2017-18 State of U.S. Ladies Skating

[Ic3Rabbit]

There you go, you got your answers already. He has been teaching Jason for years but Jason don't even have a quad. It shows how good of a tech coach Frank is.

What?!! I never said he teaches Jason and gave him a quad or lack of one. That's up to Kori and her people. I said that he consults with skaters on their jumps..that doesn't "magically" give them a freaking jump. Get real.

 

[frida80]

She had 3 ur's in the FS. She really hasn't improved substantially. I so wanted her to do very well this year, but I fear she will not even make the Olympic team. Today Mariah Bell placed higher than Mirai. There Pcs's in the FS were essential the same. Even if Mirai were to make the team like she is skating now, she certainly wouldn't medal at the Oly's. This is such a perplexing situation.

It’s just one competition. I take it one day at a time. It wasn’t a great competition, but it takes a lot to have such a disappointing SP and come back in the FS. Last year, Mirai completely fell apart in the SP at SC. Then she did the worst FS of her senior career. Last year she had six < and one downgrade. This year, only three at one of them was on her 3A, which still scores higher than a clean 2A. She rotated her combo and didn’t let her disappointment destroy her program. She has a lot of grit this year. So the next competition will be better.

 

[andromache]

Minor Mariah wuzrobbed here. I hate to be that person but she was 4th in TES. 9 points behind Elena Radionova in PCS. A little ridiculous. This program will never be a masterpiece, but it is SOOOOOO much better than it was a few weeks ago - Mariah no longer looks lost out there, she's committed to the choreography and the music. Very nice to see. I don't think she's a favorite for an Olympic spot, but she could surprise us. Beating Mirai here helps her out.

Mirai has never been good on the GP. I think we all got our expectations too high. Seriously hope that she has her URs gone by Nationals, and that she doesn't make the team with a number of them overlooked. Even when she skates without falls, those URs sting. Way better than the SP though.

 

[frida80]

Minor Mariah wuzrobbed here. I hate to be that person but she was 4th in TES. 9 points behind Elena Radionova in PCS. A little ridiculous. This program will never be a masterpiece, but it is SOOOOOO much better than it was a few weeks ago - Mariah no longer looks lost out there, she's committed to the choreography and the music. Very nice to see. I don't think she's a favorite for an Olympic spot, but she could surprise us. Beating Mirai here helps her out.

Mirai has never been good on the GP. I think we all got our expectations too high. Seriously hope that she has her URs gone by Nationals, and that she doesn't make the team with a number of them overlooked. Even when she skates without falls, those URs sting. Way better than the SP though.

Elena was going to get the PCS boost because she’s competing in Russia. It happens.

 

[frida80]

Oh please! He's the guy the USFSA and other Feds go to for teaching/correcting jumps to their skaters. He travels for this or skaters travel to him. Jason Brown has gone to Frank for years for this and Kaetlyn Osmond as well. There are many others he has helped but I'm not going to sit here and name them all.

Gracie was a totally different story and it wasn't Frank that "Ruined" Gracie as many here like to claim.

Karen isn’t Frank’s type of skater. She’d be better with Alex. She wants to jump big. She just needs help landing them.

 

[Skater Boy]

Mirai has been working hard on her UR's and 3A but I have to say all that energy to try the axel and look what happened. The 3A is a weapon but it also takes away from the rest of the rpggrams. I have to say shehas had quite a bit of time working on those ur's and really it isn't looking great. It seems like the tech work has effected what many of us think she might be a gorgeous skater.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

Karen isn’t Frank’s type of skater. She’d be better with Alex. She wants to jump big. She just needs help landing them.

If it was me I'd send her to Tom Z, but hey what do I know...

 

[andromache]

Elena was going to get the PCS boost because she’s competing in Russia. It happens.

That's mostly understandable, though the margin of difference is a little OTT - but Mariah also received lower PCS than Kaori Sakamoto. Just surprised to see her score so low, really.

 

[frida80]

If it was me I'd send her to Tom Z, but hey what do I know...

I think he’s stretched thin with Max, Mirai, and Vincent.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

I think he’s stretched thin with Max, Mirai, and Vincent.

