Marc Liebman

70s Ski Testing: Defining How Skis Work

/7 Comments/in /by

Step 1: Inventing The Right Metrics

[Editor Note: In this new series, former SKI editor Marc Liebman recounts how serious ski testing began as a way to provide consumers with objective information about ski performance.]

In the early seventies, ski design was in the midst of a revolution that is still going on today.  It started in 1959 when Art Molnar and Fred Langendorf marketed the first ski with a fiberglass reinforced core under the Tony Sailer brand.  When it came out, skis were made predominantly from wood with a P-Tex bottom and segmented edges screwed into the core.  One piece steel edges were coming into vogue.

Computers and programs to model flex patterns, torsion (twisting) and the impact of different materials on ski performance were in their infancy. Ski design was (and still is) a mix of sound engineering, materials science, and experience.

Ski manufacturers touted the benefits of fiberglass versus aluminum sheets or rods or u-shaped metal versus foam or wood cores and the list went on and on.  Ski Magazine’s (and Skiing’s) customer research said that their readers wanted an objective way to compare skis.  Net net, we – the skier – were confused.

In 1971, Ski Magazine contracted John Perryman, an aerospace engineer to come up with a methodology that would achieve four objectives:

  1. Measure the dynamic and static properties of the ski;
  2. Analyze these properties mathematically because they don’t act in isolation and are intimately related to each other;
  3. Correlate bench testing with a rigorous on-snow program that requires the skis to be put through a standard set of maneuvers by the tester on a variety of snow conditions and terrain without knowing the ski’s identity; and
  4. Present the results in an easy to understand format that enables the skier to compare ski A with ski B.

The program was called SKIpp for Ski Performance Prediction.  Each year, SKI magazine tested more than 200 skis, all roughly 200 centimeters long. I was on the initial team. Calculations were done with a slide rule and data tabulated on my Bowmar Brain, one of the first electronic calculators.  We created five metrics that we believed defined ski performance:

  1. Foreflex dynamics – complex calculation of the force needed to bend the front portion of the ski and its resistance to rapid flexing;
  2. Afterflex dynamics – same as the front for the portion of the ski behind the boot;
  3. Effective torsion – combination of resistance to a ski’s twisting and how sidecut affects ski’s ability to turn in an arc;
  4. Effective Compression – measured the camber of the ski along with the force needed to flatten the ski; and
  5. Damping – ability of the ski’s to suppress vibration.

Based on the data gathered, we could predict how:

  1. Easy a ski was to turn;
  2. It would perform in different snow conditions; and
  3. How it stable it would be at high speed.

Looking back, we didn’t realize how far ahead we were in ski performance analysis.  In the beginning, several manufacturers challenged our results, but in the end, they came around to our side of the table which was that the correlation between our lab analysis and on snow performance was amazingly accurate.

Roger Lohr

Memoir Of A Telemark Skier

/10 Comments/in /by

“Telemarketers” Found Each Other To Practice Their Distinctive Style.

[Editor Note:This remembrance of Telemark skiing by Roger Lohr first appeared in his publication XCSkiresorts.com.]

The North American Telemark Organization set a record with this group turn at Mad River Glen in 1980.

In the 1970s, telemark skiers were called the free heelers, telemarketers, and the Lunatic Fringe. But these skiers performing the historical telemark turn down the slopes at alpine ski areas were seen as “the vanguard of the slopes” by many for their ability and skill descending the runs at high speeds, in the moguls, and landing aerials on their cross country skis. But telemarkers were often heard commenting that they were only riding the lifts at alpine ski areas to improve their downhill skills for the backcountry. Some claimed “free the heel, free the mind”, but they became intoxicated with riding chairlifts rather than getting their thrills in the backcountry.

These days, as alpine touring and backcountry skiing become more popular, the telemark subculture may be a declining breed at the alpine ski areas. However, there was a time when they were racing down through the gates and partying hard and celebrating their differences based on what was perceived as their retro ski techniques. They were dressed in wool pants or knickers with ear flapped knit hats with elongated tassles (designed by Vermonter Poppy Gall, a woman entrepreneur, designer, and currently a co-director of the Vermont Ski & Snowboard Museum).

NATO Founder and Telemark legend Dick Hall wiggles through a narrow spot.

Today, telemarkers, or what is left of this group, are no longer counter culture, but in their heyday, telemark festivals, traveling clinics and workshops, and more were the brainchild of the North American Telemark Organization (NATO) created in 1975 by Richard (Dickie) Hall of Waitsfield, VT. In 2017, Dickie Hall was inducted in the Vermont Ski Hall of Fame, which is a long way from his first time telemark skiing with a dozen others as a group at Pico Mountain, Vt. in 1974.

According to author David Goodman’s article about telemarking in Powder Magazine, “the telemark turn was invented in 1868 by Sondre Norheim in the Telemark district of Norway. As alpine skiing and techniques took over, it was not until Rick Borkovic of Crested Butte, CO, sparked a revival and a number of Nordic skiers rediscovered the old technique.”

I found out about telemarking from the 1977 book “Skiing Cross Country” by Canadian Ned Baldwin while I was living in southern Vermont. Most of us regarded Steve Barnetts’s “Cross-Country Downhill” as the bible of telemarking as it covered downhill techniques in depth. As I improved, I got to know many of the telemarkers in the region, mostly men but there were some women, too. We ran a race series, but beside the competition, it was really a clan of telemark skiers who met on scheduled dates at different ski areas.

As a racer, I felt disadvantaged on my Trucker Light Edge skis, which were narrower and softer compared to the Rossignol Randonee skis, which handled the ruts and hard pack better and were used by most of the other skiers. Always blame the equipment. But Dickie’s motto “Ski Hard. Play Fair. Have Fun” was not so much about winning as it was about spreading the telemark gospel.

Hall developed NATO, (according to Hall, it’s the peaceful one) to conduct workshops, training courses, expeditions, and festivals. He traveled as a telemark evangelist from his home in Waitsfield, VT, and visited the states in the northeast, the Rockies, California, and Alaska among others. These NATO telemark events would feature instructional clinics for all ability levels, and equipment suppliers’ gear for demo use. Hall created the telemark ski school at Mad River Glen as one of the first in the US, and he helped others to become telemark instructors across the country. Over the years, Hall estimated that he has introduced, instructed, or just shared his love of telemark skiing to about 40,000 people!

In 2015, NATO held its 40th and last telemark festival at Mad River Glen, which attracted about 200 participants, a far cry from the 13 attendees at the original Pico event. The races held at the festivals were usually the focus point at these events, but the “group telemark turn” was an activity we all shared together. The telemarkers in Colorado and Alaska would try to top the eastern telemarking crew of deplorables at Mad River Glen, but it is believed that 128 eastern telemarkers in a group turn is the standing record.

