Where have all the skaters gone?

[CoyoteChris]

Actually, though, that is not the questipn that this article asks. The article does not compare USA to Russia, except tangentially. It compares USA in 2021 tp USA in the 1990s.

Figure skating was not exactly embedded in the US sports consciousness back then, either, but it had a period of relative prosperity and popularity. Then it didn't.

Why not? I have to punt on that one. Dunno. Cultural drift, changing tastes in entertainment.

As for all the plans to have more skating on the Internet, etc., the problem is, you can't force someone to like what he or she doesn't like. You can't force people to take an interest in something that does not interest them. Btring back Michelle Kwan, bring back 6.0 judging, hire a raftload of marketting geniuses, etc., etc. -- I don't think it would make any difference at all.That was then, this is now.

Figure skating and the country was way different, I still maintain. And skating had way more than a relative popularity...I was watching "Rise" on Peacock the other night and saw the smoking ad....brought back alot of memories...Sonja Henie's tutu! There were a number of glory times since the days of Sonja....the people at the shows and many at events didnt understand the 6.0 system and didnt care. They were there for the show. And if people like something, and watch it, there is money to be made in advertising..... (lots of skating commericals on google image for these periods) I think there are lots of US citizens here that are not old enough to remember the PRO skating shows on the Telly...the one with 3 channels if you were lucky....

 

[CoyoteChris]

I am pleased that the United States is active in space exploration. Bringing together the scientific expertise, not to mention the money -- that is a notable accomplishment.

China launched an exploratory rocket to Mars last July. Just this month it sailed into orbit around that planet and started sending back data. That is an impressive and welcome enterprise, too.

I do not hope that the Chinese rocket blows up. I do not feel any impulse that the United States must now send a rocket to Jupiter to prove that we are smarter than the Chinese. (The name of the Chinese rocket is the Long March (5). The U.S. could counter with the "George Washington Crosses the Delaware (10)" -- that'll show 'em who's boss! )

Iappo makes a nice point about feeling proud that my tax dollars helped to make the U.S. space [rogram possible. True, but it's not like i had any choice about paying taxes -- in fact, many Americans grumble that their tax money could be better spent at home than in the far-flung rehgions of the solar system. As for providing funding for figure skaters, an individual could make a private contribution without filtering the money through the governmant -- then they would be justified in feeling proud of the subsequent success of the skater they sponsored.

I think there are 6 US Mars missions, 2 from the EU, and one each from China, India, and the UAE (CBS Sunday Morning, 1-21-21) I am proud of the US....after seeing those vids....and yes, I am glad my small number of tax dollar go there. Actually, at this time of life, we do have a choice to pay taxes or not....its a matter of how well you want to live...I chose to live well but I still dont pay much in taxes.....but I would like those dollars I pay to go to skating and the space program. And if you gave enough money to skating, it becomes deductible at some point. As for the Chinese rocket....well....I am just glad Marvin is on our side! (Or at least he was till that heat shield almost hit him!)

 

[kolyadafan2002]

I think something this article fails to mention is how difficult it gets when you come to your first roadblock and how people can be easily discouraged.
I somewhat agree with the author about elitism in figure skating, but even in countries where figure skating is relatively cheap (no more expensive than other sports) you see this, as its a terrible feeling if you've been stuck for a long time on a new jump/spin/skill. Sometimes, for some people it takes years to overcome a jump (especially if you lack great natural amplitude). During this time when you see others progress, you feel very demotivated and this can result in many quitting before even starting lower level competitions.

Of course the Elite aspect needs to be solved, but this is not the only reason skaters disappear at this time.

 

[sclloyd]

The main culprit is actually the lack of freely available figure skating content, for free. All significant figure skating content should be freely and easily available.

Figure skating is quite a special sport in that plenty of people who generally don't care at all for sports might watch it. These people would not buy cable sports packages and such and definitely wouldn't pay just to watch figure skating, but might watch it when it's available. This would increase the sport's audience and popularity and bring new talent into the sport. I think that this needs to be the starting point, it probably isn't very profitable to make the access easier when all that many people aren't even able to be introduced to the sport.

