The 2014 Skate America International Competition

When I started the blog, I had no intention of going down the yellow brick road of event recaps... then the Sochi Olympics and Saitama Worlds happened! "By popular demand", I hope you will enjoy the more extensive "event coverage" this year. I will be blogging about my thoughts on each of the six senior Grand Prix events, the Grand Prix Final, the European Championships, Four Continents Championships, World Junior Championships and of course, the 2015 World Figure Skating Championships set to take center stage from March 23-29, 2015 in Shanghai, China. Where the powers of be have decided in their infinite wisdom to again hold the Canadian and U.S. Nationals at the same time this coming January and I'm dead set on making the trip up to Kingston, Ontario this year, I don't know that I'll be able to follow the U.S. Championships closely if I'm in Kingston, but we'll see how things all play out. Bottom line... as much as professional and artistic skating is really my thing, I do still have an immense respect and appreciation for the efforts of these talented skaters competing in the ISU ranks and I know how many of you do as well, so I want to keep skating in the forefront as much as possible. If that means blogging about those cookie cutter IJS step sequences I despise so much, so be it. It's all about keeping skating in the forefront!

Please keep in mind with all the coverage of any competition on Skate Guard as always I'll post videos of some of the most standout performances. It's always possible that they might be geoblocked in your country, and for that I apologize. Around the time of major competitions, videos go up every minute and come down and get geoblocked just as fast. If you're unable to watch videos in your country, I've got some great advice for you. Go to YouTube, and under your search settings you can select 'Upload Date'. If you type in keywords for the competition or skater you want to see, you can narrow it down to 'Today' or 'This Week' and usually find just what you're looking for in minutes! And now, on to the event at hand...

The 2014 Hilton Honors Skate America was held in The Windy City of Chicago and I totally just said Chicago in a Chicago accent.

At twenty four years of age, last year's Skate America Champion Tatsuki Machida entered this competition fresh off his most successful season yet. Winning the silver medal at the World
Championships behind Olympic and World Champion Yuzuru Hanyu, Machida looked ready to ride and continue his time on the top. His short program was clean and featured a quad/triple combination and his free skate boasted two quads, a triple axel/triple toe-loop as well as three other triples. He earned a total score of 175.70 and repeated as this event's gold medallist.

After injecting a whole lot of life, energy and excitement into the skating world with his "Riverdance" free skate, the expectations on Olympic Bronze Medallist Jason Brown to come out and 'top' his material from last season were probably a bit of a tall order. Intelligently, he went in a different direction and "Juke" and "Tristan et Iseult". I personally feel not one but BOTH programs absolutely play to his advantages and artistically shine. Rohene Ward masterpieces? Can we even act surprised? Jason blew my mind at the Nebelhorn Trophy and I expected a lot of him at this event. He wasn't perfect, but let's just remember that this is October and not February or March. Rather than approach Jason's skating with Helen Lovejoy cries of "won't someone PLEASE think of the triple axel?", let's appreciate the great programs he's bringing to the table. His overall event score of 234.7 is nothing to scoff at.

The surprise to some of the event was the bronze medal winning performances of Canada's Nam Nguyen. A student of Brian Orser, Nguyen came out gangbusters at this event and couldn't put a foot wrong and made a bold statement that his time isn't the future, it's right now. He landed the quad and I have to say flat out that I thought his PCS score in the free skate of 71.64 (lower than Artur Gachinski?) didn't make a lick of sense to me. If he keeps skating like this, the judges are going to reward him duly. I thought he was just fantastic.

2014 Olympic Bronze Medallist Denis Ten told me "I had to deal with so many challenges and in particular with injuries for last two years. These problems sometimes didn't let me train properly and also to compete well at international competitions. However, when it's a very important event I know how to get myself together no matter what's going on." Ten finished in fourth at Skate America with a score of 224.74 but despite some errors in the free skate, I thought he showed some great fight for the landings. Ten has proven to be a slow and steady wins the race kind of skater who has peaked when it counted the last two years, so that's definitely something to keep in mind.

Changing his mind on retirement from ISU competition, the four time and reigning U.S. Champion and Olympic Bronze Medallist Jeremy Abbott returned to competition with a new "back to basics" strategy this season. He choreographed his own short program to Sam Smith's "Lay Me Down" and worked with famed choreographer Sandra Bezic on his free skate to Samuel Barber's "Adagio For Strings". Jeremy was outstanding in the short program and finished second in that portion of the event with a score of 81.82. His short program (to me) proved case and point the argument why lyrics belong in competition. If entertainment and artistry draw in new fans, that's the whole point of it all. He unraveled a bit in the free skate and dropped to fifth overall, which I'm sure will give the sockpuppets of the internet plenty to go on about. While he did land five triples in his free skate, he just seemed a little off but it was his first time out of the gate with this program and I have every faith it'll come together for him. Artistically, the glimpses of genius were already there. My only other note about the men's event is that anytime Chafik Besseghier wants to show us his chesteses, he is more than welcome. Hay Girl Hay!

The buzz in the off-season has been about Russia's Elena Radionova. At fifteen years of age, she's won the last two Junior World titles and in her senior Grand Prix debut last season, she medalled at both of her assignments, including last year's Skate America. Again, she proved why she's the talk of the town here with challenging programs and her consistent triple/triple combinations. My criticism of Radionova's skating is that it almost looks like she's skating on a fast forward setting. While she hits absolutely stunning positions in her spins and without question has the jumps, the in-between's and choreography are not there just yet in my opinion - but that will come with time. There's a growing period for developing the style that takes you from juniors to seniors and while I feel her short program suits her well enough, the free skate isn't working for me and gives the impression of a young girl trying on her mother's dresses. It just doesn't aesthetically do it for me. I think the example I can give goes back to Tara Lipinski. I wasn't a big Tara fan in 1996, loved her in 1997 and then kind of went "meh" in 1998. If Radionova can channel her inner 1997 Tara Lipinski and package herself in a way that plays to her strengths (which are many) she might sway me to her camp but I think a lot of my opinion on her skating comes from - truth be told - maybe a little of my own ageism. At any rate, she won gold with 195.47 and served notice that although she's not queer, she's here and we're going to have to get used to it.

I've been thrilled that Liza Tuktamysheva has kind of been the comeback kid this season. Last year a tenth place finish at Russian Nationals derailed her Olympic hopes but rather than give up, she came back fighting... and that's what I like to see. I like her musical choices this season even if I do think the "Bolero" music is a little big for her britches choreographically perhaps. I'd like to see a bit more between the jumps in terms but she does have this very athletic package that reminds me a tiny bit of Debi Thomas and I don't know, I kind of like it. I'm just happy her and Alena Leonova are proving that they too are in this to win it this year and NOT to be met with dismissive narratives with little founding. Liza threw down two VERY strong programs, winning the short program in fact. Her overall score was 189.62 and the silver medal was hers.

We can't talk about Gracie Gold at Skate America without talking about the highlight of the whole competition... Frank Carroll in the kiss and cry. How awesome was that? I died! After some tentative skating in practice, Gracie actually really surprised me here. Despite a couple little blunders with a two footed jump and a problem on the spin in the short, her free skate might have got dinged for two many toe-loops but the jumping itself was actually just great. I can't say the programs themselves did a lot for me but as Carol Lane aptly said on CBC's coverage... "just because a program doesn't appeal to you style wise doesn't mean it's not a good program." Gracie took home the bronze and a score of 179.38.