Hardly.

 

[Sasha'sSpins]

I watched again and it almost looks like she was setting up for a 3F-3T and then realized her mistake and reset for the 3A.

It's very strange that bit. It's not choreo at all. I love love love Mirai but it's no wonder she is getting hammered in PCS partly due to such empty looking spots! As I said elsewhere, Tom Z said in that GS interview that they were aware of the criticisms - the focus on jumps. I just am a bit frustrated. The GP season is not the time to start adding choreo. It should have been set by the summer so Mirai would be used to it by now. And now it's too late to make up her first GP. No medal and no chance for the GPF that Tom said had been a goal of Mirai's.

That being said, I did like Mirai's fight in the FS. And that she added on the 3 jump combo to the 3R since she couldn't get it done with the 2A-3T-2T. Maybe it's wrong, but I LIKE that Mirai looked so mad and was talking to herself. I'm proud that she's still going for the 3A. I'm hoping this will light a fire in her for her next (and final) GP of the season. I also hope she can get in at least one more competition before Nationals. And I hope they ADD IN the choreo I am sure is missing from her programs. Surely Jeff did not give her such empty looking programs to compete with!

 

[drivingmissdaisy]

It's very strange that bit. It's not choreo at all. I love love love Mirai but it's no wonder she is getting hammered in PCS partly due to such empty looking spots! As I said elsewhere, Tom Z said in that GS interview that they were aware of the criticisms - the focus on jumps. I just am a bit frustrated. The GP season is not the time to start adding choreo. It should have been set by the summer so Mirai would be used to it by now. And now it's too late to make up her first GP. No medal and no chance for the GPF that Tom said had been a goal of Mirai's.

There's no excuse for those empty spots. She could at least be doing something with her arms; in certain spots she's skating around like she's on the warm-up. Maybe she will have a good second GP event if she can regain her Japan Open form. She, like the other Americans, will be hit-or-miss; a bad event doesn't mean she won't kill it next time. The frustrating thing is that our skaters can't get any sort of rising score momentum from skating strong events in a row. The judges don't score our women like contenders because they aren't viewed as medal favorites.

 

[frida80]

Hardly.

Hardly? There all inconsistent. He has to use a ton of his time getting them on track. Alex has no one major.

 

[GGFan]

There's no excuse for those empty spots. She could at least be doing something with her arms; in certain spots she's skating around like she's on the warm-up. Maybe she will have a good second GP event if she can regain her Japan Open form. She, like the other Americans, will be hit-or-miss; a bad event doesn't mean she won't kill it next time. The frustrating thing is that our skaters can't get any sort of rising score momentum from skating strong events in a row. The judges don't score our women like contenders because they aren't viewed as medal favorites.

I'll always have a soft spot for Mirai. Having said that her regression in presentation is one of the most baffling things in figure skating. I totally understand a skater losing jumps, but I'm used to maturity adding another dimension to someone's skating. Even if someone isn't an artist they tend to develop a style for better or worse. The most I've seen Mirai project is in footwork sequences. That's why I've been happy to her pushing the tech envelop. At least it shows me some passion where her basic movement (arms, face, etc) has not for years.

 

[Skatingcat]

I will always root for Mirai. But damn, I wish she could get the scores to get her on the podium. She may not emote a ton, but I'd rather watch her face than Evegnia's pantomime (Just my opinion, don't kill me).

My hopes are pinned on Ashley and Mirai. As long as those two go to the olympics, I'm good (or mostly so).

I'm looking forward to next week. I bit the bullet and got the olympic chancel. I figure I'll get better coverage than icenetwork. And I like the guy who is the commentator. He's not always talking over the program- and he doesn't seem as egotistical as others can be.

 

[sross43]

I like Mirai as a person and I am so incredibly impressed by her drive this year and her 3A. That being said, I'm struggling to enjoy her skating. Every program just seems like series of moves designed to string jumps together. If you have to completely ax choreo for the sake of the 3A, but then you don't even make the top 6, then why do you have the 3A? We've seen her emote but I just haven't seen any of that this season. I feel like if Mirai can't bring her performance up to the level it needs to be, that third spot is up for the taking. Then again, maybe I'm just being biased because my dream Olympic team is Ashley, Karen, and Gracie (should she be healthy later in the year and they bend the rule book to send her to Nationals).

