Because of Covid-19-related event cancellations, the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame will induct its Class of 2021 in the spring of 2023 at Big Sky, Montana. The Classes of 2019 and 2020 will be inducted at Sun Valley on March 27.
The Class of 2021:
Sven Coomer
Sven Coomer made plastic boots comfortable and skiable. At age 16, Sven was the youngest Olympian at the 1956 Summer Games. He studied product engineering in Sweden and consulted on athletic shoe design for Puma. He became an influential ski instructor before joining Nordica in 1968, where he drove boot design and created the pattern for race boots still in production after 50 years.
Herman Dupré
Herman Dupré grew up at Seven Springs Resort in Pennsylvania, founded by his parents in 1937. After building his own rope tows and chairlifts, and after much experimentation, in 1960 he built the resort’s first snowmaking system. Eventually he held 34 patents for his HKD snowmaking products, including innovative low-pressure systems that were widely adopted across the resort industry. Herman died in April 2020.
John Eaves
John Eaves stunt-doubled as James Bond in “A View to a Kill” and starred in the classic Willy Bogner film “Fire and Ice,” then went on to a career as a cameraman. On the pro freestyle circuit of the 1970s he scored dozens of victories in aerials, ballet and moguls and was three-time aerial and overall World Freestyle Champion; in 1980, the first year of the FIS Freestyle World Cup, he was aerials champion.
Dave and Renie
Gorsuch
Dave and Renie Gorsuch competed at the 1960 Squaw Valley Olympics and, after marrying, established leading ski retail stores-first in Gunnison and Crested Butte, then in Vail, Aspen, Snowmass, Beaver Creek and Park City, serving a worldwide customer base. The couple have been effective leaders and philanthropists in their communities, helping to develop hospitals, schools, museums and other institutions. Dave died in June, 2021.
Peter Graves
Peter Graves is an American television sportscaster and public address announcer specializing in Olympic, lifestyle and action sports. He covered 11 Olympic Games and become the voice of Nordic skiing at U.S. World Cup events and the American Birkebeiner cross-country ski race from 1977 to 1985.
Mike Hattrup
Mike Hattrup was named to the U.S. Freestyle Mogul Team in 1987, missing a chance to ski on the World Cup due to injury. He skied in numerous ski films, including the most important ski movie of his generation, Greg Stump’s The Blizzard of Aahhhs. Mike was named by Powder magazine in 1998 as one of the “50 Best Skiers in North America” and in 2006 as one of the “48 Most Influential Skiers of Our Time.”
Jan Reynolds
Jan Reynolds elevated extreme ski mountaineering as a sport worldwide. In 1980 she skied from the summit of Mustagata in the Pamirs, setting a high-altitude skiing record for women that held for a decade. Esquire Magazine selected Jan as “Athlete of the Decade” for her grueling first descents in winter during the Everest Grand Circle expedition of 1981-82, and her performance as a member of the U.S. Biathlon Team during the inaugural seasons of the women’s biathlon World Cup (1983-84).
Alan Schoenberger
Pro freestyler Alan Schoenberger won the world ballet championship and 14 first or second place freestyle podiums. To bring skiing to live theater, he created SkiBed, enabling skiing on stage. Beginning in 1978 he launched seven touring productions, with 1,250 performances, including appearances with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, at the 1994 World Cup Finals in Vail and 75 performances during the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics.
If you are fortunate enough to be traveling through the mountainous region north of Montreal, make a point of visiting the beautiful Laurentian Ski Museum, which celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2022.
Photo above: Organized in thematic zones, the permanent exhibits constitute a stroll through history. LSM photo.
The museum’s story began in the 1960s when historian Bernard Brazeau indulged his passion for collecting ski artifacts. In 1980, with two colleagues, he created a “research group on skiing in the Laurentians.” Bernard teamed with Jacques Beauchamp-Forget, professor, historian and fellow member of the Société d’histoire et de généalogie des Laurentides, and Fernand Trottier, skier, coach and owner of a local ski shop. The Musée du ski des Laurentides (LSM) became a reality two years later.