Samantha Cesario told me that "one of my main goals is to perfect a triple/triple and up my technical side to keep up with the talent we have here in the U.S. as well as internationally. Another main goal is to improve on my skating skills and speed while continuing to bring entertaining programs to the audience." She threw down in Chicago with a free skate that featured seven triples, earning a score of 174.58. She's a mature, elegant skater and I think she's putting the U.S. ladies on notice that she's up for the challenge and a podium threat at Nationals this season.

After a disappointing 2014/2015 season that saw her deliver strong performances, finish third and be left off the U.S. team in favor of two time U.S. Champion Ashley Wagner, anyone else but Mirai Nagasu would have thrown in the towel. The 2008 U.S. Champion's determination to succeed was evident in her renewed focus and drive heading into this season, but a fifth place finish behind Polina Edmunds and Courtney Hicks at the U.S. International Classic earlier this fall wasn't the comeback that she had perhaps hoped for. The judges seem to love to nitpick Mirai's landings on jumps and as usual, for that reason she found herself out of favor with them. The skating itself was gutsy, inspired and athletic and I have a lot of respect for her for sticking with it. Her sixth place finish here "is what it is".

Maé-Bérénice Méité came into this event with the goal of "really getting better and better and to get better places on the Grand Prix". She finished sixth at Skate America in Detroit last year so her ninth place finish at this event wasn't a great event for her but the attack was as always there and I like her material this year. Another skater I wanted to mention was Brooklee Han. Although she finished tenth, her free skate was simply fantastic and much like Nguyen in the men's event, if she keeps skating like this the judges are going to have to take notice.

After missing the 2013/2014 season due to Smirnov's ruptired patellar tendon, Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov returned to - and won - their first competition of the season, the Nebelhorn Trophy, last month. I just love their free skate. It has this very sweeping old school quality and there is more than enough meat choreographically going on. Take that wonderful section before the overhead lift and throw triple loop for instance. It's got to be at least a Pasha on a scale of one to Angelika Krylova back row Carmen theatre face. Coming from me, that's a compliment. I'm the kind of skating fan who would have loved to have Natalia Bestemianova and Andrei Bukin turn their "Raputin" program into a full length TV special with Laetitia Hubert, Olga Markova, one of those Hallowe'en sound effects tapes, Toller Cranston, a smoke machine, confetti cannon, cash bar and the off off off Broadway cast of Cats. Their winning performances at this event were convincing and technically unreal. Although the speed might not have been there, a throw quad salchow is NOTHING to sneeze at and I think this team's storyline this season is one that is going to serve the skating world notice.

In winning silver in the pairs event ahead of the Chinese pair, Haven Denney and Brandon Frazier were fantastic. The U.S. pairs are really stepping it up a notch and this particular team I think is really one to watch. I also predict a great future for Vanessa Grenier and Maxime Deschamps, who (despite some problems on the technical elements) showed flashes of brilliance and a lot of promise.

The ice dance event was all about the Americans, with Maia and Alex Shibutani squaring off with Madison Chock and Evan Bates. Both teams have impressive résumés and brought somewhat comparable styles to the table at this event. After a high energy crowd pleasing free dance set to Michael Jackson music last year, 'The ShibSibs' opted for a much more subdued style in their free dance set to ""Rosen aus dem Süden" and "The Blue Danube" by Johann Strauss. Chock and Bates also opted for a more traditional free dance set to "An American In Paris". Whereas the music choices might not have had me on the edge of my seat, the skating was anything but lifeless. I thought both teams brought a high technical standard to the table.

Madison Chock and Evan Bates' short dance didn't really work for me as a paso doble but I certainly appreciated (as always) their speed, lifts and carriage. With regard to their free dance to "An American In Paris", I again thought their speed and lifts were incredible and the closeness in their twizzles was something else. I didn't have any issue with their TES score... but PCS wise, the slow section was lovely but there's a certain contrived quality of the choreography that just didn't do it for me. The final up and down merry-go-round liftamigger in the program didn't work for me either. I think my opinion with regard to this team really comes down to the fact that "An American In Paris" was preceeded by "Les Mis" and "Doctor Zhivago". They are so technically good and the program choices that they continue to select are so far from what I personally go for that it's just hard for me to relate with their skating. That said, they are a damn good team and a score of 171.03 is certainly impressive.

Now... time to talk about the ShibSibs. I personally thought they should have won the short dance. Their free dance was a very effective program with great timing, expression, twizzles (which were confident, a highlight, full of speed and textbook) and character. What they did ON the ice as opposed in the air was far for more impressive than any acro-tactics we saw from some of their competitors. I can't say the waltz entirely grows on me as much as the Michael Jackson program did, but that said, it's a classic, effective program and I admire their sticktuitiveness. 160.33 and ten points back of first? Yeah, I don't know how I feel about that at all.

Stepanova and Bukin's "Eleanor Rigby" free dance was a complete fail for me, despite those badass sitting twizzles. However, I did enjoy that dance spin where she was... Stepanova him. The lifts were creative but the program lost steam and the innate connection between music and movement just wasn't there from start to finish. They won the bronze medal with a score of 143.87 (over twenty five points back of first) but I think the strength of their short dance should serve them well as they go through the season. Let's not forget how that worked for Cappellini and Lanotte in Saitama.

A couple of other notes... A huge jump for Paradis and Ouellette in the free dance. Marie-France Dubreuil has created some magic with this team and you can just see her influence in their skating. That closing rotational movement in their free dance was to die for and fourth place overall (coming from last after the short dance) was just crazy. Good for them! With regard to Orford and Williams, I love me some old school "Titanic" and actually skated to the soundtrack myself when that was the in thing in the late nineties. The program really caught my attention at the beginning but the jig section just needed a little more outward projection and camp for it to really sell itself more. The lifts were great and I think with a little fine tuning, this dance will be just fine by Nationals.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Rink Of Wax: Figure Skaters In Wax Museums

I don't know about you, but personally I think there was something infinitely creepy about the 1953 Vincent Prince film "House Of Wax". It was about a burned sculptor who filled up his wax museum with real life corpses. Although lifelike wax replicas of famous figures have been popular tourist attractions since Mary Salmon's The Moving Wax Works Of The Royal Court Of England in 1711, the most well known of these wax museums is without question Madame Tussauds in London. The popularity of the original museum founded by Madame Marie Tussaud in 1835 has spread like wildfire across the world and the seven seas and there are now Madame Tussaud wax museums everywhere from Shanghai to Hollywood as well as numerous other wax museums everywhere from Dublin to New Orleans to Kolkata. Now... in keeping with the ongoing series of spooky articles interspersed with skating history and interviews throughout October on Skate Guard, I wanted to show all of you some of the lifelike and quite eerie tributes to figure skaters found (or once found) in wax museums around the world!

The Kween herself, Michelle Kwan, once featured in wax at Madame Tussauds in New York City!

Grévin Wax Museum in Montreal pays host to a wax replica of Joannie Rochette, wearing a pair of Joannie`s own skates!

 

Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean`s ìconic Bolero immortalized in wax at Madame Tussauds in England

Mao Asada`s wax figure at Madame Tussauds in Tokyo, Japan

Although these wax replicas of some of the sport`s biggest stars are just that - replicas - you have to admit that there is something stunningly creepy about wax figures period. Almost like the Night At The Museum movies, one has to playfully ponder as to whether they come alive at night or something and do a few double axels before returning to their posts. Stranger things have happened. Ottavio Cinquanta`s still around, right?