Unfortunately, all the marketing and monetization platforms seem to just be designed to milk the hardcore fanbase for what they're worth and aren't at all attempting to grow the sport's accessibility and popularity. It's no wonder that there's no new talent in the horizon when no young people get inspired to try, because they never saw it.

Shayuki is really the only one here with the proper take:

Paying for an NBC Gold Pass to listen to Tara Lipinski call combos triple-triples when I can watch it for free half an hour past live on Instagram without annoying commentary mixed into half the program so long as I know that the event is actually happening is never going to happen. This isn't the UFC. There are more than enough events throughout the season that you can air this stuff and make revenue off of advertisements. I understand part of the issue is that skating is back to back so the only time broadcasters do have to air ads are during re-icing, there is no way that Russia can commercialize their sport to massive success and the United States fails.

There are some other minor things to nitpick.

Sure there is some part of the US being good at things that tends to make it more successful (See Simone Biles and the gymnastics teams and the USWNT for soccer) but those two sports also have vastly wider popularity in general, and a massive legacy. Men's soccer is super popular here but no one wants to watch the US men's soccer team play because they aren't good. That doesn't mean we don't create good players, though, just that the management and team dynamic make the properly developed men's players seem worse than they are. The women's team is great, and not any less expensive nor structured any different than youth men's soccer.

I'd also like to point out some geographical constraints. Ice rinks just aren't popular in hot places unless it's a large metropolitan area, which excludes a BUNCH of the population. The city I'm in right now has more than half a million people in it, but the only ice rink here open for public skating shut down due to lack of popularity. You can play league hockey but you can't just show up and skate.

Do rinks in other countries have specific times that they're open to the public? I feel like skating would be a lot more popular here if you could show up any part of the day save a few intercessions for smoothing the ice. Or perhaps a private rink for practice and one open all day for the public. It's really limiting for people just starting out to immediately want to pay for six months of lessons when they've never been able to step foot on the ice because the only times to skate are 9AM on a weekday, and 10PM saturday and sunday. There aren't a lot of open gyms for gymnastics but you also don't need a gym to learn how to cartwheel or to find a trampoline.

And the process is just too disorganized. Do you have to pass levels in other countries? I remember wanting to compete. I got really good in a summer. And the "testing" format for USFS was sort of maddening. You can't just look up what you need to do to pass each level. You like... have to log into a USFS account. So if I'm new to skating and think "wow I progressed pretty well this summer, I wonder if I could compete this fall at a certain level" but you have to pay dues to even see the evaluation criteria? Don't even know what/when/where you can compete? It's just horrible organization.

 

[Bindy]

In my province in Canada, the 2 best skating club are private winter sports club. Membership fees are > $15,000 and $30,000 alone, non transferrable, and yearly fees on top of that are also steep. That is a lot of money. Granted the facilities are nice, there are nice restaurants there, etc.... but still. I'm just saying. It's a lot of money to spend. Plus, there are no NCAA scholarships for skating in the USA.

The running joke in my city is that the sports clubs are for the elite to mix with each other and where business deals are made.

Another Canadian here! I am still excited and inspired by Canadian skating. The Canadian skating team at the 2018 Olympics was amazing and successful, we have some wonderful training facilities, just think (Ice Dance, the most difficult of the events) Montreal where many elite skaters from around the world including the US train, or yes, the great facilities in Toronto and Vancouver, and other centres.

Canada has only about 10% of the population of the US. I see loads of kids at the rinks in CanSkate and figure skating lessons. Lessons for music (how much does a piano or violin cost?) and dance have always been expensive...I know my family sacrificed for all of us to have lessons. We never owned a car. It's about priorities. Most youth need to work if they want any of these experiences(or to attend university), and the rinks are full of young coaches who are training kids so they can train. It's the same with dance lessons. And what kind of fees do adults pay to feed their passions? Speaking of sacrifice, imagine what those Russian parents go through.

