Jan. 3
Novice Pairs Free Program Practice
Novice Pairs Free Skate Group A:
Spectator attendance at this point was dropping off. It appeared to be skater relatives and friends and coaches remaining. Most of the audience was on the judges' side of the arena where most of the skater posing was done. The judges' seating was a little bit different than typically seen. Each judging seat featured an almost recliner-like chair with full back and neck support. There was also about a two-foot high glass shield in front of the judges' seats. As it was practices and not competition, the pair team coaches sat in these seats on this day. The pair teams did more bowing at the end of their practice time than the single skaters had done.
Novice Pairs to watch: Kylie Gleason and Taylor Toth and Julia Vlassov and Drew Meekins.
Kaile Eison/Daniel Eison - She was in a black dress. He was in black pants and a black shirt. Both of them had white stripes on their outfit print.
They did a press lift that transitioned to a one handed lift on his part. They did side by side camels. They executed double spirals. They landed a throw double loop. They did side by side double axels into side by side double jumps. A pair spin featured the back of her leg extending up around his neck. Then, they did more side by side double jumps. It concluded with the death spiral.
Chloe Katz/Joseph Lynch - neon green and black outfits
Joseph was noticeably buff and looking strong in the black bodysuit outfit. In the general warm up, Chloe hit the boards very near where I sat. I believe it was on a throw jump. Joseph went over to get her, and I could hear him ask her if she was okay. She got up quickly and seemed to be fine. During their run-through, they did a press lift. She fell on the throw jump there. They did side by side camels to sit spins where the sit spins were out of synch. They did a death spiral and took a short break in the program. Then, they resumed with side by side double jumps into more side by side double jumps. She tripped in the footwork sequence. They did a press lift and a combination spin. The final pose had her in a splits position, and they finished ahead of the program music.
Molly Aaron/Daniel Curzon - both dressed in all black
This team has a big height difference. They skated to light, soft music. They began with a triple twist. They did a throw single jump. I'm impressed with how they do the leg raises and extensions immediately before throw jumps and throw twists, like the Russian pairs. The press lift went to a one handed lift. They did another throw single jump. He led her by the hand while he skated backward as she executed a spiral skating forward. He raised her into a hand to hip lift that became a one handed lift. They did side by side split jumps into side by side double jumps. They did a double spread eagle.
Bianca Butler/Joseph Jacobsen - another team outfitted in all black
The starting pose had them with toepicks pointed to the ice. They executed a triple twist. They did a throw single jump. They did side by side double axels. The side by side spins featured camel change foot in the camel. They also did a press lift that went to one hand. They did side by side double jumps into side by side double jumps. A pair spin and death spiral finished the program. Molly Aaron called out "sorry" to them when Aaron and Curzon almost collided with Butler and Jacobsen on the practice ice.
Novice Pairs Free Skate Group B:
Keauna McLaughlin/Ethan Burgess - black and purple outfits with a red stripe on the shoulders
This was also a team with a noticeable height difference. Their run-through began with a double twist. On the throw single jump, she landed very close to Mariel Miller and Rockne Brubaker. Keauna fell on the side by side jumps. The press lift went to one hand. They did a death spiral. A nice hand to hip lift featured Keauna in changing positions. The side by side camel spins into sit spins were well done. They did side by side double jumps then another throw single jump. Side by side double jumps into more double jumps ensued. On the death spiral, her head touched the ice at the beginning rotations.
Mariel Miller/Rockne Brubaker - She wore a black leotard, and he wore all black.
She caught a bit of his shoulder on the throw triple twist. Next, they did a throw jump. They had a press lift with a flipping dismount. They did side by side jumps into side by side jumps, the latter jumps were popped. In the side by side camels, I could hear him counting out to keep the rotations in synch. They executed a hand to hip lift. A neat variation on the double spiral featured them both in spiral positions together with Rockne placed in front of Mariel. Typically, the man is behind the woman in the double spiral. They did a throw double jump. They had side by side double jumps into more double jumps and a death spiral. Their straight line footwork was down the diagonal of the ice. They finished with another death spiral and a pair spin.