A few of Jackrabbit's belongings, from
the Johanssen collection. LSM photo.
In 1992, Alice Johannsen merged her Musée Jackrabbit with LSM. Founded in 1987, the collection honors the life and work of her father, Herman Smith-Johannsen (1875–1987).
Since its inception, LSM has held an annual soirée at the Laurentian Ski Hall of Fame, which is part of the museum. The list of inductees, some 178 over the past 39 years, includes such luminaries as Émile Cochand, Sr., creator of North America’s first ski resort, Chalet Cochand (1915); Lucile Wheeler-Vaughan, the first North American to win an Olympic medal in the downhill (Cortina d’Ampezzo, 1956) and the honorary hostess of the Hall of Fame for many years; and Linda Crutchfield, a five-time Olympic competitor in skiing and luge, a ski instructor and a Level IV examiner. More recently, in 2016, LSM honored ISHA’s own John Fry and Doug Pfeiffer.
The museum is proud of its extensive holdings, which include more than 7,500 artifacts and 20 private archive collections. Prominent among these collections are Jackrabbit’s memorabilia and mementoes of the ski-racing careers of Rhona and Rhoda Wurtele; LSM also maintains the website of the Repertoire-des-centres-de-ski-du-Quebec (Directory of Quebec Ski Sites), by Pierre Dumas, which documents and geo-locates more than 600 ski centers, extant and abandoned. The site received the ISHA Cyber Award in 2017.
In 2022 the museum will move from its
long-term home (above) to . . .
. . . the National Bank Building, which
will provide more space for expanded
exhibits. LSM photos.
Since 2016, Nancy Belhumeur has served as the museum’s curator, and Pierre Urquhart as the director general since 1998.
The long-term home of the museum has been on avenue Filion (in the center of St. Sauveur, just off rue Principale) in a renovated fire station. These premises have served admirably for many years, protecting and displaying, in the museum’s first-class fashion, the permanent and revolving collections. But in early 2021 the museum announced that it will move to the more prestigious, and historic, National Bank building nearby and hopes to be installed there, at the corner of rue Principale and rue de la Gare, in 2022.
The museum welcomes visitors from Wednesday to Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. museeduski.com
Regular contributor Bob Soden serves as ISHA’s treasurer and heads the board’s museum committee.
The Canadian Ski Hall of Fame has announced its class of 2019. Induction, delayed due to the pandemic, was held in June 2021. New members include:
Athlete category:
Chandra Crawford (photo above), cross-country racer, three-time Olympian (2006, 2010 and 2014) and gold medalist in 2006.
Ashleigh McIvor, ski cross and freestyle competitor, 2010 Olympic gold medalist in ski cross and four-time Winter X Games competitor.
Jennifer Heil, freestyle and moguls, Olympic gold medalist (2006) and silver medalist (2010). Four-time World Champion. Five-time overall World Cup Champion. Canada’s female athlete of the year in 2007 and 2011.
Lauren Woolstencroft, Canada’s most decorated Paralympic athlete, eight gold medals, with a record five won at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games.
Builder:
Mike Irwin
Mike Irwin, former Canadian Alpine Ski Team member, past chair of board of directors Alpine Canada, Chief of Race for World Cup events.
Réal Boulanger (deceased), founder of Mont Sutton, co-founder of Quebec Ski Area Owner’s Association.
William B. Schreiber, member of the Canadian Ski Patrol for 50 years.
Builder and Coach:
Malcolm Hunter, 1972 Olympian, 25 years of service with Cross-Country Canada, including two-time executive director.
Ski Instructor:
Lorne McFadgen (deceased), ski school director at Talisman, instructor at Whistler Blackcomb, first inductee into the Blackcomb Hall of Fame.
Since 2004, ski historian and ISHA Award winner Ingrid Wicken has housed her California Ski Library in a 960-foot modular building behind her home in Norco, California. The library has grown steadily over the years and is now one of the most extensive collections of ski books, magazines, photographs and paper memorabilia in the United States. The photo archive, for example, includes images of U.S. skiing from the 1930s through the 2000s, covering Sun Valley, Aspen, Squaw Valley, Mammoth Mountain, Yosemite, Mount Hood, American ski jumping, and many California ski areas, large and small. Her book collection numbers 4,500 titles from around the globe. She also has located many rare and hard-to-find brochures, programs, research documents and correspondence from ski racers, writers and resort developers.