In her article she talks about girls attrition from skating at puberty. It's the same in all sports. That's when only those who truly love it, are willing to pay for it, or who have immense talent and aspirations stay on. Otherwise they are gone.

I wonder how truly popular skating has ever been in the US. Was it only the scandals that attracted fans during the height of it's popularity? That's pretty thin. Those of us who love music, movement, innovation, beauty, guts, passion, stories, determination and strength will remain fans. Support your skaters. Make donations. Encourage their talent. If being the Olympic gold medalist is the only goal, there are going to be thousands who fail. If they do it because they love it, and they love to entertain us, they will be happy and we will be too. Blah blah blah, I will shut up now.

 

[TallyT]

While American indifference to their men - no matter what the current top 3 do - seems to be an ongoing thing anyway, I wonder if it was further entrenched by the USFS and NBC going overboard in 2018 and pretty much promising at the top of their virtual voices that the OGM was Chen's and therefore theirs (rivals? pffft). I mean, the Olympics is the one time the public take a lot of notice of many mid-range sports and the coverage was almost comically entitled - put quite a few people off, but I could see any ordinary fan only seeing a massive build up and let down.

Therefore, even if the general sportsfannish public were or are aware of him, it might be as the skater who was supposed to win and didn't, not as the one whose got two worlds (which said public wouldn't even be aware of) since. I am not saying for one minute that he should be blamed for any of this, it's entirely on the fed and media.

Problem is, I can see the publicity deluge all happening again in 2022, because the one thing we can see is that officialdom never ever learns....

 

[gkelly]

I feel like skating would be a lot more popular here if you could show up any part of the day save a few intercessions for smoothing the ice. Or perhaps a private rink for practice and one open all day for the public.

Most rinks in the US, especially in less populated parts of the country, have a single ice surface.

The rink management earns a profit from precontracted rentals to hockey groups, from public sessions that reach at least, say, 20% of capacity (i.e., more skaters than would be allowed on a freestyle session for safety reasons, but at lower entry fees), and group lessons.

Practice sessions for figure skating are more likely to be money losers, but in most cases better than leaving the ice empty, and there are other advantages to working with a figure skating club.

Rink owners are generally in the business of making money, and figure skating programs have to negotiate ice times and prices that will accommodate both their members' needs and the rinks' requirements.

There would need to be at least one extra ice surface in order to run public sessions all day long and still have ice time available for hockey, figure skating, and group lessons. Locations that can support multisurface ice facilities will generally also be able to support participation by higher numbers of hockey teams and figure skaters, but not 10 times the number of casual users, so using only one rink for both those sports and leaving the other one open to casual public skaters all day long would generally not be an efficient use of ice time for the rink or the steady users.

Some cities -- usually in locations with moderately cold winters -- have outdoor winter rinks that are available to the public to walk on for most of the day. These ice surfaces tend to be much smaller than NHL let alone Olympic size.

That kind of seasonal rink can be useful for getting more members of the public onto the ice, but they're not useful for hockey or figure skating training.

More to the point, those rinks are generally not near and not affiliated with indoor rinks used for regular training.

There isn't one person or organization who could say "Let's make figure skating more popular by opening a rink that's open to the public all day long."

And the process is just too disorganized. Do you have to pass levels in other countries?

It depends on the country.

I remember wanting to compete. I got really good in a summer. And the "testing" format for USFS was sort of maddening. You can't just look up what you need to do to pass each level. You like... have to log into a USFS account. So if I'm new to skating and think "wow I progressed pretty well this summer, I wonder if I could compete this fall at a certain level" but you have to pay dues to even see the evaluation criteria? Don't even know what/when/where you can compete? It's just horrible organization.

I agree that the current design of the US Figure Skating website is not welcoming to interested parties who are not yet members
(or all that convenient for members either).