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Alina Adams

I don't know about you, but I sure love a good mystery. One of my all time favourite movies is "Clue", I think Jessica Fletcher is the living end, I lovingly watch "Murdoch Mysteries" on CBC and not long ago, I stumbled upon a 1986 Agatha Christie TV movie on YouTube called "Dead Man's Folly" that starred none other than the fabulous Jean Stapleton. You know, "Oh Arrrrrchie!"... Edith Bunker! As an aside, in the movie her character is a lot like Edith so you totally need to watch Edith Bunker, P.I. After watching this Poirot gem, I got to thinking about mystery novels and my mind turned to Alina Adams, a New York Times Bestseller who has written some fantastic murder mysteries centered around the figure skating world. How unique and fabulous is that? This New York City resident is not only the author of "Murder On Ice", "On Thin Ice", "Axel Of Evil", "Death Drop" and "Skate Crime", she has also written a host of romance novels, a biography of Sarah Hughes, worked in television for four different soap operas and also had her hand in broadcast work for figure skating as well. Seeing as I do a little writing myself, I am always fascinated to speak with other writers and speaking with Alina was just a pleasure. I think you'll find this interview to die for.

Q: You are a New York Times Bestseller and have writing over twenty books including both fiction and non-fiction books about figure skating. What first gave you for writing fiction (in particularly mysteries) centered around figure skating?

A: Basically, I had written a couple of romance novels and I was pitching a romance based in the figure skating world to my editor. She didn't think it would be a great fit originally but did know another editor looking for someone to write a biography of Sarah Hughes. The editor called me and I did the book on Sarah which came out a couple of months before she won the 2002 Olympics. When she won and the book did really well, the editor suggested that I do a figure skating mystery novel. The publisher did very specific series of mystery novels, for instance mysteries based on candle making and scrapbooking so this fit with what they published. I wrote her a proposal for a book that took place in Russia during a skating competition but after reading the proposal, she asked for something based in the U.S. She was still going back and forth with the proposals I sent. Literally, after months of us brainstorming and going back and forth during the 2002 Olympics there was the whole pairs scandal and I sent her a single line: "someone murders the judge that gives the gold medal to the Russians over the Americans" and she replied "yes". All proposals that went back and forth (five in total) ended up eventually turning into novels.

Q: What have been the unique challenges of bringing figure skating to paper?

A: The most difficult thing is that you can be the most brilliant writer (which I'm not) but it's almost impossible to describe a visual like skating. It's actually why I like doing the enhanced E-books. I partnered with Ice Theatre Of New York on them and they gave me full access to their video library and I was able to put the visual with the skating and give readers a different experience. You didn't just have to read about the routine, you actually got to see it. I actually had to work it backward and then go find a video that suited to the program I was describing, which wasn't always easy. In one case, I had a pair where one of them was black and the other white and serendipitously I was able to find a video in their library that worked.

Q: Skating fans can be a VERY tough crowd to market writing to. How do you deal with that challenge?

A: As you said with skating fans, it's going to be impossible to please everyone, because everyone has their own personal narrative of how skating works and how the story should go. At the beginning of every fictional book you read it says something like "any resemblance to characters dead or living is purely coincidental". There's obviously a little fun of basing characters on people that are in the public eye but fiction is fiction and you have to have a sense of humor when it comes to all that. Someone of Dick Button's stature was able to take the books with great humor and some skating fans didn't see it that way. When it comes to non-skating fans, they also have their own narrative, and a lot of that comes from what's being sold in the media and also in cliches. With skating on television broadcasts, it's a storyline. It's not scripted but there's as much narrative going on in TV coverage as you'd find in a book. One of the things I tried to do in writing these books was to turn that narrative on its end because when you write mysteries you WANT to fool people.

Q: I'm dying to ask this because I'm a writer myself. Is there a cure, in your opinion, for writer's block?

A: Honestly, I say this and it sounds trite but when you write for a living, the cure is needing to pay your bills. If I have something due, I literally tell myself to write one line, then the one after that and then the one after that. The more you do it, you find that you do come up with tricks and sometimes they are shortcuts but you end up putting some words down on a page. There's a quote to the effect of "it's much easier to edit a bad page than a blank page." You know those days when you feel you're in the zone and then there are those other days when it's like pulling teeth? If you go back six months and read the writing both of those kinds of days, there's really no difference.

Q: You actually worked for some time with the soap operas Loving, As The World Turns, Guiding Light, Another World and as a researcher for the Daytime Emmy Awards. While I don't watch any soap operas now, I will admit that growing up watching General Hospital with my mother was a bit of a guilty pleasure. What were the best parts of working in television?

A: The best parts of working in TV AND in skating are that they both move very, very quickly. You have to have your stuff together but when it's done, it's done. With soap operas you have to produce an episode a day and in skating, when you're done you move on to the next show. Both are perfectly suited for adrenaline junkies. I can say though that my tenth draft might not be any better than anyone's elses tenth draft of something but my first will be. Looking at skating broadcasts, there's that live element though. First you have the skater's program in front of you but maybe you have a Christopher Bowman who is changing their choreography or a different podium outcome than you were expecting.,. that kind of thing. In television, you have to be able to think very fast and that's the kind of work I love.

Q: What are you working on currently?

A: (laughing) In an attempt to torpedo my career, self destruct... I basically had this crazy idea. I am literally writing my next novel live on the web at http://alinaadams.com/live. You can literally watch me type, edit, erase and change the novel as I go and I explain why with notes. When I was a teenager, I wished I could learn by standing over a professional writer's shoulder. Thirty years ago there was no way you could do that. I created this website so people can virtually stand over my shoulder. You can learn from your mistakes or you can learn from MY mistakes! For instance, I cut two chapters (live) and explained that to people and made the edits in the chapters after. It's all about pulling back the curtain on the mysterious process of writing a novel.

Q: What's one thing about you most people don't know?

A: I'm pretty open. If I'm willing to 'write naked' by writing and editing a novel live, I don't have much to hide. There is this fun fact though: I was born in the former USSR and speak fluent Russian, which is how I first got into televised skating work.

Q: Who are your three favourite skaters of all time and why?

A: Number one has to be Dick Button. What he has brought to the sport - the innovation alone - and then what he did as an announcer and when he created all of the professional championships... No one will ever come close to that. You can't have a list without him being on the top of it. Robin Cousins as well... I worked with him on the StarSkates shows a while back. Whether he was doing "Satan Takes A Holiday" or a tap dance routine or "Phantom Of The Opera", he was always just wonderful. Thirdly, Brian Boitano. I can appreciate the technical perfection. It's really like watching a master craftsman when he skates.

Q: Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot or Jessica Fletcher... who's the best detective?

A: My husband and I just started watching the Benedict Humberbatch version of Sherlock Holmes. The two actors are amazing but I shouldn't be able to figure things out before Sherlock Holmes. If we are talking about the book, definitely Sherlock Holmes. On Murder She Wrote, all you had to do was see who the biggest guest star was and you knew your killer.

All five enhanced ebook versions of the Figure Skating Mystery books are available as one and priced very reasonably on both Amazon and Barnes And Noble (cheaper than buying each one separately). In addition, the individual titles are free to borrow for Amazon Prime members. You can also buy them individually through Chapters as well. Do yourself a favor and give them a read! 