Now Ingrid needs our help! Freestyle pioneer Doug Pfeiffer—honored member of both the U.S. and Canadian Ski and Snowboard Halls of Fame—has recently donated 99 boxes of one-of-a-kind ski books and vintage magazines. The building is chock full, and Wicken has launched a Go Fund Me page to add another 480 square feet of display and storage space.
The California Ski Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so donations are tax-deductible. Chip in to the fundraising campaign online at: https://tinyurl.com/CASkiLibrary. Learn more about Ingrid’s library at skilibrary.com.
Eight snowsport pioneers were elected to the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame’s Class of 2020 in October. Due to the pandemic, plans for an induction ceremony are pending.
Bobbie Burns began designing and producing skis for K2 in the 1960s, eventually creating the skis that Marilyn Cochran used in 1969 to become the first American to win an alpine World Cup discipline title (GS, 1969). In 1974, Burns launched his own company and began making The Ski, one of the most famous freestyle skis of the era. Nicknamed “The Snow Goose” for his loose style in the bumps, Burns was an iconic founder of hot-dog freestyle.
Brian Fairbank, chairman of the Fairbank Group (Bromley, Cranmore, Jiminy Peak), is a pioneer in resort sustainability. He installed a wind turbine at Jiminy and then added solar, making Jiminy the first U.S. resort to be powered by 100 percent renewable energy. In 2008, NSAA recognized his effort with its Golden Eagle award.
Holly Flanders was one of the most dominant U.S. downhill racers of her era. In 1982, she was second in the women’s World Cup standings, the highest DH ranking for any American woman in more than a decade. From 1987 to 2016, she ran a popular series of women’s ski-instruction workshops at Park City, Wolf Mountain and Canyons in Utah.
Alison Owen was a dominant nordic racer in the late 1970s, becoming the first American to win a FIS cross country World Cup race in 1978, a U.S. women’s mark that stood for 33 years. A year later, she finished second at the prestigious Holmenkollen 10K in Oslo. The eight-time U.S. champion retired in 1981 and became a coach in Sun Valley.
Howard Peterson was a longtime influential leader with the U.S. Ski Team and a pivotal voice in bringing the Winter Olympics to Salt Lake City in 2002. As secretary general of USSA in the late 1980s, Peterson pushed the U.S. Olympic Committee to select a candidate city based on its willingness to develop legacy facilities and training venues that could be used long after the Games. A Maine native, he also co-founded the National Ski Touring Association (now the Cross-Country Ski Areas Association. He died in May 2020.
Kristean Porter was a world champion and two-time overall World Cup title holder as a U.S. freestyle skier in the mid-1990s, excelling in aerials, ballet and moguls. She made her World Cup debut in 1989 and scored her first podium within a month. A year later, she picked up the first of four World Championship medals, taking bronze in aerials.
Hank Tauber raced for Middlebury College and then joined the U.S. Ski Team as a coach in 1967, rising through the ranks to U.S. alpine ski team director, a position he held from 1974 to 1979. Under his leadership, U.S. racers won eight Olympic and World Championship medals. From 1980 to 1984, he was president of Marker USA. He then acquired the worldwide Marker International and was chairman and CEO until 1998. In 1988 Tauber was elected a vice president, executive board and council member of FIS and served in that position until 2002. He was a founding trustee of the Switzerland-based Marc Hodler Foundation and was named an honorary lifetime member of FIS in 2002. In 1982 he received the Julius Blegen Award, U.S. Ski and Snowboard’s highest award for outstanding contribution to the sport of skiing.
Seth Wescott was a back-to-back Olympic champion, winning gold in snowboard cross in 2006 (Torino) and 2010 (Vancouver). In his career he won four X Games medals (one gold) and four World Championship medals (one gold). He also won the fabled Mount Baker Banked Slalom in 2019 and 2020, and co-owns Winterstick.
