Jessica Calalang and Brian Johnson were friends before they were teammates. They trained together under the same coaches, so when they paired up a year and a half ago, they gelled quickly.
Still, there were the growing pains that come with any new partnership, and the two attended their first U.S. Championships together in 2018 with zero goals or expectations.
They placed fifth.
Both experienced pairs skaters, the finish was as good as – or better than – all of their prior placements at the senior level with past partners.
"I feel like it kind of validated both of our decisions (to pair up)," Johnson said. "We're like, okay, cool, we can do this, because we know we can do better now."
Both Calalang and Johnson agreed that they didn't skate their best at the U.S. Championships, and finishing so close to the podium regardless was a huge statement for their partnership.
"Just for other people to recognize our talent, separately and together, even though we didn't skate that great," Calalang said. "Wow, people see something in us that we saw within each other, but in skating, a lot of people are watching. And it actually means something. It matters what people think. So to place fifth not skating that great was like, wow, there's something."
The pair teamed up in April of 2018, both departing established partnerships. Calalang had skated with Zack Sidhu since 2010, while Johnson skated with Chelsea Liu since 2014. Having the same coaching team helped facilitate the transition in many ways, but they still struggled to merge their skating styles.
Especially when it came to their throws.
"As a guy who's been through a couple partners, that's always one thing that is way different between everybody, because everybody has their own timing that they like, and you always have to adjust to that," Johnson said.
"It took a while just because we were with our other partners for a long time, and we were so used to one certain timing, one certain way," Calalang said. "And all of a sudden you switch, and that's all you do. It was frustrating.
"But obviously we figured it out," she added with a laugh.
They spent their first season together with the goal of simply working out the kinks and getting used to each other. They placed fourth at the Autumn Classic International and third at the Tallinn Trophy in their first international competitions as a team.
They began the 2019-20 season with a sixth-place finish at the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic, and will make their Grand Prix debut at 2019 Skate America presented by American Cruise Lines today in Las Vegas before competing at Skate Canada International on Oct. 25-27 in Kelowna, British Columbia.
Now beginning their second season as a team, Calalang and Johnson spent their first offseason together working on… well, everything.
"So much," Johnson said, laughing.
"All of the above," Calalang echoed. "Just learning how to skate as one. Because our knee bend was different, our edges that we take are different. So we really worked hard to try and match."
But now that some of the newness has worn off, they're ready to get out there in front of a U.S. audience and make a statement.
"We've been working really hard, off the ice, on the ice, every day," Johnson said. "We're definitely trained. We're ready."
Their free skate is set to "You Are the Reason" by Calum Scott and Leona Lewis, a piece suggested by Calalang, and choreographed by Cindy Stuart. While that came together almost effortlessly, their short program was an entirely different story.
Calalang and Johnson were looking for a program in line with what they skated to last season – upbeat, fast, with more of a salsa vibe – but choreographer Benoit Richaud had something else in mind.
He sent them "Light of the Seven" from the Game of Thrones soundtrack, composed by Ramin Djawidi, and they pushed back until he came to California to work with them and implored them to trust him.
"And then we started doing the choreography and I was like, 'Okay, this is pretty great,'" Johnson said.
"Just when a choreographer is that persistent about one piece of music, it's his work," Calalang said. "He sees a vision in his head, so at some point you just have to trust them.
"He's great. He knows what he's doing."
While their ultimate goal for the season is to do better than last season – in other words, a podium finish at the U.S. Championships – they've tempered their expectations for their first Grand Prix. With two in back-to-back weekends, they know it's going to be both a whirlwind and a slog.
"We're here just to enjoy our time together, and our time here," Calalang said. "It's going to be a long two weeks."
"Have fun, relax, enjoy it all, and do what we can do," Johnson added.
That being said, they're feeling optimistic about where they are as a team.
They've figured out each other's timing, learned each other's quirks and isms, and are prepared to get out on the international stage with the best teams in the world.
"We got all the hiccups out of the way," Calalang said. "We've figured each other out now, and we can put it to work."