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Norton Skate: Skate America's Humble Beginnings

As the action gets underway this week at the first stop on the ISU Grand Prix Of Skating series, it's hard to think that Skate America wasn't always this prestigious event with extensive media coverage and a who's who cast of international figure skating stars. After all, the list of previous Skate America winners reads like a figure skating hall of fame. Olympic Gold Medallists Yuna Kim, Meryl Davis and Charlie White, Scott Hamilton, Kristi Yamaguchi, Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat, Jamie Salé and David Pelletier, Brian Boitano, Artur Dmitriev (with both Natalia Mishkutenok and Oksana Kazakova), Viktor Petrenko, Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, Alexei Yagudin, Xue Shen and Hongbo Zhao, Evan Lysacek, Oksana Baiul, Elena Valova and Oleg Vasiliev, Tatiana Totmianina and Maxim Marinin and Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov have all won Skate America gold at one time or another, in many cases more than once.

The very first Skate America competition wasn't actually called Skate America at all but instead Norton Skate, named after a Massachusetts manufacturer who sponsored the event. Held in Lake Placid in September of 1979, Norton Skate was actually a test event for the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics. According to "The History Of Skate America" document from the World Figure Skating Museum And Hall Of Fame provided by U.S. Figure Skating's museum archivist Karen Cover, Norton Skate attracted sixty five skaters from sixteen countries. In Candus Thomson's 2009 article "Stars remember how Skate America began" in The Baltimore Sun, several of the stars of the first Skate America reflected on their participation in the event. Scott Hamilton, who won the men's event defeating World Champion Jan Hoffmann, said "the memories are wonderful and specific. I remember standing on top of the podium and thinking, 'I've got to start winning more because the view is amazing.' I really turned some heads in that competition. From that point on, I had to be taken seriously." Ladies winner Lisa-Marie Allen recalled "I won compulsory figures, an oddity because I had a reputation of not being able to skate cleanly. The short program, I don't remember, but I must have been good enough. I fell on the triple salchow in the long program, but it must have been good enough to win."

Scott Cramer competing at Norton Skate in 1979

Although Hamilton and Allen were able to win on home turf, the pairs and ice dancing competitions at the Lake Placid event favored international skaters. Sabine Baess and Tassilo Thierbach of East Germany fended off Kitty and Peter Carruthers to take the pairs gold, whereas Hungarians Krisztina Regőczy and András Sallay of Hungary, Soviets Natalia Bestemianova and Andrei Bukin and Canadians Lorna Wighton and John Dowding all stood on the ice dance podium. Americans Judy Blumberg and Michael Seibert and Carol Fox and Richard Dalley were fourth and sixth, respectively. 

Although Norton Skate was originally only intended to be a one time event and there wasn't a Skate America competition in the fall of 1980, in 1981 the event was again held in Lake Placid and according to the World Figure Skating Museum article, "this time with the understanding that it would become an annual, international, invitational competition because of its popularity among international skaters, coaches and spectators." Following the 1982 Skate America, a national bidding process was opened up for potential host cities and interestingly in 1987 the event wasn't held due to an agreement between the USFSA and CFSA that international events wouldn't be held during seasons when either country was hosting the Olympics. Skate Canada International wasn't held in 1979 for this same reason. Adopted into the Champions Series which evolved into what is now known as the ISU Grand Prix, Skate America is one of the most prestigious events on the autumn figure skating calendar.

As you cheer on your favourites in the competition, don't forget that Skate America will be the first of the seven Grand Prix events (including the final) this season that you'll find coverage of on Skate Guard! I'm not going to be doing a play by play of any of the Grand Prix events but will be weighing in with my opinions. I do hope you enjoy the Grand Prix "coverage"!

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Then And Now: Figure Skating, The Internet And Television

It's hard to imagine a world without the internet. In this day and age of smartphones, tablets, laptops, desktop computers and WiFi, anything we could possibly want to know and access to instant communication with people all over the world is literally at our fingertips. This wealth of information and the popularity of social media as a means to share it is really heaven for any figure skating fan. If we want to know what is going on in skating, a quick Google or YouTube search or a scroll through your Facebook or Twitter feeds can usually answer anything. For everything else, there's Mastercard... I mean Wikipedia. It wasn't always this way though.

The internet has grown and evolved exponentially since the early to mid nineties. I remember going online when I was a junior high and high school student in a computer lab that was opened I think one or two evenings a week. The place was packed! Home computers with internet connections weren't something everybody had like they do now, and if you did have one, chances were you were using a dial up or painfully slow connection... not that the computers in this lab were any better. Many websites would crash and freeze and a blue screen of death could set you back a good ten minutes in your efforts to surf "the World Wide Web". You didn't take advantage of the free Wifi at Starbucks. You paid through the nose at internet cafes.

As the internet itself grew in popularity, quite a thriving figure skating community cropped up. Devoted skating fans from around the world shared reviews of competitions they attended and discussed both amateur and professional competition on Usenet newsgroups such as one called rec.sport.skating.ice.figure. There were several and they were basically email newsgroups consisting of one giant back and forth conversation about skating. Sandra Loosemore's Skateweb: The Figure Skating Page was THE trusted and respected go to for all things figure skating. If you wanted the latest news about everything from competitive rosters and results to partner changes and an inside scoop as to the lives of many skaters, Blades On Ice magazine's website was the place to go. Katja Rupp's EUROSKATING and Tino Eberl's The Figure Skating Corner (the latter being still active and a HOST of wonderful information and archival results) offered a distinctly European perspective on the skating world. Fan pages were a dime a dozen, many thorough, excellent and full of every detail of a skater's story you could imagine. Some were simply free Angelfire, Tripod and Geocities pages full of wonky dancing baby type images and scanned photos that often would give you nasty inline ads or pop-ups you did NOT need to deal with. I even briefly maintained a much earlier short lived incarnation of what I am trying to do here on the blog called Intensity On Ice that had its own forum. I also compiled a hugely detailed collection of professional figure skating competition results and music, much of which I remember e-mailing to Paula Slater, who runs the Golden Skate site and maintains a good collection of those records there to this day.

I spoke with Rev. Joelle Colville-Hanson, who offered on her web sites a wonderful archive of information about professional competitions at the time as well as excellently researched fan pages for Scott Hamilton, Dorothy Hamill, Rosalynn Sumners and Kitty and Peter Carruthers. Joelle explained that she "was interested in both figure skating and history and saw that there were no web sites for these skaters and felt they should have fan pages. I was a particular fan of Scott Hamilton and his contribution to professional skating and thought that should be known. Back in those days, you could not just Google this stuff. I went to the library and looked up old Sports Illustrated and Skating magazines to gather all the information. After I was better known people would send me info and old skating show and competition programs. It was a hobby for me. When they took down all the websites that were so easy to use it kind of put the end to all that. I got busy doing other things. I do think it's a shame all that info wasn't saved. Although there is a group that is archiving a lot of Geocities pages and many of my pages are still there. Most of the Scott Hamilton stuff is gone and I'm not sure where I have it. It was probably saved on a floppy disk."

Joelle also talked to me about the closer sense of community (both good and bad) that came from more a tight-knit and far less anonymous group of skating fans back in the internet's Usenet days we don't always see on say, a skating forum today: "I don't know if you remember when my husband died and many people on the Skatefans Usenet made me a quilt. I do presentations on social media now and I use that as an example of how virtual community is real community. I use the example of the Skatefans newsgroup and email list as an example of early 'social media' even though we didn't call it that. I have many friends on Twitter and Facebook now that I met through those venues. The difference for me now is that those little groups were kind of closed and the skaters may have and probably to some extent did read what we said about them but it wasn't as public as it is now like on Twitter where you can tag the skater who is also on Twitter. Me, I just don't say any of the critical things I might have said about a performance or even snarky like 'Alissa Czisny is a head case' because I know for a fact she'll see it... and didn't she go off of Twitter because of that? Few people are like me and refrain from snarky. It's just all so much more public and open. We all knew each other on those groups, what skaters everyone liked, what their hobby horses were, what would set them off. It was more of a community than I think it is now. I don't know if you remember I had a stalker who followed me around on the different venues and just said awful things. On the one hand, I think it might be worse if she found me on social media now but I could block her on all those sites which you couldn't do on Usenet. I'm so much more public now I think I'd be much more worried. Sometimes I wonder if she will show up and start bothering me or if she has a life."

