Tai, Randy Glide Into a 30th Year

In matching white ties and tails, Tai Babilonia and Randy Gardner resemble Fred and Ginger on ice.

Gliding smoothly to the strains of Gershwin’s “ ‘Tis Wonderful,” they dip, flip and spin in unison, always sensing each other’s next move.

Theirs is a relationship that has never had a chill, enduring since its beginning nearly 30 years ago in a Culver City rink.

They were singles skaters impulsively paired off by coach Mabel Fairbanks for a club show. He was Dr. Dool3ittle and she played his wife, although in real life they were never anything more than best friends.

Today, Babilonia is 38 and a single mom to a 2-year-old son named Scout for the main character in “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Gardner, 40, is single and godfather to Scout.

The actual date of their 30th anniversary is hazy, so the Los Angeles-based skaters will celebrate throughout 1998 with a variety of tours.

“It wasn’t a goal we set,” Babilonia said. “When we hit our 25th, people would joke, ‘You guys going to go for 30?’ and we thought, ‘No way, are you kidding,’ and here we are. It happened really quickly.”

They recently concluded a four-day run in “Gershwin on Ice” at Universal Amphitheatre with Peggy Fleming and Rudy Galindo.

After Christmas, they’ll hit the road for more dates with “Nutcracker on Ice” and then a “Champions on Ice” tour.

“We’re just really enjoying it. We appreciate everything now,” Babilonia said backstage, perched on a sofa next to Gardner. “We’re grateful that we’re even getting hired. That was the biggest surprise.”

Babilonia and Gardner won five consecutive U.S. amateur pairs titles from 1976 to 1980. In 1979, they won the world pairs championship with perfect scores.

They were hyped as gold medal favorites at the 1980 Olympics, but Gardner aggravated a groin injury during warmups, forcing them to withdraw. The duo became forever known as the heartbreak kids of Lake Placid.

“To me, it seems like a long time ago, like a couple chapters behind,” said Gardner, who went through a slow process of physical therapy to recover from the career-threatening injury.

They turned professional and joined the Ice Capades, but Babilonia became depressed, drank heavily and was dependent on amphetamines. She attempted suicide in 1988.

“They shouldn’t emphasize the gold medal so much, that’s too much pressure,” she said. “When it doesn’t happen, it’s like they’ve totally written you off. It’s horrible. There’s just so much emphasis on winning and it’s really too bad because it can mess with your head.”

Gardner, who got an ulcer, stood by her as their skating came to a halt. The phone stopped ringing with offers to work.

“People weren’t sure, should we hire her,” said Babilonia, adding that she’s glad she went through that period. “It happened for a reason. I couldn’t get any lower.”

She sought therapy and they returned to the ice in less than a year. She drinks occasionally now.

“I was always last on the list, trying to please everyone else. It doesn’t work that way anymore,” she said. “I come first. It took me a while to learn that.”

When they’re on the road, the duo spends all but their sleeping hours together. Their fathers died within eight years of each other, and they see more of each other than they do their mothers or siblings.

“We’re always watching out for each other,” she said.

In nearly 30 years, they’ve taken just two breaks--one for Babilonia’s pregnancy and the other for her personal problems in 1988.

Even in the dark days of 1980, they never considered splitting up. After all these years, they aren’t tired of each other.

“I love traveling with somebody and I love skating with somebody,” Gardner said.

“It would be pretty hard alone,” Babilonia added. “We’re lucky that we do have each other. My job is with my best friend on the ice, that’s pretty incredible.”

Their loyalty extends to the people around them. They’ve had the same costume designer since 1982, the same choreographer since the mid-1980s and the same publicist for 10 years.

Many of the fans are the same, only now the people who watched them in the 1970s and early ‘80s have kids of their own.

As Babilonia drops into their trademark death spiral during a show, she can hear the click of imaginary calculators in the audience.

“I’m sure they’re thinking, ‘I can’t believe it’s been 30 years,”’ she said. “Then they try to calculate in their head, ‘Well, she must be this old and he’s that old.”’

Babilonia and Gardner don’t do the triple twists and triple throws common among the current pairs teams. They know they get hired for innovative routines and the seamless look achieved by 30 years of skating together.

“With us, it’s all about timing and that doesn’t come overnight. It takes years, but skaters now don’t understand that,” she said. “They want the quick fix. We know better.”

“We’ve matured, too,” Gardner said. “When it’s in your heart and your soul, when you really want to do it, you’re limitless and it’s a lot easier.”

They don’t talk about retirement. “If we do, you probably won’t hear about it. We’ll just fade away, nice and quietly,” she said, smiling.