At Mad River Glen, Dickie was a task master when it came to the group telemark. In Dickie’s mind, it was paramount that we link two telemark turns for the attempt to count. The photo in the 1984 NATO Eastern Telemark Festival Series poster (and used in many other NATO materials) exemplifies one of those record-breaking group telemark attempts. On the day of that photo (I was there), many of the telemarkers who were near the end of the line got whipped into a gully, and it ended in a yard sale of significant proportion. No injuries, lots of laughs—indeed we played hard and had fun.

NATO is now defunct but Dickie Hall telemark videos are still available via email request at nato@gmavt.net

Author Roger Lohr and two buddies try a three-man tele turn. What’s with the group turning thingy, guys?
Marc Liebman

70s Ski Testing: A New Series

/0 Comments/in /by

This is the first in a series about Ski Magazine’s 1970s ski testing program called Ski Performance Prediction or SKIpp.  Its methodology combined engineering analysis as well as a structured series of on the snow maneuvers designed to bring out the best and worst of a ski under a variety of conditions.

Part one of the series Determining How Skis Worked is an overview of the engineering analysis.  The second part discusses the on-snow testing that we did and the third is about the politics of ski testing along with a lesson learned.

Ski (and boot and binding testing) programs came about because skiers were faced with a plethora of choices backed by marketing hype that was confusing at best and to some, downright misleading.  Both SKIING and Ski Magazine decided to jump into the fray and help their readers.  Ski’s approach was significantly different than Skiing.  Given several glasses of smoky, single malt scotch, I might be persuaded to cover the quicksand of boot and binding testing in the 70s.

On the Snow Testing is a very brief overview of the on the snow part of the program.  Typically, we were at a mountain for about twenty-five days and tested 200+ skis.  Not bad work if you can get it, but it wasn’t all fun.  It was work!

Ski testing unleashed a set of business issues that challenged the leadership of Ski Magazine.  Most of the discussions were well above my pay grade as a lowly associate editor.  However, on more than one occasion, I was called into a meeting with the high-mucky mucks and asked why manufacturer A’s didn’t get high marks.  In Politics of Ski Testing, there’s enough to give you an idea of what the discussions were like.

In the end, the SKIpp and the engineering teams at most of the manufacturers found common ground, and we helped each other out.  It was the marketing people that created all the problems because the cries from the ski shops were giving them migraines.

The shaped ski as we know it today wasn’t on the horizon.  The material science and engineering software that creates them was in its infancy and ski design was as much black art as it was engineering.  We got a glimpse of the future one year when we tested twenty odd short skis – 170 – 180 centimeters – and were pleasantly surprised by the results.  The market was ready and when engineering and materials science caught up, voilà, you have the shaped ski.

seniorsskiing

Mystery Glimpse: Who’s Skiing In Skirts?

/3 Comments/in /by

It Looks Royally Uncomfortable.

Here’s a picture from long ago. The woman on the right is the mystery lady. Who is she? You can probably guess the era from the skiing “costumes”. Probably foreign. Last hint: Think Scandinavia.

This week’s picture was contributed by Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum & Heritage Center, in Decorah, IA.  The center has over 33,000 artifacts, 12 historic buildings, a Folk Art School, and a library and archives. This treasure showcases the most extensive collection of Norwegian-American artifacts in the world.

Vesterheim’s exhibitions explore the diversity of American immigration through the lens of the Norwegian-American experience and highlight the best in historic and contemporary Norwegian folk and fine arts. USA Today named Vesterheim one of “ten great places in the nation to admire American folk art.”

Last Week

This is the famous Engen Bell, a fixture in Utah ski history and an official “treasure” of the state.

The bell was used for many years on an old locomotive from the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. It is estimated the bell was made in the mid-1800s, but no official records are available to verify its exact age. Rio Grande Railroad officials stated that the bell made hundreds of trips through Utah in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

In 1955 the bell was acquired by Martha M. Engen as a gift from the railroad. She gave it her son Alf for use at his Alf Engen Ski School at Alta, Utah. For 24 years, the bell was used every day to toll the start of the morning and afternoon ski school sessions. It became a landmark at Alta; everyone listened for the bell to sound. When Alf Engen retired as the ski school director, it was deemed appropriate to also retire the bell in his honor. The bell rang for the last time in 1989, when Alta celebrated its 50th anniversary as a ski area. Alf gave the bell to his son, Alan, who commissioned a solid oak stand and brass plates identifying it as “The Engen Bell,” in honor of his dad and his grandmother, Martha.

Look closely. There’s the bell on the old steam engine.

In 1995, the old bell was selected as one of the “100 Treasures of Utah” and was put on display at the Utah Winter Sports Park as a featured attraction of the 1996 Utah Centennial celebration. The reasons for being named a Utah treasure are twofold: First, the bell holds historical value due to the time period in which it was used by the Rio Grande Railroad. Secondly, it is the only ski school bell ever used at Alta, and as far as can be determined, is the only bell used by any ski school in Utah’s history. The only other Intermountain Region ski school to use a bell for announcing the start of classes was at Sun Valley, in the late 1930s and early 1940s.

The bell is on display at the Alf Engen Ski Museum located in Park City, Utah.

seniorsskiing

Mystery Glimpse Returns: What’s Happening?

/1 Comment/in /by

Guess What’s Going On, Submit Under Comments Below.

Our popular Mystery Glimpse feature is returning after a summer respite. The basic idea is that we publish a photo of a person, place, or thing, and you guess who, where, or what. Most of these photos have been submitted to SeniorsSkiing.com by some very excellent ski museums around the country. We will be highlighting each museum with the week’s new Mystery Glimpse. In the next edition, we’ll reveal the story behind the picture and present a new puzzle.

This week, we have a news photo from the Colorado Snowsports Museum and Hall of Fame located in Vail Village, CO.  Its collection of priceless artifacts tells the story of the birth, rise, and explosive growth of skiing in Colorado. Click here to support the museum’s mission.

What’s going on here?

If you think you know, submit your guess in comments below.

Who, What, Where, When?

You can access our archive of Mystery Glimpse articles by clicking here.

 

Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

/0 Comments/in , /by

Most people who love skiing take an interest in its history. Preserving and promoting that history is the mission of the International Skiing History Association (ISHA), a volunteer and membership organization that deserves our collective support.