 

[BackSpiral]

I give Mirai a pass here because it is her first big event this season, and it must be intimidating competing against Caro and Evgenia.

........ I sorta can’t give Mirai a pass. She’s been competing against big names for years. Just like I can’t give Mariah a pass on her poor showing. Or, like I couldn’t give Ashley or Karen a pass if they have a poor showing in the coming weeks. Time to get on the ice and just do it. I just would like to see an American get rid of the nerves at least MOST of the time.
That being said, our US skaters are very talented. Truly. It’s a matter of nerves.

This. I'm just tired of the up and down roller-coaster. Wagner is the only one that has developed some sort of consistency even though she has issues as well. I hope Karen can get her URs fixed because I'm thinking she is maybe the only U.S. lady that could potentially push into the top 6 at the Olympics. I know the sport is hard, it's just so discouraging to always see the U.S. ladies struggling and getting URs. And when they skate well, the next skate doesn't go well so you never know what to expect. I have given up getting my hopes up.

It's early, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Tennell make a push for the Olympic team.

 

[stella luna]

Evegnia should just give it up already and skate a Charlie Chaplin program. She'd be great and people would go nuts over it. At the beginning of her new LP, which I had never seen before, I turned to Mr. Stella Luna and said: "Surely they wouldn't be tacky enough to end it with a train sound, would they?" And they did. Girl's got a future in soap opera acting when this figure skating thing ends.

And shout out to Mr. Stella Luna, who subscribed to the Olympic channel for me.

I will always root for Mirai. But damn, I wish she could get the scores to get her on the podium. She may not emote a ton, but I'd rather watch her face than Evegnia's pantomime (Just my opinion, don't kill me).

My hopes are pinned on Ashley and Mirai. As long as those two go to the olympics, I'm good (or mostly so).

I'm looking forward to next week. I bit the bullet and got the olympic chancel. I figure I'll get better coverage than icenetwork. And I like the guy who is the commentator. He's not always talking over the program- and he doesn't seem as egotistical as others can be.

 

[BackSpiral]

I will always root for Mirai. But damn, I wish she could get the scores to get her on the podium. She may not emote a ton, but I'd rather watch her face than Evegnia's pantomime (Just my opinion, don't kill me).

My hopes are pinned on Ashley and Mirai. As long as those two go to the olympics, I'm good (or mostly so).

I'm looking forward to next week. I bit the bullet and got the olympic chancel. I figure I'll get better coverage than icenetwork. And I like the guy who is the commentator. He's not always talking over the program- and he doesn't seem as egotistical as others can be.

I have IN. How is the Olympic Channel coverage better? I can't believe they charge $50 when there is U.S. cable station broadcasting the events as well.

 

[andromache]

I like Mirai as a person and I am so incredibly impressed by her drive this year and her 3A. That being said, I'm struggling to enjoy her skating. Every program just seems like series of moves designed to string jumps together. If you have to completely ax choreo for the sake of the 3A, but then you don't even make the top 6, then why do you have the 3A? We've seen her emote but I just haven't seen any of that this season. I feel like if Mirai can't bring her performance up to the level it needs to be, that third spot is up for the taking. Then again, maybe I'm just being biased because my dream Olympic team is Ashley, Karen, and Gracie (should she be healthy later in the year and they bend the rule book to send her to Nationals).

There isn't enough depth among US ladies to keep anyone off the team if they hit their jumps. Mirai can get out there at Nationals and do a jump drill - if she rotates and lands her jumps consistently enough, she has enough of a reputation in the US to get the PCS she needs to go to the Olympics.

The evolution of her skating/performance ability is, sadly, quite the reverse of many skaters. Ashley's basic skating, transitions, and spins have certainly suffered because of her need to focus on improving her jumps, but her ability to emote and express only ever improved. Bringing a good face is the least Mirai could do.