The Joshua and Jason Uber Thread!

[Sylvia]

U.S. junior pair skater Matt Blackmer ‏tweeted this pic today:
#werenotworthy @joshDfarris @agneszawadzki

ETA: Here are Jason's quotes in this article about dealing with travel to and from international competitions:

"For me, the main thing is to set up flights where you get there in the morning," said Jason Brown. "I try to stay up until 11 and then go to bed. We try to do something active that first day, like walking around the city. We've gone on Ferris wheels, we've ridden bikes."
...
"I always take a pillow, my normal pillow from home," Brown said. "I started doing that after my first Val Gardena competition [in April 2010]; I didn't bring a pillow and I couldn't sleep. Depending on the place, I take food. It depends. When we went to Belarus, I took food. And sometimes I bring an alarm clock."

[pinky166]

U.S. junior pair skater Matt Blackmer ‏tweeted this pic today:
#werenotworthy @joshDfarris @agneszawadzki

ETA: Here are Jason's quotes in this article about dealing with travel to and from international competitions:

LOL I wonder if Patrick's leaving has increased Josh's confidence levels. I would assume winning JW silver and missing out on the title by a fraction of a point also helped but when you think of it, Patrick probably sucked a lot of the air out of the rink, and obviously as World champion he's a big deal. But now that Josh is growing up, gaining confidence, all of a sudden handsome, and landing quads and 3a-3t like it's nothing, it's maybe like he's top dog, or one of them, at the rink. Kinda funny when you think about it. He seems so shy and nerdy off the ice.

[SkateFan66]

... Patrick probably sucked a lot of the air out of the rink.

Just wondering, what do you mean by "sucking the air out of the rink?" This is the second time today that I have seen reference to skaters "sucking the air out of a rink." Some Farris uber on another forum stated that Weir & Lysacek's return to competitive skating would "suck the air out of the arena until Sochi."

[misskarne]

U.S. junior pair skater Matt Blackmer ‏tweeted this pic today:
#werenotworthy @joshDfarris @agneszawadzki

ETA: Here are Jason's quotes in this article about dealing with travel to and from international competitions:

I love that pic, it's hilarious and I think adequately describes most feelings about Josh's win in Lake Placid!

Loved the article about travelling. Never done any jet-lag travelling but it must be hard when you have to turn around and compete not long after. Wonder what they do if their skates don't turn up? Express mail?

LOL I wonder if Patrick's leaving has increased Josh's confidence levels. I would assume winning JW silver and missing out on the title by a fraction of a point also helped but when you think of it, Patrick probably sucked a lot of the air out of the rink, and obviously as World champion he's a big deal. But now that Josh is growing up, gaining confidence, all of a sudden handsome, and landing quads and 3a-3t like it's nothing, it's maybe like he's top dog, or one of them, at the rink. Kinda funny when you think about it. He seems so shy and nerdy off the ice.

Armin is the only other Senior man of note at that rink now isn't he? So Josh would definitely be one of the top dogs there.

And I could imagine he got one heck of a confidence boost from the JW silver, the quad at Lake Placid, the gorgeous 3A-3T, and suddenly being talked about as definitely a Senior. Luckily, it would seem that Josh has his head screwed on.

I hope this confidence boost shows in his skating. It seemed to make a difference at LP. Maybe this boost is the last piece of the puzzle and we'll see one heck of a season from him. I hope so!

[pinky166]

Just wondering, what do you mean by "sucking the air out of the rink?" This is the second time today that I have seen reference to skaters "sucking the air out of a rink." Some Farris uber on another forum stated that Weir & Lysacek's return to competitive skating would "suck the air out of the arena until Sochi."

