The Skating Lesson

[kittysk8ts]

After hearing what he said about Pogorilaya and seeing how he talks about Wagner and Gold for example - is it just me or is he totally misogynist? He goes after female skaters but never once have I seen him disrespect or make the accusations he makes toward female skaters against male skaters? His attitude and borderline hatred is aimed 99% of the time at female skaters and not male skaters.

He used to have a blog called Aunt Joyce's something or other and he used to regularly annihilate Patrick Chan. Would just rip him to shreds. I called him out on a few things in relation to that and he immediately blocked me. Haha. It DOES seems mostly about the women now that you mention it but I am not sure he is a misogynist. His favourite skaters seems to be ladies as well. And actually he has been critical of Max Aaron in the past....

Here is a link from that blog. Scroll down to the bottom to his twitter exchange with PJ Kwong which he proudly posted. WHAT AN ASS. Even if his opinion was worthy, this is how he treated people and expressed his opinions as Aunt Joyce.

https://rinksidecafe.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/worlds-2012-chan-gets-booed-and-romeo-is-bronze/

 

[VGThuy]

Has Dave commented about all the figure skaters being promoted by Team USA and NBC Olympics today for the 100 Days to the Olympics event in NYC? I know he was "seriously" worried that no skaters were put on a single poster promoting the Olympics some months ago and took the USFS to task for that.

 

[chapis]

Has Dave commented about all the figure skaters being promoted by Team USA and NBC Olympics today for the 100 Days to the Olympics event in NYC? I know he was "seriously" worried that no skaters were put on a single poster promoting the Olympics some months ago and took the USFS to task for that.

Of course not. H/D, P/C and Marin were not there, so Dave doesn´t see the point to comment about it. But if Maia, Alex or Ashley makes something wrong or there is something that can affect them of course he will mention it, no doubt it.
Much to his regret he felt the obligation to reblog this photo https://www.instagram.com/p/Ba9Id2mFe5c/?taken-by=theskatinglesson

 

[MAXSwagg]

After hearing what he said about Pogorilaya and seeing how he talks about Wagner and Gold for example - is it just me or is he totally misogynist? He goes after female skaters but never once have I seen him disrespect or make the accusations he makes toward female skaters against male skaters? His attitude and borderline hatred is aimed 99% of the time at female skaters and not male skaters.

Oh, please...

 

[Xela M]

He used to have a blog called Aunt Joyce's something or other and he used to regularly annihilate Patrick Chan. Would just rip him to shreds. I called him out on a few things in relation to that and he immediately blocked me. Haha. It DOES seems mostly about the women now that you mention it but I am not sure he is a misogynist. His favourite skaters seems to be ladies as well. And actually he has been critical of Max Aaron in the past....

[...]

...and Jason Brown

 

[Loves_Shizuka]

Here is a link from that blog. Scroll down to the bottom to his twitter exchange with PJ Kwong which he proudly posted. WHAT AN ASS. Even if his opinion was worthy, this is how he treated people and expressed his opinions as Aunt Joyce.

https://rinksidecafe.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/worlds-2012-chan-gets-booed-and-romeo-is-bronze/

Just delightful.

 

[misskarne]

And actually he has been critical of Max Aaron in the past....

Possibly the thing that irritates me most about how he treats Max? He spent episode after episode kicking him, ragging on him, insulting him, dragging him into discussion about other skaters at events Max wasn't even at just to insult him further...and then Max landed a couple of jumps in the jump event and Lease was all "I'm Team Max this season!". And then changed his mind again shortly after. Like, fcuk you dude.

...and Jason Brown

Oh yes, I remember! Back in the Aunt Joyce days he used to proudly proclaim that Jason would never land a clean triple Axel in competition. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh....

 

[Xela M]

I pretty much disagreed with them on everything this week (except that the I&K and MT&M splits were stupid).

Their comments about Pogo and S&M were just beyond ridiculous. Jonathan saying that S&M's free has "some nice ideas" but that's it. That's just insane.

 

[Anyasnake]

I pretty much disagreed with them on everything this week (except that the I&K and MT&M splits were stupid).