A big part in the challenge of really bringing people together like back in the internet's early days are the competing choices of skating coverage out there right now. There really is something available for everyone's varied tastes and many skating fans tend to be a little more cliquey now than they once were. There's also the glaring lack of television coverage to speak of. Joelle stated that "the biggest difference is that there is so little figure skating on television to talk about. My daughter competed and skated but now she is grown up (although still coaches skating) but to me I don't know the skaters anymore, I don't like the new scoring although I know the skaters really do. I'm just not that into as much, though I did go to Nationals (last year in Omaha)?  The Japan Open was our first peek at many of the world's best sporting new programs that they, like all competitive skaters do, hope will take them to the top."

Let's talk about that lack of television coverage a bit. I'm always about trying to look on the bright side, but sitting down to offer my two cents about televised figure skating coverage is not exactly a topic you can approach with a great deal of positivity. U.S. figure skating fans just got an unpleasant dose of reality when U.S. Figure Skating announced the broadcast schedule for figure skating this season. Coverage on NBC is minimal at best and thirty seven hours of the entire amount of competitive figure skating coverage being presented will be on Universal, which for many isn't a standard station people with a basic cable package would even have. ABC is offering a total of sixteen hours of additional coverage of the Disson skating/crossover shows such as the Skating and Gymnastics Spectacular and Family Skating Tribute.

Then you have icenetwork and live feeds for various feeds on the internet... don't get me wrong, I don't mind a live feed but I would much prefer to sitting on my sofa watching skating, We are fortunate as the coverage up here is generally much better and the sports stations skating coverage usually gets relegated to usually aren't ones you pay a fortune to add to your cable package. My job and life don't really necessitate me watching a lot of skating in real time anyway, so I count my lucky stars for YouTube and other platforms.

One of the more troubling issues as I see it is the fact that a sport who has a huge potential fan base based on the popularity of skating on television in the nineties seems to be neglecting a very loyal aging population. I am in no way saying a ninety year old can't use a computer and search for a live stream of a competition or get an icenetwork subscription, but the casual fans who MADE this sport popular definitely aren't going to watch if they have to go hunting skating down. The fan base is not going to significantly grow unless skating coverage is easily accessible to everyone. 20% of households in the U.S. do not even have internet access and many others who do might not be tech savvy enough to navigate and find what they are looking for necessarily.

Now, I've said it before and I'll say it again. The fundamental problem as to why figure skating is hurting so much and is not getting the ratings necessary to make it an attractive product for network television is that the judging system and the choreography we are seeing as a result simply is not viewer friendly. The quick fix to the problem is not bringing in a younger, more IJS savvy commentary team. There isn't a quick fix. The long overdue decision to allow skaters to use vocals in ISU competition isn't even likely to make the sport any more entertaining, if skaters, coaches and choreographers continue to use Piano Concerto No. Whatever again and again like it's some sort of good idea. There's an almost universal reluctance by many skaters to take advantage of the opportunity to make things a little more entertaining and back away from staid traditional program choices even when the option is clearly there. 

Simply put, times have changed from the internet's early days, and whether we like it or not, we're not just talking about skating on the internet anymore like back in the nineties. Now we HAVE to watch it there. I'm not even saying it's a bad thing for most existing fans. There are pluses obviously. We're not just seeing the five short programs that the television network decides to play. We can look at the skating in an unprejudiced way and develop our own narrative when we watch raw coverage online, which can at times be appealing. That said, there's something to be said for quality TV coverage and the appeal to a fan base OUTSIDE of the small percentage of viewers that are diehard fans. I just think that part of going forward is looking at what worked and trying to recreate that model... with witty commentators like Dick Button and easy to understand broadcast coverage that breaks down the IJS for casual viewers as much as possible. Times may have changed but throwing your hands up in the air, sighing and saying "figure skating is dying" is no more productive to helping rejuvenate the sport's popularity than not admitting there is a problem in the first place.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Skating With Anne Boleyn's Ghost: The Royal Menagerie And The Tower Of London

Topping even the rink that was installed in the Eiffel Tower in terms of the cool factor, The Tower Of London in England plays host to one of the most dramatic ice rinks in the world: The Tower Of London Ice Rink. Literally developed where the Tower Of London's moat was situated, the ice rink offers outdoor public skating with the backdrop of the Tower's fortress battlements.

What makes this setting even more dramatic is that the Tower is considered one of the most haunted locations in the United Kingdom. Since building commenced in 1078, the property played host to well over one hundred confirmed executions including botched beheadings, hangings, firing squads and people being burned at the stake alive. The Tower Of London is synonymous with imprisonment and cruel torture. Modern excavations have revealed plague pits and mass burials near the property. It's the home of the Crown Jewels Of The United Kingdom, which Colonel Thomas Blood infamously tried unsuccessfully to steal in 1671 but more than anything, renowned for its unsurprising number of ghost sightings considering the brutality and suffering that has occurred there. The ghost of Anne Boleyn who was beheaded in 1536 for treason against Henry VII allegedly haunts both the White Tower (carrying her head under her arm) and the chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula where her body is buried. Other ghost sightings at the Tower Of London include Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, King Henry VI and Lady Jane Grey, who reigned as Queen Of England for nine days before being ousted by the much feared Queen Mary I Of England, who earned the nickname "Bloody Mary". Perhaps even more famous than Anne Boleyn's ghost are the purported ghost sightings of Edward V of England and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, the two young brothers who mysteriously disappeared in 1843 while living in the Tower. In 1674, the skeletons of two boys were found buried ten feet under a staircase in the White Tower and an examination in 1933 confirmed the skeletons corresponded with the ages of the princes at the time of their disappearance. It is widely believed the boys were murdered and many have suggested that Richard III was responsible, even though both boys had been eliminated from the royal succession. Their ghosts have reportedly appeared as two small figures gliding down the stairs of the Bloody Tower, still in the white night shirts they would have worn when they were killed in their sleep. As early as the fifteenth century, there have also been sightings of the boys playing on battlements and around the grounds as well as of children's laughter. A look at another famous ghost sighting at the Tower Of London takes us right back to the moat, the very site of the Tower Of London's skating rink in present day.

In January of 1816, a sentry on guard outside of the Jewel House reportedly witnessed the ghost of a bear approaching towards him and apparently died of fright a few days later according to Christina Hole's 1951 book "Haunted England: A Survey Of English Ghost-Lore". A ghost bear? Well, if you look at the history of The Tower Of London and the moat... it's certainly possible. In the early 1200's, The Royal Menagerie was founded at The Tower by King John to house exotic animals given as gifts from dignitaries around the world to England. Elephants, tigers, kangaroos, polar bears, ostriches, alligators, anacondas, baboons and lions were among the many animals who basically had free reign of the property. This went on for centuries until several attacks on visitors to the property prompted the royals to send the remaining animals to the London Zoo in Regent's Park in 1832. A 2010 Daily Mail UK article by Julia Stuart talks about some of these animal attacks: "In 1686 a lion mauled Mary Jenkinson, a Norfolk maid living with the lion keeper. It was decided to amputate her arm in order to save her life, but she died a few hours later. In the 18th century a baboon being shipped to the Tower hurled a 9lb cannon shot at a boy-sailor and killed him. A report in 1830 told how a leopard had attacked a man employed to remove bones and waste from the menagerie's exercise yard. Two under-keepers heard his horrified screams and came to his rescue. And then there was a seemingly ungrateful serpent, which wrapped itself around Alfred Cops's neck while he was feeding a bird to a boa constrictor in a bid to entertain tourists. Indeed, it may well have been two final unfortunate incidents - in which a wolf escaped from the Tower, followed shortly by a monkey biting a soldier's leg - which finally led to the closure of the Tower menagerie."

