My Skate America experience..

[Emma7639]

I'm on the computer in my hotel room and was so excited that I had to come on and type this up and let you know how exciting my day was. And I'm warning you that I'm a 16 year old girl so there may possible be girl speak in this.

So I saw the Ladies SP and Mens LP.

Today was pretty much unbelievably amazing. The ladies did so well. I love Mira Leung.. she’s so cute! And Binshu was great as well. Caroline did great! She had tons of emotion(something I did not really see before this) and her 3-3 was clean and tight and perfect(minus that horrible sideways kick she does with her picking leg). Every time she landed a jump we went nuts! She got a huge grin on her face after every time. Her spins are really amazing. Emily looks like she’s lost a little weight, and I hate how she had a bun, but whatever. I can’t quite remember but I think she did well. I remember WTFing at her low score. Um, Kimmie now..Kimmie’s dress is weird.. but she did awesome. All through the warmup she was only landing double and single lutzes(her combo was a 3lutz-3toe) and I was thinking oh crap. But then she pulled out a clean 3lutz-3toe during her program. I’m thinking she along with Caroline had a perfectly clean program and we gave them both stand ovations. I thought this was cute, during the warmup people would be like, YEAH KIMMMIIIIE and every time, she got the cutest smirky smile on her face. She is just so humble and down to earth, it’s really amazing. The same thing happened when we screamed like crazy because she landed a jump. Miki I think was way overscored.. I don’t think she deserved the high marks she got but whatever.. Her artistry is not very good and I think she had one or two messups on jumps and I was WTFing at how she was placed in front of Caroline. Weird..

The men’s long was boring for the first 4 or 5 skaters probably because I didn’t know any of the people. Ryan did very very well. He’s adorable. HAHA oh and after his program and he was in the kiss and cry, these 12 year old girls high pitched voices yelled WE LOVE YOU RYAN and this other group of girls was like WE LOVE YOU MORE RYAN and then after a few seconds you hear WE LOVE YOU RYANNNN coming from very low voices LMAO it was a couple of the middle aged men up in the higher seats. His reaction was the funniest thing ever. Wow. I don’t know if you saw that on icenetwork but it was hilarious. Stephen did well, Evan was awesome as usual. Clean program, lots of WE LOVE YOU EVANs. I love watching him live. Oh did I mention I’m going to marry Patrick Chan? How freaking cute is he? And it helps that he did AMAZING tonight. Absolutely phenomenal. I’d never heard of him before today, but holy crap he is hot. AND HE’S ONLY TWO MONTHS OLDER THAN ME! haha. Woowwwww. He got a standing O as well. He looked so humbled. It was really sweet actually. He was very happy that we were so proud of him. And Daiske fell twice but still got first because he is a BEAST. I think he did a 3axel-3toe. Really great job from all of the top 6. Except Preaubert.. he was so boring. No one clapped at all during his program I think because we were all drained(ironic because his music is from Dracula.. lol) from the music.

Men’s victory ceremony was interesting. It takes so long to set up! I didn’t know that. Then they took pictures and went around the rink once and then took more pictures and then were signing autographs at the corner of the rink where they normally would have gotten off. I was on the other end so I ran all the way down the arena and got into the mix but Evan and Daiske already left by the time I made it down to the front, but Patrick.. oh man I love him. He was taking pictures and signing and making conversation with all the little girls. And he turned to me and was like HI and I’m like HI. and there was this mother who was like OH PATRICK can you sign Kelly’s book and take a picture with her? and he was like sure. and he said to me, “I’ll get back to you in a second” and I was like no problem. and the mom was like thanks so much and he said, “It’s fine. This is all because of you guys so I’m so grateful.” *SQUEEE* So he did that with the girl and his coach or someone came over and said to him, “I know you want to sign more autographs but you have to wrap it up soon because you have to go to the press conference. Then I was like oh crap. So he finished with the woman’s two daughters and came back to me and was like sorry. And I said you did so well tonight it was amazing and he took my mini sharpie and signed my program. I love his signature. lmao. Then he went and signed 3 more things and I was like, yeah he has my sharpie <3 and then he said to me, “I’m sorry, I stole your pen.” And I said, “Oh it’s not a problem, that’s fine with me.” and he laughed and then gave it back and I said thanks again. And then he was going to go over to the other corner and sign this girl’s skates and the same woman yelled to him that he had to leave and he yelled “I’m sorry I have a press conference” but then saw the little girl look upset so he gave the woman a look like, I have to go over there and he signed the skate. So so so so nice. He would have stayed out there for 3 hours if they would have let him.