Hm, well, for me, sucking the air out of the rink is a term used to describe any well known skater who sort of dominates the atmosphere at a rink (or it could be a training facility for elite athletes in any sport really) because they have accomplished so much, and everyone knows who they are and how good they are, etc. that it sort of results in all the other athletes walking on eggshells around this person so as to not to cause drama, and even if someone else at the training site is really, really good, they don't get paid much attention to and maybe don't have a lot of confidence because the focus is on said well-known, heavily decorated skater whose every action gets talked about and analyzed, and everyone is so busy keeping track of the one "star" that other stars could be emerging and it would sort of go unnoticed. Does that make sense? I get that's kind of a wordy, unclear explanation, but it's the best I can do.

Also, Armin is new to Broadmoor, so even though he is really good and can do quads, I guess he maybe isn't as established there and is still seen as a newcomer. But I think it's definitely a good thing that another top US men's competitor is out in CO Springs now because I think (hope) it will help both men to push harder in their skating and try to achieve even more. A little friendly rivalry can sometimes lead to progress.

[spikydurian]

LOL I wonder if Patrick's leaving has increased Josh's confidence levels. I would assume winning JW silver and missing out on the title by a fraction of a point also helped but when you think of it, Patrick probably sucked a lot of the air out of the rink, and obviously as World champion he's a big deal. But now that Josh is growing up, gaining confidence, all of a sudden handsome, and landing quads and 3a-3t like it's nothing, it's maybe like he's top dog, or one of them, at the rink. Kinda funny when you think about it. He seems so shy and nerdy off the ice.

I find your rationale perplexing, and indirectly implied that Josh's confidence and skills are highly dependent on another skater's presence. BTW, Patrick is still training in Colorado so you will be expecting Joshua's confidence to plummet? On the contrary, be it sports or academic, if you want to be the best, surround yourself with peers with similar qualities and skills. You learn from each other. You also go where you get the best training facilities and coaches. Josh has improved tremendously over the past year and is due very much to himself not others. If one does not have the innate talent, coaches can only do so much. Last but not least, sometimes too much attention may not be beneficial.

[SkateFan66]

Hm, well, for me, sucking the air out of the rink is a term used to describe any well known skater who sort of dominates the atmosphere at a rink (or it could be a training facility for elite athletes in any sport really) because they have accomplished so much, and everyone knows who they are and how good they are, etc. that it sort of results in all the other athletes walking on eggshells around this person so as to not to cause drama, and even if someone else at the training site is really, really good, they don't get paid much attention to and maybe don't have a lot of confidence because the focus is on said well-known, heavily decorated skater whose every action gets talked about and analyzed, and everyone is so busy keeping track of the one "star" that other stars could be emerging and it would sort of go unnoticed. Does that make sense? I get that's kind of a wordy, unclear explanation, but it's the best I can do.

Not all skaters feel that an accomplished skater "sucks the life out of the rink." If you asked several of the younger skaters, they look up to the older, more accomplished skaters at their training rink. In fact, this is what Mirai Nagasu had to say about training for the 2010 Olympics with the 2009 world champion, Evan Lysacek:

"Did I also mention that Evan is the best training buddy ever? No matter how tired he is, he pushes himself to do his programs, so he can do it in any kind of situation. Watching him train is so motivating for me...I try to follow his example by doing programs with the intensity he has, but somehow my attempts just don't match his....Thank you Evan for always being there to give me a piece of advice and motivating me to do my best!"

http://www.figureskatersonline.com/m...u/journal4.htm

[Sylvia]

Patrick Chan (part-time?), Armin Mahbanoozadeh, Max Aaron, Brandon Mroz, Josh Farris, Alex Johnson, and Tim Koleto are the Senior men I know of who are currently training at the World Arena in Colorado Springs.

ETA: Paul Parkinson of Italy, too! (I knew that but was looking at my list of U.S. men.) Thanks, seabm7.

[seabm7]

^ And Paul Bonifacio Parkinson, too.

[museksk8r]

But now that Josh is growing up, gaining confidence, all of a sudden handsome, and landing quads and 3a-3t like it's nothing, it's maybe like he's top dog, or one of them, at the rink. Kinda funny when you think about it. He seems so shy and nerdy off the ice.

I think Josh has always been cute. The shy nerd side of him significantly adds to his charm, IMO. What an amazing talent and lovable guy. I'm always for him!

