Professional Skaters Brave a Life on Thin Ice

As each figure skater glides onto the ice Saturday at Burbank’s Pickwick Ice Skating Arena, their costumes, gestures and emotions will be in sync with the music and choreography. The quick cuts and sharp maneuvers will look almost effortless.

The show, called Solid Gold Icetravaganza, is a benefit performance for United Cerebral Palsy of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties and will feature 1980 Olympic gold medalist Robin Cousins and Richard Dwyer, who was an Ice Follies star for almost 30 years. Twenty-one nationally ranked amateurs, including U. S. ice dance champions Susie Wynne and Joseph Druar and U. S. ice dance bronze medalists Suzanne Semanick and Ron Kravette, are slated to appear.

But the performances will be anything but effortless.

As with most well-trained athletes, skaters must make sacrifices that are not played out under the spotlight. Expenses, which include coaching, travel, ice time and costumes, can range from $20,000 to $60,000 annually for those at the highest levels of competition. Injuries and weight control are a constant source of aggravation, skaters say. And, of course, they must deal with the stress of competition.

There are times when Christopher Bowman of Van Nuys has wondered whether pursuing world and Olympic championships is worth the financial sacrifice. Loans from the United States Figure Skating Assn. help pay part of the $40,000 annual tab, but his parents, Joyce and Nelson Bowman, shoulder about 60% of the burden.

‘It Upsets Me’

“I have felt like walking away because of the money,” said Bowman, 22. His parents “are not well-off and they spend money they don’t have. It upsets me, but they try not to hold it over my head. But obviously they don’t want to see the money go down the toilet.”

Wynne, 24, a 1988 Olympian, feels the financial pressure too. “When I don’t skate my best, I feel I let people down. And when you invest all that time and money, you think your performance should be better.”

With the exception of gymnastics, says Wynne, there is no other sport where physical appearance is as closely scrutinized by judges, coaches, competitors and spectators as the actual performance. Hence, the pressure to stay slim for men and women alike.

Gaining weight “is every skater’s nightmare,” said Semanick, a 1988 Olympian. “I eat a banana and my mind immediately registers 80 calories.”

“Weight can be a problem for men too,” Bowman said. “Appearance, attitude and presentation, it’s all part of the score.”

Sibling Jealousy

From time to time, skaters say, pressure can come from siblings jealous of the extra attention devoted to the skater. Semanick, 22, is the youngest of four children. She is closest in age to her brother, Joe, 24, who she feels missed out on the college of his choice because most of the family income was spent on her training expenses (about $17,000 a year).

“I felt guilty,” she said. “My skating prevented him from going to a better college. I think he feels a little angry and bitter over that. Today, I’m still trying to make up for that.

“My dad had a hard time too,” she said. Growing up, it was Semanick’s mother, Rose, who drove her to the rink for daily lessons and provided much of the emotional support. “My mom and I are very close and my skating pulled her away. My dad felt neglected because I had all her time.”

Competitive skaters pull out all the stops to create the most eye-catching and crowd-pleasing programs, and they seek advice from all over the country on everything from costumes to choreography--usually at great expense. (Semanick and Kravette are getting choreographic assistance from the Pittsburgh Ballet.) In addition, they may consult sports psychologists. Wynne, Druar, Semanick and Kravette use them periodically to set goals, discuss problems and develop techniques to build confidence.

“I used to feel that it didn’t make sense to see a psychologist until something went wrong,” Wynne said. “But now I feel it’s like preventive medicine.”

Hectic Schedule

Most of the skaters who will perform Saturday have a hectic fall schedule planned, with international competitions and intense training sessions in preparation for the national and world championships scheduled early next year. The Olympics are just a little more than two years away.

But Saturday at Pickwick, they get to take a break from the rivalries and competition, for a few hours anyway.

Two shows, co-produced by the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club, are scheduled Saturday. A preview ($10) is set for 2 p.m.; the evening benefit ($60) starts at 8 p.m. at Pickwick, 1001 Riverside Drive.

For ticket information on the 2 p.m. show, contact Pickwick at (818) 846-8099; for information on the 8 p.m. show, contact David Levinson at (213) 236-2090 (days) or (818) 785-1776 (nights).