Their comments about Pogo and S&M were just beyond ridiculous. Jonathan saying that S&M's free has "some nice ideas" but that's it. That's just insane.

I had the same reaction. "Nice ideas"... You can definitely see the hard work and the research behind the choreo, TSL acts like it's just some moves thrown in the programs to have transitions.
A lot of the time they don't acknowledge the choreography because it's pairs...

 

[angi]

Oh, please...

Such a well explained comment.

 

[kittysk8ts]

I pretty much disagreed with them on everything this week (except that the I&K and MT&M splits were stupid).

Their comments about Pogo and S&M were just beyond ridiculous. Jonathan saying that S&M's free has "some nice ideas" but that's it. That's just insane.

It was choreographed by Christopher Dean and they had no idea. UGH.

 

[Josh78]

Not trying to steal attention or alter the flow of conversation from the topics currently in this thread, but wanted to say a quick thank you to all the posters who complimented me upthread -- I do my best, I try my best to acknowledge my faults (and get better next time with them), and it's great to be noticed! (Unfortunately, with the time difference between central USA where I am and China for CoC, I'll probably be relegated to posting/commenting after the fact) -- Thank you for the compliments!

 

[aka_gerbil]

He used to have a blog called Aunt Joyce's something or other and he used to regularly annihilate Patrick Chan. Would just rip him to shreds. I called him out on a few things in relation to that and he immediately blocked me. Haha. It DOES seems mostly about the women now that you mention it but I am not sure he is a misogynist. His favourite skaters seems to be ladies as well. And actually he has been critical of Max Aaron in the past....

Here is a link from that blog. Scroll down to the bottom to his twitter exchange with PJ Kwong which he proudly posted. WHAT AN ASS. Even if his opinion was worthy, this is how he treated people and expressed his opinions as Aunt Joyce.

https://rinksidecafe.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/worlds-2012-chan-gets-booed-and-romeo-is-bronze/

I don't know who did maintain it, but Rinkside Cafe was not Dave Lease's blog--his was Aunt Joyce's Ice Cream Stand, and it can still be found under that name. Just clarifying that for the reputational sake of whoever did run Rinkside Cafe.

 

[kittysk8ts]

I don't know who did maintain it, but Rinkside Cafe was not Dave Lease's blog--his was Aunt Joyce's Ice Cream Stand, and it can still be found under that name. Just clarifying that for the reputational sake of whoever did run Rinkside Cafe.

Oh my goodness!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU @aka_gerbil.

Well then, I owe my absolute humblest apologies to Dave Lease which I willingly give and also to all of you here for the misinformation.

Valuable lesson learned. UGH.

 

[wouldacoulda]

The name "Aunt Joyce's Ice Cream Stand" came from a rumor (probably started by Dave) that Nicole Bobek's "aunt" was her mother's lover. He has been slinging mud for years.

 

[mysticchic]

The name "Aunt Joyce's Ice Cream Stand" came from a rumor (probably started by Dave) that Nicole Bobek's "aunt" was her mother's lover. He has been slinging mud for years.

Oh boy I remember those days!! That's why I never got the whole Jenny thing. He would go after skaters weight and looks. Poor Rachel Flatt was roasted by him.

 

[jenniferlyon]

The name "Aunt Joyce's Ice Cream Stand" came from a rumor (probably started by Dave) that Nicole Bobek's "aunt" was her mother's lover. He has been slinging mud for years.

That rumor has been around since the early 1990s. I believe the "ice cream stand" comes from a story about Nicole Bobek's mother and her companion Joyce moving around a lot and taking many different jobs to finance Nicole's skating, one of which included driving an ice cream truck. (Don't ask me if they really did, because I only remember the story, not if it was true or not.)

 

[Loves_Shizuka]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Du8vxaHcm4w

Dave and Jonathan sat down and had a chat about CoC.

 

[arakwafan2006]

Just delightful.

wowza

 

[all_empty]

I'm enjoying some of these uploaded old clips, including their 2014 Sochi recaps with a visibly "beefier" Jonathan.