Oslo Olympians Honored in Oz
Snow Australia, the national governing body for competitive snow sports, has announced the first recipients of its Snow Australia Medal. The new award will celebrate the careers of athletes who represent the country at the highest level of the sport.
Bob Arnott and his fellow 1952 Winter Olympians were the first
Australians to receive the Snow Australia Medal. After competing in all three alpine events at Oslo, he went on to an active
career as a FIS official.
The Oslo Olympics marked only the second time that Australia had sent a team to the Winter Games. Alpine and cross-country skiing were the sole snow-sport events on the Olympic program and the Aussies were amateurs with limited resources. They had to fit their training around work commitments, and for some the activities overlapped: Haslingden was a sheep rancher in Cooma, and wrangling herds was key to his workout regimen. Plus, few Australian ski areas had lifts in the early 1950s. Trudging up the slopes was a great way to stay fit, but not the best preparation for world-class competition.
For the 1952 Olympians, travelling to the Games involved a long and expensive six-week ship voyage. And when they finally raced, Australian athletes could not match their talented rivals from Europe. Austrian skiers dominated the alpine races and Scandinavian racers swept the podiums in cross country.
Bob Arnott later recalled the downhill, a challenging race run on very little snow, as the highlight of his Games. “I started off behind the Greek, there were probably one-minute intervals,” he said. “The Greek” was two-time Olympian Alexandros Vouxinos, who left the start hut just before Arnott, wearing bib 87.
“The start of the race was fairly straightforward: The Greek disappeared, and I was sent off,” Arnott continued. “Then we came to a traverse. It was fairly steep, and the Greek had fallen down the hill, and so I passed him. Then the same thing happened to me: I fell down the hill and he passed me. Then I got up and managed to pass him again with a schuss.” Arnott eventually crossed the line almost two minutes ahead of Vouxinos, who finished dead last.
Arnott, who died in 2016, is remembered not only for his racing career, but also for his 27-year-long tenure within the FIS. As a FIS official, he left a significant legacy in the classification system he conceived with American FIS delegate Bob Beattie: The “Bob Rule” is still at the core of the FIS points system used to rank skiers around the world today.
Over the next year, the Snow Australia medal will be presented to all athletes across alpine, cross-country, freestyle, snowboard, park and pipe, and Paralympic disciplines who during their careers have (1) finished in the top three at FIS World Cup or World Championship level, and/or (2) represented Australia at the Olympic or Paralympic Winter Games. Learn more at https://www.snow.org.au/legacy/medal/.
Spence Eccles and Alan Engen at the 2019 Intermountain Ski Hall of Fame ceremony. Eccles won the 2019 Crystal Award for his decades of leadership and support for the Engen Museum.
The Intermountain Ski Hall of Fame, located at the Alf Engen Ski Museum in Park City, Utah, inducted three new honored members at its annual banquet on September 25, 2019.
Craig Badami (1952–1989)
As part owner and vice president of marketing at Park City Resort, Badami staged the first alpine World Cup race in Utah in 1985. For the next four years, Park City kicked off the season’s World Cup circuit with the “America’s Opening” races — a critical component in the state’s successful bid to host the 2002 Winter Olympics. He died in a helicopter accident near the Park City base area in 1989.
Darrell Robison (1931–2002)
Darrell “Pinky” Robison moved from Peoria, Illinois to Salt Lake City at age 12 and fell in love with skiing.
Less than a decade later, he won the Harriman Cup at Sun Valley in 1951, the Snow Cup at Alta in 1953 and the slalom in the Pan American Games in Bariloche, Argentina in 1954. The pinnacle of his career came in 1952 when the U.S. Olympian finished 22nd in slalom at the Oslo Games.
Erik Schlopy (1972–)
Erik Schlopy amassed one of the longest and most successful careers in U.S. ski racing history. He is a two-time Junior Olympic champion, a seven-time U.S. national champion, and three-time U.S. Olympian. He was named to six FIS World Championship teams, capturing a bronze medal in giant slalom in 2003.
