Ashley Wagner on The Skating Lesson | Golden Skate

Ashley Wagner on The Skating Lesson

minze

Medalist
Joined
Dec 22, 2012
I have ti give up to ashley and jenny and Dave the interview was excellent and honest
 

FlattFan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jan 4, 2010
Wow, this cuckoo thought she was gonna go to World in 2010 because she did good enough at Nats?
Didn't she realize there were only 2 spots, and the US Fed needed to regain 3 desperately. She thought it was a slap in the face by the US Federation. Well, looks like the US Federation and I wanted the same thing, only I didn't get to do it.

And all who criticized her are crazy cat ladies. How original!
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
Wow, this cuckoo thought she was gonna go to World in 2010 because she did good enough at Nats?
Didn't she realize there were only 2 spots, and the US Fed needed to regain 3 desperately. She thought it was a slap in the face by the US Federation. Well, looks like the US Federation and I wanted the same thing, only I didn't get to do it.

And all who criticized her are crazy cat ladies. How original!

I don't think it's an unreasonable proposition. Granted, it's been a long, long time, but the U.S. Fed has split assignments before. The most high-profile example of this is in 1992 when they opted to send Paul Wylie to the Olympics and Mark Mitchell to Worlds.
 
Joined
Aug 16, 2009
I don't think it's an unreasonable proposition. Granted, it's been a long, long time, but the U.S. Fed has split assignments before. The most high-profile example of this is in 1992 when they opted to send Paul Wylie to the Olympics and Mark Mitchell to Worlds.

And wow, what an inspired choice that turned out to be. The minute I read your post, I started hearing "Henry V" in my mind. That decision led to one of the great moments in American Olympic skating history. While it would have been nice to see Paul at Worlds, he might or might not have risen to those heights again, and this way he could retire with complete satisfaction, clutching his Olympic silver, while Mark Mitchell got his chance in the world arena.

I suppose this time around they could have sent Ashley to Worlds, but considering that both Mirai and Rachael had done stunningly at the Olympics, the USFSA probably felt pretty secure with their decision. Too bad the two of them didn't get equivalent results at Worlds.
 

jenaj

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 17, 2003
Country
United-States
Wow, this cuckoo thought she was gonna go to World in 2010 because she did good enough at Nats?
Didn't she realize there were only 2 spots, and the US Fed needed to regain 3 desperately. She thought it was a slap in the face by the US Federation. Well, looks like the US Federation and I wanted the same thing, only I didn't get to do it.

And all who criticized her are crazy cat ladies. How original!

She said the ones who criticized her legs were probably crazy cat ladies. The US Federation could have at least made her an alternate for Worlds. Did they?
 

Sk8Boi

Match Penalty
Joined
Feb 17, 2010
I am liking the guests on The Skating Lesson for interviews, and I enjoy Jenny Kirk. The overweight, googlie-eyed dark-haired boy in the middle is kind of amateur, kind of annoying and clearly doesn't seem to really know skating. It seems he is there to try and get gossip/filler to appeal to the crazy cat ladies Ashley mentioned.

Overall, a good interview from Ashley.
 

FlattFan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jan 4, 2010
She said the ones who criticized her legs were probably crazy cat ladies. The US Federation could have at least made her an alternate for Worlds. Did they?

I thought they did.
Anyway, I don't recall anyone ever criticized her legs. Do you?
 

kwanatic

Check out my YT channel, Bare Ice!
Record Breaker
Joined
May 19, 2011
I thought the interview was great. Very honest and candid and not at all princessy or pageanty. I loved her digs at Sasha Cohen! :laugh: The comment about her rolling around on the ice to Big Spender and her going all "Bambi" at nationals (I LOLed at that one!).