It's fascinating to see how predictive they were about Lipnitskaya fading (there were mentions of her weight restrictions) but they were totally off about how the men have basically maxed out their technical content at 3 quads (toe and Salchow).

If you think about, it's really remarkable what's happened in this quad, with Tuktamysheva's one hit wonder season, Asada retiring, the rise and fall of Miyahara (and the Japanese ladies as whole), the dominance of the Russian ladies (remember they only had two in Sochi), and Kostner still, still hanging in there. And of course, not much happening with the U.S. ladies.

 

[Anyasnake]

@all_empty I've weirdly enjoyed it too. It's incredible the number of things they "guessed" just based on politics.

The recap of the team event was maybe one of the most interesting. It showed how much some skaters won't fully commit for that portion of the competition.

 

[Loves_Shizuka]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9_lXb3gWy4

NHK Recap

 

[skatfan]

Omg I watched the exhibition for Adam and knew that Jonathan had to comment. Lol! Totally agree that the V/M fans are losing it pretty early in the season.

 

[Isabelle.G]

Usually, I only watch the ice dance part and had to say I agreed with what they said about the CoC and now the NHK Trophy. The way they present their opinions isn't the best, sometimes it's really too much even though it sounds funny, it's definitely not funny for the people they talk about, but they're not far away from the truth. Anyway, as Jonathan said, it's really exciting to watch the sport this season and all fans should enjoy it as it won't be the same next year.

 

[Anyasnake]

Usually, I only watch the ice dance part and had to say I agreed with what they said about the CoC and now the NHK Trophy. The way they present their opinions isn't the best, sometimes it's really too much even though it sounds funny, it's definitely not funny for the people they talk about, but they're not far away from the truth. Anyway, as Jonathan said, it's really exciting to watch the sport this season and all fans should enjoy it as it won't be the same next year.

I had the same reactions. I tend to focus only on the dance part. I agree that V/M compete way better when there is direct competition so I expect their score to go up (barring mistakes). They are better on the No-touch and the pattern than anyone. They have the advantage on the SD when they don't lose it on an element.
However I couldn't agree more on the free : I don't feel that their technical qualities are highlighted enough when watching MR. It does on the lifts but not on the step sequences. And some part of the choreo is still not coming across for me but that is slightly more subjective, it might be me not understanding everything (and that's okay).

But some fans really lost it that weekend (also last weekend in CoC). Actually not really fans, who are aware of the mistakes they made and know that their score could be much higher. But ubers (on a high level) and casual Canadian viewers who don't follow every ice dancers but Tessa & Scott and are (maybe) aware of that 200-point mark and are refusing to see the competition (there are so many of them on twitter !). Of course you could say that for any of the big guns, the difference is that V/M have probably the biggest fanbase among the skaters after Yuzuru Hanyu, so it reflects way more.
Was the 200 WR even mentionned in Canadian figure skating articles actually ? Someone said no, but if there is I would like to see it, because I don't remember seeing that. It obvisously doesn't change the competition but the perception (and the buzz). For the ubers : would you like V/M beating the French who have a WR ? Or lose it in the case of a P/C victory and you have almost no idea who they are and nothing is said about them in Canada ? While in France the rivals are VERY acknowleged (actually V/M are VERY popular among the French skating fans, much more than D/W ever were), across all disciplines, I feel like Canadian media is a bit more lacking. That being said, I don't know a country that support his athletes as much as Canada, so kudos to them.

I'm personally going to enjoy every V/M's outing and still woke up too early to see them skate. They probably have only 3 competitions left and that is too little time for me to care too much about angry ubers (on BOTH sides !).

 

[poths]

That rumor has been around since the early 1990s. I believe the "ice cream stand" comes from a story about Nicole Bobek's mother and her companion Joyce moving around a lot and taking many different jobs to finance Nicole's skating, one of which included driving an ice cream truck. (Don't ask me if they really did, because I only remember the story, not if it was true or not.)

That is a void. Hope it's true!