Schlopy is the only ski racer in history to successfully go from World Cup skiing to the Pro Tour and back to World Cup ski racing. In his first pro season, Schlopy was the 1995 Serengeti Rookie of the Year
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis presents Sheika and the Gramshammer family with a proclamation on “Pepi Gramshammer Day.”
Gramshammer Day in Vail
Hundreds of people packed the Ford Amphitheater in Vail, Colorado on September 20, 2019 to celebrate the life of Pepi Gramshammer, the Austrian ski racer who became the town’s leading and legendary innkeeper. In 1962 he helped to found the fledgling resort’s ski school and, with wife Sheika, in 1964 opened the Austrian-style Gasthof Gramshammer. (Gramshammer died on August 17, 2019; see the September-October 2019 issue of Skiing History or read online at skiinghistory.org/lives). Colorado Gov. Jared Polis presented Sheika and family members with a citation declaring September 20 as “Pepi Gramshammer Day” in perpetuity statewide.
(Photo Caption Above) - Stewards of Skiing: On Nov. 17, 2018, at the annual dinner for the New England Ski Museum held at the Bull Run Restaurant in Shirley, Mass., ISHA board members David Ingemie and Art Currier presented NESM president Bo Adams and executive director Jeff Leich (ED) with the ISHA Steward of Skiing Award. (l-r) David Ingemie, Bo Adams, Jeff Leich, and Art Currier. Photo courtesy of Pam Fletcher, Nashoba Valley Ski Area, Westford, Mass.
MANCHESTER CENTER, VT (Dec. 6, 2018) – The high-speed six-pack lifts, super-efficient snowguns, and waterproof/breathable ski apparel that skiers and riders take for granted didn’t come from nowhere.
Today’s downhill skiing, cross country, telemark and snowboarding sits on the shoulders of a rich 150-year-plus modern-era history of sliding downhill … and going back up again.
The nonprofit International Skiing History Association (ISHA) recognizes the sport’s heritage and honors organizations at the forefront of preserving this rich history.
On Nov. 17, 2018, ISHA presented its second Steward of Skiing History Award to the New England Ski Museum (NESM), based in Franconia, N.H. Dedicated to “Preserving the Future of Skiing’s Past,” since 1977, the museum directors, members and staff have worked hard to collect and display objects that tell the story of skiing.
In addition to a plaque, NESM will be recognized in the November-December 2018 issue of Skiing History, ISHA’s bimonthly magazine that covers the sport’s illustrious past, and through social media.
Established in early 2018, the Steward of Skiing History Award honors museums and other organizations that share the heritage, history and legacy of skiing with the world. ISHA’s first Steward of Skiing History Award recognized the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum, based in Ishpeming, Michigan.
In accepting the honor, NESM executive director Jeff Leich said, “Often the work of organization and preservation takes place behind the scenes, and it is heartening to have ISHA understand and acknowledge the museum’s role in this important aspect of our mission.”
The Steward of History plaque is displayed in NESM’s library at its Eastern Slope branch in North Conway, N.H.
Adds ISHA president Seth Masia, “With its academic-quality historical research and more than 26,000 curated items in its collections, the New England Ski Museum is an incomparable valuable institution. Whatever we can do to support their work supports all of us who hold the sport’s history so close to our hearts.”
In addition to publishing Skiing History six times a year in print and online, ISHA also maintains skiinghistory.org, the internet’s most extensive website for information about the sport’s history, and presents annual awards for lifetime achievement and the year’s best ski history books, films and creative media.
MANCHESTER CENTER, VT – To a millennial, skiing history is Bode Miller. To those a bit older, the sport has a rich 150-year-plus history in its modern era, with ancient roots that stretch back 10,000 years to its likely birthplace in the Altay Prefecture of China.
The International Skiing History Association (ISHA), the non-profit association that preserves the rich heritage of skiing worldwide, presented its first Steward of Skiing History Award to the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum, based in Ishpeming, Michigan. Accepting the award on behalf of the Hall of Fame was Justin Koski, executive director. ISHA president Seth Masia presented the honor during the Hall of Fame’s 2018 Snowsport History Celebration and annual induction festivities, held at the Squaw Valley | Alpine Meadows ski resort in Olympic Valley, Calif., from April 12-15.
