Farris first landed a clean quad toe loop in


winning the Junior Grand Prix in Lake Placid, N.Y., in 2012. Now that he’s on the senior Grand Prix, he plans a quad in his short program and two in his free skate to compete with the likes of U.S. champion Max Aaron and international stars Patrick Chan, Javier Fernández and Yuzuru Hanyu.


“[Doing] two quads is a big change, but


Josh’s goal this season is not to just put his foot in the door, but to make a statement,” Allen said. “He actually landed the first [quad] Salchow


he ever tried off of the pole [jump] harness. Tat shows talent. Everyone at the rink said, ‘Oh, look at that kid!’” Hopefully Farris didn’t hear them, because


praise isn’t always music to his ears. “Sometimes I catch myself when I’m starting to get a big head,” he said. “I say, ‘I need to hum- ble myself.’ I really don’t like it when people are over-the-top with the ‘I’m-the-best’ attitude.’” Toeing the line between confidence and


arrogance has always been a challenge. Work- ing with sports psychologists — including Dr. Caroline Silby, a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee Athlete Advisory Council — helps, but the battle continues.


“I need to focus on me — not think, ‘I’m


Joshua Farris is a bundle of contradictions. Self-effacing to a fault, he courts and expects


success. He searches for confidence but resists ar- rogance. He is the World Junior champion, yet thinks he doesn’t always “train smart.” “I have a tendency to get frustrated quite


easily,” the 18-year-old said. “I’ll have those weeks when I’ll get caught up in my frustration. I’ll make a mistake, I’ll stop, I’ll restart the mu- sic.”


He admits he takes mistakes too hard. Some days, he will miss a few jumps, then hang his head and berate himself before before giving it another try. But the “old Josh” is being replaced by a far


more dangerous competitor. “He has become a young man,” said Damon Allen, who along with Christy Krall trains Farris at Colorado Springs World Arena. “It’s all part of the maturation process. He has more responsibil- ities when it comes to his training plan. He has taken ownership of his success.” Farris has never had trouble winning. On


his fifth birthday, his mother, Erin, took him to Highlands Ice Arena in Shoreline, Wash., near his hometown of Renton. Young Josh fell in love with the ice. Tree years later he began working with his first coach, Heather Reed-Lomax, and won the U.S. juvenile title in 2006. In 2007, he and Erin moved to Colorado


Springs, where he trained with Tom Zakrajsek and Becky Calvin. Tey guided him to the U.S. intermediate title in 2008, followed by the nov- ice title in 2009 and the junior silver medal in 2010.


Trough it all, Farris and his older brother


David were home-schooled by Erin, a Catholic school teacher and piano instructor. (Farris’ fa- ther Rodney, a software developer, now lives in Texas.) Te skater recently earned his high school diploma. “I’m going to college next year; I’m taking


this year off,” Farris said. “Tat is going to be a big change. I’ve never been in a classroom, but I don’t know where I would be in skating today if I had gone to regular school, because I had so much time to train.” In 2011, after illness and injury contribut- ed to a 21st-place finish at his first senior U.S. Championships, Farris began training with Allen and Krall.


junior circuit, winning five Junior Grand Prix gold medals, silver at the


Te last three seasons he has dominated the 2012 World Junior


Figure Skating Championships and silver at the 2012 Junior Grand Prix Final. In February, a few weeks after placing fourth at the 2013 U.S. Fig- ure Skating Championships, he led a U.S. sweep of the men’s podium at the 2013 World Junior Championships in Milan, Italy. Tat victory almost didn’t happen. After his successful 2011–12 junior campaign, Farris’ first instinct was to try the senior circuit. Eventually, cooler heads prevailed. “He and Christy and I sat down and final-


ly decided, ‘Let’s just stay back one more year,’” Allen said. “Winning Junior Worlds, having that one extra year to try quads in competition, was what he needed.”


the best,’ but do what I know how to do,” Farris said. “I do have a tendency to doubt myself quite a bit. I’ve been working on it. It has gotten a lot better. I mean, I actually had success last season.” Allen thinks the World Junior title has given


Farris a leg up to success in the senior ranks. “It gives him confidence, it motivates him,”


Allen said. “It makes him feel like he belongs out there. He came home from World Juniors, took his break and came back eager to get going and take the opportunities as they come.” Farris still has a few slips here and there, but


now when he falls on a quad or triple Axel, he gets up and moves on. “No matter what, keep going,” he said. “I’ve


learned my lesson. Even though I’ve learned it many times before, sometimes you have to re- learn it.” For the past few seasons, Farris has had added


incentive to run his programs to perfection: He and Allen choreograph the routines. “When I was little, my warm-up was creating


programs off the ice, just making them up on the spot,” he said. “I always had that passion to put my emotions into choreography.” Tis season, he selected Astor Piazzolla’s “Lib-


ertango” for his short program and the Schindler’s List soundtrack for his free skate. “I connect more with slow music, or very dra-


matic,” he said. “I don’t do happy or jazz. Tis year I’m doing my tango, which is a little bit out- side my comfort zone.” Work as a choreographer — for himself and


eventually for others — is in his future. “It is definitely something I want to ex-


plore,” he said. For now, though, all sights are aimed at per- fecting his quads and taking that step up to the


SKATING 31


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