So we get to the hotel and we pass Daisuke and another Japanese skater, not sure who. And then I want to walk through the hotel down to the lobby and front of the hotel because I know that there will be skaters hanging around. So we go and decide to ask someone where a Wendy’s is that we could go to. We passed Tanith, Evan, and Ryan on our way down. One kid thought I was a skater because I was wearing a jacket that said figure skating on it.. LMAO. Then we went back and passed Miki, Ryan, Evan, Stephen going back through. We go out and got food then came back through the back way that was closer to our room, and who is standing outside our room eating ice cream? Daisuke. Daisuke Takahashi is eating ice cream outside of my room. So then I was like.. holy crap. And I left my pillow in the car so I go back out, come in and pass Mai Asada who is next door to my room, and Daisuke is now sitting in the corner eating ice cream. LOL. Then I was a stalker for the next 20 minutes with my ear to the door and my eye in the little eye lookout place and saw Evan, Yasuhari and Kevin pass by. HAHA.

I am having so much fun just walking around up and down the hallway. It looks like I'm just pacing around texting someone but I'm really being a stalker. I said hey to Evan and Hi to Daisuke(his room is right across from mine) but I haven't seen Patrick yet. Or any of the girls but they're probably all sleeping because they're not done yet.

Today was awesome.

ETA: Mai > Mao. kthnxbye.

I cannot wait for tomorrow.

 

[lilybear]

Great experience,Emma!
I'm looking forward to more content!

 

[leode]

Thanks for the report, Emma7639!!:agree:

Daisuke Takahashi is eating ice cream outside of my room. LOL. Then I was a stalker for the next 20 minutes with my ear to the door and my eye in the little eye lookout place and saw Evan, Yasuhari and Kevin pass by. HAHA.

Hahaha, that's very interesting! You've got a great experience at "Skate America", today. I envy you, Emma7639.
I'd like to know your impression about Ladies FS and exhibition tomorrow.

 

[Emma7639]

I will definitely give you guys another update. I'll be attending maybe the 2nd half of ice dance( I dont know much about it and don't really follow it but I like Davis & White and Belbin & Agosto so yeah.) But I will write down some notable things tomorrow because I forgot a lot of cute or funny things that happened tonight.. so yeah. Oh, Evan just walked by again. lmao this is fun. THey're hanging out outside my room. Evan and Ryan and Daisuke. good times being a stalker.. good times.

 

[bibi]

ETA: Mai > Mao. kthnxbye.

What do you mean with that? I know what ETA means but don't understand the sens of your statement. Does Mao was with Mai?

 

[terpskate4ever]

Thanks for sharing this with us Emma7639!

Hi, Emma7639! Thanks for sharing your cute and awesome experience from SA with us! I got Evan's, Patrick's, and Daisuke's autographs and took pictures with the last two when they came out of their press conference after the men's final which was quite late last night, but you're so lucky to live right by them for these last couple of days! Wow, I really admire you!!! This must be so fun!! By the way, what hotel are you/they staying in? Can you tell us? He he.

 

[Mathman]

Amazing report, Emma! You totally

 

[Emma7639]

Mai>Mao means that I think that Mai is better than Mao.

I'm staying at the Sheraton. Last night there were just skaters EVERYWHERE, it was insane. I mean it was freaking awesome.

 

[demarinis5]

Thank you Emma for the refreshing report. As I was reading your post I could
feel your excitement. I am anxiously awaiting your next report.

 

[dutchherder]

Just got home from my trip to Skate America! It was great! I attended the Saturday events: original dance, ladies' short, pairs long, and men's long. It rained the whole 8 hours it took to drive to Reading, so we didn't really get to see any sights, except of course what we saw when we were driving around trying to find the hotel. We had pretty good seats in section 102, row G. They were so good someone else was sitting in them when we got there, but we got it straightened out. Here are some of my impressions:

Dance:

I love Davis and White, but they looked a little slow and their program lacked spark. I hope they tune it up as the season progresses. Belbin and Agosto looked great. They seemed very well rehearsed and had more personality in the program than everyone else. Faiella and Scali were a really pleasant surprise. They seemed uber confident and well trained. The French team-- Pechalat and Bourzat (sp?)-- were good also. Last year, I enjoyed Navarro and Bommentre's programs, but their OD left me cold. The costumes are just silly-- lots of fake skin and feathers. Navarro also receives the "nearly naked ice dancer" award. The Zaretskis were interesting. Alexandra's middle eastern costume jingled as she skated. During this portion hubby was mostly interested in the cheesy pretzel he bought. The other dancers were sort of blah.