 

[Isabelle.G]

I had the same reactions. I tend to focus only on the dance part. I agree that V/M compete way better when there is direct competition so I expect their score to go up (barring mistakes). They are better on the No-touch and the pattern than anyone. They have the advantage on the SD when they don't lose it on an element.
However I couldn't agree more on the free : I don't feel that their technical qualities are highlighted enough when watching MR. It does on the lifts but not on the step sequences. And some part of the choreo is still not coming across for me but that is slightly more subjective, it might be me not understanding everything (and that's okay).

But some fans really lost it that weekend (also last weekend in CoC). Actually not really fans, who are aware of the mistakes they made and know that their score could be much higher. But ubers (on a high level) and casual Canadian viewers who don't follow every ice dancers but Tessa & Scott and are (maybe) aware of that 200-point mark and are refusing to see the competition (there are so many of them on twitter !). Of course you could say that for any of the big guns, the difference is that V/M have probably the biggest fanbase among the skaters after Yuzuru Hanyu, so it reflects way more.
Was the 200 WR even mentionned in Canadian figure skating articles actually ? Someone said no, but if there is I would like to see it, because I don't remember seeing that. It obvisously doesn't change the competition but the perception (and the buzz). For the ubers : would you like V/M beating the French who have a WR ? Or lose it in the case of a P/C victory and you have almost no idea who they are and nothing is said about them in Canada ? While in France the rivals are VERY acknowleged (actually V/M are VERY popular among the French skating fans, much more than D/W ever were), across all disciplines, I feel like Canadian media is a bit more lacking. That being said, I don't know a country that support his athletes as much as Canada, so kudos to them.

I'm personally going to enjoy every V/M's outing and still woke up too early to see them skate. They probably have only 3 competitions left and that is too little time for me to care too much about angry ubers (on BOTH sides !).

I know. Even though I prefer the Prince SD over the program of this year, I really enjoyed it this time at NHK. Apart from the twizzle mistake, everything went the right way and for the first time, I thought 'wow, they really made it work'. I still don't like the choice for the third piece of music, but that's my personal preference here.
The MR free dance. The first half is magnificent, the beginning when Tessa jumps backwards is just outstanding. It sets the mood perfectly. Then comes the second half, Come What May, and my struggles with it begin, or as one of the guys from TSL said it "loses my attention." The program as a whole was great at NHK and maybe even better at SC but I have always preferred V/M doing programs like tango or Carmen to dancing to something that's considered as romantic. (Probably not the best word for it, but I can't think of a better one right now). I think it suits more their personalities and type of skating. But again, that's just my personal preference. I guess they chose MR to show they can nail both parts, apart from other reasons.
Both countries could learn a lesson from each other. I think it's nice how Canada is supportive of its athletes, something that France could learn from. (I'm not French, but there are definitely more interviews of Tessa and Scott than of Gabriella and Guillaume.) However, as much as the amount of support is great, it can be too much. I still see the 2010 Vancouver crowd and even though V/M managed to skate their best, I wouldn't want to be in their place at all.
In terms of the fans - it's a never-ending problem and, if considering the top 2 teams now, both sides are 'guilty'. I may get stoned for saying this, but what I've seen on this forum, for example, sometimes I'm quite scared of some Tessa&Scott's fans. These people tend to attack everyone who is (reasonably) critical about V/M and if that person doesn't add the fact he is a V/M fan, then it gets even worse. I don't even want to see some reactions if P/C improves their scores in France this week, which is very likely as they'll be at home. I really need to stop visiting certain websites when the Olympics come.

 

[Amantide]

Was the 200 WR even mentionned in Canadian figure skating articles actually ? Someone said no, but if there is I would like to see it, because I don't remember seeing that. It obvisously doesn't change the competition but the perception (and the buzz). For the ubers : would you like V/M beating the French who have a WR ? Or lose it in the case of a P/C victory and you have almost no idea who they are and nothing is said about them in Canada ? While in France the rivals are VERY acknowleged (actually V/M are VERY popular among the French skating fans, much more than D/W ever were), across all disciplines, I feel like Canadian media is a bit more lacking.

You make a good point. I was watching 60 minutes Australia on youtube, about Tony&nancy thing. The journalist said, when telling about the Lillehammer games, smth like "and Oksana Baiul, out of nowhere, takes the gold".
The reigning World and European Champion came out of nowhere, according to him.

