The Joshua and Jason Uber Thread!

[toddlj]

Actually, 2nd assignments for Josh and Jason are still provisional. Last year they moved them around as necessary depending on the fields. We didn't know last year where Josh's second JPG would be until a couple weeks before. I wouldn't assume that they are "set in stone" until they appear on the USFSA site. http://www.usfsa.org/Athletes.asp?id=216
(And even then, they have been known to change those listings before too.) So Josh may not face Yan after all, they may shift him later.

[LilJen]

^^ At Glacier Falls early season comp, Jason did finish 2nd behind Richard Dornbush.

It is at the recent JGP Courcheval event that JB placed second behind Boyang Jin of China.

Right, I was thinking of Courchevel while reading this, thus the

[misskarne]

Actually, 2nd assignments for Josh and Jason are still provisional. Last year they moved them around as necessary depending on the fields. We didn't know last year where Josh's second JPG would be until a couple weeks before. I wouldn't assume that they are "set in stone" until they appear on the USFSA site. http://www.usfsa.org/Athletes.asp?id=216
(And even then, they have been known to change those listings before too.) So Josh may not face Yan after all, they may shift him later.

Ah, okay, that's good to know! I wouldn't think the USFSA would put either of them up against Han if they could avoid it. I mean, we know it'll happen at the JGPF, but why make the confrontation any earlier than it needs to be?

Right, I was thinking of Courchevel while reading this, thus the

Don't worry, we've all done it.


Just rewatched Josh's new SP from Vail and now I'm really, really excited to see it again, with a bit of extra polish, some extra stamina (aka not skating at altitude with asthma ), and of course, costumed up. Unless he's really going for the simple black as his costume which could be interesting.

Very much looking forward to this! Draw tonight!

On another note, haven't they reduced the number of spots at JGPF? What does Jason need to do at his second assignment to get a place?

[Mrs. P]

On another note, haven't they reduced the number of spots at JGPF? What does Jason need to do at his second assignment to get a place?

Last season, they reduced it from 8 to 6 spots, just like the seniors.
Here's the current status (obviously doesn't say much since there's only been one event): http://www.isuresults.com/events/jgp2012/jgpsmen.htm

I think as long as Jason medals at his next event he will most certainly make the final. In the event he finishes fourth (which is pretty unlikely, given the current lineup for JGP Turkey if that is the event he ends up doing), he might still make it but may need help from other skaters.

[snoopysnake]

Jason Brown is skating at Evening With Champions in September:
http://www.aneveningwithchampions.org/cast.html

[Sylvia]

This must mean Jason has been assigned officially to the JGP in Turkey because it takes place the week before EWC.

I think as long as Jason medals at his next event he will most certainly make the final. In the event he finishes fourth (which is pretty unlikely, given the current lineup for JGP Turkey if that is the event he ends up doing), he might still make it but may need help from other skaters.

Last year, Japan's Keiji Tanaka grabbed the 6th and final men's spot for the JGP Final with a silver and a bronze: http://www.isuresults.com/events/jgp2011/jgpsmen.htm
This year, it likely will depend on how many different men win gold and/or silver medals.

ETA: USFS tweeted this photo of Joshua Farris at the Lake Placid JGP SP draw this morning.

[spikydurian]

These two young men are very impressive but they will have to contend with another youngster, Hanyu who currently seems to be in his own league. Hope Jason gets his 3A soon. If he can get a quad, he will stand a very good chance of meeting Hanyu head on. Good luck to these two budding young men.

[misskarne]

Last season, they reduced it from 8 to 6 spots, just like the seniors.
Here's the current status (obviously doesn't say much since there's only been one event): http://www.isuresults.com/events/jgp2012/jgpsmen.htm

I think as long as Jason medals at his next event he will most certainly make the final. In the event he finishes fourth (which is pretty unlikely, given the current lineup for JGP Turkey if that is the event he ends up doing), he might still make it but may need help from other skaters.

Thankyou!

Jason Brown is skating at Evening With Champions in September:
http://www.aneveningwithchampions.org/cast.html

This must mean Jason has been assigned officially to the JGP in Turkey because it takes place the week before EWC.

<snip>

ETA: USFS tweeted this photo of Joshua Farris at the Lake Placid JGP SP draw this morning.

Cool! Thankyou. Since there were no videos from the Courchevel gala I guess this will show us Jason's new ex

Great pic of Josh, did he cut his hair again do you think? Looks shorter from the back. Can't wait for the SP!

These two young men are very impressive but they will have to contend with another youngster, Hanyu who currently seems to be in his own league. Hope Jason gets his 3A soon. If he can get a quad, he will stand a very good chance of meeting Hanyu head on. Good luck to these two budding young men.

They also have to contend with Gachinski, and of course Han Yan. It's not going to be easy for them but since when is this sport ever easy? I'm sure they'll rise to the challenge spectacularly.