Pairs:

*Lots* of falls in the first group. I really enjoyed Trombley and Ibarra. They have a LONG way to go to be near the top, but they are very appealing when they skate. Laureano Ibarra looks like he could lift a Mack truck-- and I mean that in a good way. Bazarova and Larionov received pretty good scores as I recall, but I didn't really find them super interesting. Bazarova looks like she's 12. Evora and Ladwig were the most lyrical of all the pairs I saw. You could hear other people sitting around me sighing and saying things like, "Isn't that lovely?" or "Wow, that was pretty". Their music suited them very well; it was light and lovely. Amanda Evora's costume was very pretty: icy blue and pale purple. Their lifts are unique without looking too complicated and contrived. Their transition out of one of their lifts was pretty shaky, though. If they could just be consistent with their throw and sbs jumps, they could be a force to reckon with. I was prepared to be blown away by Pang and Tong, and I just wasn't. They were really having an off night. Lots of elements were shaky and they didn't connect well with the audience. Dube and Davison really deserved their win. Their program had lots of passion and power. There's one pair spin in particular where she has her hands on the sides of his face while looking him right in the eye that was really effective. After the pairs medal ceremony, they were the only pair who came to our side of the rink to sign autographs. They both autographed my program. Bryce jokingly said to Jessica: "We can't go around the *whole* rink, Jess". You can definitely still see Jessica's scar up close, and wow, was she lucky that that blade wasn't a 1/4 inch higher. I was really impressed with how nice they were. Hubby actually watched this portion.

Ladies:

First, I almost didn't recognize Emily Hughes. She had her hair up in a bun, and it really changed her look. I'm not sure what everyone is seeing when they call her heavy because she's just not, and she doesn't "skate heavy" either. If you want to see someone who lands jumps like a truckload of bricks, go see Alban Preaubert. Anyway, off my soapbox. Lots of mistakes in the first group of girls. I don't know what has happened to Elene Gedevanishvili, but her skate was disastrous-- it's really a shame. Caroline Zhang's debut was great. She had a standing "O" before she even finished the program. "The Pearl" really is amazing in person. She didn't look a bit nervous. Emily Hughes' skate was relatively solid, but not very exciting either. Her red dress was very becoming on her, though. Miki Ando looked a bit tentative and the combination of colors in her dress is icky. She skated pretty well, except that she fell during her footwork sequence! She looked like she might have been in pain when she skated over to the K & C, but was soon smiling. They showed her coach's reactions to her fall on the big screen and there was a pretty good chuckle from the crowd. Kimmie Meissner-- wow!!! She has certainly grown up! She looked like a woman when she skated, and she really seemed to skate to the music quite well. She connected with the audience better than any of the other girls, which quite surprised me because I always felt that was a weakness of hers. She literally looked at people in the audience and smiled while she was skating. She doesn't appear to be doing the hyperextended elbow thing anymore either. Hubby's reaction to the ladies: when they showed Kimmie on the big screen, he said, "I think she's really a pretty girl."

Men: When the first group of men came out for their warmup, my first reaction was that they all looked tiny and young except for Ryan Bradley. Since he was wearing a tie and vest as his costume, he almost looked like their teacher. Kevin Reynolds especially looks like he's 11 or 12 years old. His over-the-top costume accentuated that, I believe. The two young Japanese men landed some pretty impressive jumps, but unfortunately, I think they left them in the warmup. Flyin' Ryan landed some gorgeous jumps in the warmup also. One triple axel was so high the crowd gasped. His skate was by far the best of the first group, but he really needs to add some difficulty to his programs and new positions to his spins. He was adorable in the kiss and cry, and all around me, ladies young and old were saying "He's so cute!" He had three different shouts of "I love you, Ryan" from the crowd, the third being from a group of men, which got everyone laughing. Andrei Lutai seemed to have lots of fans in the crowd, and following his skate, two teenaged girls from my section went to the boards to hand him a couple of stuffed animals. He waved at them, but refused to skate over to them twice until people booed a little, at which point he skated over and accepted them with a smile. When the final group of men took the ice, they zoomed around at breakneck speed, and it all looked like very serious business. I didn't recognize Stephen Carriere at first because his hair is longer and he's bulked up some since last season. His jumps had lots of power, but the landings weren't always consistent. Daisuke Takahashi's costume is *really* purple. I mean really purple. Takahashi's jumps are incredible. He rotates so fast in the air, it looks like a really fast scratch spin. Carriere's program was very interesting, but it still needs some work. It could be a really great program by the end of the season. The footwork section looks really tough, don't know what the levels are, though. Patrick Chan was very impressive. He's got it all, and the top men better look out for 2010. Evan's program is just as fiery as last year's, and he looked really elegant in black pants and a cream colored shirt. He also had a standing "O" and the crowd was roaring so loudly during the final footwork sequence, that one couldn't hear the music anymore. It was a great first outing. Takahashi had a tough skate, falling twice. Luckily for him, he was so far ahead after the short program.

