Sports : Pool Is Kurza’s Bridge Over Troubled Waters

What is an Olympic hopeful doing sleeping in a tepee on a Malibu ranch?

To understand the answer, you have to understand Brian Kurza.

Kurza’s swimming career has taken many turns: from a sought-after high school recruit in Chicago, to an illustrious collegiate career at UCLA, to a battle against drug and alcohol abuse.

Kurza was a four-time All-American at UCLA in 1989-90 and 1992-93. He has the school’s second-fastest time in the 50-yard freestyle (19.35 seconds) and ranks third in the 100-yard freestyle (43.30).

Kurza had the school’s name tattooed on his left hip. He also has a tattoo of the American Flag on his right shoulder and his fraternity’s name, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, on his right ankle.

“Brian has always been a free spirit,” said former Bruin coach Ron Ballatore, who recently accepted a job at Brown University after UCLA dismantled its swimming program. “He was a great team swimmer for us and did a great job on relays. He had a lot of spirit and fight. He really cared about his teammates.”

But Kurza’s ambition to be the best carried him into trouble outside the pool. Kurza acknowledged he was a heavy marijuana user and beer drinker.

“I was a very insecure person,” he said. “I had to always prove myself as the biggest partier. I remember bragging to a friend that I smoke more pot than anyone in my fraternity.”

The underlying problem, Kurza said, was his desire to impress others.

“I was impressed with people for the wrong reasons,” Kurza said. “During the last four months, I’ve taken a step back and took an honest look at myself.

“What I saw was a pathetic weak-hearted person. I’ve decided to stop making so many excuses and start living a new life.”

Kurza received his first warning after getting kicked off the U.S. national team for drinking during the 1989 Pan Pacific Games.

During his sophomore season in 1990, a depressed Kurza sought guidance from Ballatore, who advised him to seek psychiatric help. He returned to Illinois for 14 months, where he entered hospitals that specialized in alcohol and drug dependency.

“I knew he had a problem,” Ballatore said. “He was missing practice and he wasn’t going to class.

“When he was in the hospital, we called every week to check up on him.”

After 3 1/2 years of sobriety, Kurza had a relapse a day after the Northridge earthquake. With his college eligibility exhausted, Kurza could not turn to the pool for solace.

“There were times where I wanted to wrap my car around a pole,” Kurza said. “My problems didn’t exist when I had pot or alcohol to medicate me.”

Kurza received a second warning on Feb. 20, when a family friend committed suicide four days before Kurza’s 24th birthday. Kurza, who said he contemplated suicide, decided it was time to do some soul-searching.

“I had several run-ins with death where I was crying for attention,” he said. “But I decided to straighten out my life because I couldn’t put my family through another suicide.”

For five months, Kurza lived at a friend’s house. In late June, he drove up the coast to Rio Carrillo State Beach to camp overnight. Kurza spent six hours whittling and waiting for guidance from a higher being. The next morning, Kurza crossed Pacific Coast Highway and began hiking up the steep and barren hillsides. As a hawk circled above, he followed telephone lines until he met the caretaker of a ranch.

Needing a place to stay, Kurza was pointed toward Dry Gulch Ranch where he met Maureen Ward, a retired sex therapist.

“Normally, you don’t see strangers walking down the hillside,” said Ward, whose ranch could best be described as 15 minutes outside nowhere. “I couldn’t figure out where the hell he came from.

“He told me he was an athlete who planned to compete in the Olympics. My first boyfriend competed in the Montreal Olympics so we had this commonality.”

The ranch is owned by Ward and her husband Carter Ward, a self-employed mechanical engineer.

Although she was impressed with Kurza, Maureen Ward initially did not offer the wayward swimmer a place to stay.

So Kurza stumbled back toward the main road to PCH, only to pass through Camp Hess Kramer, a summer retreat for Jewish youths. Located at the camp was a 25-meter swimming pool suitable for training.

Kurza returned to his friend’s home and began to inquire about part-time jobs at Hess Kramer. He was offered a position as a swimming instructor at neighboring Gindling Hilltop Camp.

Two weeks later, Kurza talked the Wards into allowing him to sleep in a tepee on their ranch.

“They have seen my dream and they want to be part of it,” Kurza said. “It’s all happening for a reason and that reason is for me not to lose in ’96.”

Kurza stares at the stars inside his 15-foot high tepee. His workout consists of running dirt paths and climbing a 50-foot rope. Carter Ward has started constructing an outdoor weightlifting facility. There is even talk by Carter Ward to build an Olympic pool for Kurza.

Kurza demonstrated his potential in his first race back, winning the men’s 50-meter freestyle Saturday during the Janet Evans Invitational at USC. A false start delayed the 50 free finals. As a referee walked by, Kurza commented: “Get away from my lane ref.”

When the referee disqualified Francisco Sanchez of Venezuela, Kurza said: “That’s it ref. Get rid of that foreigner.”

Despite being out of shape, Kurza swam 23.78 seconds to edge friend Jim Wells of the Trojan Swim Club by one-hundredth of a second. After seeing Maureen Ward waving her cowboy hat, Kurza turned and saw his winning time on the scoreboard.

“I couldn’t see at it first because the sun was in my eyes,” Kurza said. “The 50 is a drag race. You just get up with an attitude and swim.”

Said Mark Henderson of Cal: “So you decided to walk down from the mountains and swim a race.”

Ballatore, who is coaching Team Bruin, was not impressed.

“I don’t think it was a big victory,” Ballatore said. “You don’t need to be in shape to swim a good 50. He hasn’t trained at all. It’s probably wise he doesn’t go to nationals.”

The U.S. National Championships are Aug. 14-19 in Indianapolis. Kurza, who may enter the event, said his competition would come from David Fox of North Carolina State, Seth Pepper of Arizona, Joe Hudepohl of Stanford and former Bruin Tom Jager.