State of the U.S. Men's Figure Skating for 2014-15

[mrrice]

:yes:

I am not into Zapruderring anybody's words in order to find objectionable meaning. Especially those of young admirable high achieving strangers.

This probably belongs in the stupid questions thread but, what does Zapruderring mean ?

 

[mrrice]

^ Or that one of the purposes of Champs Camp is to teach the top-ranked skaters how to handle questions from the news media.

Exactly !!!! The USFSA has to have a media consultant. If so, they're fired ! ( I'm Joking )

 

[ice coverage]

This probably belongs in the stupid questions thread but, what does Zapruderring mean ?

It's a reference to the assassination of President Kennedy.

A gentleman [ETA: private citizen] whose last name was Zapruder was recording "home movies" of JFK's visit to Dallas -- and happened to capture the only known footage (26 seconds worth) of the assassination.

Ever since, the Zapruder film has been the subject of endless scrutiny/analysis/discussion.

http://www.jfk.org/go/exhibits/home-movies/abraham-zapruder

 

[mrrice]

Thanks Golden You see, this is why I love this site.

 

[mrrice]

Oh My God, Ross !!!!!!!

I just watched his short program from the Skate Canada Autumn Classic. I would never have picked the vocal version of " The way we were " for a male skater. However, the instrumental version he selected was great.

He's much more fluid in his upper body this year but, he still needs some more ballet to accent his wonderful and classic skating skills. He has great speed and he seems to be really connected to his music and program. He's well costumed and looks great. I'm so happy for him and I hope he has a great season.

 

[centerpt1]

Ross was very polished and obviously well trained. Happy to see him doing well.

The depth in US men is amazing-best field of men in years.

 

[noskates]

The one main element missing in Brown’s arsenal is a quad, which he is still working on. “The quads are going great and I am building my consistency daily and I’m really excited about its progression,” Jason said. “I’m look forward to adding it to my repertoire as soon as it is consistent.”

This was nice to read!

 

[Icey]

Joshua's short

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sT0SgNvjh74

I guess the fault is with me (almost hope it is), but so many of the programs I have seen thus far are so flat , boring even. Interesting catch foot sit spin.

Glad he is using his Schindler's list again.

 

[Mrs. P]

Congrats to Ross Miner for winning the Skate Canada Autumn Classic. Ross' SP suddenly put him into the game -- it was the second highest SP among the U.S. men. His FS was not as good, but his TES was enough to break into the top 5.

The scores are updated on first post. Per my score tracker (15-13-11-9-7 for the top 5 Overall, SP/FS and the respective TES/PCS categories):

Max Aaron — 87
Richard Dornbush — 83
Jason Brown — 82
Ross Miner — 74
Adam Rippon — 29
Stephen Carriere — 16
Grant Hochstein — 7
Nathan Chen — 7

Ross took away a lot of points from several skaters, including Alexander Johnson, who was zeroed out and our top two skaters. Jason Brown was the only skater Ross did not get points from (Jason had already been kicked out of the top 5 in FS TES thanks to Nathan Chen, who was subsequently kicked out of the top 5 by Ross Miner this week).

Our top three in the overall score and on the scorekeeper remain the same: Max, Richard and Jason.

It's a horse race, y'all!

 

[Icey]

Ross' sp at skate canada autumn classic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGbbOMjp4JA

 

[mrrice]

That is so cool!

Thanks, Mathman. The best part was traveling the world and meeting people from places I'd only seen on TV.



"She lived her whole life as if a child were watching" (Christine Brennan on Michelle Kwan). Still does.

This is why people still miss her to this day. I never saw her live but, I certainly saw the standing ovations and the smiles on the faces of the audience.

 

[TMC]

Wow, it's like Ross Miner and Richard Dornbush progressed about 3 years over the off-season! They have always been good, but the difference this year - and so early into the season - is huge!

Such polish and smoothness.

The US Nationals are going to be awesome this year

On second thought, they are going to be awesome and heartbreaking

 

[katmari]

Here's a new icenetwork article about Jason by Amy Rosewater:

http://web.icenetwork.com/news/2014/10/16/98615658

Regarding the quad:

He spent much of the offseason working on both the quad Salchow and the quad toe.

 

[ice coverage]

Here's a new icenetwork article about Jason by Amy Rosewater:

http://web.icenetwork.com/news/2014/10/16/98615658

Regarding the quad:

He spent much of the offseason working on both the quad Salchow and the quad toe.

Thx, katmari. The article also reiterates that prematurely adding Jason's quad in competition is not going to happen. (Wisely so, IMO.)

