HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1991-07-24, Page 13,•
•
Kathy•
Merner,
chasing her goals
From the security and
comfort of her home
town, to the bright
lights of New York,
Chicago and Montreal.
It's becoming an annual
event for me to write about
Zurich's Kathy Merner. In the
winter she skates for Ice Ca-
pades, the internationally
known show which barnstorms from city to city.
Instead of simply doing an interview, this year I decided to
do something a little different. I asked this young star a series
of questions and she gave me a very quick answer for each.
Q. It's been two years now since you've been with the Ice
Capades, are you getting tired of living out of a suitcase?
A. "I'm enjoying my career more and more all the time. I'm
working hard at it and moving up," said Memer.
"I'm progressing and getting better spots."
Q.What do you mean by better spots?
A. "I was chorus (line) and this year I had three understud-
ies. We have tryouts at the beginning of the year for the prin-
cipal skater and if they're ever hurt, we go in for them. I re-
ceived three of them this year."
Q. Having that many understudy parts, wouldn't that be
harder than actually being a principal skater?
A. "I loved it. My nine months were up and I was ready to
come home. It usually takes longer than two years to move
out of the line. I'm looking forward to working hard every day
in August and getting ready to go back. Next year is a brand
new show and I don't know what's up for next year until I get
there."
Q. Did you ever have to go in for a principal skater?
A. "I went in all the time. I was definitely nervous, but after
I got the parts I was under a lot of pressure just knowing now
I have to go out and perform. I loved it, but that first time I
was shaking. It's not a solo spot, there are other people and
you get to step out of the line."
Q. Is it too early to say "okay in five years 1 want to be do-
ing this and ten years I want to be doing this."?
A. "I set high standards, I have very high goals and I contin-
ue to reach for them. I know I want to go to Europe. There's a
show there called Holiday on Ice. It travels Europe for one
year, I want to do that. I still want to skate pairs. In the back
of my mind I know I have to go to school one of these years
but right now my heart is set on this."
Q. Do you have the same thinking as other athletes. "I'm
going to do this as long as I can and than concentrate on my
schooling"?
A. "It's such an atmosphere, such a lifestyle and I'm loving
it right now, but the minute that I. start hating going into ho-
tels and hating pulling my clothes out of the suitcase, it's time
to get off the road."
Q. Do you miss your family or are they starting to get used
to not having you there?,;,, -„ ,..
A. "It's" definitely a lifestyle yb'U have to get used fo. But my
parents came to visit me in Veganind• we celebrated their
25th Anniversary in Johnstown
Q. What about this year coming up. Do you want to have a
solo spot?
A. "You never know until you get there. I'm with a whole
new group of people and you never know what kind of
chance you have. They know my work and my ability.
Memer will head to Minnesota in September to begin skat-
ing with the Ice Capades' West Company. She started with
the Continental and last year it was the East. This year the
West Company will be making a November appearance in
Toronto and to Detroit in March.
One big difference will be a very grueling schedule which
will see her travel from one city to the next on Monday, and
have two shows every day the rest of the week.
However, she can look forward to being part of the filming
of a television commercial and maybe even making a dash to-
wards that centre spotlight.
sidelines
by
Fred
Groves
Like everything else over the years,
women's fastball hasseen changes
By Fred Groves
EXETER - It's been over 20
years since Sandi Fremlin and
Georgina Reynolds first picked up
a softball.
Now, following countless trips
throughout North America, endless
nights driving just to get to prac-
tices and playing in the national
championship, they are competing
in what may be called a 'slower
pace' type of fastball.
Reynolds is the coach of the Ex-
eter Greys and Fremlin regularly
patrols centre field.
After playing for the Milverton
Suns, a team which made it to the
national finals, suiting up for the
Greys may seem a trifle on the let-
down side, but ifs not.
"I think I was'ready for a change.