In addition to a plaque, the Hall of Fame award will be covered in an upcoming issue of Skiing History, ISHA’s bimonthly magazine that covers the sport’s illustrious past, and through social media.
In accepting the honor, Koski said, “Since 1954, the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame has worked hard to keep skiing history relevant and exciting, while ensuring that the stories, lives and contributions of our honored Hall of Fame members are told and remembered. We’re grateful that our efforts are appreciated by ISHA and the industry.”
Adds Masia, “Through years of collaboration with ISHA and other regional museums and organizations, the Hall has established itself as the permanent and perpetual home to skiing history's legends. It is by simple virtue of who they are and what they do, that the ISHA board of directors chose them for this honor.”
Established in early 2018, the Stewards of Skiing History Award honors museums and other organizations that share the heritage, history and legacy of skiing with the world.
In addition to publishing Skiing History six times a year in print and online, ISHA also maintains skiinghistory.org, the internet’s most extensive website for information about the sport’s history, and presents annual awards for lifetime achievement and the year’s best ski history books, films and creative media.
In 1968, Barbara Alley met her future husband Jerry Simon, and went to work for the consumer ski shows he organized for Harry Leonard's company. Barbara found her niche producing fashion shows, a job that led to stints as fashion editor of Skiing Magazine and later Snow Country Magazine. For eleven years, she made the rounds of TV talk shows, with a troupe of dancer-models.
Over the years she acquired an impressive collection of high fashion skiwear. The Barbara Alley Collection is on permanent display at the Alf Engen Museum in Park City, Utah. Seventy outfits, featuring about 350 separate items, represent the most glamorous, colorful and functional skiwear of the past five decades. Here's a small sample of the collection.
1968 - European red stretch-quilt suit, missing label, possibly a Moncler. This picture was taken on a sunny day in Italy. The suit had very thin insulation, so it was best on warmer days. With the mini-quilting stretch it was definitely form-fitting. I wish I still had the goggles! (This suit will be 50 years old next year.)
1968 - BOGNER navy blue slim jacket and in-the-boot stretch pants. This was the sleek silhouette of the '60's. The actual museum jacket which will be 50 years old next year, is mini-stretch-quilted and belted, but this is the look. Jerry purchased the leather helmet on Valentine's Day,1969 at Val d'Isere where this photo was taken.
1970 - HEAD gold-colored shell - stretch-puckered nylon with Head signature square snaps. I wore this for my wedding day (Christmas Day 1970 on the peak of Jackson Hole), also for a Sun Valley ad that ran in the New York Times Magazine in January 1971.
1971 ANBA OF AUSTRIA red-white checked outfit which was always a kick to wear! This ensemble has a long tapered jacket over a red T-neck sweater and knickers, topped off by a newsboy cap! This photo was taken at Sun Valley's 50th anniversary celebration in 1986. With me, the late Doc Des Roches, retired head of SIA, who always skied with a pipe in his mouth.
1980 COLMAR ensemble. Colmar picked up the 1980 gaiters-over-stretch pants trend and went one further. They made the gaiters higher and added a belt with straps to hold them up. I called them garter belt gaiters! This outfit has eight pieces: hood knit hat, a longer jacket with two zip-off sleeves, a sweater, stretch pants, and the two gaiters.
1986 WHITE STAG one-piece suit with a fox-trimmed hood. It has the surprise of a sparkle of rhinestones across the snowflake and reindeer-patterned shoulders. With Thinsulate insulation, the suit was warm and only about $200, as I recall. Our troupe also performed on the "Today Show" that year.
1988 SPORT OBERMEYER neon coral one-piece suit glows all over in flat light. It is able to have decorative seam lines because of a Gore-Tex Z-liner inside which eliminates the need for taping seams. The late '80's was the pinnacle time of neons and onesies! FYI, the little girl in the picture is Rick Kahl's daughter (Rick was executive editor of Skiing at the time).
1988 Two NILS one-piece stretch pant suits, one in neons, the other iridescent. The blouson tops make these easier to fit as well as provide pocket space. The coral neon has a lime mountain peak design across the back. The iridescent orange/pink top shimmers. This style suit was very flattering and very popular.
