icenetwork.com

Melissa Bulanhagui and Ron Ludington. (Lindsey Goff)

By Liz Leamy, special to icenetwork.com

(11/26/2008) - Ron Ludington waxed nostalgic at the prospect of visiting his former hometown of Boston at the 2009 Eastern Sectionals Championships.

Ludington, one of the most accomplished singles, pairs and dance coaches in contemporary U.S. figure skating, fondly recalled his life as a competitor and rookie coach at the Skating Club of Boston. It was an experience, he said, that not only influenced his life and career, but gave him a purpose.

"Being back here, it's just like it was when I skated. It's incredible," said Ludington. "It's a special place and it really changed my life."

For Ludington, the Skating Club of Boston represented more than a training base; it also was a surrogate home. As a teenager, he grew up in Roxbury, a hardscrabble neighborhood located in the outskirts of the city. Ludington said he was a rebel and that training with his coach, Maribel Vinson, the venerable nine-time U.S. ladies champion and four-time U.S. pairs champion who lost her life in the tragic 1961 Sabena 548 plane crash, changed his whole outlook on life.

"It was a very special relationship; she was tough and I had to work hard, otherwise she might lose interest and I would lose the opportunity," said Ludington.

Ludington continued to stay on the high road and as a result reaped many rewards. During his competitive career, he was the four-time U.S. pair champion and 1960 Olympic bronze medalist with his partner and former wife, Nancy Rouillard Ludington. They were also the 1959 world bronze medalists.

Meanwhile, Ludington also learned some valuable life lessons from Vinson, who took him under her wing much like a son. He told of one incident during a practice when she had really gotten upset with him. He had been doing a flying camel spin and a "hidden" pack of cigarettes in a pocket spilt all over the ice. Vinson shook her head, picked them up and took them away from him.

Several years after the 1961 crash, Ludington visited Vinson's mother, Gertrude "Granny" Vinson, at her home near the Skating Club of Boston. Granny brought him to a closet and gave him back that same pack of cigarettes that Vinson had taken from him years before.

"Maribel held on to them, and that just meant the world to me," he said.

Vinson's influence on Ludington ran deep. During his tenure with her, Ludington learned great technique, a strong work ethic and a love of skating that he has since used to build his own stable of top U.S., world and Olympic competitors.

Ludington began teaching in 1960. The next year, his dance team, Robert and Patricia Major Dineen, won the bronze at the 1961 U.S Figure Skating Championships. Sadly, like Vinson, they were also aboard the ill-fated Sabena Flight 548 to Prague. As fate might have it, Ludington -- a young coach bunking at the YMCA at the time -- was unable to afford the travel costs to that event, which saved his life.

The tragedy saddened Luddy terribly, yet gave him the resolve to continue in the same tradition as Vinson and so many of the Skating Club of Boston world team members who had been aboard that flight.

"It was tough, but I knew I had a job to do," said Ludington.

In the years that followed, Ludington worked a stint in Florida and at various other rinks along the east coast and in Indianapolis before settling at the University of Delaware rink in Wilmington. Over the years, he had built an entourage of up-and-coming U.S. skaters. At the same time, he had also established himself a formidable force in the business.

By the 1970s, Ludington had numerous nationally ranked singles, pairs and dance teams, and had become regarded as one of the best coaches in American figure skating. He also worked with some talented colleagues, including the late Arthur Bourque, who coached U.S. champion John Misha Petkevich.

"It was a busy time. Everyone was working extremely hard and it showed," said Ludington.

During the 1980s, Ludington had established himself as a premier international coach, especially among the dance and pair contingent. His most famous team at this point were Kitty and Peter Carruthers, the 1984 U.S. Olympic pair silver medalists and four-time U.S. national pair champions. He also worked with numerous other international U.S. world and Olympic pair and dance teams, including Lea Ann Miller and Bill Fauver, who were three-time U.S. pair medalists; Natalie and Wayne Seybold, also three-time U.S. pair medalists; and Carol Fox and Richard Dalley, seven-time U.S. national dance medalists.

"Luddy is the greatest," said Kitty Carruthers Conrad, who now lives and coaches in Katy, Texas. "His love and dedication are remarkable and I am glad to have been one of his many champions."

Ludington noted that the dynamic between the Carruthers was particularly interesting because the two were such opposites. Kitty was an eager and obedient student while Peter tended to be more precocious and rebellious, and Ludington said the latter's behavior caused him to raise his voice on a known occasion or two.

"Their parents were great and told me to do whatever I needed to do to keep him in line, so I did," said Ludington.