While I was waiting for the men's medals ceremony, a very attractive young young lady walked in front of us and said "Excuse me". It was Tanith Belbin! She was walking over to talk to a lady in the stands a few feet from me. I inched my way over there, and when she was finished talking, I said, "Tanith, I'm sorry to bother you, but could I get your autograph?" She said, "Oh, it's no problem!" and signed right away. I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone that pretty close up. Wow! After the men's medal ceremony, the medalists skated by and Evan Lysacek gave high fives to the people at the boards on my side. They all signed autographs for the people seated over by the kiss and cry, but none of them came over to the other side of the rink like Dube and Davison did. They did, however, sign quite a few on the other side. In fact, Patrick Chan was still signing when hubby and I left.

Whew! Sorry to go on and on, but it was my first live competition, and I was so excited!!!

 

[Mathman]

Thanks for the first hand report, Dutchherder. I love reading these posts, since I couldn't go myself.

 

[emma]

You are so lucky to see this live!!! Thanks so much for sharing this awesome report, it makes me feel like I was there!!! I'm glad you enjoyed it.

 

[Tinymavy15]

thanks for your report a fun read!

 

[lilybear]

I envy you,dutchherder and Emma!!!

 

[Emma7639]

Okay Tanith Belbin’s FD dress is GORGEOUS. And how the heck does she get her hair to stay so perfect? Before the program it’s perfect, after, it’s perfect. WTH? France’s FD program scared me.. haha.

Ladies FS: Okay let me start by saying that Miki is way more enjoyable in person than on tv recordings. Elene was in the lead for a while.. I was really surprised. Um, obviously it was clear that the top 3 was going to be Miki, Kimmie and Caroline, I just didn’t know what order. I think the way it came out was perfect, although I think Caroline’s program component score was little bit too high. I don’t think that any of the ladies had a clean program tonight. I know Kimmie had a touchdown and a popped jump and so did Miki. Uhh Caroline was the closest to clean, she had a touchdown on one of the jumps but otherwise did well. She has absolutely no transitions though. She’s still very much a junior skater, but I think with more experience she’ll get better. And will someone PLEASE fix her flip and lutz techniques?! That kick is driving me insane during what would otherwise be a beautiful performance. I rock at math so I realized that Kimmie beat Miki before everyone else so you can hear a lone WOOOOOOOOOOOO scream after the program component score was announced. And then again after the total FS score. And then everyone realized, but only after they said she was in 1st. Silly nonmath friendly people.

Oh I liked Navarro and Brommentere’s EX. It was Sexyback but I liked it way more than Tanith and Ben’s version. Kim is extremely beautiful, and not awkward looking when she does hiphop, whereas Tanith makes me cringe a little, though gorgeous. So there were 3 performances to Sexyback… a little overload for me.. but all were good programs. Evan did his Boston routine again. Bleh. Pang and Tong did their same EX to, well I know it as Anytime, Anywhere.. but yeah. Um.. Emily skated to I’ll Stand by You sung by Carrie Underwood and I actually loved it.. I didn’t like her skating during the competition, but this program was lovely. She had a nice black dress on and a bun(GAHH.) Miki skated to Hurt and I actually loved it! She had so much emotion and passion in her performance and I was really proud of her. Caroline did awesome, as expected. Patrick had a less than perfect performance but I still love him. Kimmie’s dress was a gorgeous shade of hot pink, and a really pretty dress. She skated to Keep Holding On but that’s okay with me because it’s the spokessong for the Cool Kids Campaign.. so that’s cool. France team were mummys. Weird. Again. Oh at the end when all the individual skaters do like one element, Kimmie did her spin and all of a sudden realized Miki was coming so she was like oops and like ran out of the way.. and laughed.. it was so cute. Daisuke did that too. He tried a quad I think and fell out of it and then Evan came and was going to do a lutz and he was like oh crap and skated out of the way quickly. At the very very end they had a bunch of Frisbees and shirts and stuff and all the skaters signed like 2 or 3 of them and threw them into the crowd, and Patrick and Ryan were competing for the most cheers and then Ryan threw his and Patrick was trying to be all cool but he ended up throwing the Frisbee back onto the ice accidently, so then Evan and Ryan literally ran and raced to get it and Ryan grabbed it and was like, skipping around with it and then threw it into the audience, and AGAIN it fell onto the ice. So Evan grabbed it and just handed it to someone.. haha. I caught a Tanith Frisbee but I gave it to the lady next to me because I already have Tanith’s autograph. It was a good night and a great weekend. I’m happy overall.