But 1 can't help think that coming.
to this league, people would expect
a lot of wonderful things from me
and that made me nervous," said
Fremlin who lives in Huron Park.
But listening to both Fremlin and
Reynolds speak of their past in
senior ball, it's clear the highest
calibre of fastball has changed
drastically.
"I got out of senior ball in 1986
and I found the league was starting
to change then. I think a lot of that
calibre of ball is changing," said
Fremlin.
"There weren't any real stable
teams anymore,' she added.
Follow a winner: Reynolds said
when senior fastball was at its
peak, it was not common for wom-
en to go to a winning team. What
that did was stack a team, make
one always better than the resi
"Anybody could win it in any
given year and then . MO started
hopping from team -to -team," said
Reynolds.
"That knocks the level of ball
down because what happens is one
team gets strong and the others get
weaker. It used to be a real compet-
itive 1 ue."
Te�i�djrsr; along with -the Credi-
ton Ladies Fastball Club, play in
the eight -team Huron -Perth Ladies
Fastball League. It's a league, 1)ke
all others, in any sport, which has
its stronger teams and its weaker
teams.
One team in the Huron -Perth
league which is struggling on the
diamond is Winthrop. Crediton re-
cently beat them 36-1 in two in-
nings before the lights went out due
to a curfew.
"They have the ability. It's nice.to
get a younger team in it," said Cre-
diton's Deb Lord.
"I think we've seen that with
Mitchell. They came up as a juve-
nile team and they get stronger
each year," said Fremlin..
Helen Thomson, president of the
Huron -Perth league, says there is
stability in the league itself and
there is a difference in the calibre
There are weaker teams and strong-
er ones. It's kind of frustrating for
teams to travel to Winthrop for a
-9:30 p.m. game," said Thomson.
Exeter, Crediton, St. awls and
St. Marys always seem to be at the
top. A year ago Crediton eliminated
the Greys in the semi-finals and
went on only to be beaten by a
be called Intermediate. There is no
national championship for these la-'
dies but every night they take their
cuts at the plate and more often
than not come home with a bruise
or two.
"With ladies in sports, it's tough.
They have kids and want to go
"It's not on the
real increase. We
don't hear from
a lot of tournaments"
tough team from St. Marys.
Declining: When asked if wom-
en's fastball is gaining in populari-
ty, Thomson said she didn't think
it was.
"It's not on the real increase now.
Wedon't hear from a lot of tourna-
ments," she said.
This league, in comparison, could
around with them,' said Lord.
Both the Exeter and Crediton en-
tries have a mixture of younger and
more experienced players, like
Fremlin and Reynolds. They said
when they were playing senior ball
it was a little different.
"When i was plajring senior ball,
there wasn't that many young ones
coming up," said Fremlin.
"When Sandi and I came up, you
had to earn your way onto a team,"
said Reynolds.
Lord noted that their team has
had a poor turnout of younger girls
wanting to play senior fastball until
the past two years.
"With jobs and boyfriends, it is
hard for some girls to give a com-
mitment. Our new players from the
last two years are really keen and
try to make every game and prac-
tice. I hope more girls keep coming
out so our team stays alive and
competitive."
She helped form the Crediton
team ten years ago and has been
playing ever since. What a differ-
ence those ten years have made.
"When we first started, we'd have
so many fans we could pay for our
umpires and the lights from our col-
lection."
But while some girls may be shy-
ing away from fastball, there is suit
a few who are very keen. The
Greys have got a couple of young
future stars in Kendra Arthur and
Lisa Henderson.
Fremlin says she wouldn't discou-
rage them in trying their hand in
senior ball.
"If someone wants to do it, 'I'd
say give them a chance."
of -the -teams: - - — Future star Awaiting there chance to hit the field prior to a recent fastball game are left; Dianne
"The whole league is divided. lis; Lisa Henderson, Brenda Bell, Carla Wolfcamp and Cherie Carter of the Exeter Greys.
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