2010 Skate America Blog by Lynn Kriengkrairut & Logan Giulietti-Schmitt

NOVEMBER 14, 2010

So we’re sitting here staring at an empty screen, trying to write our blog, and Viktor Pfeifer (who skates for Austria in men’s singles) just creeps around the corner and says, “Boo.” He’s been sitting here eyeing us, kind of making us feel uncomfortable. He crosses his legs, uncrosses his legs, gets up, changes sofas, and finally blurts out, “Your lift was the sh*t! I’m your number one fan.” And Logan responds, “Viktor, you’re a moron.”  He’s still sitting here; he won’t leave. All he keeps talking about is bowling tonight and that he’s been thinking about it all week.

Viktor has been with us on many of our internationals and has become a good friend. This is another amazing thing that has come from competitions like these. We are able to meet people from around the world. As few chances as we get to see each other, it always seems that we are able to pick up right where we left off. So as the end of the week nears, we have one more chance to bond with the other athletes. The skating competition may be over, but a night of bowling awaits, and to our surprise we have some serious competition ahead of us…

We’re going to give our fingers a rest from the keyboard and save their strength for the bowling lanes. It’s going to be a long night, so we have to prepare ourselves. We usually like to apply our training regimen to other activities as well, so we’re going to go warm up with some finger push-ups to a metronome now.

Farewell from Portland,
Lynn and Logan

NOVEMBER 13, 2010

Competition started today for us, so we apologize ahead of time for not bringing you the same excitement to our blogs. We’re not going to lie; we’re a little tired and our creativity has gone out the window. With that said we want to give you an update on today’s events.

The first half of our day started off in the same manner as it has every day. We pushed the snooze button several times before waking up, we ate, and then Logan ate some more (and almost missed the bus to get coffee), we skated, and then ate some more. We sat around, digested our food, and twiddled our thumbs, waiting in nervous apprehension before the big event. We did our normal warm-up before the Short Dance, or what we consider to be normal, but still get weird looks whenever people hear the metronome beeping and see us doing push-ups in synchronization.

While the skies were gray outside, slightly depressing, and brought us a drizzle, the crowd inside was cheerful and uplifting. It made skating first for us quite comfortable. We enjoyed every moment of being in front of such a supportive audience. Without fans like these, we wouldn’t have this wonderful opportunity.

After our performance, we were able to do something we don’t always get the chance to do, which is watch our other competitors. It was nice to see our friends and support our teammates. There was some great skating and we are excited to be among such good company. We look forward to tomorrow’s event, which should be even more enthralling for everyone, so stay tuned.

Good night. We (of course) have another early morning practice.

NOVEMBER 12, 2010
Yo, Yasa, give us a beat…
 

Logan:
I woke up to my alarm clock sounding a warning
That I had another practice in the morning
I looked to my left and saw my roommate Armin
And realized Skate America wasn’t a dream

Lynn:
I’m painting my face, pulling my hair back tight
I’m glancing at the clock in a terrible fright
I’m gunna be late, I’m gunna miss the bus
But I realize I’m early, no need to fuss

Logan:
I went to breakfast to get some carbs and eggs
To give myself energy and prepare my legs
The bus ride to the rink followed soon after
Charlie made some jokes and filled us with laughter

Lynn:
Rachel, Caroline and Alexe make up the ladies
Shorts are lookin’ good, ‘bout to score high eighties
Armin, Stephen, and Adam makin up the men
Smooth and fast, we’re gunna give them a ten 

Marissa, Simon, Caydee and Jeremy
USA pairs has got tremendous energy
Along with them, we got Felicia and Taylor
Gunna tear up the pairs, no chance for failure
Meryl and Charlie; Maia, Alex, and us
USA dance–gunna leave the rest in the dust
Logan:
At our practice I enjoyed the crowd
The ice was smooth and the music was loud
Lynn was flawless and had a beautiful smile
That could be seen from every aisle

Lynn:
We’re loving it out here in Portland
Folks, watch out for Logan’s hot trend
Pink guards n’ flawless makeup job
No doubt he’s Portland’s new heartthrob
And ladies, I’ma tell you he’s available
He likes food so give him something edible

Lynn and Logan:
We think we’re gunna call it a night
Gotta run upstairs and grab a quick bite
We hope you enjoyed our interesting rhymes
Just wait ‘til tomorrow for some more good times

NOVEMBER 11, 2010

Lynn: After five international competitions being in German-speaking countries, I catch myself on the verge of greeting people with “guten tag” or thanking people with a “danke.” Remind me, Logan, we’re not in Germany (or Austria) anymore. We’re in our home country. And dang, it feels nice.

The rink is warm and the ambiance is familiar. It feels just like Nationals. But it’s November. And I’m seeing familiar athletes from other countries everywhere. Before I ask, “Hey what are you guys doing here?” I remember, we’re at Skate America, and that’s still hard to soak in. It’s exhilarating.

Logan: Soaking it in is exactly what we did on our first practice. Not only did I feel the familiar sweat rolling down my face within the first thirty seconds of being on the ice, but the intense glare of the lights in the stadium had me more alert than ever. It was nice to step on the ice to cheering from the home crowd and to see many familiar faces in the audience. Halfway through our session Lady Gaga came on over the loud speaker and Lynn turned to me and said, “See, just like home. Yuri must be here in spirit.”

Lynn: Either that, or they’ve stolen his beloved ipod touch. I suppose bringing anything from home makes being at a competition more comfortable… except for my homework. Immediately after our practice, which went pretty well, I had probability problems permeating my thoughts. Looks like Yasa and Logan are going to ditch me and go frolic through the various shopping centers this afternoon while I resign to my books.

Logan: I don’t know about frolicking exactly, but I’m definitely going to hit up the Nike Town across the street and the Columbia store I was earlier recommended to visit. Too bad Lynn has homework to do. She’ll be missing out! Yasa said she doesn’t need anything, but I guarantee, if not today, some new shoes will be bought before the trip is over. Later tonight we have our team dinner and then are going to have a small celebration for Adam Rippon because it is his 21st birthday!

Until tomorrow,

Lynn and Logan