[pinky166]

Not all skaters feel that an accomplished skater "sucks the life out of the rink." If you asked several of the younger skaters, they look up to the older, more accomplished skaters at their training rink. In fact, this is what Mirai Nagasu had to say about training for the 2010 Olympics with the 2009 world champion, Evan Lysacek:

"Did I also mention that Evan is the best training buddy ever? No matter how tired he is, he pushes himself to do his programs, so he can do it in any kind of situation. Watching him train is so motivating for me...I try to follow his example by doing programs with the intensity he has, but somehow my attempts just don't match his....Thank you Evan for always being there to give me a piece of advice and motivating me to do my best!"

http://www.figureskatersonline.com/m...u/journal4.htm

Oh, I don't doubt training with a decorated, highly-acclaimed skater is a good MOTIVATOR, Josh has even said himself that training with Patrick pushed him to work harder, I'm talking more about the attention and recognition other skaters receive (or rather don't receive) when a big-name trains at their rink and is the main focus.

So basically, Josh has been growing into quite a good skater for some time now. But when Patrick was around, obviously he's the reigning world champ and even better, so in comparison, Josh doesn't seem that good, or maybe that's not the case and others do recognize his potential and just aren't that interested when he's landing things like 3a-3t and quads because Patrick is there and lands huge 3as and quad combos all the time. But now that Patrick's gone, it's maybe more noticeable to everyone else that, oh, Josh Farris is getting really good and paying more attention to him because of it.

[leapfrogonice]

I totally "get" the comparison between Josh/Jason and Evan/Johnny thing. The way these careers are unfolding bears uncanny resemblances. Even from a personality standpoint, it is like a second coming of sorts. I know, not THE SAME. Just similar enough to make me think about the similarities, more so than just scratching my head/huh.

[misskarne]

I totally "get" the comparison between Josh/Jason and Evan/Johnny thing. The way these careers are unfolding bears uncanny resemblances. Even from a personality standpoint, it is like a second coming of sorts. I know, not THE SAME. Just similar enough to make me think about the similarities, more so than just scratching my head/huh.

Except that Josh and Jason seem to actually be mature about the whole thing and aren't letting anything that happens on the ice get in the way of what they have off the ice.

(And they are each other's number one fans. )

[pinky166]

I totally "get" the comparison between Josh/Jason and Evan/Johnny thing. The way these careers are unfolding bears uncanny resemblances. Even from a personality standpoint, it is like a second coming of sorts. I know, not THE SAME. Just similar enough to make me think about the similarities, more so than just scratching my head/huh.

The thing is they actually aren't that similar. And personality wise I don't think so either. Jason isn't as dramatic or as much of a diva (male diva?) as Johnny, in fact he seems very down-to-earth, crunchy, and even a bit uninterested/out of the loop when it comes to the media aspects and commercialism of the sport, the kid doesn't even have a twitter for pete's sake! As for Josh and Evan, they both seem to be workhorses but that's hardly an anomaly for an elite athlete, and Evan always seemed pretty outgoing to me, as well as pretty metrosexual and interested in fashion and social and media events. So obviously some of that could be due to age and accomplishments but Josh seems like more of a reserved, mainstream, and even somewhat timid midwestern boy. As for their skating, I'm sure Evan would love to have a 3a and 4t as nice as Josh's and Johnny and Jason are both lyrical but with distinct styles. Josh and Evan are both long-legged, flexible, and good spinners but that's about it for me. And Jason and Johnny can handle similar pieces of music well but to me Jason's skating is more masculine and powerful than Johnny's, whose basics and stroking I always found a bit weak.

[love_skate2011]

Not sold on Farris, he looked a bit heavy now or maybe that was just his costume, I am still not losing hope on Brown because once he has his 3A and quad , Farris wont be of no match for him anyways

[Jammers]

Well Jason needs to start going for the 3axel or he will just end up as another Adam Rippon. A decent skater but not World champion material.