[pinky166]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-KtdZ6zxIg

Josh's SP. What do we think of this? On the plus side, his 3a looks better than ever, and his spins are really strong (though he didn't get level 4 on one), very intricate and well executed footwork, as well. The downside, I don't know, to me the program seemed a little...bland maybe? Or the music is a bit repetitive and doesn't rise and fall very much? Can't put my finger on it but perhaps it just needs mileage... when I saw it early in the summer at Vail I thought it had loads of potential. Maybe I was just expecting it to be as great as Clare de Lune though which was obviously going to be a tall order considering how fabulous that program was for Josh...

I digress...to be honest, I think I'm just not a huge fan of the costume, as petty as that sounds, and that is effecting my impression. Josh is so elegant he can pull off pretty much anything and I don't think the program is a total bust, obviously the score is pretty strong so it was well received by judges, I guess I was just maybe expecting more. Also I see he got that pesky edge call on his flip...does he really lip? I hadn't really noticed before.

In any event he's set himself up well for the FS, where he mentioned he's going to try a quad toe - YAY! - and Tanaka who was his main competition finds himself trailing Josh by almost 14 points, so I imagine Josh is feeling confident. If Keiji skates up to form, the FS results should be exciting and both men have the potential to put up really big numbers, but we shall see what happens. Hoping Josh goes for the 4t!

Anyone else's thoughts on Josh/his new SP/his skating in general? I will say it looks like he's filled out noticeably since last season and I think it's a good thing, judging from that wonderful, powerful 3a I'd say the weight has helped his jumps, but mostly he just looks more manly. I miss the long hair, though

[PinkFeathers]

I'm not a huge fan of the music... It seems like he was having trouble connecting to it? He's a very graceful skater, and I enjoyed watching him, but that music is pretty boring.

That said, this looked like he would have been fine with it at the starting end of the senior GP. Just IMO.

[l'etoile]

Thanks for the link, pinky!
Yeah, I think he was a bit distant to music, too. Landings were slightly worrisome but this is the first competition of the season, so I expect them to be better as time goes on. Heck, the scores he earned was three points shy of his personal best. And I'm really happy for that gorgeous 3 axel he threw. Spins were there, steady, and footwork was just Way to Sochi and PC will be very interesting and amazing to watch.

[misskarne]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-KtdZ6zxIg

Josh's SP. What do we think of this?

I LOVE it. I think it's wonderful! So mature and showing off all his good qualities. His lines, his fabulous jumps, his wonderful spins - and I love the new broken leg variation. The footwork is just divine.

I digress...to be honest, I think I'm just not a huge fan of the costume, as petty as that sounds, and that is effecting my impression.

I'm about the lack of blue but I actually really like it. It makes him look so much older.

Also I see he got that pesky edge call on his flip...does he really lip? I hadn't really noticed before.

Like Jason but inverted, Josh comes scarily close to flat a lot of the time on the flip entry. Between seven flip "e" calls here and the bazillion Lutz "e" in Courchevel I think the tech panels have decided to be extra hard on it this year.

In any event he's set himself up well for the FS, where he mentioned he's going to try a quad toe - YAY! - and Tanaka who was his main competition finds himself trailing Josh by almost 14 points, so I imagine Josh is feeling confident. If Keiji skates up to form, the FS results should be exciting and both men have the potential to put up really big numbers, but we shall see what happens. Hoping Josh goes for the 4t!

I would LOVE to see him nail the 4T. If he can do that he can win the whole season even with some of the jumps Han Yan is reportedly now landing. He's got such a huge advantage over Yan in the PCS department (unless Yan has improved this in the summer break) that any improvement to Josh's TES pushes him ahead. Remember, Josh nearly won Junior Worlds without even attempting a 4T.

Anyone else's thoughts on Josh/his new SP/his skating in general? I will say it looks like he's filled out noticeably since last season and I think it's a good thing, judging from that wonderful, powerful 3a I'd say the weight has helped his jumps, but mostly he just looks more manly. I miss the long hair, though

I agree he seems to have put on some weight (so maybe he got his wish! ), although it's not much. He certainly does look older. The short hair helps with that but it's in his face, too. He really does look like a young man now instead of an older boy. And he sure skates like it, too!

I'm not a huge fan of the music... It seems like he was having trouble connecting to it? He's a very graceful skater, and I enjoyed watching him, but that music is pretty boring.

I think he's connecting to it but at a much more subtle and less obvious level than he did with Clair de Lune and even the Rach program. I think it's going to evolve through the season. Josh has said he loves this music so I can't imagine that he won't connect with it.

That said, this looked like he would have been fine with it at the starting end of the senior GP. Just IMO.

Doug Mattis agrees with you (from his Twitter):

Josh was great! Looking waaaay "Senior" in a Junior event. :-)

Thanks for the link, pinky!
Yeah, I think he was a bit distant to music, too. Landings were slightly worrisome but this is the first competition of the season, so I expect them to be better as time goes on. Heck, the scores he earned was three points shy of his personal best. And I'm really happy for that gorgeous 3 axel he threw. Spins were there, steady, and footwork was just Way to Sochi and PC will be very interesting and amazing to watch.

Agreed with all of this - although I'm not worried about the jump landings at this point. I think Josh is going to surprise a few people this season and if he can hold it together at Nationals he could cause a big upset.