Among other things, ISHA publishes Skiing History, a delightful bi-monthly magazine available in digital and print versions. SeniorsSkiing.com subscribers are eligible to receive a free one-year digital subscription. Click on “Community” at the top of this page.Then click on “Subscriber Only Content” in the drop down box. Scroll to”Free One Year Subscription to Skiing History Magazine” and follow the instructions.

Earlier this week, I attended ISHA’s Skiing History evening at Hickory and Tweed, the venerable ski shop in Armonk, NY. About 60 people showed up for a nice spread and an entertaining presentation about the relatively negative but highly amusing portrayal of skiing on TV sit coms. Jeff Blumenfeld, a member of ISHA’s Board put the show together. The program started with the popular 1950’s Topper program (in which two main characters and a drunken Saint Bernard are buried in an avalanche) and continued with a variety segments from the Dick Van Dyke Show, Here’s Lucy (when Lucille Ball actually had a broken leg), The Brady Bunch, Ellen DeGeneres (on a broken chairlift with two nervous friends), Cheers, and others. ISHA intends to promote use of the presentation by ski clubs, thus building awareness of the association and increasing its membership.

If your club is interested in using the presentation, email: jeff@blumenfeldPR.com.

An article on the same topic, by Jeff, appears in the September/October 2018 issue of Skiing History.

NYC Ski Gatherings

SeniorsSkiing.com Birthday Party!! — We’re ramping up for our 5th Anniversary party, 5:00 – 8:30PM, Wednesday, November 14 in The Rumpus Room of E’s Bar (Amsterdam Avenue, between 84th and 85th Streets) in Manhattan. We’re providing the place and the food. Advertisers and others are providing raffle prizes and SWAG. Prizes include a pair of Apex Boots (courtesy Apex Boot Systems); a ski trip to Okemo in Vermont (courtesy 70+ Ski Club), two Orsden parkas (courtesy Orsden); DeBooter ski boot jacks (courtesy Outdoor Logics Solutions); Bootster ski boot horns (courtesy Bootster); discounts for a variety of Masterfit ski boot products(courtesy Masterfit), GearBeast cell phone carriers (very cool product), and superbly warm socks from The Buffalo Wool Company. Except for your bar bill, it’s all on the house. You’ll meet other older skiers. You might win a prize. You’ll certainly have fun. Add it to your calendar. Your RSVP will help us plan for the event: jon@seniorsskiing.com.

Friends of Alta is the non-profit protecting Alta’s environment, preserving its unique character and heritage; and encouraging stewardship and sustainability of Alta’s environment and community. The group ishosting an event, 6:00PM – 8:30PM, Thursday, November 15, at The Explorers Club in Manhattan. For more information, click here.

Five Minutes of Deep Powder Joy 

Icelantic Skis produced this outstanding deep powder short film on the slopes of Mt. Yotei in Japan. There’s some cliff-hucking and one scene where a skier skims off a powder-topped tree branch…the stuff of younger skiers. But the shots of deep powder turns are dreamy.

An Offer No Serious Skier Should Refuse

Realskiers.com is a website that reviews skis. The reviews are more detailed and refined than what you’ll read in one of the ski magazines. And the site is rich with opinion about the sport. Realskiers.com is a written and published by Jackson Hogen, whose irreverence is reflected in his self-proclaimed moniker, the Pontiff of Powder. For youngsters, an annual subscription is $19.95. For SeniorsSkiing.com subscribers, it is $9.95. To subscribe at the reduced rate, click here and enter SS18 for the discount code.

mikemaginn

Mystery Glimpse: He Was The First

/5 Comments/in /by

This Well-Dressed Athlete Was The First Of Many.

Thanks to the Colorado Ski And Snowboard Museum for sending this picture along. We’re reaching deep here, dear readers, and if you can get this one, we will be really impressed.  Who is he and what did he do that gave him a place in ski history?

Last Week

This is a glimpse of the famous Winter Park ski train that has recently shut down after 69 years of service.  Ski trains were very popular with skiers from metropolitan areas on both coasts and the Rockies during the 30s and 40s.  But, with roads and interstates, the trains became unprofitable. According to the Colorado Ski and Snowboard Museum, the ski train that brought Denver citizens to the mountains was one of the few that survived.

You can only now imagine how convenient and almost luxurious it must have been to take a train to a station near a ski area and get picked up by a bus or horse-drawn sleigh to be taken to a mountain hotel or base lodge. Must have been some fun times on those trains going back and forth.

Anyone remember taking a ski train to and from the mountains?  What was it like?

To read more about the history of the Winter Park ski train, click here.

Visit A Ski Museum

SeniorsSkiing.com salutes the many ski museums who have contributed to the Mystery Glimpse series this season. Our readers should be aware that these often very small museum carry the stories and pictures of the past years of snow sports, going back to the early renderings of hunters and warriors on skis and ski-like gear. If you have a ski history museum near you, visit and support their efforts.

Colorado Ski and Snowboard Museum

Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum

Ski Museum of Maine

New England Ski Museum

National Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame

Alf Engen Ski Museum

Museum of Sierra Ski History

We very much appreciate the contributions these ski museums made to SeniorsSkiing.com’s Mystery Glimpse.  It was our way of keeping ski history and heroes alive and in front of an audience who appreciates the value of nostalgia. Next season, we hope to expand our list of contributors.

 

 

mikemaginn

Mystery Glimpse: Choo-Choo!

/4 Comments/in /by

Where Are We And What’s Happening?

Thanks to the Colorado Ski & Snowboard Museum for providing this picture from ski history.  The CS&SM is in the process of undergoing a $2.4 million renovation. The first of several exhibits, “Climb To Glory”, featuring the story of the 10th Mountain Division is now open. Other exhibits will be open at the end of April this year.  The museum is located in Vail Village, CO.

Last Week

This is another ski history legend.  Nic Fiore was an influential ski instructor and director of the ski school at Yosemite’s Badger Pass for 50 years. His friendly smile and charming French-Canadian accent attracted skiers who came to Badger Pass every year to learn from and ski with Nic.

He was an early member of the California Ski Instructors Association in the late 40s. At the time, he was concerned about the quality and consistency of ski instruction, becoming a voice for a national ski instruction organization. When the Professional Ski Instructors of America was founded in 1961, Nic remained committed to high standards for instructor certification.

Nic Fiore was an active skier well into his 80s. He continued to hit the slopes nearly every day and teach an occasional ski lesson into the 2003-04 season. Nic passed away at 88 in 2009.

