Figure Skating

[Momto4FemaleFelines]

Catlady711,
Another Kurt fan?
One of the best programs ever was seeing Kurt do Brick House live!
He is amazing with his feet!

[Bonny]

Talk about skating I use to skate as a kid went through 5 pairs of skates. We would play crack the whip & the person on the outer end ended up in the snowbank. So much fun trying to skate backwards. Went to the ice capades in St. Paul with my folks. Saw this very old couple do a skating waltz on the ice. They were spectacular. I was in Minneapolis for Stars on Ice & was disappointed a couple years ago. Scotti my favorite olympic skater looked like an ant down there on the ice. He is my most favorite skater of all time. That little bald headed guy sure can whip up a good show when he skates & I like him as a commentator he does a good job. I never liked that old fart Dick Button? I think that was his name. He use to criticize the skaters just never had anything good to say about anyone. A real jerk! Kristi is my favorite female skater such a sweet girl & so talented. I don't like the new scoring system either. I am excited about the olympics but the older I get the harder it is to accept the new young skaters. They just don't seem to have the grace the older ones had from the very beginning.

[Catlady711]

Catlady711,
Another Kurt fan?
One of the best programs ever was seeing Kurt do Brick House live!
He is amazing with his feet!

He sure is great with the footwork!! I never got into the ice skating until I saw an improve on ice thing on tv, it was great. Of course most of the ones I liked best aren't skating so much anymore so I haven't follwed the sport in awhille.

[Prairie Purrs]

I always liked Michelle Kwan because she wasn't all about the jumping. During most of her career she could certainly do the jumps, but her best programs were wonderfully expressive and emotional, not mere jumpfests. And I admire her choice to pursue an education rather than attempt to prolong her skating career. Like Kurt Browning, she doesn't need an Olympic medal to be listed among the great skaters.

I guess I'm in the minority in finding a lot to like in the new scoring system. It forces the skaters to put some sort of connecting moves between their jumps, rather than just coasting from one jump to another. Male skaters have been able to win competitions under the new system without doing quad jumps, whereas under the old system it appeared that no one would be able to win without a quad. And because more points are given for jumps after the halfway point, the new system encourages a big finish, which I think is more fun than watching a front-loaded program that fades out at the end.

[Karen]

I don't dislike the new system, it is different, though and so any change will lead to detractors!

[Prairie Purrs]

I didn't think much of the new system at first, but the choreographers are getting the hang of it now and the programs are improving as a result. There are definitely some problems--the changes of positions in spirals and death spirals are often annoying--but I do think it prevents the power jumpers who lack artistic finesse from running away with every competition.

[Momto4FemaleFelines]

Bonny, I skated as a kid, too, for fun. I could walk down the street to the local lake any time I wanted. I loved skating at night.
I've never sat above the lower bowl in the venue we see the skating shows at, but I can imagine if you're in the nose-bleed seats, without binoculars the skaters would look miniscule.
Stars On Ice hasn't drawn the crowd it used to since Scott Hamilton retired, but my husband and I still enjoyed seeing it live immensely. I really feel like I'm missing my right arm not planning to go this year. It was like our "date night" going to the show, and I'd meet up with on-line fellow skating fans each year.
I liked Dick Button. He helped me learn the different elements and what made one a good one and what made one a bad one. I totally agreed with him on the leg position of the layback spin. "Uncle Dick" as he's known by fans would let you know when someone performed a great performance. Without him, I'd not know some of things I know now about skating and the different elements of it.

I just watched a repeat of Improv on Ice with the Goo Goo Dolls as musical performers. It was a good show!

[Momto4FemaleFelines]

Catlady711,
The faces of skating sure have changed.
I just finished watched the latest Improv on Ice show with the Goo Goo Dolls. Kurt was in it. It was a good show.