Now what does this have to do with the skating rink? In 1843, the moat where the skating rink is was drained and filled but in the 1930's, a major excavation on the site where the moat once was found remains of many exotic animals buried where the skating rink stands today - including leopards and medieval Barbary lions dating back to the 1200's. A 2008 article in The Londonist by Lindsey Clarke explained that "the menagerie was maintained as a symbol of the King’s wealth, power and influence and used to entertain courtiers and scare the pants off traitors and enemies. Unfortunately, this meant that the noble North African lions were kept in ignoble conditions, with scarce enough room to wiggle, let along swing their glorious regal manes, their equivalent of the peacock’s tail, used to get the lionesses hot. Although, no evidence of lady lions has been unearthed so no wonder they’re extinct now." Although these lions were especially prized as living symbols of Britain's coat of arms, a 2005 BBC article "Big Cats Prowled London's Tower" explained that "despite their royal status, the cats were not treated with ceremony when they died, instead being dumped - unskinned - in the Tower's moat". So with all of this now known, is it really as shocking as you'd think that a sentry guard would perhaps see an apparition of an advancing bear?

One has to wonder if Anne Boleyn, this deposed queen consort who met her untimely end at the hands of an expert swordsman brought in from France especially to execute her has any plans to take up something more lively than wandering around The White Tower carrying her head. Perhaps, just perhaps she will trade in her sorrow for Salchows and take to spending her afterlife haunting the skating rink built on the very spot that all of these animals from The Royal Menagerie were found, perhaps with a Barbary lion in tow. We already have a camel spin? Why not a Barbary lion one? If you do happen to see her spiralling down the ice should you visit, I would stay out of her way. At The Tower Of London, heads tend to roll.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Tim Koleto

It doesn't get any more different than going from being a singles skater in the U.S. to taking up ice dance and representing a country halfway across the world - South Korea. With his partner Yura Min, Tim Koleto has done just that. Originally from Colorado Springs, Koleto competed on the junior level at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships before teaming up with Min in April 2013. Tim was gracious enough to take the time to talk about everything from the programs that he and Yura are skating this season to working with a who's who of skating's greatest coaches and choreographers and much more in this fantastic interview you're bound to enjoy:

Q: Prior to teaming up with Yura Min and deciding to compete for Korea, your background was actually as a SINGLES skater. You competed at the U.S. Championships and placed as high as sixth in the junior ranks. What prompted you to focus on ice dancing?

A: I met Yura in 2011 in Colorado Springs. I have loved Korean music and culture for many years, so when she first came to the rink, I introduced myself and we became good friends. Over the next couple of years, we crossed paths at competitions and for the short time she trained in Colorado Springs. Every time we met, we would joke about doing ice dance together, but the timing was never quite right. My singles career was still progressing and she had a partner. In June of 2012, I dislocated my knee on a triple axel attempt and partially tore both my hamstring and LCL. Once again, in December, I twisted my ankle on a landing and tore my Tibiofibular Ligament (I know, it's a mouthful). In February, I was just starting to skate again, and was working on skating skills, still unable to jump. Surgery was on the table if I wanted to continue to jump. Yura had split up with her previous partner, and offered me a tryout if I'd like to. I moved to Michigan a couple of weeks later and never looked back.

Q: You made your international debut at last year's Four Continents Figure Skating Championships and incredibly placed in the top ten in your first attempt. What did you learn the most from this competition?

A: Four Continents was an eye opening experience. One year before (and a singles skater at the time), it would've been laughable to even dream of competing in Taipei. Though it was a hugely positive competition for us, what actually sticks in my mind is the mistake I made on the twizzles in the short dance. I am incredibly hard on myself and a perfectionist to the end, so knowing we missed the minimum for the World Championships because I didn't grab my blade was tough to stomach. "One thing at a time" is an easy thing to say, but not always easy to execute. In the aftermath, I have learned to trust myself, to stay calmer and more grounded on elements, and to not let things get away from me in pressure situations.

Q: What are your main focuses in training and your goals for this season?

A: Our main focus for the year has been to skate more and more alike; to be sensitive to each others timing and body lean, leg line and toe point. I am in no way a veteran, so finding sameness in our skating is an always-evolving process and we stress this at all times. As the season goes on and the foundation becomes more solid, we are exploring more emotional connection, more power and speed, and skating closer together. Our main goal has always been to be at the World Championships in Shanghai, but our secondary goal for the year has been to leave a lasting impression on the audience. In so many ways last year was quickly thrown together. This year we feel ready to show who we are as a team. We want to have an instantly recognizable and unique 'brand' to our skating, and we want people to experience something special when we perform.

Q: What can you share about the concept behind both your short and free dance this year? What do you feel are the strengths and differences of your material?

A: The concept and direction of our short dance is paso doble to the core. We allow ourselves some room to connect and find intimacy in our flamenco pieces, but we think it is important to adhere to the theme we are given for the year with total commitment. We didn't look for unnatural or avant-garde music choices, rather, we chose to inject the classic paso doble style with our own personality, and let the program find its individuality this way. The concept of our Free Dance is an eccentric take on swing, through a Cirque du Soleil lens. We've entitled it "A Quirky Sort Of Love". The music is from the Canadian-French children's movie "The Triplets of Belleville", and it has this really consistent European tone that we fell in love with. Where our paso doble is intense and aggressive, we wanted the Free Dance to feel soft and light and fun. It is the year after the Olympics, so we wanted to take a risk and really stretch our comfort zone and play with different styles and characters.

Q: You have worked with some very talented coaches and choreographers, Christopher Dean, Igor Shpilband and Tom Zakrajsek among them. What has each brought to your skating that will stick with you forever?

A: I have been so blessed to train under such incredible coaches. Christopher Dean left a huge impression in my mind (and yes, I'm still star struck by him). He has such an incredible vocabulary of moment and styles. He really taught us how to use each others weight and how to understand momentum in order to execute complicated elements. We actually have a huge number of tricks we learned from Chris that didn't make the 'final cut' of the free dance that we will incorporate into future programs. When I began working with Tom Zakrajsek and Becky Calvin, I was at a crossroads in my skating career. I cannot explain the gratitude I have for being taken under his wing. He taught me that even old habits can be changed if you want it bad enough, how to harness perfectionism into an unbreakable work ethic, and how to be a competitor. I take his wisdom and training habits and apply them daily, even as an ice dance. I owe my success to him. Igor Shpilband is different than any other coach I've worked with. His passion and love for skating is clear in every lesson. He is intense and honest in a way I have never experienced from a coach before. He has a deep understanding of music and how to build a program. I'd like to give an honorable mention to Tom Dickson and David Wilson as well. Tom fostered my love for skating when I was very young, and his focus on school figures and edge quality made my transition to ice dance much easier. David taught me a new way to hear music and a new way to express, and that sometimes innuendo is more valuable than the obvious.