Here’s Nic on the lift at Badger Pass. Note his enthusiasm and magnetic personality.

https://vimeo.com/3111117

Thanks again to the Museum of  Sierra Ski History for sending Nic’s photo.  The MSSH is located at the Gateway Museum at Lake Tahoe, CA.

seniorsskiing

Senior Skiers: St. Bernard Is Watching O’er

/1 Comment/in /by

St. Bernard, The Doggie’s Namesake, Is An Actual Saint.

St. B points the way to an Alpine mountain hut. Credit: Bri-Tri.

[Editor Note: This tidbit was submitted by LuAnn Snyder, a freelance writer from Maryland.]

Here’s a bit of trivia about the Patron Saint and Protector of Skiers: St. Bernard of Montjoux.

Little is known for certain about St. Bernard of Montjoux who was probably born in Italy, c. 996 and died at Novara, Lombardy, Italy in 1081 at the age of 85.

He was proclaimed the Patron Saint and protector of skiers, alpinists, and mountain climbers by Pope Innocent XI in 1681 and confirmed by Pope Pius XI (himself a mountaineer) in 1923 because Bernard spent more than four decades conducting missionary work in the Alps by ministering to the welfare of the scattered inhabitants. His Feast day is celebrated on May 28.

St. B has his own flag.

He is said to have been ordained a priest, made vicar general of Aosta and built schools and churches in the diocese. He is especially remembered for two hostels he built to aid and save the lives of pilgrims on their way to Rome who were lost in the mountain passes or who had fallen victims to avalanche, exposure, and other mountain hazards. The mountaintop on which he’d build his monastery in the Alps, between Switzerland and Italy, is named for him: Great and Little Bernard.

He was further honored in the late 1800’s when European dog breeders renamed the Alpine Mastiff, the St. Bernard. The St. Bernard dogs were formerly used by the heroic monks who were accompanied by their well-trained dogs to go out in search of victims who may have succumbed to the severity of the weather. The Saint Bernard dog was especially breed to assist travelers in this mountainous region.

His image appears in the flag of some detachments of the Tyrolean Alpine Guard. He is also the patron saint of skiing, snowboarding, hiking, backpacking, mountaineering.

You may want to keep St. Bernard in mind if you unexpectedly find yourself on top of a double-black diamond.  You never know..

If you’re stuck, St. Bernard will send his pups.

seniorsskiing

60s Ski Songs Now AVAILABLE!

/1 Comment/in /by

You Can Now Download Ray Conrad’s Classic Collection Of Ski Songs.

After many delays, procrastinations, and technical ups and downs, SeniorsSkiing.com is happy to announce that Ray Conrad’s The Cotton-Pickin’ Lift Tower And Other Ski Songs, is now available for download from CDBaby. CLICK HERE.

Ray has kindly agreed to exclusively offer his songs recorded back in the 60s to readers of SeniorsSkiing.com. The music is download only and costs $20. SeniorsSkiing.com is sharing the proceeds with Ray who, at 95 years old, is ecstatic that people are still interested in his music.

In the early 60s, Ray Conrad wrote and performed skiing songs in a folk music style that was gaining popularity in cafes, clubs and college campuses. His songs are satirical, silly, clever, and funny, spoofing the people who ski or want to look like skiers. You can listen to clips of the songs on CDBaby.

Here are the songs from The Cotton-Pickin’ Lift Tower And Other Ski Songs:

  • The Cotton-Pickin’ Lift Tower
  • Snowdrift Saloon
  • The Flatlander
  • Three-Pin Bill
  • Two Cubes and a Slug of VO
  • Mogul Mouse
  • A Skier’s Daydream
  • The Big Downhill Skis
  • Marie
  • Number One Fun
  • The Ski Instructor
  • La La
  • Skier’s Bible School
  • Nastar
  • Round-Bottomed Bogners
  • An Ounce of Prevention

Remember, this is download-only from CDBaby. Once downloaded and on your hard drive, you can play these songs through your iTunes or  music player, transfer them to your Smartphone, listen at the gym or heading up to snow country in your car.

Let us know what you think about this little bit of ski history on SeniorsSkiing.com.

 

 

 

mikemaginn

Mystery Glimpse: What’s The Story?

/4 Comments/in /by

Dire Straits Require Heroic Acts.

Credit: New England Ski Museum

This week, a historic event for Mystery Glimpse.  Can you identify the characters involved in the above picture? What’s going on? Where are they headed? Why? And yes, they are skiing.

Thanks to the New England Ski Museum, Franconia, NH, for hosting this jewel. Congratulations to NESM for opening its new branch in North Conway!

Last Week

Who, where, 1950.

Yes, Stein Eriksen is the racer and the event is the FIS World Championships at Aspen in 1950. This was the first FIS event held outside Europe when Aspen was open for only four seasons. Italy’s Zeno Colo missed sweeping all three events by losing the slalom by 0.03 seconds. Stein Eriksen placed third in the slalom.

 

Jon Weisberg

That Old Ski Poster on the Wall

/0 Comments/in , /by

Vintage ski posters are a fixture in many ski chalets and lodges.

Since the late 1990s, their values at auction have increased. To learn more about their history and their values, we interviewed Nicholas D. Lowry, President and Principal Auctioneer of Swann Auction Galleries, and Director of its Vintage Posters Department . Swann is the world’s largest auctioneer of Works on Paper and New York’s oldest specialty auction house.

JW: Please provide a short overview of the ski poster’s origins, when they were in commercial use, and in which countries.

NL: By all accounts the earliest ski posters were printed in the 1890s. They were printed to drive tourism by train to the French mountains. They began to appear with some regularity in the first decade of the 20th century. Two of the most famous—and therefore most valuable— were Francisco Tamagno‘s image of a couple ski jumping, and Jules Abel Faivre‘s image of a female skier using a single pole. Posters promoting the new sport also began appearing in Switzerland. Some promoted competitions and purveyors of outdoor equipment and clothing.

The first American ski poster featured an image of a female skier. It was produced in1896 to advertise the Christmas issue of Truth magazine.

What is considered when determining their value?

The main factors in determining ski poster value are location advertised; artist; image; date; and condition. A poster from the early days of a prominent Swiss resort such as Gstaad or St. Moritz will command more than one touting a lesser known village. The image also is important. Many people are drawn to depictions of early ski equipment and ski wear.

Among the most famous artist’s names that aficionados and collectors appreciate are Roger Broders, a masterful French Art Deco poster designer; Sascha Maurer, who did a lot of work for the New Haven Railway, and prominent Swiss poster designers, Emil Cardinaux and Martin Peikert.

How would you characterize price trends of vintage ski posters?

The market for ski posters took off in the late 1990s and early 2000s when collectors, including Mason Beekley, recognizing this undervalued segment of the poster market, began to acquire them at auction. Prices attracted attention to the genre; they haven’t subsided.