Ludington used his coaching expertise to continue growing the business in the years that followed. In the 1990s, he taught Karen Courtland and Todd Reynolds, the 1993 and 1994 U.S. pair bronze medalists and Olympic and world team members, along with numerous other top national singles, pairs and dance competitors.

During this time, Ludington had also been working with his talented staff of competitive coaches, all of who began to produce skaters of a similar high quality. This group included Pam Duane Gregory, who taught Kimmie Meissner, the 2006 world champion and 2007 U.S. ladies titlist and Shaun Rogers, the former U.S. novice and junior men's medalist who recently placed first at the 2009 Eastern Sectionals in the senior men's division. He also worked with Jeff DiGregorio, the Olympic and world team coach who taught Tara Lipinski, the 1998 U.S. Olympic champion, and Sara Wheat, the 1999 U.S. junior ladies' champion.

"Ron is a wonderful guy and so unique in many respects in terms of how he handles his business," said DiGregorio, who has worked with Ludington since he was a student at the University of Delaware back in the mid-to-late 1980s. "He is a consummate professional who cares as much about the people around him as he does the quality of his work."

Meanwhile, Ludington is also admired and loved by many in the skating world for his warm and witty personality. At nearly every major U.S. event, he always seems to be surrounded by a posse of coaches, skaters and parents who smile, laugh and nod at his commentary and insights. Without a doubt, Ludington's energy has also been the primary reason the University of Delaware Figure Skating Club has been rocking and rolling for so many years.

Since Ludington first began coaching at the University of Delaware Figure Skating Club, it has moved a few times. More than 20 years ago, it was relocated to a two-surface complex in Newark from its original base in Wilmington. Despite the move, the club remained intact as one of the busiest training locales among in the U.S., largely thanks to the business expertise and efforts of Ludington.

"Ron is a fantastic person and people like being around him," said Tom Lescinski, one of Ludington's former students and also a top American dance coach based at the Skating Club of Boston. "He has a wonderful perspective on things which I think really inspires people."

In addition to running the club, Ludington also has been serving as the director of the Skating Science Development Center at the University of Delaware for many years. His duties involve teaching university students about the technical aspects of the sport, and they are allowed to sit in on his lessons in order to hear directly how it works.

For his efforts, Ludington has been cited as a standout citizen by both the international figure skating and Delaware communities. In 1999, he was inducted into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame and in 2000, he became a member of the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame.

The real thrill for Ludington, however, is simply going through his regular day-to-day routine. In the skating world, he has practically a legendary reputation for putting in round-the-clock hours and is known as one of the hardest workers in the business. Although in recent years he has pared down somewhat on the16-plus hour workdays, he still hits the ice as hard as ever.

"Ron sets a great example, he really is an amazing individual," said DiGregorio.

Over the past few years, Ludington and his staff have been hard at work rebuilding their stable. They have been busy training younger skaters at the lower levels in hopes of creating a whole new generation of top competitors and it seems to be working.

Ludington's current coaching staff includes DiGregorio; Barbara Roles, the 1960 Olympic and world bronze medalist; his wife, Karen Ludington, a renowned American singles and dance coach who trains several top U.S. junior dance teams; Tracy Poletis, also a leading U.S. coach; and Bobbi Shire, the esteemed spin expert who famously coined the phrase 'george,' the term that describes the centrifugal force that is involved with that particular element, among many others. These coaches all seem to be optimistic about the future and are devoted as much as ever to Ludington.

"He has made a great atmosphere for everyone, and I think the skaters sense that," said DiGregorio.

Some of Ludington's recent standout students include Melissa Bulanhagui, the 2008 Eastern senior ladies silver medalist, and junior pair Lauren Ryan and Taylor Toth, among others. He also worked alongside Pam Gregory with Shaun Rogers.

In the end, Ludington's primary purpose is to do whatever it might take to make sure his students reach the top of their game. All the while, he believes they ought to enjoy the whole experience along the way.

"I love doing what I do," said Ludington. "There are so many terrific aspects to it, the people, traveling, training, and seeing the results from all the work everyone has done, you just can't beat it."

Meanwhile, Ludington's legacy seems to be as extensive as that of his former coach and mentor, Maribel Vinson. Many of his former students have gone on to become prominent U.S. competitive coaches, officials and choreographers and are eager to credit Ludington for much of their success.

"Luddy is a great part of who I am today. Things he has taught me as a skater I am happy to say I have been able to carry over into my life as a mom and skater," said Kitty Carruthers Conrad.