Skiing Heritage News

If you have bound volumes or collections of old ski magazines, please consider donating them to ISHA for inclusion in our reference libraries. A tax-deductible donation or bequest will help us produce a better, more useful, more entertaining magazine. Email seth@masia.org to arrange for a pick-up.

SKIING HERITAGE: A quarterly journal

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Fourth Issue 2007, December, Vol 19 #4 Loden poster

Cover: Swiss artist M. Peikart created this ad for Crans in 1941. Poster available from Vintage Ski World, (800) 332-6323.

1964--A Very Good Year by Peter Shelton
The first Inspector Clouseau movie -- yes, The Pink Panther -- was set in Cortina d'Ampezzo, and featured 210cm moguls, leather boots, and Claudia Cardinale in tight stretch pants. It was the year the author, at 15, visited Sun Valley for a learn-to-ski week, for $110.

A Winning Family Looks Back
story and photos by Peter Miller
With a little help from Olympic gold medalist Barbara Ann Cochran, the author traces the lives of an American ski racing dynasty. Mickey Cochran ran a 300-foot rope tow behind the house so his brood of future champions, and kids from nearby towns, could run a 15-gate slalom course after dinner and on weekends. In a ten-year period the Cochran kids -- Marilyn, Bob, Barbara Ann and Lindy -- would win 30 national and international ski races, an Olympic gold, silver and bronze World Championship medals, seven World Cup races, a GS World Cup title, and see Dad named coach of the U.S. Ski Team.

Holmenkollen: The Games Begin by Morten Lund
The examplar of early Norwegian sports supremacy, the Holmenkol meet grew out of a patriotic passion that regarded skiing as a quasi-military discipline. With the creation of the Central Ski Association in 1861, ski competition became the premier expression of nationalist spirit, and so the first Holmenkollen meet, in 1892, drew a crowd of over 20,000 fans. The meet became the model for national ski championship events in Austria, France and the U.S. By the 21st century, Holmenkollen was overshadowed by the ski-flying hills of the Continental World Cup circuit, and with an eye on the 2011 Nordic World Championships, a new $74 million jumping hill is under construction.

Rossignol Turns 100 by Seth Masia
In 1907, Abel Rossignol, a manufacturer of weaving equipment, began building high-quality skis of hickory and ash, and his first volume customer was a regiment of the French chasseurs alpins. With the help of World Champion Emile Allais and generations of racers to follow, the factory grew into a formidable competition machine. After World War II, under the direction of ski-lift developer Laurent Boix-Vives and his partners, Rossignol became the leading brand worldwide in skis, branching out into boots, poles, bindings, and skiwear. Today, under a new generation of Australian and American owners, and facing global competition, the brand girds for an uncertain future.

Happy Birthday, Stein! by John Fry
A tribute to Olympic and World Champion Stein Eriksen upon his 80th birthday.

U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame Inducts Seven by Tom West
The Ishpeming shrine honors Eric Bergoust, Jake and Donna Carpenter, Mitch Cubberley, Tom Jacobs, Everett Kircher and Doug Lewis.

Where Are They Now:
Suzy Harris Rytting by Peggy Shinn
The 1948 national combined and 1951 national GS champ was drummed off the 1952 Olympic squad -- for being pregnant. After raising kids and coaching for years at Alta, Suzy is now active in the Alf Engen Ski Museum and at the University of Utah's Marriott Library Ski Archives. She was named to the U.S. National Ski Hall of Fame in 1988, and still skis at Alta.
Wendall "Chummy" Broomhall by Scott Andrews
Cross country racer Chummy Broomhall, of Rumford, Maine, won a national tryout in 1939, but didn't get to the 1940 Olympics. Instead, he joined the 10th Mountain Division. After the war, already 29 years old, he raced in the 1948 Olympics, and then, at 33, in the 1952 Olympics. He designed the XC courses at Squaw Valley in 1960 and was chief of race at Lake Placid in 1980. Now 88, he still directs nordic events at his home-town ski club.

The Industry: When the Ski Business Got it Wrong by Seth Masia
Institutional resistance to change led to long delays in the commercial success of snowboards, ski brakes, and -- for decades -- of the humble and indispensable anti-friction pad.

Historic Lodging: North Conway's Eastern Slope Inn by Tom Eastman
The first Hotel Randall opened in 1854, and it burned in 1902. The second one gained fame as a winter resort before burning in 1925. The current hotel, built in 1926, hosted the likes of Babe Ruth. Local boy-made-good Harvey Gibson bought it in 1936 as the luxurious linchpin of his nascent skiing empire. The Inn became the social center of North Conway, anchored by Carroll Reed, Benno Rybizka, Toni Matt, and the Hannes Schneider family. An extensive renovation in 1980 led to listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

At the Museums: The New England Ski Museum by Morten Lund
Starting as a Chamber of Commerce idea in 1977, the Museum -- since 1982 located in a remodeled garage at Cannon Mountain -- has expanded steadily in its mission, collections and exhibits. Executive Director Jeff Leich and a three-person staff created a catalog of artifacts, the basis of annual exhibits backed by Jeff's well-crafted historical research.

Remembering: Sandy Poulsen, Squaw Valley pioneer; T. Gary Allen, FIS jumping official.

Skiers' Bookshelf by Morten Lund
Legends of the Fall Line, a film by Derek Weiss
How skiing came to Jackson, Wyoming, how the Tetons became a hotbed of extreme skiing, and how the vertiginous chutes ski today. Featuring Barry Corbet, Bill Briggs, Doug Coombs and a cast of hairball avalancheros. Available through PitonProductions.com.
Night Driving: The Invention of the Wheeland Other Blues--A Memoir by Dick Dorworth
Six previously published essays plus new material, on mountains, adventure, politics, and living life as a form of art. An instant classic from the Don Quixote of skiing and climbing. Available at firstascentpress.com/nightdriving.html.

Long Thongs: What Men Are Good For by Abby Rand
For closing bindings, tightening boot laces, applying wax, unravelling leashes and so forth. A man is so versatile, he can often be used in lieu of money. From the November 1964 issue of Ski Magazine.

Index of Back Issues

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The International Skiing History Association is a not-for-profit corporation, whose mission is to preserve and advance the knowledge of ski history and to increase public awareness of the sport's heritage.

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