What should people look for if interested in collecting vintage ski posters? How can readers determine if they have a valuable ski poster?

Our experience at Swann is that most collectors buy works to hang in their chalets or mountain homes. They focus on geographic location. For example, it’s unlikely that someone in Zermatt will be collecting posters advertising Sun Valley.

I would caution potential buyers to consider their source when acquiring a vintage ski poster. Many resorts offer decorative reproductions of famous images. The best bet is to find an accredited poster dealer, so you can have confidence in the authenticity of your purchase.

How can readers learn about upcoming Swann ski poster auctions?

Swann Galleries has been offering a selection of ski posters from around the world in our annual Winter Poster Auction since 1998. We hold at least four auctions of vintage posters each year. Our catalogues are online at www.swanngalleries.com.

Tamsin Venn

Tread Of Pioneers: A Blast From the Past

/2 Comments/in /by

Quaint Museum Reveals Steamboat Spring’s Rich History.

Ski Joring was the way to get around the valley when the snows came.
Credit TOP Museum

In 1947 an AP dispatch to 1,000 daily papers dubbed Steamboat Springs, Colo., “Ski Town, USA” with the declaration that of its 1,700 residents, 1,685 were skiers.

The others were children under the age of one.

Enthusiasm for skiing run deeps in this town. And you can learn all about it at The Tread of Pioneers Museum in downtown Steamboat. Native Utes, trappers, Yampa Valley settlers, ranchers, miners, farmers, cowboys, skiers, ski jumpers, snowboarders, outlaws, and lawmen, they all shared a part in the creation of this friendly town, sitting just below one of Colorado’s best loved ski resorts.

Famed Norwegian ski-jumper and circus star Carl Howelson arrived in 1913 and taught early residents of Steamboat Springs how to ski and ski jump. Suddenly, the valley’s ranchers were exploring the surrounding mountains on homemade wooden skis, school kids filled recess with downhill races, and locals became expert jumpers.

Billy Kidd, first American to medal in Alpine skiing, has lived in SBS since 1970. Here he is at 20.
Credit: TOP Museum

Favorite fact: Three Wire Winter is agricultural lingo used in the Yampa Valley to indicate that snow has reached the third strand of barbed wire on a four-strand fence, roughly 30 inches. A three-wire winter is just about right, with enough snowpack for spring run-off; more makes it difficult for feeding cattle in winter as well as damage to the barb-wire fences, according to Bill Fletcher, an Elk River Rancher.

The museum has an extensive historic photography collection, a few of which are included here. Go to the museum website to view and purchase online.

The museum is located downtown at 800 Oak Street. New exhibits this year include Staking Their Claim: Pioneer Settlement in the Yampa Valley highlighting early Yampa Valley settlers; Pioneer Kids Bedroom: Hands-on Discovery, letting kids dress up in historic clothes and play with antique toys; and A Legacy of Learning: Celebrating 50 Years of Colorado Mountain College and the Bud Werner Memorial Library exhibit, highlighting these two key local institutions; and the works of portrait and Native American photographer Edward S. Curtis.

The Museum Gift Shop has locally made jewelry, postcards, and photographs. Hours & Admission: Tues.-Sat. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. $6 for adults, $5 seniors over 62, $2 children ages 6-12, under 6 free.

The Harbor Hotel sleigh picked up skiers from the train depot and delivered them to the popular hotel at 7th and Lincoln, circa 1957.
Credit: TOP Museum

Harriet Wallis

Historic Blandford Ski Area Poised To Bite The Dust

/2 Comments/in , /by

This Wonderful Family Area Is Simply Out Of Money.

[Editor Note: According to the Westfield News, Springfield Ski Club’s members will be meeting on July 18 to approve the sale of assets to the owners of Ski Butternut. If two thirds of the total membership do not specifically vote yes, the ski area will close.]

Volunteers kept Blandford going and gave the small area a community feel.
Credit: New England Ski Industry

The website says: “May 28, 2017 – Ski Blandford Financially Insolvent. Could Be Sold or Closed.” The Board of Directors and the skiers are on the brink of making a gut wrenching decision soon about their ski area that’s been going for 81 years.

Harriet visited Blandford on a recent visit, finding a welcoming sign at the base lodge.
Credit: Harriet Wallis

As background, recreational skiing spiked after WWII when 10th Mountain Division veterans returned and inspired city folk to take up skiing.

But before that, in the 20s and 30s, hardy skiers skinned up mountains, built primitive lifts and were already into downhill skiing.

And so it was for the Springfield Ski Club. In 1936 it got permission to build a ski slope on a hilly farm in southern Massachusetts. It installed a 1,000 foot long rope tow and used a nearby schoolhouse as a warming hut. A few years later the club bought the land and named it Blandford Ski Area.

Today, about 60 ski areas that started before WWII are still in operation, according to data collected by New England Ski Museum Director Jeff Leich.

But it hasn’t been easy for this small, family-oriented ski area. Modernization from rope tows to chairlifts was costly. Updating to snowmaking was a necessity. But then, interstate highways whisked skiers past Blandford to bigger, destination resorts.

But Blandford—with its 450 feet of elevation, three chairlifts, snowmaking and night skiing—held on while other small ski areas in southern Massachusetts closed. Skiers simply love Blandford.

And they put in countless hours of volunteer work to keep the area ship shape. Work parties painted the picnic tables. And they walked up the slopes picking up stones pushed up by frost and tossed them into the woods so in winter they could ski on a minimal snow base.

During the 1960s and 70s, membership was capped at 5,000, and there was a waiting list to join. My family of four were all novice skiers, and we jumped at the opportunity to join when an opening occurred..

From that humble beginning at the small ski area, we all grew to love the sport. And we progressed to become instructors and ski patrol.

Blandford got us started in the right way. It inspired us with skiing. And it offered family values and great camaraderie with other families.

However, membership slowly dwindled over the years and dropped to just 1,426 in the 2014-15 season. Fickle weather and the economics of operation began to out weigh the camaraderie and the inspiration,

Blandford, like other small ski areas, is a grass roots feeder area that launches skiers into the sport. It’s sad that we might lose this icon of the ski industry. For a closer look, click here for the Ski Blanford site.

To read more from Harriet click here for her stories on SkiUtah.

Small areas like Blandford are where families grow up loving skiing.
Credit: Ski Blandford

Roger Lohr

Milestones of Modern XC Skiing In the US

/0 Comments/in , /by

Remember Skiing On Wooden Skis With A Pine Tar Base And Lathered In Klistervox? Wasn’t That Long Ago.