1992 BOGNER White Tiger suit a la Siegfried and Roy. Embroidery had become a major element in Bogner skiwear, with varying themes from year to year. The fabric was iridescent, the embroidery exotic, and the tiger provided a follow-me back, for $1098.
1993 SILVY winter white two-piece with embroidered pullover. The embroidery design is reminiscent of an ancient Egyptian motif. This snuggly Silvy has fleece lining the collar and hood. The leather helmet is the same one from 1968.
1995 CRE-ACT man's pullover outfit and 1995 EMMEGI woman's one-piece, photographed with the Matterhorn. The Cre-Act pullover is in a unique American Indian Chief print. The Emmegi was a design award winner in Snow Country Magazine. (Jerry and I are laughing in the photo because, look lower left, a woman just skied by wearing my suit!)
Bobbie Burns began designing and producing skis for K2 in the 1960s, eventually creating the skis that Marilyn Cochran used in 1969 to become the first American to win an alpine World Cup discipline title (GS, 1969). In 1974, Burns launched his own company and began making The Ski, one of the most famous freestyle skis of the era. Nicknamed “The Snow Goose” for his loose style in the bumps, Burns was an iconic founder of hot-dog freestyle.
Brian Fairbank, chairman of the Fairbank Group (Bromley, Cranmore, Jiminy Peak), is a pioneer in resort sustainability. He installed a wind turbine at Jiminy and then added solar, making Jiminy the first U.S. resort to be powered by 100 percent renewable energy. In 2008, NSAA recognized his effort with its Golden Eagle award.
Holly Flanders was one of the most dominant U.S. downhill racers of her era. In 1982, she was second in the women’s World Cup standings, the highest DH ranking for any American woman in more than a decade. From 1987 to 2016, she ran a popular series of women’s ski-instruction workshops at Park City, Wolf Mountain and Canyons in Utah.
Alison Owen was a dominant nordic racer in the late 1970s, becoming the first American to win a FIS cross country World Cup race in 1978, a U.S. women’s mark that stood for 33 years. A year later, she finished second at the prestigious Holmenkollen 10K in Oslo. The eight-time U.S. champion retired in 1981 and became a coach in Sun Valley.
Howard Peterson was a longtime influential leader with the U.S. Ski Team and a pivotal voice in bringing the Winter Olympics to Salt Lake City in 2002. As secretary general of USSA in the late 1980s, Peterson pushed the U.S. Olympic Committee to select a candidate city based on its willingness to develop legacy facilities and training venues that could be used long after the Games. A Maine native, he also co-founded the National Ski Touring Association (now the Cross-Country Ski Areas Association. He died in May 2020.
Kristean Porter was a world champion and two-time overall World Cup title holder as a U.S. freestyle skier in the mid-1990s, excelling in aerials, ballet and moguls. She made her World Cup debut in 1989 and scored her first podium within a month. A year later, she picked up the first of four World Championship medals, taking bronze in aerials.
Hank Tauber raced for Middlebury College and then joined the U.S. Ski Team as a coach in 1967, rising through the ranks to U.S. alpine ski team director, a position he held from 1974 to 1979. Under his leadership, U.S. racers won eight Olympic and World Championship medals. From 1980 to 1984, he was president of Marker USA. He then acquired the worldwide Marker International and was chairman and CEO until 1998. In 1988 Tauber was elected a vice president, executive board and council member of FIS and served in that position until 2002. He was a founding trustee of the Switzerland-based Marc Hodler Foundation and was named an honorary lifetime member of FIS in 2002. In 1982 he received the Julius Blegen Award, U.S. Ski and Snowboard’s highest award for outstanding contribution to the sport of skiing.
Seth Wescott was a back-to-back Olympic champion, winning gold in snowboard cross in 2006 (Torino) and 2010 (Vancouver). In his career he won four X Games medals (one gold) and four World Championship medals (one gold). He also won the fabled Mount Baker Banked Slalom in 2019 and 2020, and co-owns Winterstick.
