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KIDS' QUESTIONS

November 2008

Kids' Questions with Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates

Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates embark on their first international campaign as seniors in 2008-09. The Michigan ice dancing team finished last season strong, placing fourth as seniors at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Saint Paul, Minn., and as the World Junior champions. Samuelson and Bates attend the University of Michigan.

Emily, was it hard to come back to skating after your hand injury? Evan, have you ever had an injury related to skating?
Kate Manzagol, 15
Clarkston, Mich.

Emily: Actually, it wasn't difficult at all to come back on the ice. I was looking forward to it! After being off the ice entirely for three weeks, I was definitely missing the feel of skates on my feet. Once I was finally able to skate again, Evan and our coaches, Yaroslava Nechaeva and Iouri Tchesnitchenko, helped me through the transition, so it was really more exciting than difficult. I skated for five weeks with a splint on my hand before everything was back to normal at last.
Evan: I dealt with a back injury throughout last summer and into the beginning of last season.

Emily Samuelson and Evan Bates Photo by Michelle Harvath

What has it been like to transition from the junior to senior level?
Judy Trinh, 16
Philadelphia

Emily: We are also fortunate to have a great program at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube. Yasa and Iouri, our coaches, really helped us prepare throughout the summer, so now we are ready for the season as seniors and in shape for the longer, four-minute free dance. Although it is always difficult to move up to a new level, it's more exhilarating than anything else to be able to finally compete at the senior level.
Evan: Going from junior to senior is a difficult transition but we have been fortunate to gain the experience we need on the Junior Grand Prix circuit over the past three years. We've learned how to travel overseas and deal with things like time change and other challenges that come with competition.

How many hours a day/week do you practice on the ice?
Jennifer Thompson, 16
San Jose

Evan: We practice six days a week. Monday through Friday we're on the ice for about four hours with an additional two hours of off ice. Sundays are easier; we skate for about two hours with two hours of off ice.
Emily: For off-ice, we take both ballroom dance and ballet to supplement our skating. We also do general calisthenics, work on our programs on the floor and stretch everyday. It's a lot, but it's definitely worth it.

Since both of you are in college and must make room for classes and studying, have you tweaked your practice strategy to make your time on the ice more efficient since moving to seniors?
Georgina Oliveira, 16
Ludlow, Mass.

Emily: This is one of the benefits of being in college; we can choose what times to take classes to best accommodate our practice schedule. In this respect, we have less stress this year. We are able to devote plenty of time to skating with the move to seniors in addition to getting an education.
Evan: Actually, our skating schedule has been consistent over the last couple years. It's our school schedule that has to be tweaked to accommodate our skating. We each take two classes, one in the morning before practice and the other in the evening after practice.

I understand each of you play golf. Have you ever played together? What scores do you shoot?
Jennifer Lake, 17
Cincinnati

Emily: Unfortunately, I haven't played in over a year. I typically play with my family when at our house in New Hampshire. I honestly can't remember what the last score I shot was – nor do I know what my typical score is, which is actually a little pathetic that it's been that long. I'll start to golf more next summer; I really love playing every time I'm at the course.
Evan: The last time Emily and I played golf together was in my backyard and our good friend Madison Hubbell got a face full of 5-iron. Since then, we've only been to the range a few times together but have not played on a course. When I do play it's usually with my roommates, Trevor Young and Charlie White, and if I break 90, I'm pretty happy...that's for 18 holes of course.

What do you each like about college life at the University of Michigan? What are your favorite classes?
Camy Kreiger, 18
Detroit

Emily: I love the feel of being on a college campus. Everything is so big and busy; people are constantly walking from place to place, studying on the grass or in coffee shops or in the library, participating in clubs and sports. The classes themselves even feel different with such diverse students and extremely esteemed professors. I am taking two classes (since we skate the rest of the time), my required English course and a political science course called Complex Systems. They're both really interesting and I'm enjoying them quite a lot.
Evan: I like life at the University of Michigan because it provides an outlet from skating. I have a life at the ice rink and away from the ice rink. If I was only skating every day my life would be boring, so school provides a perfect balance for training.

How difficult is it to be partners considering your height difference?
Joseph Billings, 15
Seattle

Emily: Not at all! It's also beneficial; having a height difference allows us to perform elements and lifts that we otherwise wouldn't be able to.
Evan: We don't have any problems dealing with our difference in height. We've been skating together for almost 10 years so we've adapted to any height difference we've ever had.

What are your goals for the season? What can we expect from your programs?
Kayla Thulson, 17
Sacramento, Calif.

Emily: From our programs, you can expect maturity and experience. This year our original dance is extremely entertaining, upbeat, and fun. We're skating to Irving Berlin's “Let Yourself Go,” which was also featured in Fred Astaire's movie, “Follow the Fleet.” Our free dance is more expressive and powerful. In it, Evan is an artist conveying his emotions of anguish, love, pain and happiness through me, his vessel. The goal is to have reality fall away as you become mesmerized by the beauty of the movement and the power of the music (Maxim's “Amazonic”).
Evan: Emily and I want to establish ourselves on the senior international scene as a team that has successfully made the transition from junior to senior. We want to look like we belong up there with the more experienced teams and gain experience for ourselves for next year's Olympic season.

Do you guys plan to vote? Did you follow the presidential race?
Jessica Keller, 17
Austin, Texas

Evan: Yes, I am looking forward to voting in my first ever election. I have followed this presidential race more closely than any election in the past.
Emily: I'm voting also, and it's my first election as well. It's important to vote and make your voice heard, especially in such an important election as this. I've watched the debates and conventions and been following the news, so I'm informed of the issues and ready to vote.

What is your favorite element to perform?
Kim Stevens, 16
Salt Lake City

Emily and Evan: Twizzles are naturally easy for us. It helps that they're fun, especially when we're perfectly in sync.