However, if you are interested in testing and competing, you should be taking group or private lessons from a coach who can point you toward the requirements, as well as letting you know when it's time for you to join the organization. At entry levels, coaches are often the best guides toward entry.

If you want to know what skills you would need to pass the first levels of USFS tests, or to enter in a competition level that does not require tests, you can ask in the Lutz Corner section of Golden Skate, and other posters will be happy to list the requirements for you and share links to relevant documents and videos.

 

[jenaj]

Is the issue getting more people into the sport or getting more people interested in the sport? Getting more kids taking skating lesssons doesn't mean they will be interested in watching skating (or able to do so). I remember at a rink where the 2010 Olympics were on the TV in the lace-up area, the kids didn't know who Mirai Nagasu was. I agree with the idea that watching skating should be easier --and free-- for the average viewer. And hopefully, a US lady as talented and as competitive as Nathan Chen will appear on the scene at some point. Those two things are what US skating needs to regain popularity, attracting both new fans and new skaters.

 

[sclloyd]

Most rinks in the US, especially in less populated parts of the country, have a single ice surface.

The rink management earns a profit from precontracted rentals to hockey groups, from public sessions that reach at least, say, 20% of capacity (i.e., more skaters than would be allowed on a freestyle session for safety reasons, but at lower entry fees), and group lessons.

Practice sessions for figure skating are more likely to be money losers, but in most cases better than leaving the ice empty, and there are other advantages to working with a figure skating club.

Rink owners are generally in the business of making money, and figure skating programs have to negotiate ice times and prices that will accommodate both their members' needs and the rinks' requirements.

There would need to be at least one extra ice surface in order to run public sessions all day long and still have ice time available for hockey, figure skating, and group lessons. Locations that can support multisurface ice facilities will generally also be able to support participation by higher numbers of hockey teams and figure skaters, but not 10 times the number of casual users, so using only one rink for both those sports and leaving the other one open to casual public skaters all day long would generally not be an efficient use of ice time for the rink or the steady users.

Some cities -- usually in locations with moderately cold winters -- have outdoor winter rinks that are available to the public to walk on for most of the day. These ice surfaces tend to be much smaller than NHL let alone Olympic size.

That kind of seasonal rink can be useful for getting more members of the public onto the ice, but they're not useful for hockey or figure skating training.

More to the point, those rinks are generally not near and not affiliated with indoor rinks used for regular training.

There isn't one person or organization who could say "Let's make figure skating more popular by opening a rink that's open to the public all day long."


It depends on the country.

I agree that the current design of the US Figure Skating website is not welcoming to interested parties who are not yet members
(or all that convenient for members either).

However, if you are interested in testing and competing, you should be taking group or private lessons from a coach who can point you toward the requirements, as well as letting you know when it's time for you to join the organization. At entry levels, coaches are often the best guides toward entry.

If you want to know what skills you would need to pass the first levels of USFS tests, or to enter in a competition level that does not require tests, you can ask in the Lutz Corner section of Golden Skate, and other posters will be happy to list the requirements for you and share links to relevant documents and videos.

This was a long time ago, I took lessons over a summer, the coaching staff was not super useful, my parents were confused, and we were a busy family. But to that point, this is a pretty niche forum, so beginner skaters (or their parents more likely) may not be well equipped or have the knowledge to find all this info. Yeah seven year old kids are pretty resourceful and can find good info, but at the end of the day, I shouldn't have to get testing and competition info from this forum. USFS should just provide it freely.

 

[CoyoteChris]

"I wonder how truly popular skating has ever been in the US. Was it only the scandals that attracted fans during the height of it's popularity? That's pretty thin. Those of us who love music, movement, innovation, beauty, guts, passion, stories, determination and strength will remain fans. Support your skaters. Make donations. Encourage their talent. If being the Olympic gold medalist is the only goal, there are going to be thousands who fail. If they do it because they love it, and they love to entertain us, they will be happy and we will be too. Blah blah blah, I will shut up now."