Norway-born Snowshoe Thompson learned to ski in Telemark, his home town.

Editor Note: XCSkiResort Publisher Roger Lohr has catalogued the main events that propelled XC skiing from a peculiar sport with a small following in the US to a major recreational and racing enterprise with a huge following.  Thanks, Roger, for tracing the trail.

Since wooden skis were found in a peat bog in Sweden dating to 2,000 BC, there have been many milestones that brought xc skiing to where it is today. In the US, the forefathers of xc skiing include legends like Snowshoe Thompson, who delivered the mail in the Sierra Mountains of California and Jack Rabbit Johannsen, who xc skied in northern New York.

The editors of XCSkiResorts.com researched the milestones of modern XC skiing in order of significance:

1. Development of synthetic xc skis in 1974.
2. Development of the waxless based ski in the early 1970’s, most notably the Trak ski with synthetic fish scales on the ski base to eliminate the need for ski waxes. The waxless base gave the recreational skier grip on uphill travel while also allowing gliding downhill.
3. Integrated xc ski binding systems, which provided substantial improvements in simplicity of boot/binding interface and control in the mid 70’s.

4. Bill Koch won the Olympic silver medal in 1976  at Innsbruck and at the World Cup in 1982, the first American to ever win at that level. The Nordic Track exerciser used the Koch image as a fitness icon in advertisements for years. In 2010, there were US Olympic medalists in Nordic Combined and in 2012 there was a World Cup winner in women’s sprint.
5. The onset of the commercial xc ski area concept began in 1968-69 at Trapp Family Lodge. This brought designed, groomed, and maintained trails making xc skiing easier and safer for the average person.
6. The skating technique proliferated for a faster paced and higher performance form of recreation.
7. Revolution Skis developed by Fischer led the way to shorter skis, which were easier to use and consolidated ski sizing and simplified ski selection.
8. New, lighter clothing with synthetic and breathable materials made XC skiing more comfortable; company brands such as Mother Karen led the way in the late 1970’s.
9. Other technological advances such as the 2 Wax System that offered one wax for cold temperatures and one for warm temperatures simplified ski waxing.  BackCountry binding systems provided a beefed up boot/binding system that provided substantially more support and control for backcountry recreation.

New NIS bindings link boot with ski using a plate.

10. Will the Nordic Integrated System (NIS) developed in 2005 change the ski/binding interface? This system combines the ski and binding at manufacture rather than at the retail store.

 

Pat McCloskey

SeniorsSkiing Guide: Saving Laurel Mountain From Obscurity

/4 Comments/in , /by

Western PA Pioneer Area Comes Back To Full Operation.

Fun Fact: Legendary Hannes Schneider designed the trails at Laurel at around the same time he created Cranmore.
Credit: Laurel Mountain

There has been a lot written about the lost ski areas.  For one reason or another, ski areas sometimes are unable to meet the financial or operational requirements and end up closing the lifts.  They fall into disrepair and end up on a list of lost ski areas forever.  But, there is an exception whose light is burning bright this winter.  Laurel Mountain in the Laurel  Highlands of Western  Pennsylvania will once again be spinning the lifts thanks to a grant from the State of Pennsylvania and the financial and operational input of the major ski area in the region—Seven Springs Mountain Resort.

Laurel’s origins date back to 1939 when Pittsburgh financier Richard King Mellon began to plan a ski area for the enjoyment of the members of the  prestigious Rolling Rock Club.  In alliance with Harvey Gibson who was chairman of Manufacturer’s Trust Company and owner of Cranmore Mountain in New Hampshire, they began building the ski area on the western flank of the Laurel Ridge near Ligonier, Pa.  The design of the mountain was created by the world famous Hannes Schneider who was the inventor of the Arlberg method of ski teaching which is the basis of modern alpine technique.  Schneider was brought to the U.S. by Harvey Gibson and the legendary Austrian ski instructor hiked the Laurel Ridge and designed the trails and the signature Wildcat run which is the steepest run in Pennsylvania.

Soon after World War II, the private resort was opened to the public.  “Ski tow” tickets were $1.25 per day to ride the surface lifts.  Private lessons were $5.00 per hour with instructors trained by the famous mountaineer  Ralph “Doc” DesRoches, a veteran of the 10th Mountain Division and eventual major patron of the US Ski Team. Laurel grew with the post war boom and in 1947, a new lodge was built at the mountain summit. Laurel was soon the home of the Pennsylvania State Ski Championship founded by Edna and Max Dercum of Penn State University where Max was a professor of forestry.

In 1955, a new lift, perhaps the only one of its kind—a Constam T-bar— became the first top to bottom lift eliminating the need for three rope tows to get to the summit.  In 1956, Laurel was among the first ski resorts to install large scale snowmaking.  In 1963, R.K. Mellon and his sister Sarah Scaife gave the ski area to the State of Pennsylvania which began a new era with Poma lifts replacing rope tows and lights for night skiing.  The first chairlift at Laurel was installed in 1968.  After a number of years of state ownership and mounting competition from Seven Springs and Hidden Valley, Laurel fell to financial troubles and had many years of start/stop operation.  In 2004, Seven Springs entered into an agreement to run Laurel Mountain, but, with many improvements deemed necessary, the resort was once again closed.

Seven Springs eventually purchased the assets of Laurel Mountain and soon began to chart a course for operation once again with SE Group as the primary consultant.  With revitalized snowmaking by HKD, reconstruction of the lodge in 2015-2016, and official groundbreaking for a new quad chairlift, the plan for opening for the 2016-2017 ski season was finally a reality.

Laurel is a gem to the local community. The 1000+ members of the web-based group Friends of Laurel Mountain had a lot of influence in the progress of the construction. It is with great pride that the residents of Ligonier and the ski community in general in Western Pennsylvania welcome the historic Laurel Mountain back to the list of operating ski areas in the U.S

Location:

US 30 East, just outside of historic Ligonier, Pa.  Approximately a one and a half-hour drive east of Pittsburgh.

Trail Map: Click here.

Hours of Operation and Ticket Prices:

Sunday –Wednesday- 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM  Tickets $38.00

Thursday-Sunday- 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM – Tickets $53.00

Holidays- $58.00

Preferred Lodging:

Ligonier Country Inn

Call for reservations: 800-916-4339

Dining:

There are many dining establishments in the town of Ligonier including the Ligonier Tavern, my favorite,  just off the town square.

Harriet Wallis

New England Ski Museum Tells 3,000 Years Of Ski History

/2 Comments/in , /by

From The Stone Age To Today.