I really enjoyed that interview and I can't wait to see the 2nd part. I hope they ask her about the split with Philip Mills, what it was like to skate at worlds this year, and what she thinks of Gracie Gold and all of the hype that surrounds her.
 

gmyers

Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
I am liking the guests on The Skating Lesson for interviews, and I enjoy Jenny Kirk. The overweight, googlie-eyed dark-haired boy in the middle is kind of amateur, kind of annoying and clearly doesn't seem to really know skating. It seems he is there to try and get gossip/filler to appeal to the crazy cat ladies Ashley mentioned.

Overall, a good interview from Ashley.

Hilarious description of professional ***** David lease!!!
 
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Ruffles78

On the Ice
Joined
Oct 17, 2011
I am liking the guests on The Skating Lesson for interviews, and I enjoy Jenny Kirk. The overweight, googlie-eyed dark-haired boy in the middle is kind of amateur, kind of annoying and clearly doesn't seem to really know skating. It seems he is there to try and get gossip/filler to appeal to the crazy cat ladies Ashley mentioned.

Overall, a good interview from Ashley.

Well, it's good to know that I'm clearly a fat ***

I thought the interview was great, I hope during the second part they go in depth with her current coaching and choreography situation, and maybe talk a little about her new programs.
 
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TheCzar

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 30, 2013
I actually started to like Ashley a little bit more. In fact, I thought it was great when she said she gets the worst from her mother which, really does make Jenny and Dave's digs a little more trivial when put into perspective. I thought it was insightful and candid and exactly what you need to get from these athletes (see her honest thoughts on Sasha Cohen). They're not all pretty packages and media-trained, which is a little bit frustrating about the Asian skaters- they are limited and constricted by an imposed diplomacy sense and cultural propriety. We need the raw and the real.

I agree that Dave is a little bit of a brown noser-meets-know it all sometimes but I guess he's just such a big fan of the sport that with all the research and his connections, it can be a little overbearing. Jenny on the other hand (when a little more focused) is gold. She is definitely the better of the two, which is funny because Dave is the supposed journalist!

Going back to Ashley, I'm glad that she kept the necessary vanity and her self-awareness relative to her degree of talent and the situation at the time. She never said she was as great or on par with the top international girls (in fact she was well aware of the fact that most of the audience weren't there for her), but she also knew well enough she deserved more than what she got with regards to being sent to Junior Worlds.

Bring on part 2!
 

FlattFan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jan 4, 2010
but she also knew well enough she deserved more than what she got with regards to being sent to Junior Worlds.

This is why it's shocking!
Why did she deserve Sr. Worlds? Under what planet? She was third, was not clean, was not better than the other two.

Her self-entitlement is extremely high.

This was why I was turned off by her when I met her. She gave off this air that she deserved this and that. Her interview just showed exactly what I was talking about.
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
This is why it's shocking!
Why did she deserve Sr. Worlds? Under what planet? She was third, was not clean, was not better than the other two.

Her self-entitlement is extremely high.

This was why I was turned off by her when I met her. She gave off this air that she deserved this and that. Her interview just showed exactly what I was talking about.

YMMV, I guess. I don't get that vibe from her at all. When I met her at Skate America, she was quite friendly and gracious.

From where I stand, someone who is willing to move across the country and start over to achieve one's goal is the exact opposite of being entitled.

I haven't seen that part of the interview yet regarding her views on the Fed's decision, so I'll refrain from commenting on that for now.
 

FlattFan

Match Penalty
Joined
Jan 4, 2010
From where I stand, someone who is willing to move across the country and start over to achieve one's goal is the exact opposite of being entitled.

Of course this someone isn't entitled.
But someone who did not finish top 2, made several visible errors, and whined about not getting a ticket to World even after 4 years, that's entitlement.

I was turned off by her chattering with her friend at the concession stand. I didn't intend to eavesdrop on them, but what they said were quite annoying. I'm sure if you talk to her directly, she wouldn't be rude or crazy. I just happened to saw her in her element.

