Keep in mind what's under the ice.Ashley and Tim joining the Club Twist Over Concrete.I don't imagine it's the first time, but it's still quite something as a fan to see it. I think I'd call it the Second Story Window.
Sure.
What's meant by 'keep in mind what's under the ice?'
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Nica Digerness is now partnered with Ian Meyh. He previously skated with Chelsea Liu.
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I like what I've seen of Ian when he was paired with Chelsea. And I love Nica! Just off the bat, this sounds like an inspired, promising pairing. ❤ Fingers-crossed things work out well for Digerness/Meyh! 
The Ellenton rink is opening on June1. For the last few weeks several of the Ellenton skaters and coaches including Pfund/Santillan have been skating an hour a day at a Tampa, FL rink. I know Jessica/Josh are starting to work with Lyndon Johnston on choreography for their new programs.Yum, that cake looks delicious! I can't wait to see how T.J. and Nadya match up on the ice. She seems tiny standing next to T.J. With how gorgeous and yummy that cake looks, maybe Nadya will try her hand at a pastry chef career post-skating.
At first quick glance, Nadya appears to somewhat resemble Alysa Liu.
Cheers to all U.S. pairs teams! Mazel tov! Bonne chance! Good luck! ♥
ETA:
Here's a five-year old article on Two For the Ice, about Jessica Pfund/ Josh Santillan. I wonder how they have been faring through the current crisis, and whether they have been able to resume training at the Ellenton rink, with their coach, Lyndon Johnston?
Achievement Comes at a Cost for Pfund and Santillan | Two for the Ice
by Jacquelyn Thayer Even quick on-ice successes for a new U.S. pair can come with a struggle increasingly common — and increasingly public — for athletes in Olympic sport. Jessica Pfund and Joshua Santillan, based at the rising pairs camp in Ellenton, Florida, have seen limited funds make an...www.twofortheice.com
Yum, that cake looks delicious! I can't wait to see how T.J. and Nadya match up on the ice. She seems tiny standing next to T.J. With how gorgeous and yummy that cake looks, maybe Nadya will try her hand at a pastry chef career post-skating.
It looks like not everyone is back on the ice at the moment in Dalilah's group. But she did post a pic with some of her pairs teams gathered at the rink. It must feel good for all the skaters to touch their blades to ice once again. 'We don't know what we got, till it's gone...'
, but neither of these pairs look much like N&I).Here's a lovely website for Brynne McIsaac telling us about who she is, and about her singles and pairs journeys in figure skating: https://brynnemcisaac.com/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CAg_LVpnBfv/
Brynne & Mark are the 8th Sappenfield pair in her above post.
1. Nadya/T.J.
2. ?
3. Tarah/Danny O
4. Kate/ Balasz
5. Winter/ Mikhail
6. ?
7. Sasha/Danny N (great form and very in sync on the 3-sal throw, but we don't see enough of them and the shot is slightly unfocused; S&D seem to be close in height as a pair; I'm looking forward to seeing more of them)
8. Brynne/ Mark
9. ?
10. ?
Maybe someone can help identify the question marks? I don't see anyone in these posted clips that look Nica & Ian (unless they were the 6th pair who performed what looks like a throw double lutz; or maybe the 9th pair
Wishing Nica a speedy and full recovery! ♥
They created a trend, and like many trailblazers, they took the heat. The way some FS fans talk, Ashley and Tim have a permanent handicap. C-G/L, however see it as a challenge they work on, and they embrace it for the advantages it offers. Now there's a rash of more girls closer in height with their partners. I'm glad to see it. I think it's good to push the boundaries about what a pair can look like.
Pang/Tong, as you mentioned have about the same height difference as CG/L, and they won World and Olympic medals. Sui/Han have a 20 cm difference (as did Marchei/Hotarek, Berton/Hotarek, Astakhova/Rogonov, etc) vs 18 cm for CG/L, according to their bios. Yu/Zhang had 19 cm. So I wouldn't say CG/L started a trend. They may have had some impact in the US, at least on Dalilah's thinking, but there are other pairs with similar height differences who've been very successful who've come before CG/L, even in recent times. Ashley is taller than most pairs girls, that's true, which is often what the comments were about in addition to their height difference.Ashley Cain and Tim Leduc are pioneers!
Sasha &Danny do seem close in height. So are Kate and Balaz. I've always thought so, and Wiki says Kate's 5'4" while Balaz is 5'9-1/2." That's 5-1/2" difference. People have been moaning for years about A&T, who have a 7" difference!
Evelyn Walsh and Trennt M. are also closer in height than A&T, I think.
It's funny, too, to see Dalilah accepting these newly paired couples. Alexa Knierim said that when Dalilah accepted her, she told Alexa "you're too tall" for any of the American boys, we'll have to look outside the country. Alexa is 5'2." Then Chris became available, and the 12 inch difference was acceptable. Dalilah also broke Rockne Brubaker up with his junior partner Mariel Miller, citing lack of height difference that could lead to injury, according to my friend Wiki.
I wonder if Sui and Han's successes have had something to do with this change in attitude. I've been watching pairs skating recently from World championships in 2012, 2013 and 2015. Pang and Tong were closer in height too.
How and in what universe is 5'2" 'too tall' for a pairs girl???!!! Ah the sport so needs to get rid of the stereotypes and body image fixations that have been so rampant. Having a striking visual appearance together on the ice is important but obsessions over height differences and lack thereof can be taken too far. One of the things that is an asset for Tim and Ashley is that they have smilar long lines that work so well for them on the ice. Any drawbacks relating to having less of a height difference, they have to work on (which they have been doing diligently). As with any team, it's important to embrace challenges, flaunt assets and work on overcoming weaknesses.
In another era, it wasn't a big deal for pairs teams to be similar in height. That's why I was interested to notice in a recent Youtube video that the legendary World and Olympic champions, Barb Wagner & Robert Paul of Canada (from the late 1950s through 1960), are physically reminiscent of the passionately determined and accomplished Duhamel/ Radford.
I don't dismiss the importance of teams matching well physically, but that has less to do with height differentials than it has to do with overall body builds and the way they move together. Even more important are how personalities, temperaments, goals, training habits, and talent levels mesh.
Yes! to all of the above. I watched Astakhova/Rogonov from 2015 a few days ago; loved their Master and Margarita skate, which I'd never seen before. B.Esp comment was: "And they're not a one-and-a-half pair."
I should have used an emoji. And I did use the examples of Pan/Tong and Sui/Han. It just seems to me that Ashley and Tim are underrated in many ways by US fans, and that's a typical comment used to dismiss them. They don't let it interfere with their vision, which is to be who they are and strive for what they hope to achieve regardless. But they're not unfazed by the criticism; it hurts, as Ashley revealed in their first year or so.and support everyone.
My reflections in my previous post, regarding the ins-and-outs of building a successful pairs partnerships, I think are true and surely borne out over the long haul. But sure, I get what the height differential fixation can be about for some coaches and other people in the skating community.
