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| The winning style |
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| victorious in 1983 |
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| Cover star |
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| 1982 World Champion |
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| Other 80's Legends: |
| COMING SOON.. |
| Tim McGuire |
| Sandro Guerra |
| Rick Monturo |
| Tina Kneisley |
| Scott Cohen & more.. |
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| Welcoming - Tim McGuire.. | |||
| When was the last time you had a pair of skates on, and how did it feel? | |||
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Its been about 1 year I believe. I take my 10 yr old daughter skating at a local rink in eastern North Carolina where I currently reside. I find myself using my in-line skates since I just skate for fun and speed. No triples these days. |
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| More so, do you remember the first time you put a pair of skates? | |||
| I was about 7 or 8 I think. | |||
| How did it impact your life when you retired from skating? | |||
| I began pursuing my education with the same vigor that I did when I skated. I must say, I really missed the excitement that came with world travel, competition and the camaraderie of my fellow team mates. | |||
| What were the key life lessons you gained from being an artistic skater? | |||
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Hard work, dedication, sacrifice, and most of all, love what you do. Practicing free style skating was never a chore for me because I just really enjoyed doing jumps and spins. The competition and winning was just icing on the cake. |
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| Did you have any childhood heroes, and who were they? | |||
| Once I ended up at Rollhaven in Flint Michigan training under Bev Schien, perhaps the finest coach in the history of roller skating, I had the unique opportunity to be around a number of great male and female free style skaters. Names like, Rick Elsworth, Paul Jones, Joe Irving, Pat Baxter as well as many others were instrumental in my growth. At Rollhaven, there were always 3 to 4 guys at my level and we were all trying to out-do each other at practice. We would have contests to see who could do more triples and longer combinations or more double loops in a row; That's why our club was so strong. Michigan has always been very strong in the region and at the national level in free style. I was fortunate to come out of such a powerful region. The guys that I looked up to had strong jumping ability spun well and skated like men; not a lot of flowery stuff, just clean lines fast footwork and powerful content. | |||
| Do you think being surrounded by greatness inspires people to greater things? | |||
| There is no question about that point. Look at any endeavor; as people move along and advance they tend toward other strong competitive individuals. This is what creates the synergy that leads to success whether it is skating, career, politics or whatever. | |||
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Below: McGuire in action - 1982 Worlds, Germany - 1st |
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| Does it amaze you that twenty years since you skated, people are still in awe of your performances and skating skill of that time? | |||
| First of all, it shocks me to think that twenty years have passed when it seems just like yesterday that I was in New Zealand at my first World championship. Second, yes I am pleased to think that I added something to the sport, particularly as it relates to jumping technique. I am also very proud to have done the first clean triple loop in competition at the national championships. | |||
| Your technique and style still holds up against the best of today, did you model your skating on any other skater? Or was it purely 'McGuire'? | |||
| There were a number of skaters who I observed who seemed to jump without a lot of wasted effort. These skaters tended to wrap tight and rotate fast. Those with a loose wrap and slow rotation did not tend to be as successful. I actually had a loose wrap when I reviewed early tapes of myself at my first and second state meets. I corrected this problem and it served me well into my later years doing triples. I think Elsworth and Jones had pretty tight wraps and were pretty successful jumpers. Its all just basic physics and angular momentum. | |||
| Who inspired you as a skater and what motivated you to push yourself to the limits? | |||
| My dad trained at Rolladium back in the 50's where so many strong skaters evolved. He would take me skating on Sunday afternoons and teach me some single revolution jumps. I quickly became interested in pursuing free style skating training under a fine coach by the name of Maureen Perry. Coach "Mo" then left our club and I moved to train with Bev in Flint. As I mentioned, Rollhaven was a hot bed of talent with so many great skaters to train around. Again, it's synergy that results in the growth of talent at a club and for sure it was working at Rollhaven that had such an impact on my career. | |||
| Was your coach tough? And who was your coach/coaches? | |||
| Maureen Perry was my first coach and she was a great teacher. I will never will forget busting my self up trying to learn an axel under her guidance. Then Bev Shien, who without a doubt, is one of the all time greatest coaches that roller skating has ever had or will have. She was masterful in her ability to get the best out of every skater that she touched. She was tough, but with a gentle encouraging grace. I will never forget her and the impact she has had on my skating and my life. | |||
| Did you have a skating highlight or event? | |||
| Three world championships and first triple loop in competition (1983 US Nationals). | |||
| Do you recall a moment during your skating life where you can just sit back and laugh about? | |||
| Too many to recall. | |||
| Does it surprise you that the Italian’s dominated the skating world post the late 80’s? | |||
| Not all that much. They had several up starts when I was at worlds in the 80's. There discipline and ability was obvious at the time and it seems to be reflected in their current dominance in the sport. | |||
| What do you think it is that catapulted them to such heights? | |||
| Desire. | |||
| Do you feel that there is something lacking from artistic roller sports? | |||
| I feel that we missed an opportunity in the 80's to gain entry into the Olympics. After that failure, I believe that interest in the sport began to wane and so too did the quality. | |||
| Do you ever get the urge to put your skates back on and get out there again? | |||
| All the time, I'm just worried I might try something stupid that would require expensive orthopedic surgery to fix. | |||
| Personal message from Mark... | |||
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might sound silly, but if you really love skating for its own
sake, then practicing each day isn't work, its a joy. You will
become rapidly proficient and successful, advancing up the
ranks as a matter or course. On the other hand, if
practice is painful and a chore, then quit and find something
else that you love doing. Life if too short to be
miserable. Peace. |
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Special thanks to Tim McGuire for taking time out with us... |