I think it would be a challage for me to describe how popular skating was in the US. If I could take you back in a time machine with me, your jaw would drop.....At this point, I am talking about watchers. There were few comps....mostly nats and worlds and Olys. But there were Pro comps galore and there were the ice shows....on TV and at the arenas....Imagine Stars on Ice or Champions on ice hitting 76 cities...those poor skaters riding that bus all the way....And the arenas were full.....
At a four conts in Colorado Springs, I came in early one morning to watch the ice dance practice and there was almost no one there. I saw this distingished older lady watching so I introduced myself and asked if she was a big fan? She chuckled and in perfect HIgh English she said she was Doreen Denny and she won the 1960 worlds in Ice dance....well, I sat down with her and she told me how it was back in 1960. YOU, the skater, basically paid for everything...maybe you got some help here or there.....but there wasnt all the comps there are today. As far as participation, It is my belief it was more affordable and now it is so expensive. But I am here to tell you that there is alot of people in the US with money. If there was a large desire to skate amoung our youth, there would be skaters. But there isnt. There are many reasons for this....mostly cultural. And the culture has changed here. No gonna knock anyone, but I have always been a fan of Asian Americans...they tend to excel in many fields. And have for a loooonnng time. Now look at the US figure skaters at the top over the last 15 years and coming up through the ranks...say the junior ladies at this years nats......see any Asian Americans? The make up 5.6 percent of the total US Census. There is just something in the culture......
But now in the US, we have a different culture.
Go to Google Image and put in Ice Follies/ Ice capades 1939-1979....imagine heavy hitters like Joan Crawford and Jimmy Stewart staring in skating movies......
Skating was big entertainment....

 

[ice coverage]

FYI, major changes to governance of USFS will be discussed at this year's Governing Council, Apr 30 - May 1.

Excerpts from George Rossano's Apr 2 article, which at present is on the home page of http://iceskatingintnl.com/ (emphases added):

The 2021 U.S. Figure Skating Governing Council meeting will again be virtual this year. At the top of the agenda is a massive bylaw amendment that completely upends the governing structure of the Association. In addition to making a number of modest changes required by the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) the proposed amendment alters the fundamental approach to governance in U.S. Figure Skating ....

The changes required by USOPC are modest in nature ....

The Governance Working Committee Bylaw proposals go far beyond these simple mandates and incorporates additional revisions that significantly change the governance structure of U.S. Figure Skating and relegate the member clubs (who currently ARE the Association) into vestigial appendages who will become detached clients of an independent and unaccountable national governance.​

 

[Mathman]

Dr. Rossano's information is always up-to-date and he gives his opinions in forthright language that cuts through complicated issues. I cannot myself evaluate whether the proposed changes will cut off member clubs from direct participation in USFS affairs, as Ropssano appears to fear. An ominous sign, if true.

 

[macy]

FYI, major changes to governance of USFS will be discussed at this year's Governing Council, Apr 30 - May 1.

Excerpts from George Rossano's Apr 2 article, which at present is on the home page of http://iceskatingintnl.com/ (emphases added):

The 2021 U.S. Figure Skating Governing Council meeting will again be virtual this year. At the top of the agenda is a massive bylaw amendment that completely upends the governing structure of the Association. In addition to making a number of modest changes required by the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) the proposed amendment alters the fundamental approach to governance in U.S. Figure Skating ....​

​

The changes required by USOPC are modest in nature ....​

​

The Governance Working Committee Bylaw proposals go far beyond these simple mandates and incorporates additional revisions that significantly change the governance structure of U.S. Figure Skating and relegate the member clubs (who currently ARE the Association) into vestigial appendages who will become detached clients of an independent and unaccountable national governance.​

whats the reasoning behind this?

 

[Amei]

whats the reasoning behind this?