The fact that his score was only three points less than his PB - at the opening JGP of the season - is mighty impressive especially when there's room for improvement! Imagine if he skated it totally clean and with all level 4s (ala Jr Worlds last year) - this is an 80 point program at least.

Anyway, Josh had this to say too after his skate on Twitter:

Thank you all so much for supporting me! I really appreciate it. If u didn't hear I skated clean with a few bobbles on a couple jumps.

There's also an Icenetwork article about it here. As much as I hate comparisons and already have shown how much I hate Josh being compared with people...I could go for this one!

"Before coming into this competition, my Lutzes weren't great, so I was a little hesitant," Farris said. "I fought, and my coach said he's going to call me [Evgeni] Plushenko number two because he fights for everything but he always lands it."

[pinky166]

You guys make great points. And I do agree on the whole. He really is ready for the senior GP, but there are a lot of guys on the JGP this season who could really fit in fine with the seniors (Brown, Tanaka, Yan, Kovtun, etc.) so I'm not too worried about Josh or any of these guys not being pushed on the junior circuit. And the program does have good scoring potential, because the edge call cost him a couple points, the landing of the combo wasn't ideal so he could gain a point or two there, same goes with the spin that was level 3, and just the fact that it's a new program (we've seen Josh get mostly 7s for PCS before like he did at JW, and here they were pretty much all mid-6s), so add it all up, and yeah, around 80 points, more if he's brave enough to try the 4t there in senior comps, which would also enable him to do the 3lz as a solo jump and avoid the possible edge call. So yeah.

I giggled at the Plushy comparison too, but, I am admiring Josh's SP consistency. It's such a relief that his 3a is so solid and wonderful just whereas Jason's lack of trying the jump is turning me into a nervous wreck and being fans of Jeremy and Tomas always made me worry about that jump and successfully landing it.

I'm really excited for the FS. I loved his FS from last season and it seems like he's kept the same one or just altered it slightly. I'd love to see both Josh and Tanaka skate lights out in the FS b/c the scores could really be huge!

[pinky166]

Josh Farris just might be my new favorite American male skater. He just skated FANTASTICALLY at the JGP! He could have easily played it safe and won but he went all out and threw it down. He landed, I believe a 3a-3t and a 4t, his only mistake were a few wobbly landings and he doubled out of the 2nd 3a planned late in the program. But a score of 146+ in a junior event this early in the season bodes REALLY well for him. With more polish and that 2nd 3a added in, this program could score over 160 potentially, at least at nationals. Wow. Just overall really, really impressed. Worlds this season isn't entirely out of the question if he continues to build like this, it really isn't, Ricky Dornbush did it in 2011 after all, and he didn't come on really strong until the JGPF, finishing 4th in one of his events either. Gah i'm so for Josh right now! Winning that JW silver medal seems to have given him loads of confidence and so glad to see such a beautiful 3a and 4t from him! I bet the likes of Lysacek, Weir, Rippon, and Miner would love to have a 3a and 4t like that. Of course Dornbush and Abbott do have them, but idk, things are looking EXCITING!

[Sylvia]

Joshua Farris' Lake Placid FS: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQfOQo7qlBA

Farris' jumps: 3A+3T (14.31), 4T (11.3), 3Lz+2T, 2A, 3Lz, 3F(e)+2T+2Lo, 3Lo<, 3S

[flipforsynchro]

Josh was fabulous . I love his sparkly costume, and his jumps and spread eagle were awesome. And he pointed his toes, too. He's so hot

[pinky166]

Josh really does have it all. The big jumps, the spins, the elegance, the looks (his blue eyes are dreamy...i feel bad saying this because he's only 17 but yeah, um), and now he seems to have a new confidence too which I love. He could have easily played it safe, not gone for the 4t, or even the 3a-3t, and still won handily (he only needed a score of 110), but he went all out and rocked it. I like to see that in skaters. Plus I was impressed at that beaut of a 4t because in the warmup, he had a very awkward pop/stumble on a 4t attempt that looked a little scary. Now I'm excited for Chen next week!

[flipforsynchro]

He has a nice butt, too. And his landing position is wonderful

[dinakt]

Joshua Brilliant!
If you have that option, please watch his programs on icenetwork. ISU videos are not in sync. Again. And it makes tremendous difference in perception. I started watching LP on ISU video and stopped, thinking- no, that just cannot be. Went to icenetwork- a totally different story, everything makes musical sense. Just to explain- the hands in the opening go on beats 2 and 3, NOT on 1 and 2. On icenetwork video he shows the accents beautifully throughout, wonderful expression.
I wonder what is the ISU deal. Do they combine music and video later and just sync the beginnings, regardless whether a skater moves right away?...
I need to write to them...

[spikydurian]

Joshua Farris' Lake Placid FS: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQfOQo7qlBA
Farris' jumps: 3A+3T (14.31), 4T (11.3), 3Lz+2T, 2A, 3Lz, 3F(e)+2T+2Lo, 3Lo<, 3S

Well done. I enjoy watching this skate. Joshua Farris has improved a lot since last year. Can't wait to watch the skate off between the very promising current group of youngsters .. all under age 19! Men figure skating is pushing its boundaries thanks to this group of very talented skaters.