Q: What is your favourite book, song and film?

A: "The Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley, "I Am the Best" by 2NE1 and "V for Vendetta".

Q: If you could meet one famous person (living or dead) who would it be?

A: J.K. Rowling.

Q: Who are your three favourite skaters of all time and why?

A: Johnny Weir, for his originality. He has such a signature skating style and personality, and the technical strength to back it up. Everything he did was so 'Johnny'. Michelle Kwan. "Lyra Angelica". Enough said. Yuna Kim. She has never finished off the podium in international competition. A true champion. She is so poised and a sincere role model. I am so lucky to have met her and to compete for her home country under her legacy of success.

Q: What's one thing most people don't know about you?

A: I am a giant nerd. I'm in the middle of writing my second sci-fi/fantasy novel, I binge watch bad TV shows on Netflix, and I read anything I can't get my hands on. I also have a huge love for Korean music and Korean dramas. And, thanks to my Mom and sister, I am admittedly addicted to Downton Abbey. So embarrassing.

Q: What makes figure skating the best sport out there?

A: I think what makes figure skating so special is the dichotomy of sport and artistry. Very few sports share this dynamic marriage of music and dance with raw power and athleticism.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Fairfield's Edwards Pond: Witchcraft Trials And Ice Skating

I have had an insatiable interest in The Salem Witch Trials for as long as I can remember. After first being intrigued by Laurie Cabot as a teenager watching an episode of A&E's "In Search Of", I read her book "The Power Of The Witch" and have since read a number of books and watched documentaries about the events that unfolded in Salem, Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. Those trials saw the execution of twenty people and it wouldn't be until well over a decade later that I'd learn of a very personal connection to those events.

In 1630, my ancestor Anna Maria Conrad wrote a letter while pregnant, imprisoned and tortured in a  Frankfurt, Germany jail, accused of witchcraft. In the translation of the letter (which was a plea for her freedom) she wrote "If you cannot allow me to live in Kleinheubach or elsewhere in Erbach, then, release me and allow me to enter the Mainz region... I ask for the rest of my life that I do not remain guilty and forgotten in Erbach." She survived being burned at the stake and escaped from her imprisonment to Grosheubach, Germany. It is believed that her husband bribed the guards to obtain her freedom. She is known historically as the 'last witch of Kleinheubach'. I'm fortunate enough to (through a distant relative) even have a copy of Anna Maria's original letter in German as well as a full translation.

Having that fascination with my own ancestor's story and the stories of those who endured similar trials in Salem, my interest skyrocketed when I read an article that talked about a skating connection to witch trials. I'm telling you... you can't even make this stuff up! During the height of the Salem Witch Trials, a very similar series of events unfolded in Fairfield, Connecticut. Decades after settlers had sentenced Goodwife Bassett to hanging in 1651 and Goodwife Mary Knapp to the same fate in 1653 for having "witch marks", Puritan society again reared its ugly head and accused another Fairfield woman named Mercy Disbrowe of "witchery". According to Devan Boniface and Erin Gleason's 2000 article "The Fairfield Witch Project", "Disbrowe was searched for witch marks by a committee of six housewives. After finding a peice of skin about an inch long that resembled a 'flattened finger of a glove,' Mercy was placed in jail where she awaited for the start what was to be a drawn-out trial." As part of Disbrowe's "trial" (I use quotations because a witch hunt is not a trial), Disbrowe was put to the almost folkloric "witch dunking" test where she was held down in a pond to see if she would float. If she were to drown, she was believed innocent and if she were to survive, she'd be determined a witch. I don't even have to tell you how ridiculous and sadistic that kind of test is, but hey, there's still racism and discrimination in this world, so there are clearly a lot of people NOW that like then, have completely illogical thought processes going on. At any rate, Disbrowe survived the "witch dunking" and was sent to be executed. Unlike in the cases of Bassett and Knapp, outside authorities stepped in and saved Disbrowe after seeing the hysteria that was going on in Salem around the same time.

Poster advertising a skating ball in Connecticut in 1865. Photo courtesy Connecticut Historical Society.

Of course, as in any story like this, urban legend has prevailed. The pond in which Disbrowe endured her "witch dunking" (which urban legend says she didn't actually survive) was Edwards Pond, which on the grounds of Fairfield Academy. Naturally, the pond was believed to be haunted. Elizabeth Rose, the Library Director at Fairfield, Connecticut's Museum And History Center, confirmed that students at the Academy used the pond (which is now located on Fairfield's Town Green) for ice skating! Evidence that the "haunted pond" was used for skating can be found in "recollections in the 1904 Centennial Of The Fairfield Academy, page eleven (recollections of Arthur Osborne) and page twenty two (recollections of Mary Ann Sloan). It's an interesting connection between witchcraft trials and ice skating!" stated Rose.

Rose was kind enough to provide me with scans of the original 1904 document and I'm happy to be able to share both Osborne and Sloan's accounts of skating on the "haunted pond". Osborne wrote: "The Academy pond, now filled up, was a great feature in the school life, affording skating and sliding in the winter, and wading, rafting and sailing in summer. Often after recess in winter, we returned to the school room, wet from running on the cakes of ice, sometimes up to the middle." Sloan wrote: "Of our sports and pastimes, my most distinct recollection is of the pond next the Academy. It has long ago been filled in, but in my childhood was a considerable body of water. In the winter, when the ice formed, the boys on their skates would draw the girls back and forth as they held their wooden tippets. Sometimes we forgot that ice would break and that there was water beneath. I had many wettings. David Durand was once at least sent to bed for the rest of the day for this reason. After one of these episodes, wet from head to foot, I was hastening home when I discovered that to get there I must pass the procession of good people on their way to the Preparatory Service. Never was a little girl more ashamed of herself. But these mishaps were soon forgotten, and occurred again and again."

Although Edwards Pond, the site of a Disbrowe's "witch dunking" in the late 1600's and schoolyard ice skating at the turn of the twentieth century, is now filled in and grown over, one has to wonder if the site that was long considered haunted in local folklore really was. Did the ice that Mary Ann Sloan, Arthur Osborne and David Durand skated on break of its own volition or did Disbrowe really drown... and was she up for company? Although the answer is more than likely the first of the two, it sure makes for a great ghost story, doesn't it? As I write this, I like to think that my own ancestor, Anna Maria Conrad, is looking down and smiling.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Interview With Harry Mattick

If you're not familiar with British skater Harry Mattick's story, get ready to be inspired. When he survived a car accident where his father was killed, Mattick suffered a major head injury that left doctors advising he'd never walk again let alone skate. He defied all odds by not only walking but skating his way to an incredible four British junior titles and making trips to the Junior World and European Championships. After recently losing his coach Igor Novodran in a plane crash, Mattick shows more resolve than ever to live out his dreams on the ice. It was my absolute pleasure to talk to him about his achievements, goals, overcoming adversity and much more in this fantastic interview:

Q: You've got a lot to be proud of about your figure skating career so far. After winning the British novice title, you won the UK's junior title for four years straight before joining the senior ranks and winning the silver medal during the 2012/2013 season. You've represented Great Britain on the Junior Grand Prix circuit and at the Junior World and European Championships as well as a whole array of international events as well. Looking back on everything so far, what are your proudest moments or most special memories?

A: There are, indeed, many moments in which I can look back and get a sense of achievement. My first international gold medal from the Warsaw Cup in 2013 is a special memory and representing the country at the European Championships was another. At the top of the list, however, is landing a new jump for the first time! I love competing, performing and, especially, winning medals but the sense of accomplishment you get from landing a new jump tops all else!