Melissa Bedell/Brandon Hanson - both dressed in all black
They had a nice opening move where he led her by her skate, and she is skating backward in sort of a spiral position. Trouble ensued with the throw triple twist. She came down from the twist facing forward out away from him instead of facing toward him in his arms. Apparently, the revolutions weren't completed to allow her to land facing the right direction. So, when she landed awkwardly, she fell face forward to the ice. The momentum of the landing made him fall forward on top of her. She remained face down on the ice rather motionless. He bent down and asked her if she was all right. She lifted her head and obviously had a pained expression on her face. He helped her up and scooped her into his arms. He skated while carrying her to the other end of the ice where the skater entrance/exit was located. She held onto him tightly, and he took her to the back with the medical people. Brandon came back later and skated solo for the rest of his practice group. It's always unsettling to witness pair accidents, and to realize that this might happen more frequently in everyday practice with pair skaters. I admire the pair ladies for their toughness, even bravery. And, the men that are supportive and sweet when problems happen. I hoped Melissa would be okay.
Kylie Gleason/Taylor Toth - both wore all black
She looks young and was very graceful, showing a ballet influence.
They started with a pair spin with Taylor in a nice, low position. They executed a successful throw twist and a hand to hip lift. They did a throw double jump and side by side spins. They have a nice line and extension together on the ice. They incorporated some interesting moves and glides into their program.
After all the run-throughs, in the general practice time, McLaughlin and Burgess and Gleason and Toth both practiced side by side jumps in particular spots of the Arena ice. The lady of each pair was falling in the attempted spots.
Novice Pairs Free Skate Group C:
Tamara Tossey/Jordan Judt - She wore a blue dress. And, he wore a black shirt and black pants.
The music is Conan the Barbarian movie soundtrack. They opened with a triple twist then a throw double jump. They attacked a press lift. Their unique double spread eagle showcased the partners facing each other in the spread eagle positions. They performed a series of side by side double jumps. Next were another lift and a death spiral. The program ended with Jordan holding Tamara up in front of him while she is in a sitting position.
Julia Vlassov/Drew Meekins - She had on a black sleeveless jumpsuit while he wore a black velvet bodysuit.
The selected music piece is Mission Impossible theme and the Pink Panther. He was built very strong, and they had a big height difference. They were noticeably more aggressive in their skating attack and confidence. They started with a hand to hip lift where she was in an upside down position. Drew swung Julia around by her hips in a lift and set her down right before the triple throw. They did side by side triple jumps into double jumps and struck a pose for the next part of the program. He lifted her into a press position, which went to a one-handed lift. Individually, Julia did a layback spin. Drew joined her, and her spin turned into a pair spin. They executed a step sequence. As they went into side by side double axels, Aaryn Smith and Will Chitwood had to stop what they were doing to avoid intercepting Vlassov and Meekins. Another pair combination spin brought them to the ending pose. After their run-through, Julia called out "excuse me" as they were about to execute a lift across that surface of the ice. Before exiting the ice, they practiced with the unison stroking in the kilian-like hold position and were very fast.
Kelly Settelen/Andrew Goldman - They wore all black.
This team also raised and extended legs in the air before executing twist and throws. Their twist had a hard, abrupt landing. On the side by side jumps, they both fell. The throw triple jump resulted in a fall. They took a short break in the music to confer with the coaches. In a footwork sequence, they took some steps together and others side by side in unison. They did a hand to hip lift and a pair spin. After their run-through, she slid a few feet on her side on the ice as she fell on the death spiral entrance. He helped her up, and they continued.
Aaryn Smith/Will Chitwood - They wore black with red stripes on part of the costumes.
They began standing apart, each with arms outstretched. They came together in a pair spin combination. They did a double twist and a double throw. The side by side double jumps were done close together. The announcer started to give the music time in the middle of their program run-through. Previously this reading of the total time of the program music was given immediately after each skater/team had finished. They kept going with a press lift that became a hand to hip lift. They did side by side double jumps into double jumps. The side by side camels into sit spins were out of synch during the camel to sit transition. They executed a double spiral, death spiral and another lift. The throw double jump did not have much distance. This team rehearsed looking into the audience during their performance run-through. This is something not all novice pairs were focusing on, especially during practice.
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