Nationals, Day One

I left Moscow at about 11:15am, about an hour after my goal. Man, sometimes getting ready for a vacation is a lot of work! Got here safety, and in good time--the weather was great, and supposed to stay that way for the next ten days. Well, it's supposed to rain, but in the 40s. I was so intent on getting out of town, I went and left one piece of luggage behind. Fortunately, it wasn't anything I need right away, so my husband is kind enough to ship it to me.

In 2007, the last times the Nationals was in Spokane, they divided up the events in two venues; this time, the competitions are all in one place--the Spokane Arena, and the additional events will be at Riverside Park. I think I like it better that way. I don't know what I think about the senior events being separated into two weekends, though. I understand the reasoning behind it (the Olympics), but we are talking about NBC, the network who (just today!) screwed over Conan O'Brien.

I got at the Arena at the perfect time; just as I arrived, the senior men were starting their practice session. So I got to see Evan Lysecek practice! He looked so strong. There are reports that he's planning on a Quad for his long program. He didn't do one in practice, but he hit all of his triples and looked healthy and well-prepared.

Johnny Weir and Ryan Bradley were in the same practice group. Johnny's practice didn't go as well, but I understand that he tends to spend his practices during competitions all up in his head, anyway. There was one point, where another skater had a spectacular fall, right in front of Johnny, and you could tell he was embarrassed for falling in front of the great J. Weir. A little while later, Johnny fell too, and made it into a clownish fall that made the spectators laugh. I think that he did that on purpose--to make the younger skater feel comfortable about his fall. If that's true, that was a very sweet gesture.

Ryan Bradley's practice was worth the price of admission. I love his short program; it's funny and shows off his great personality. He had the crowd laughing and cheering; I'm really looking forward to his performance tomorrow night. I'd so like to see him at the Olympics, but he's had a tough season this year.

Anyway, the rest of the week should be good. I think I like my seat; it's on the short part of the rink, but almost directly behind the commentators' desk and kitty-cat to the Kiss-and-Cry. I sat directly behind the great Scott Hamilton! What a wonderful man he is. I went up for an autograph, and he politely listened to this elderly woman tell him her whole life story. Then I was able to see him interact with a bunch of other autograph-seekers (including some little boys who were impressed when their mom told them that Scott had won a gold medal at the Olympics) when I stayed behind to make sure the elderly woman made it back up the stairs.

What is it about me embarassing myself in front of celebrities anyway? I was making my way to the restroom tonight, and was fairly certain that Peter Carruthers passed me. I could tell he knew that I recognized him, even though I tried to be all cool about it. But how cool can you be when you're making your way to the restroom? Famous people are able to see that double-take of recognition, no matter what the circumstance.

So tomorrow I've got to buy a program and a bus pass. It's gonna be a long day. I will be tweeting from the Arena and trying to take pictures to post.