Q: You're currently ranked third in Great Britain and obviously are shooting for gold this year, especially with both Matt Parr and David Richardson having announced their retirements. What can you share about your goals for this season and how you are working to achieve them?

A: My goals for this season are (as they always are) to skate the best I can possibly skate, achieve everything I can possibly achieve and represent my country, myself and my God in a way that will make everyone sit up and take notice. Specifically, I'm hoping that a gold medal at Nationals and a place at the European Championships are included within that this season, however no matter what I achieve I absolutely love what I do and wouldn't change it for the world!

Q: You've trained both in England and in the U.S. What do you miss about training in North America and what did you miss most about the UK when you were in the U.S.?

A: America was a great experience! I loved the fact that the culture is so much different to ours in subtle ways that you wouldn't expect. When I was there I missed being close to family. I only got to see my family once or twice a year and that was hard. Training in the states was a great opportunity that helped my skating in many ways and there are many things I miss but I much prefer training in the UK for now at least.

Q: Tell me about your programs this season and what you love about skating them!

A: I love the character I play in my long program. I skate to "The Nightmare Before Christmas" as 'The Prince of Hallowe'en'. In the program, he discovers another world (namely Christmas Land) before returning to Hallowe'en Land. In my short program, I skate to "Amazing Grace" and play a man set free of bondage. My short program is much slower than last season's Latin music. I'm really looking forward to performing it.

Q: Your former coach Igor Novodran was tragically killed in a plane crash this March and you also lost your father in a car accident when you were younger. I'm so sorry for your losses but I'm also inspired by your determination to press on in the face of it. Where do you find strength?

A: My career has certainly not been an easy ride! I find that taking a step back to remember why I skate always renews my determination and drive. I started skating because of the accident that killed my Dad. I was sat in the back seat and suffered physical injuries as well as a major head injury. I started skating as part of my recovery and rehabilitation. Doctors told my Mum that I would probably never walk and that I definitely would never function normally as an adult. I guess they were only half right! I remember only being able to concentrate for two minutes at a time so I had a two minute skating lesson at the end of my sister's fifteen minutes. No matter what anyone tells you and no matter how qualified they are... you CAN achieve your goals!

Q: On a happier note, FOOD! If you were only allowed to eat one food every day for every meal for the rest of your life, what would be putting in your mouth?

A: (laughing) It's a good thing I train so hard as I quite simply love all food! I have a particular liking for fish, specifically salmon and smoked mackerel. One of my favourite treat foods, though, has to be chocolate digestives with peanut butter (something I discovered in the States)! This has to be the hardest question yet, though! I don't think I could live off just one food without going insane!

Q: Who are your three favourite skaters of all time and why?

A: When I was nine years old, I recorded the 2004 World Championships. This was back in the day of video tapes! I watched the last six skaters of the men's long, without fail, every day (sometimes two or three times) until the following years World Championships! It was during that year I decided I wanted to be up there with them. Among those six skaters were Brian Joubert and Stephane Lambiel. I had the pleasure several years ago of doing a spin master class with Lambiel in a training camp and it was one of the highlights of my career so far!

Q: What's one thing most people don't know about you?

A: I'm a cyclist! I bike everywhere and as a result I average around forty miles a week. Its green, free and I find its a nice addition to my training, especially as a pre-warm up first thing in the morning.

Q: What is the most important lesson figure skating has taught you?

A: Figure skating has taught me many things but the main lesson has to perform under pressure. It's a lesson that's still ongoing but looking back I've found its crossed over into life off the ice and has turned me into a very laid back person.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.

Enigma's "Beyond The Invisible" And Rahkamo And Kokko

In 1996, new age musical project Enigma joined forces with British director Julien Temple and 1995 World Silver Medallists Susanna Rahkamo And Petri Kokko to present a first: a popular music video featuring figure skating as the storytelling medium.

"Beyond The Invisible" is a haunting piece of music by the group that features not only the vocals of Sandra and Michael Cretu but samples of Latvian folk piece "Sajāja Bramaņi'" ("Nobleman Rode Together") as performed by the folk ensemble Rasa and a Gregorian chant (Isaiah 64:9-11) from "Gregoriani Cantus" by Pierre Kaelin. The video depicts the avant garde Finnish team skating in a forest: Savernake Forest in Wiltshire to be exact. An ice rink was designed in the forest especially for the video and took over a week to freeze. 

The compelling imagery in the video is unforgettable and the abstract imagery and vocals have been interpreted in completely different ways. Some believe the song speaks of afterlife and reincarnation, of reaching a Home beyond Earth as we know it; that the lyrics propose the conflict between light and dark. "Close your eyes, just feel and realize it is real and not a dream, I'm in you and you're in me. It is time to break the chains of life, if you follow you will see, what's beyond reality," have been interpreted by others to talk about quantum psychology, buddhism and oneness and how many of us struggle within the laws, rules and constrictions of religion to find some connection to the universe and nature we live in. Yet others focus on the message of the importance to create your own dreams, have conviction in your fantasies and to not do what everyone else is doing ("to break the chains of life"). This final description certainly seems fitting for the skating interpretation of music and even the choice of skaters. Rahkamo and Kokko were always well known and applauded during their competitive and professional careers for being risk takers - from batty bride and groom to Nino Rota to vikings and street dancers, the Finns were always daring, different and completely fearless. Breaking those "chains of life" can also be interpreted as breaking out of your daily routine and meditating or thinking quietly about what you really long for and acting on those desires.

Beyond the spiritual and personal messages of the English lyrics, there is a much more bold message to the song if you look at the translations of the Latvian and Grigorian lyrics. "Sajaja bramani totari ta, raitata raitata, radu ridu raitata, rota" translates to "this is a dream your pants are still on" where "Ne irascaris Domine, ne ultra memineris iniquitatis: ecce civitas. Sancti facta est deserta: Sion deserta facta est: Ierusalem desolata est: domus sanctificationis tuae et gloriae tuae" translates to "Is this God? If so we need a revolution, like the civilizations in the desert, God has been corrupted, Sion is corrupt, Jerusalem is the devil... I despise the church...do not be angry Lord". If you look at those translated lyrics in context with the rest of them you see a bigger message about structured religion .vs. belief: a debate I won't even get into. What a lot of you, as readers of my writing, may NOT know is that I study spirituality as much as I can. I devour books on everything to Christian and Gnostic religions to reincarnation to every religion and "new age" belief imaginable like a big girl with a box of Smarties. I find it tremendously interesting that Enigma, who really is such a fascinating musical group in itself, chose to interpret and convey this message through skating. I can't imagine anything more spiritual than carving out edges on a frozen rink in the middle of a mysterious, ancient forest dating back in oral tradition to 934 AD. 

No matter how you interpret Enigma's "Beyond The Invisible" or the accompanying music video featuring Rahkamo and Kokko, one thing's for sure. It takes you to a different time and a different place and serves as evidence that skating and art aren't separated by a few degrees. They exist together.

Skate Guard is a blog dedicated to preserving the rich, colourful and fascinating history of figure skating. Over ten years, the blog has featured over a thousand free articles covering all aspects of the sport's history, as well as four compelling in-depth features. To read the latest articles, follow the blog on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. If you enjoy Skate Guard, please show your support for this archive by ordering a copy of the figure skating reference books "The Almanac of Canadian Figure Skating", "Technical Merit: A History of Figure Skating Jumps" and "A Bibliography of Figure Skating": https://skateguard1.blogspot.com/p/buy-book.html.