 

[Anyasnake]

I think it's nice how Canada is supportive of its athletes, something that France could learn from. (I'm not French, but there are definitely more interviews of Tessa and Scott than of Gabriella and Guillaume.) However, as much as the amount of support is great, it can be too much. I still see the 2010 Vancouver crowd and even though V/M managed to skate their best, I wouldn't want to be in their place at all.
In terms of the fans - it's a never-ending problem and, if considering the top 2 teams now, both sides are 'guilty'. I may get stoned for saying this, but what I've seen on this forum, for example, sometimes I'm quite scared of some Tessa&Scott's fans. These people tend to attack everyone who is (reasonably) critical about V/M and if that person doesn't add the fact he is a V/M fan, then it gets even worse. I don't even want to see some reactions if P/C improves their scores in France this week, which is very likely as they'll be at home. I really need to stop visiting certain websites when the Olympics come.

I'm French and I can tell you they are constantly reminded that they lost the world title, and aaaaaafter : "but your free dance was great !"
Thankfully, V/M were very young in 2010 and their rise was very fast too, it could have helped not feeling as much pressure, at least not unbearable. (And fortunately 2014 was not in Vancouver, otherwise...)
Since the begining of the season, P/C ubers have drastically stopped some mockery (barring the 2 morons on YouTube with 100 accounts each). I think that getting 2nd at worlds was a huge wake-up call, and honestly, as a P/C fan that feels awesome not to have that much insults going on. There still is a lot for sure, but going into the season thinking how realistic that 2nd place at Olympics is, just put everything into perspective. I see improvement. However, I don't want the scores to be an excuse for going back to that type of behaviour anyway.
On the other hand, I'm almost afraid to go to the V/M fan thread sometimes... and I'm a fan. On the 95% very respectable people there, the 5% left always scream the loudest (and almost insult you when you say that the mistakes cost them points). But I ignore it, I'm still a fan.

 

[Miloune]

I had the same reactions. I tend to focus only on the dance part. I agree that V/M compete way better when there is direct competition so I expect their score to go up (barring mistakes). They are better on the No-touch and the pattern than anyone. They have the advantage on the SD when they don't lose it on an element.
However I couldn't agree more on the free : I don't feel that their technical qualities are highlighted enough when watching MR. It does on the lifts but not on the step sequences. And some part of the choreo is still not coming across for me but that is slightly more subjective, it might be me not understanding everything (and that's okay).

But some fans really lost it that weekend (also last weekend in CoC). Actually not really fans, who are aware of the mistakes they made and know that their score could be much higher. But ubers (on a high level) and casual Canadian viewers who don't follow every ice dancers but Tessa & Scott and are (maybe) aware of that 200-point mark and are refusing to see the competition (there are so many of them on twitter !). Of course you could say that for any of the big guns, the difference is that V/M have probably the biggest fanbase among the skaters after Yuzuru Hanyu, so it reflects way more.
Was the 200 WR even mentionned in Canadian figure skating articles actually ? Someone said no, but if there is I would like to see it, because I don't remember seeing that. It obvisously doesn't change the competition but the perception (and the buzz). For the ubers : would you like V/M beating the French who have a WR ? Or lose it in the case of a P/C victory and you have almost no idea who they are and nothing is said about them in Canada ? While in France the rivals are VERY acknowleged (actually V/M are VERY popular among the French skating fans, much more than D/W ever were), across all disciplines, I feel like Canadian media is a bit more lacking. That being said, I don't know a country that support his athletes as much as Canada, so kudos to them.

I'm personally going to enjoy every V/M's outing and still woke up too early to see them skate. They probably have only 3 competitions left and that is too little time for me to care too much about angry ubers (on BOTH sides !).

I think the 200pts WR by PC was mentionned on CBC. I saw the recap with Carol Lane after the SD and they specifically talked about the rivalry between VM and PC.

Also, I think in France PC don't do as many interviews as VM because figure skating isn't a very popular sport. I think though that their popularity is growing, they are being noticed more and more thanks to their multiple titles and records. The Olympic Games should multiply this by 1000 imo. We'll see.