My guess in that convoluted wording is that they are making moves to make sure that the national body isn't liable for any actions from clubs based on the Zimmerman situation.

 

[lappo]

Here a recent article that deals with the topic (sorry if it has already been posted): https://hccegalitarian.com/7703/sports/the-decline-of-us-figure-skating/

 

[SpiffySpiders]

Figure skating fans are much like professional wrestling fans. No, hear me out - I'm quite serious!

Both fandoms are less enthused by the modern product among traditional forum users, versus Reddit and similar platforms, as the average age skews older. Wrestling fans who long for the old days moan about today's top names being "vanilla midget spot monkeys" who focus on "flippy tricks" rather than the traditional format. The new wrestlers are too small and here today but gone tomorrow. They're interchangeable. They all throw in every big, impressive gymnastics skill they have during every match, even when it doesn't fit the mood, instead of doing simpler but more pleasing moves that tell a story rather than just wow the audience. They have no charisma, no connection to the traditions. The art form is dying, being replaced with multiple twists in the air. None of these new wrestlers are big names and larger than life personalities like the old guard were. The moves they do shorten their careers, which leads to fans deserting when they don't recognized the names they grew to love. Fans don't enjoy "tricks", they enjoy drama and performance, and that's why the television audience for pro wrestling is dwindling. The casual fan doesn't understand or accept the 'new' format. Pop culture has moved on alternates with If we could just bring wrestling back to what it was the fans would come as the reasoning for why popularity has fallen from the heyday.

Sound familiar?

I've come to realize that figure skating fandom, at least in North America, is in many ways less like a typical sports fandom and more like a sports entertainment one. That's not an insult - I happen to adore pro wrestling, which is why I've noticed the similarities - but it explains, for me, why the discussions, and the perceived challenges in attracting participation and mainstream attention, are so different from those in most other sports. I get the impression a lot (but certainly NOT all) of figure skating fans don't watch many, or any, other sports (except women's gymnastics, which seems to have a big skating fan crossover) but have followed shows like Dancing With The Stars. That element of entertainment is more important than it would be among, say, Nordic Ski superfans.

afwiw, I'm a bigger fan of the multiple flips in the air, tricks-over-storytelling pro wrestling than I am of the traditional sort so at least, as a ultra c skating content uber, I'm consistant.

 

[el henry]

Figure skating fans are much like professional wrestling fans. No, hear me out - I'm quite serious!

Both fandoms are less enthused by the modern product among traditional forum users, versus Reddit and similar platforms, as the average age skews older. Wrestling fans who long for the old days moan about today's top names being "vanilla midget spot monkeys" who focus on "flippy tricks" rather than the traditional format. The new wrestlers are too small and here today but gone tomorrow. They're interchangeable. They all throw in every big, impressive gymnastics skill they have during every match, even when it doesn't fit the mood, instead of doing simpler but more pleasing moves that tell a story rather than just wow the audience. They have no charisma, no connection to the traditions. The art form is dying, being replaced with multiple twists in the air. None of these new wrestlers are big names and larger than life personalities like the old guard were. The moves they do shorten their careers, which leads to fans deserting when they don't recognized the names they grew to love. Fans don't enjoy "tricks", they enjoy drama and performance, and that's why the television audience for pro wrestling is dwindling. The casual fan doesn't understand or accept the 'new' format. Pop culture has moved on alternates with If we could just bring wrestling back to what it was the fans would come as the reasoning for why popularity has fallen from the heyday.

Sound familiar?

I've come to realize that figure skating fandom, at least in North America, is in many ways less like a typical sports fandom and more like a sports entertainment one. That's not an insult - I happen to adore pro wrestling, which is why I've noticed the similarities - but it explains, for me, why the discussions, and the perceived challenges in attracting participation and mainstream attention, are so different from those in most other sports. I get the impression a lot (but certainly NOT all) of figure skating fans don't watch many, or any, other sports (except women's gymnastics, which seems to have a big skating fan crossover) but have followed shows like Dancing With The Stars. That element of entertainment is more important than it would be among, say, Nordic Ski superfans.

afwiw, I'm a bigger fan of the multiple flips in the air, tricks-over-storytelling pro wrestling than I am of the traditional sort so at least, as a ultra c skating content uber, I'm consistant.

