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Browning talks about new 'Battle'
| Source: |
Toronto Sun |
| Date: |
September 24, 2010 |
| Author: |
Lindsey Ward |
For a man who has spent most of his life on ice, it sure was a change
of pace -- make that, temperature -- when Kurt Browning had to watch
his house burn down last month.
The world champion figure skater and Battle of the Blades host's
85-year-old Toronto mansion caught fire while he was using a leaf
blower to dry the inside of his Porsche -- a $1-million mistake he's
not proud of. ("Whoops," he says solemnly.)
On the bright side, most of his skating medals survived the blaze. And
he also hasn't lost his enthusiasm for the second season of CBC's
Battle of the Blades, which hits the ice Sunday night. Along with Ron
McLean, Browning hosts the series in which retired hockey players such
as Theo Fleury, Valerie Bure and Georges Laraque learn how to figure
skate for charity (and audience votes) with the help of pro partners
including Jamie Sale and Isabelle Brasseur. Browning was happy to take
time out from renovating last week to chat about it:
How does this year's cast compare to last year's?
Hopefully no one beats me up, but they seem to be faster. I think
that, generally speaking, the age of the cast is young this year. And
they seem to be taking advantage of the fact that they saw it on TV
last year. Last year the guys were Vikings in their ships going
somewhere no one's ever been ... Nobody knew coming in if they were
going to be respected. For hockey players, if you look vulnerable in
any way, the hockey society, they don't let you forget it. They're so
hard on each other it's incredible.
Do any of the guys stand out to you?
I'm predicting very advanced skating levels from these guys ... But
maybe not from (ex-Edmonton Oilers enforcer) George (Laraque). George
is all about picking up the girl and lifting her up. (In French
accent) 'I just wanna lift the girl. I just wanna carry her because
it's fun. I like carrying da girl.' He was doing one-arm star lifts --
off ice, not on ice -- on the very first day. He is three times (his
partner's) weight!
What is the first thing hockey players need to learn about figure
skating?
How to fall. When they fall on TV, they're still watching the play as
they're falling. When these guys fall and it's a toe-pick fall ... It
just seems like you're doing nothing and then you're plunging
face-first toward the ice. And they're 200-and-some-odd pounds,
crashing down on cartilage. Oh, man. The falls are hard.
What's the scariest move they'll be attempting?
I'm going to tell you some of the lifts are going to look really
scary. But the scariest move will probably be their dancing.
Scary for them, or for us?
For everybody. It will be horrifying. I was trying to psych them up
and I said, 'You guys go to bars when you travel and after a game you
dance at the clubs, right?' And nothing. And I look around the room,
and go, 'None of you have ever danced in the bars?' And Kelly Chase
goes, 'We're not allowed.' And so for them to go out and move to music
I think is one of the biggest hurdles that they have to overcome. The
figure skates are hard, and over time they get much better on
skates. But dancing to music -- that's a huge leap of faith to these
guys.
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