#feel more and more how nathan's emulating and learning from scott

[sunskate]

I really love the Hensen/Lickers FD. I think I may have enjoyed the first version more than the later ones they keep tweaking but it’s still an excellent piece of choreography. (I think the movements were sharper on the music earlier than they are now, especially in the first 30 seconds or so, which felt more impactful to me).

My question is this — what can they do to improve the GOE on their elements, especially the lifts where they are getting the level 4? Is it that the lifts aren’t complex enough (though this didn’t affect PC) or polish or politics? I know it will take time but I’d like them to at least be pushing Lauriault/Le Gac with this material.

They've improved so much even since the start of the season! Like the difference in her positions and extension in making pictures on the ice from July in Lake Placid:

to November at Ice Challenge in Austria is so striking:

you're asking where they could improve, I think consistency - the best of what they've shown is really good, there's still a good bit of variation from outing to outing, which will improve with experience and training. That's true of any team to some degree, but for instance here's the same moment from Winnipeg last week-

though this example isn't on an element, it's a small example of control

here's the chart the judges use for GOE - this chart shows the +/- bullet points that they add up to get their final number. you're asking what Lily/Nathan can do on lifts - earlier in the season they weren't maintaining speed coming out of the curve lift, for example. breaks in flow and speed take you out of the music, and that's a big GOE criteria

P/C could be given high GOE in this system without complexity because they met the criteria for levels and could be awarded points for smoothness, flow, speed, or being "aesthetically pleasing," etc. This system weighs some pretty diverse points equally, and it also means you can be lacking in some areas and still get high marks if you tick enough other points.

Lily/Nathan and Lauriault/LeGac have nearly 20 pts between their scores this season, and L/LeG are skilled skaters who had the highest base value out of everybody in the RD's at both Skate America and Skate Canada-- Lily/Nathan pushing them doesn't seem realistic yet. But at Challenge, Lily/Nathan placed ahead of one of the teams who had a GP assignment above them (Lanaghan/Razgulajevs).

The other teams who were between them and L/LeG are Fabbri/Ayer, Haley/Nik, Soucisse/Firus. These teams have on average been scoring about 10-12 pts above Lily and Nathan internationally. It's feasible that they could get close or even, mayybe place above, if someone has an off day and they have a good one.

Lily and Nathan have already shown Skate Canada that they have potential and have built themselves a little momentum with their Challenger🥉 and Skate 🇨🇦Challenge🥈 which should get them better assignments next season. There can be a lag between when a team starts making an impression and when the judging reflects that, so it'll be interesting what happens at Nationals. Either way, it feels like they're on a rise