This report will have results mixed in so read at your own risk.

Today was Men's short and Pairs long. I got to the Target Center a little late due to horrendous traffic and parking problems. I missed Stephen Cousins but was told he skated clean. One of the things I noticed was how many horrible costumes were worn today! Thank heavens for Todd & Michael! There was also a lot of bad skating so I was thrilled to see the top guys do well. While some of the bad skating was happening I saw Rudy & Laura Galindo. I got his autograph just before he ate a piece of cheese pizza! He seemed to be having lots of fun talking to people. He was sitting with Tom Collins (Champions on Ice) and his family.

Zaggy (UKR) skated well but not awesome. Plushenko was terrific and got the crowd going finally. He was very cute because during his program he kind of raised his hands to say cheer louder, we did! His presentation marks were all 5.8's except one 5.5! Yagudin landed a 3x 3t combo and had great footwork, spins and presentation. His marks were mostly 5.7 & 5.8's and well deserved. When his coach Mishin was sitting with him in Kiss & Cry he (Mishin) waved to the crowd to get us to cheer louder for him. He seems to be very proud of his skaters which is nice to see. Patrick Schmit, remember him, the guy from Luxembourg, well he skated great but the judges don't like him as much as I do. Maybe next year; he's in 25th.

Todd had a great warm up including a perfect 3x 3t. Laurent Tobel was hilarious as usual. He is so creative and plays to the crowd more than the judges like Candeloro. We screamed for him and he soaked it up. While he was waiting for his marks he kept making faces to the camera and playing around with a stuffed animal. His coach finally took it away from him but he got it back!

Todd did very well except for a very unfortunate step-out/stumble/hand down between the 3x and the 2t. This cost him dearly. The judges did what they could but he landed in 3rd place. He even got 3 5.9's for presentation. I thought he was safe in 3rd but then Michael Weiss came out and rocked! He did land a 3x 3t in warm-up but not in the competition. The only flaw was no 3 3 combo but a very nice 3x 2t, a huge (as you all know) 3z and a 2x. His presentation is also very good and his marks for this were 5.4-5.8. GREAT SKATE MICHAEL! There was a camera man on his family the whole time he was skating. The crowd was very excited and he was too. BTW, he really looks great in those snug shirts he wears.

I saw Isabelle Brasseur again today and luckily had brought their book with me for her to sign. I even got my picture taken with her! I asked her about their "Please Clarify" program and she only knew that they got it from Gary Beacom who skated to it a long time ago. She said they looked for it on CD everywhere but couldn't find it. Rocky Marval came and kissed her on the cheek and swept her away. I later got his and Calla Urbanski's autographs, she is tiny too just like Isabelle and all other pairs skaters. Katia seems tall compared to all the others I'm seeing.

Both of Doug Leigh's skaters did great and were very pleased with themselves especially Marcus Leminan (FIN) he was pumping his fists and smiling from ear to ear. Jeff Langdon (CAN) also skated great and I felt he was underscored. I don't really like him as a skater but he did very well and I felt bad for the Canadian fans.

After the men we went to catch some practice at Parade. We got to see the Russian dancers skate their Free Dance. K & O look great and are fun to see in person. They seem like very nice people and get along well. We ran into Shelby & Brian and talked with them for a while. They and their coach Kathy Casey were pleased with their SP. We also saw John Zimmerman (formerly of Stiegler and Zimmerman, USA) and it took us a while to place him. He was sitting with Silvia Fontana's mom. He told us that he and Silvia are a couple. I asked him if he thought of skating pairs with her and he said "Yes" but she jumps the wrong way (left). She is so beautiful and we told him he was lucky.

Laetitia is a mess! She can hardly even land any 3's. Ever since she beat Tara she's not taken the added pressure and attention well I think.

Back for the pairs free. A skater of note is Berankova (CZE) she had amazing flexibility almost like a rhythmic gymnast. She does this spin by herself where she is holding her free leg up straight into the air. It was amazing! Lyons & Wells skated very well and except for Brian popping 2 jumps it was clean. Their marks were 5.0-5.3/5.1-5.3. They ended up 10th which I think is absolutely wonderful. This means that the US can send 3 pairs next year.

Savard-Cagnon & Bradet (CAN) skated probably their best program of the year. The Canadian fans even chanted "We are proud of You.." This is the team that Paul Martini coaches and they were all very excited afterwards. Xue & Hongbo are crazy! Their throws are huge. He throws her so high and far. They got a Standing O and landed in 4th place. WAY TO GO! If they improve their presentation skills they could be champions some year! Abitbol & Bernadis are so fun to watch and creative (love those French). They had some trouble unfortunately but I really like them and so did the Minnesota crowd. Sargeant & Wirtz (CAN) skated clean but were so boring to watch, even their music was boring.

The last group consisted of B & S, Meno & Sand, Schwarz & Mueller and the Polish pair Zagorska & Siudek. Near the beginning of the warm-up the Zagorska fell out of a throw and crashed into the boards. It was pretty scary and she appeared to have injured her jaw and knee. She seemed ok soon after but they did not skate very well in the competition. Watch for them in the future though!

B & S almost fell on each other trying a split 2 twist! YIKES! Also at one time both Germans and Elena landed side by side by side 3t's! The crowd cheered and Elena smiled. The Germans skated very well and got the Bronze (German pairs and bronze..hmmm) Meno & Sand were perfect except for a fall on the throw 3s and Todd stepping out of the 1x in combination. The judges gave them conservative marks partly because they were first in their group, they were 5.2-5.7/5.6-5.9. They won their first Silver medal and seemed very proud, we all were too! They don't have nearly as dramatic throws that the Chinese have but have lots of finesse and beautiful line.

Berezhnaya & Sikharulidze were not perfect but obviously the best of the night. The only real problem was Elena singling her 2x attempt. They are the fastest pairs skaters here and very thrilling to watch. Their marks were 5.6-5.8/5.7-5.9. What's with a 5.7!!!!

The medal ceremony was fun to see live and they all looked very joyous with the result. I personally was thrilled too. These were the first world medals for B & S and S & M, how Exciting!

Good luck tomorrow Todd & Michael!