"It's the same process as what I went through with the triple Axel," Brown said. 'We're taking baby steps. It took about 3 1/2 years to get the triple Axel. Once [the quad] is there, it's going to be consistent." .....

"I understand the whole quad frenzy," Brown said. "But we are starting another quadrennium now, so I just need to get [it] integrated in the program through the next four years."​

~~~~~~~~~~~

BTW, today the ISU posted its preview of the GP series.

http://www.isu.org/en/single-and-pa...isu-grand-prix-of-figure-skating-2014-preview​

The emphasis of its "name-dropping" is on medalists from ISU championships -- so no mention of Jason or Jeremy in connection with Skate America. Only Machida, Ten, Radionova, and Kavaguti/Smirnov.
I'm not saying that that Jason and Jeremy have no shot at the Skate America podium. Just offering a little reality check that the level of Jason fever depends on one's perspective.

Jeremy is the only U.S. man mentioned in the ISU preview at all -- in the part about NHK.

 

[supsu]

Has this been posted here?
http://www.examiner.com/article/why-japanese-fans-love-jeremy-abbott

I thought all Jeremy haters should read it.

Anyways, in my perfect world everyone would always land all their jumps and perform to the best. And Jason, Jeremy & Joshua would be in top 3 at nationals. Their skating touches my heart. : And Dornbush.

 

[silverfoxes]

Has this been posted here?
http://www.examiner.com/article/why-japanese-fans-love-jeremy-abbott

I thought all Jeremy haters should read it.

Anyways, in my perfect world everyone would always land all their jumps and perform to the best. And Jason, Jeremy & Joshua would be in top 3 at nationals. Their skating touches my heart. : And Dornbush.

Not everybody who dislikes Jeremy does so because of his inconsistency. Tomas Verner is one of my favorite skaters, and he was just as much of a headcase. Though I wouldn't say I "hate" Jeremy. I simply don't care for his style at all...too mopey and emo for my taste (both in his skating & his interviews). Still, he has the right to skate as long as he wants, and if it makes his fans happy, so be it.

Of the US senior men, I like Jason, Adam, & Alexander Johnson the best, but I still can't count any of them among my favorites.

 

[Mathman]

Has this been posted here?

http://www.examiner.com/article/why-japanese-fans-love-jeremy-abbott

Thanks for the link. Very nice words abaout Jeremy from appreciative fans.

Sure, the Japanese love to have champions within their nation and everyone knows that they absolutely adore Mao Asada, Daisuke Takahashi and Hanyu Yuzuru, but they also place a lot of value on the character of the skaters themselves and what the athletes bring to the ice.

This is certainly true, and explains why Mao Asada never abandoned her triple Axel or Daisuke Takahashi his quad, even if they might have achieved a higher score without them.

 

[Violet Bliss]

Thanks for the link. Very nice words abaout Jeremy from appreciative fans.

Japanese fans appreciate skaters for different reasons. Kevin Reynolds is popular there and has his own fan club, as is Patrick Chan even though he's been the chief rival of the Japanese stars.

This is certainly true, and explains why Mao Asada never abandoned her triple Axel or Daisuke Takahashi his quad, even if they might have achieved a higher score without them.

Jeremy has been equally stubborn about keeping his quad in competition and has paid a bigger price than others because he had poor recovery and the rest of the program got badly affected when he fell on the quad. I think he has learned from his Olympic experience and gained mental strength which he wants to put to test this season. He still has something to prove. I wish him success.

 

[80sskatergirl]

Oh My God, Ross !!!!!!!

I just watched his short program from the Skate Canada Autumn Classic. I would never have picked the vocal version of " The way we were " for a male skater. However, the instrumental version he selected was great.

He's much more fluid in his upper body this year but, he still needs some more ballet to accent his wonderful and classic skating skills. He has great speed and he seems to be really connected to his music and program. He's well costumed and looks great. I'm so happy for him and I hope he has a great season.

Thanks for posting such a well written and positive statement about Ross. I'm so sick of hearing that he's "boring". There's nothing boring about his skating; it's classic and wonderful. Of course I"m a little Ross obsessed though!

 

[80sskatergirl]

Joshua's short

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sT0SgNvjh74

I guess the fault is with me (almost hope it is), but so many of the programs I have seen thus far are so flat , boring even. Interesting catch foot sit spin.

Glad he is using his Schindler's list again.

Just watched Josh's short program per your link. It's divine! I'm expecting great things from Josh this year....and that Schindler's program is breathtaking.