[misskarne]

Not sold on Farris, he looked a bit heavy now or maybe that was just his costume, I am still not losing hope on Brown because once he has his 3A and quad , Farris wont be of no match for him anyways

The aim this summer was for him to get "heavy" - he wanted to put on some muscle weight. I think he looks fine, a bit more in proportion now compared to the skinny waif of last season. Hey, if it's helped him land the quad, I'm definitely not complaining.

I think they are evenly matched. We'll see.

Well Jason needs to start going for the 3axel or he will just end up as another Adam Rippon. A decent skater but not World champion material.

I'm sure we'll see it this year. Jason knows what he has to do

He pulled it out at Glacier Falls last year, he did two at Southport. He's obviously got it, they're just obviously not happy with it enough to put it in an international program.

And if he doesn't land it I hope he's first in the queue to take jump lessons from Ilia...

[pinky166]

Lol at whoever called Farris heavy, he's really thin! I'm always shocked when I see pictures of him in regular clothes because he's so slight in build. For some reason on the ice he looks sturdier, and quite tall as well even though he's apparently just 5'8", but really, if anything, he could stand to gain some weight. Anyways, Jason getting the 3a and quad solid will likely take some time, and I don't think he's artistically stronger than Joshua anyways, they are different, but I would say comparable, in terms of their artistry at this point. It would seem international judging panels would agree with this as well considering their PCS are always really comparable.

Jason and Kori obviously have a special bond, but if the 3a isn't working well by Nationals, I think he should look into expanding his coaching team to include a jumps specialist or very technical coach.

[museksk8r]

Not sold on Farris, he looked a bit heavy now or maybe that was just his costume, I am still not losing hope on Brown because once he has his 3A and quad , Farris wont be of no match for him anyways

You're delusional. You make it sound as if Farris is a Kevin Van Der Perren, all jumps and nothing else. The way I see it, he is just as talented in the non jump components of skating as Brown is. Brown is the one clearly at a disadvantage at the moment. Without a 3Axel or a quad, he's going nowhere fast as a senior skater, which is a real shame because I really like both Josh and Jason. The World and Olympic team selection committee would never name a male skater to the US team without those big jumps though; he really needs to get those together.

[pinky166]

You're delusional. You make it sound as if Farris is a Kevin Van Der Perren, all jumps and nothing else. The way I see it, he is just as talented in the non jump components of skating as Brown is. Brown is the one clearly at a disadvantage at the moment. Without a 3Axel or a quad, he's going nowhere fast as a senior skater, which is a real shame because I really like both Josh and Jason. The World and Olympic team selection committee would never name a male skater to the US team without those big jumps though; he really needs to get those together.

ITA. It seems to me a lot of people think the only reason that Josh can compete with Jason is because he has the big jumps, and that once Jason gets those jumps, he will blow Josh and everyone else out of the water. I'm not so sure. For one, I think Josh and Jason are pretty evenly matched in terms of artistry, jumps aside. And for another thing, I think improving artistry is something that can be achieved/improved much more quickly, easily, and readily compared to jumps like a 3a and 4t. Like I said before, Josh has been doing those jumps for years, and he only became consistent with the 3a in competition last season really, and only landed his first 4t in competition last week, so considering Jason is almost 18 and has never even tried a 3a, let alone cleanly land and rotate one not to mention a quad, in international competition is a bit worrisome.


I know Jason's aiming for 2018, but it could take a large portion of the time between now and then for him to get comfortable and consistent with the 3a and hopefully a quad, if he can even manage to master those jumps at all, that his artistic development might take a back seat if he's serious about nailing those jumps in international competition. Farris OTOH already has the 3a consistent and is capable of a beautiful 4t in international competition as we saw last week, meaning he can afford to focus a lot on improving his artistry in the coming years, along with potentially adding a second quad to his arsenal, or working towards a 4t in the SP and 2 in the FS, which would just give him more of an edge. So looking toward the next quad, Jason may be playing catch up while other guys like Josh, among others, could surge ahead.