Anyway, I don't hate her. I think she's fine, doing her job as one of the top US girls at the moment.
 

jaylee

Medalist
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
I don't think it's an unreasonable proposition. Granted, it's been a long, long time, but the U.S. Fed has split assignments before. The most high-profile example of this is in 1992 when they opted to send Paul Wylie to the Olympics and Mark Mitchell to Worlds.

They split assignments in 2006, when they sent Michelle Kwan to the Olympics, but assigned Emily Hughes the Worlds team spot. However, what ended up happening was Michelle withdrew from the Olympics so Emily went to both.
 

jenaj

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 17, 2003
Country
United-States
I thought they did.
Anyway, I don't recall anyone ever criticized her legs. Do you?

No, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen. I wouldn't take offense at what she said. There are some people who make uncalled-for attacks on skaters' weight and looks. On You Tube, in particular, there are a lot of crazy trolls who say very nasty things about skaters. For a while, there was a rash of racist comments about Michelle Kwan on her videos. I think You Tube finally banned the offenders.
 

minze

Medalist
Joined
Dec 22, 2012
I was pleasantly surprised by how self aware Ashley is. She know her flaws as an skater and has work on them. I like how she did not pretend and say I skate only for the experience, she wants to win, as every skater. Ashley is not my favorite, but if she put in the work and was rewarded for it good for her.
 

R.D.

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
I suppose this time around they could have sent Ashley to Worlds, but considering that both Mirai and Rachael had done stunningly at the Olympics, the USFSA probably felt pretty secure with their decision. Too bad the two of them didn't get equivalent results at Worlds.

Her candor was great and refreshing in this interview.
Finally time to take the kid gloves off and get to see how these skaters really think.

As for Worlds that year, the major black mark against her (IMO) was how poorly she did in 2008. I think it would have actually been a mistake to send Wagner to 2010 worlds over either Nagasu or Flatt (considering the latter's 5th place finish last year). Too bad Nagasu tanked but at least she stayed in the top 10. But it's completely understandable that Wagner "felt" that she might have deserved the trip based on her results that season and THAT'S the type of honesty I appreciate from skaters. Whether I agree or not is beside the point- I just respect them more for coming out and saying it.

I agree that Dave is a little bit of a brown noser-meets-know it all sometimes but I guess he's just such a big fan of the sport that with all the research and his connections, it can be a little overbearing. Jenny on the other hand (when a little more focused) is gold. She is definitely the better of the two, which is funny because Dave is the supposed journalist!

Yeah, not a fan of his at all. I'll be honest- his "tabloid" type style of talking/reporting is a complete turnoff and sours TSL in my eyes. I'll give him a little credit though- he does ask good questions of the guests on occasion.

It seems he is there to try and get gossip/filler to appeal to the crazy cat ladies Ashley mentioned.

:laugh: It is so funny she mentioned that...because I think THAT's the exact audience this type of show targets! It's like, "in your face!!"

This was why I was turned off by her when I met her. She gave off this air that she deserved this and that. Her interview just showed exactly what I was talking about.

Wagner? Anyway she comes across to me as confident without being cocky. She knows what she wants, isn't afraid to admit it (for the most part), and goes for it.

Yes, there were sections of the interview that bored me. Mainly because I'm just not into the gossip stuff (and frankly she fits right in with the two of them- this is not a diss) . But the parts about why she made the choices she did were quite revealing, I thought, and made the interview worth watching/sitting through.

I found myself wishing I was there so I could ask her some follow-up questions of my own...hopefully Jenny and/or Dave think to ask at least some of them in part 2...
 

aftertherain

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 15, 2010
I agree that Dave is a little bit of a brown noser-meets-know it all sometimes but I guess he's just such a big fan of the sport that with all the research and his connections, it can be a little overbearing. Jenny on the other hand (when a little more focused) is gold. She is definitely the better of the two, which is funny because Dave is the supposed journalist!

According to the TSL official website, both Dave and Jenny have degrees in Journalism. He seemed to have majored in Journalism while Jenny majored in Broadcast Journalism.
 
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