The tiny museum in Franconia, New Hampshire is located next to Cannon Mountain’s gondola base, and it’s a wonderland. Even before you enter, you’re intrigued by what you see just outside the door and you ask yourself: “What’s that thing?”

New England Ski Museum is located at the base of Cannon Mt., NH. Credit: Harriet Wallis

New England Ski Museum is located at the base of Cannon Mt., NH. Antique gondola car guards entrance. Credit: Harriet Wallis

The big red boxy thing is one of Cannon’s original tram cars from 1938. “Eeegads,” you say. “They went up the mountain in that?”

2-alg-skisThe sled-looking thing was Cranmore Mountain’s idea of an uphill lift. Skiers sat in the sleigh, and it was hauled uphill on a trestle.

Inside the museum, “We show how skis evolved from the stone age — to a slab of wood with a leather strap — to modern skis,” said Executive Director Jeff Leich.

And exhibits show milestones: the 10th Mountain Division, the founding of the National Ski Patrol, and a display of the funky clothes we wore not so long ago.

The museum’s name is misleading. This wonderful Ski Museum happens to be located in New England, but it covers skiing across the country.

And when you’re all revved up, you come face to face with skiing Mt. Washington’s Tuckerman’s Ravine. It’s New England’s highest peak and is known for having the world’s worst weather. Actually, it’s a photo that covers an entire wall, and you feel like you’re right there. It stirs memories of hiking up the trail for hours. Lugging your skis all the way. Then clobbering up the steep slope to make a run for bragging rights.

This museum is a “must see.”

This photo of Tuckerman's Ravine on Mt Washington occupies an entire wall. Credit: NESM

This photo of Tuckerman’s Ravine on Mt Washington occupies an entire wall.
Credit: NESM

Ski Gifts and Collectibles

The NESM online catalog has something for everyone on your gift list. There are books and posters, jewelry, pottery, pillows, belts, children’s gifts and much more. Images are taken from history and will satisfy any skier’s wish list.

These beautiful pillows are

These beautiful pillows capture the spirit of the sport.  There are many other gift ideas in the NESM catalogue.  Credit: New England Ski Museum

Consider membership

Even if you can’t get to the museum, membership brings you a beefy, quarterly, 24-32 page journal full of archaic photos and stories that will keep you inspired and informed. An individual membership is $35 a year.

For more information and to shop the catalog online, check here.

To read more from Harriet click here for her stories on SkiUtah.

 

Alan K. Engen

From One Ski Pole to Two

/0 Comments/in /by

A Personal Experience As Told To Alan K. Engen.

Early One Pole Skiers

Early One Pole Skiers

The late Ruth Rogers Altmann, a good friend and longtime Alta skier, was born in Vienna in 1917. She learned to ski in the Austrian Alps. Ruth’s earliest ski lessons involved the transition from Mathias Zdarsky’s (1874-1946) turning technique using one ski pole and leaning into the mountain to Hannes Schneider’s (1890-1955) turning technique using two ski poles and leaning away from the mountain.

Zdarsky transformed cross-country skiing to downhill skiing during the late 1800s and the early 1900s. He is recognized as the father of alpine (downhill) ski technique.

Young Ruth Altman in Austria

In the early ’20s, Ruth learned to ski in Zdarsky’s Ski School using a single, 5′ to 6′ metal-tipped bamboo pole for balance, turns, and to stop. With this technique, Zdarsky could teach people to ski in about five days.

The following excerpts are from Ruth’s recollections, which I recorded in 1988:

“The one long pole generally was made of bamboo and had a sharp metal point at the bottom. It was light and slightly flexible. Its purpose was to balance and support the skier. It was supporting when climbing up hill. One leaned on it with each step. When trails were too narrow for stemming or wedeln turns, we placed the pole between our legs and sat on it lightly, using it as a brake.”

“As skiing became more popular and developed from a means of transportation to a sport, games and racing competitions came into being. The popular game was a fox hunt on skis. A group of people had to find and catch the human fox’s red zipfel mūtze [long red night cap with a pom-pom]. The fox had an earlier start than the hunters so he could hide and flee from the hunters. ”

“As speed control became a factor in this new sport, the Zdarsky technique was challenged by Hannes Schneider’s speedier technique, which developed according to the law of physics and gravity. The weight had to be changed to lean downhill in turns, and two shorter poles, with baskets, replaced the one pole.

“We, the younger generation, and our older teenage brothers and sisters went with the new. A new division (of the ski school) was formed for two-pole skiing. Even some of the elders would use two poles, which when needed could be batted together to form one pole.”

Ruth Rogers Altmann skied every year at Alta well into her 90s and was a member of the “Wild Old Bunch,” Alta’s ski ambassadors. She passed away in the fall of 2015 at age 98 in New York City, where she lived most of her adult life.

From the permanent collection of the Joe Quinney Winter Sports Center/Alf Engen Ski Museum,

Several years ago, she presented me with the instructor pin she received in the 1920’s by the Austrian Ski School. That pin on permanent display in the Joe Quinney Winter Sports Center/Alf Engen Ski Museum, at Utah Olympic Park, shows a skier with a single pole.

 

seniorsskiing

Long Pole Skiing

/0 Comments/in /by

What Is Old Is New Again.

This Hok from China skis what we see as the old way, but for him, it's a way of life.

This Hok from China skis what we see as the old way, but for him, it’s a way of life.

Last season, 38-year-old Ma Liqin visited Norway to demonstrate an ancient skiing style still used in the Altai Mountains, a range located at the intersection of China, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Mongolia. People in that region ski daily for hunting and transportation. Their equipment is fashioned from wood and has animal fur tied to the base. As part of the technique, they use a single long pole.

“The skiing technique is very attached to the traditional life of hunting, trapping, and reindeer herding. We do not know how long this activity will be kept alive,” said archaeologist Espen Finstad, archaeologist for Norway’s Oppland county.

Readers interested in long pole skiing  might consider the personal experience of 67-year old Dennis Murphy, from Chester Springs, PA.

“I was first introduced to long pole skiing approximately three years ago by my son, who experienced the use of a single long pole while investigating techniques used in telemark skiing. I found that the use of a single long pole provides a novel and enjoyable adventure. The technique enhanced my turning, provided a new rhythm and, perhaps most importantly, as a senior skier, provided a more stable and secure ride. In fact, last season I skied a double diamond that I would never have tried with two poles.

“The technique for long pole skiing is easy to learn. It is a natural movement that involves holding the pole horizontally in front of you and, as you turn, placing the pole tip on the surface at the rear end of your up-hill ski. When turning right, for example, the tip of the pole would be placed near the end of the right ski. It is similar to a kayak paddle to maneuver when moving down stream.

