhymes with her surname and even wears the low bun. I think she is a lovely skater and I hope she does well at Nationals.
now, i'm new to watching angela as well--there are lots of people who know her skating better than i do, but i must say that to me, in many ways, angela is the opposite of caroline. what they have in common is chinese-american heritage, a long torso rather than the favored long ballerina legs a la yeonah kim...
to me, these are some of the ways they're different--
spins have typically been a strength for caroline. spins are definitely NOT angela's strong point. flexibility is caroline's strength (though it's hard on her back to do the pearl spin), whereas flexibility is not angela's strength.
angela has easy glide, adequate to excellent speed. caroline is improving her speed but speed and skating skills are not yet her forte relative to the field. to me, angela has that flow-- i think back to lori nichol giving michelle kwan that word 'ooze'-- like toothpaste coming out of the tube--as an image to contemplate back when MK was trying to create a more mature impression on the ice. to me angela is one of the few skaters who have that flow, and that's what i love most about her skating, along with her carriage and posture.
caroline's jump technique has improved a lot recently, so has angela's, but as of a year or so ago angela's technique was a lot closer to ideal compared to caroline's. if you look at old videos of caroline vs old videos of angela's, angela had good basic skating skills from the very start--very different from the technique that began to fail caroline when she matured. when angela is not messing up her jumps, her jumps have good height and distance to them.
of course you're entitled to your opinion, i just wanted to state mine as well
maybe these videos taken by a fan from lake placid (different angle from ISU official vid) will help me make my point... maybe ^__^
Angela Wang FS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-0v1ZoCZ3I
this video shows better than the ISU video the height and distance angela got on her 3z-3t-2t. on the flip side they also highlight some spin issues...
Angela Wang SP
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJ7q4EkyED0
bad jumps, but still, good speed and expression, IMO
ETA: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiCfuvKJE5E&feature=related
Armin posted 3z-3t-3t by Angela. i'm not expecting this in competition any time soon, just wanted to show the height and distance Angela can achieve.
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- Joined
- Oct 22, 2005
Thanks, Mathman. I had to carry my excitement over to my #1 sport somehow!
skfan is correct in his/her breakdown of Angie Wang versus Caroline Zhang.
- Joined
- May 19, 2011
Yeah, skfan has it right.
Caroline has made improvements in terms of her speed and technique but Angela has her squarely beat in terms of basics and quality of skating. ITA about the whole Lori-Michelle-"ooze" thing. I could tell by watching Angela at nationals last year that she has the potential to be that amazing artist-skater combo the US needs. In addition to killer jumps, she has great presentation, musicality, grace and fluidity and she interprets the music well. Spins are her weak area right now but with some work, she can improve.
Angela is the US skater I'm most excited about right now. Gracie's jumps are great but her lack of presentation leaves me cold. Angela has big jumps and the presentation to boot. I'm glad she fought back at JGP Lake Placid last week and got on the podium. If she hadn't messed up her SP she probably would have won. Angela's jumps and presentation are stronger than Satoko Miyahara's, and nearly everything she does is more pleasing to the eye than what Courtney Hicks does (bless her, but she's just all over the place when she skates). Angela has more control and fluidity in her movements. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for her in the future. In another year or two, she could be the one to beat.
The skater who most reminds me of Caroline is Bingwa Geng of China. Aside from the ethnically Chinese part, Bingwa's style is very similar to Caroline's circa 2009-ish. Very graceful and elegant. Even their dresses and hairstyles were similar. Their similarities might be attributed to Mingzhu Li, who coached both girls. Bingwa does have better basics though...
Caroline has made improvements in terms of her speed and technique but Angela has her squarely beat in terms of basics and quality of skating. ITA about the whole Lori-Michelle-"ooze" thing. I could tell by watching Angela at nationals last year that she has the potential to be that amazing artist-skater combo the US needs. In addition to killer jumps, she has great presentation, musicality, grace and fluidity and she interprets the music well. Spins are her weak area right now but with some work, she can improve.
Angela is the US skater I'm most excited about right now. Gracie's jumps are great but her lack of presentation leaves me cold. Angela has big jumps and the presentation to boot. I'm glad she fought back at JGP Lake Placid last week and got on the podium. If she hadn't messed up her SP she probably would have won. Angela's jumps and presentation are stronger than Satoko Miyahara's, and nearly everything she does is more pleasing to the eye than what Courtney Hicks does (bless her, but she's just all over the place when she skates). Angela has more control and fluidity in her movements. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for her in the future. In another year or two, she could be the one to beat.
The skater who most reminds me of Caroline is Bingwa Geng of China. Aside from the ethnically Chinese part, Bingwa's style is very similar to Caroline's circa 2009-ish. Very graceful and elegant. Even their dresses and hairstyles were similar. Their similarities might be attributed to Mingzhu Li, who coached both girls. Bingwa does have better basics though...
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2012
Ashley Wagner @AshWagner2010
If you're in the DC area come out to #IceChampionsLive this Sat @kciceplex ..can't wait to debut my new short program!
5:51 AM - 6 Sep 12
5:51 AM - 6 Sep 12
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2011
I agree with the differences between Zhang and Wang's skating and enjoy Wang a little more because of her basics and speed. I only alluded to the appearance similarity which I think is striking. Approx same hight and body shape, similar face and look on the ice. Several comments on youtube about mistaking Wang at first for Zhang. Apparently I am not alone in thinking they look alike. The low bun and facial features are similar. They could be sisters. They look a lot more alike than Karen and Michelle Kwan, that's for sure who are in fact sisters. MK was the beauty there, imo. I think Zhang and Wang are very lovely, too in their own way. It would be fun to see them do something together, and the difference in their skating would be obvious. I wonder if Wang could do a 3L/3L? I think they look more alike than any two skaters I have ever seen.
Just wanted to thank you for your informative post. I'll watch for Angela and will keep your comments in mind.
- Joined
- May 15, 2009
Do you think all Asian girls look alike?
I don't .................
I hope your remarks are made more from innocence than bigotry. :think:
But hey, I just realized that to some fans Ashley and Gracie look the same....
What do you think....could Ashley and Gracie be sisters? :disagree:
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Slightly OT, but I love those photos of Gracie -- she has a more serious version as her twitter profile pic. She is beautiful!
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2011
They gracie and ashley are the best along with Angela Wang, I think right now. Janetfan, you are way out of line and you are baiting people in every post often. Where is the ignore feature, please, moderator. Some comments are so mean spirited they do not deserve response.
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- Joined
- Jun 27, 2003
We have some good tutorials in the feedback section - http://www.goldenskate.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?17-Feedback - one of which is how to use the ignore feature - http://www.goldenskate.com/forum/showthread.php?35354-How-to-Ignore-Other-Posters
Do you think all Asian girls look alike?
I don't .................
I hope your remarks are made more from innocence than bigotry. :think:
But hey, I just realized that to some fans Ashley and Gracie look the same....
What do you think....could Ashley and Gracie be sisters? :disagree:
I don't think Angela and Caroline look alike at all. Caroline is 19 and Angela turned 16 in July. When Caroline was 16, she was struggling with her skating and didn't have the superb presentation skills Angela has now.
Gracie HAS a twin sister (Carly Gold) who also skates.
Well hey! Let's crown some champions before the season even starts! Sound familiar? 
I'll be there to see it. I don't expect she would go all out though since that rink is quite small.
I'll be there to see it. I don't expect she would go all out though since that rink is quite small.
- Joined
- Jun 27, 2003
hey rd! good to see you posting!
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