I loved the explanation and I know nothing about wrestling, so thanks for the detailed comparison. I learned a lot.

I would disagree only with the point that "a lot" of figure skating fans (and I realize you said not all) don't watch other sports.

I live and die with the Philadelphia Eagles (and this year was a lot of dying ) I know all about "real sports", "tough fans", (you will not find a group of fans tougher than Eagles fans, on the other team, on their own team, on anybody. Not gonna happen) and the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

Yet I am a Jason Brown fan. A Donovan Carrillo fan. An Andrew Torgashev fan. The thought of four revolutions in the air just to do four revolutions in the air. Meh. ETA: I certainly hope for their scores that these skaters would do them. But it's not why I watch them.

My preferences have *nothing* to do with entertainment, but with what I value in the *sport* of figure skating. Beautiful edges, interesting transitions, centered and fast spins, intricate choreography. These are athletic elements as much as fifty yard passes, eighty yard runs, quarterback sneaks and trap plays.

And I know other Jason fans who are devoted fans of American sports teams. We don't love him because we love "entertainment" but because we value the elements of this unique and entrancing sport.

I don't think that's necessarily inconsistent

 

[Seven Sisters]

I loved the explanation and I know nothing about wrestling, so thanks for the detailed comparison. I learned a lot.

I would disagree only with the point that "a lot" of figure skating fans (and I realize you said not all) don't watch other sports.

I live and die with the Philadelphia Eagles (and this year was a lot of dying ) I know all about "real sports", "tough fans", (you will not find a group of fans tougher than Eagles fans, on the other team, on their own team, on anybody. Not gonna happen) and the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

Now you have me thinking that when (and if—fingers crossed) fans can attend skating comps live, how fun it would be to adapt the, er, “unique” spectator style of Eagles fans to the ice.

I can just imagine it. “WHAT REF R U BLIND HE TOTALLY MISSED THAT TWIZZLE!!!” Screaming out “WRONG EDGE!!” at appropriate (and inappropriate) moments. Holding up signs with big carrots at every hint of under rotation. Skaters daring to water down their content being pelted with rubber chickens instead of stuffies. The possibilities are endless!

I mean, we have this kind of thing now, but from a safe distance, anonymously on Twitter and fan boards. Not live though.

You‘re on to something, El!

 

[el henry]

Now you have me thinking that when (and if—fingers crossed) fans can attend skating comps live, how fun it would be to adapt the, er, “unique” spectator style of Eagles fans to the ice.

I can just imagine it. “WHAT REF R U BLIND HE TOTALLY MISSED THAT TWIZZLE!!!” Screaming out “WRONG EDGE!!” at appropriate (and inappropriate) moments. Holding up signs with big carrots at every hint of under rotation. Skaters daring to water down their content being pelted with rubber chickens instead of stuffies. The possibilities are endless!

I mean, we have this kind of thing now, but from a safe distance, anonymously on Twitter and fan boards. Not live though.

You‘re on to something, El!

There is a video of Rohene coaching Jason during practice where he makes comments like "what kind of spin is that?" and "That's not a counter!" We could totally adapt it.

Although, in all seriousness, since I am capable of separating my fandoms, one of the things I do like about actual comps is that most people are incredibly supportive of the skaters, whether or not the skater is their favorite.

But judges are another matter. I would definitely hold up "R U Blind?" cards for those judges who aren't giving Sinnerman 9 plus for interpretation.

 

[Seven Sisters]

Yes, I agree— best to focus on judging. There’s never any shortage of material there.

Your favorite skater is under marked? You need to have a sign, “Call Interpol!!!” for just that possibility.