“The enhanced turning and rhythm resulting from using a long pole results from the natural tendency to lean back (uphill) during turns. Placed behind, the pole adds support and helps the skier go back even further. I find myself skiing higher on my edges, making more secure and rounded turns. I have found that putting significant pressure on the pole tip significantly improves the ability to control speed and balance. It has provided me with the confidence to ski trails with steeper inclines. “ 

Dennis now manufactures two-piece long poles under the name ThirdEdge. The product is explained and demonstrated at www.longpoleskiing.com.

screen-shot-2016-09-15-at-10-34-27-am

 

Jan Brunvand

History, Memories, Books, And More

/0 Comments/in /by

ISHA’s 2016 Skiing History Week at Aspen.

Author compares patches with Richard Allen of Vintage Ski World . Credit: Jan Brunvand

Author compares patches with Richard Allen of Vintage Ski World . Credit: Jan Brunvand

The International Skiing History Association (ISHA) and the US Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame held their annual Skiing History Week at Aspen on April 5 – 10. My wife Judy and I attended, partly for the presentations, but also for the $32 day passes.

How avid are people about skiing history? Very! Folks lined up to buy a 240-page book on the history of ski poles written in Norwegian. Most bought it as a collector’s item, signed by the author, Karin Berg, director of the Holmenkollen Ski Museum. Berg received a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Maybe a few others, like me, hoped they could read some of the book by drawing on dim childhood memories of our Norwegian parents speaking the language at home and making liberal use of a dictionary. If not, well the illustrations are lavish.

The welcome on Wednesday evening included a tribute to Aspen, which happens to be my first Western ski resort. In 1954 as an undergrad at Michigan State I came with ski club pals during spring break. Passes were $21 per week, and rooms were $5.00 a night. We ate cheap dinners at the Red Onion, still an Aspen fixture.

In those days I didn’t even consider entering the ritzy Hotel Jerome. How things have changed.

At Thursday night’s banquet in the Jerome, ISHA presented annual awards “For Outstanding Creative Works of Ski History.” These included eight other books, one more in Norwegian and two in German. We came away with a couple more: License to Jump! about women’s ski jumping, and Freedom Found, the autobiography of filmmaker Warren Miller.

On Friday a buffet dinner was followed by two lectures. One was a presentation by sons of skiing legend Dick Durrance with film clips and photos including his time at Alta. The second was on the Warren Miller book by his collaborator Andy Bigford.

The highlight of the Hall of Fame program was the induction ceremony Saturday for seven new members at a banquet at the St. Regis. Two inductees had Utah connections: Bob Salerno, pioneer freestyler and a native of Ogden learned to ski at Snowbasin; and the late Edgar Stern, founder of Deer Valley. There were also memorial presentations on Olympic champions who died in the past year, Stein Eriksen and Bill Johnson.

MV5BNTc3MjU5ODc0M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMDMyMTk3Mg@@._V1_UY268_CR4,0,182,268_AL_Five ski films received awards. Since these were screened in the daytime when we would rather be skiing, we skipped them, but, at least, we had seen the 1969 classic Downhill Racer honored as “one of the best sports films ever made.”

Among skiing greats we met this year were racers Klaus Obermeyer and Billy Kidd; the writers or editors Doug Pfeiffer, John Fry, and Harry Kaiser; and early freestylers Genia Fuller Crews and Barbara Alley.

How was the skiing? Very good spring conditions all week, meaning a bit crunchy on the groomers in the morning and softer snow as the days warmed. Definitely worth the trip and the lift prices.

seniorsskiing

Returning To X-C: New Technology, New Found Serenity

/2 Comments/in , /by

John Christie, Ski Industry Veteran, Re-Discovers His Love For Cross-Country Skiing.

Bowdoin College ski team circa 1958 with state championship trophy. John Christie is third from right. He was originally a reluctant competitor. Credit: John Christie

Bowdoin College ski team circa 1958 with state championship trophy. John Christie is third from right. He was originally a reluctant competitor.
Credit: John Christie

Editor’s Note: SeniorsSkiing.com is proud to have this contribution from John Christie. John is a legend in the ski business. Founder, owner and/or manager of several New England ski resorts (Sugarloaf, Mt. Snow, Saddleback),  John has served as president of Vermont and Maine Ski Areas Associations, was a board member of the National Ski Areas Association and other charitable non-profits as well as author of books (The Story of Sugarloaf, Maine Outdoor Adventure Guide, Skiing Maine) as well as numerous and regular features in a variety of publications.  At 78, he is still discovering and re-discovering that “it’s never too late”.  Our kind of guy.

As someone who bought his first sea kayak just before he reached the age of 70, and now spends hours on end in the summer exploring Maine’s coastline, I guess I’m authorized to say that it’s never too late to discover a new way to enjoy the outdoors.

Similarly, I’m amazed as I travel from ski area to ski area in the winter and see the number of retirees who continue to ski regularly, many who’ve rediscovered the sport after a long absence, and, most impressively, seniors who’ve taken up alpine skiing for the very first time.

Former x-c racer in college, John Christie re-discovered cross-country skiing as a senior. Now he skis to enjoy the outdoors and keeps fit. Credit: John Christie

Former x-c racer in college, John Christie re-discovered cross-country skiing as a senior. Now he skis to enjoy the outdoors and keep fit.
Credit: John Christie

It’s those newcomers to the sport who are discovering how much fun, and how easy it is to make the most of Maine’s long winters. Thanks to improvements in ski equipment technology, along with senior-friendly professional instructors at virtually every ski area in the state, learning to ski at an advanced age is not only a piece of cake, but it’s an opportunity to enjoy the winter to its fullest.

But enough about alpine skiing. Many seniors have learned that a few hours out on cross-country skis is a magical way to spend a winter day.

I was introduced to cross-country skis during my freshman year in college, in 1956. Not because I had harbored a yearning to do so, but because I had little choice. You see, this was the now by-gone era of the four-event intercollegiate competitor that required those of us who wanted to claim our berth on the team to compete in all four disciplines: downhill, slalom, jumping and cross-country.

As an alpine skier, I begrudgingly became a Nordic competitor as a reasonably accomplished jumper and a slightly more than passable cross-country racer. Any success I had in achieving decent results related in no way to my having mastered the technique or much of any technique at all. I did it through exhausting exertion, determination, youthful fortitude and strength, a nagging feeling that I had a responsibility to my team and my beloved Bowdoin, and sheer stupidity.

The result was that every race, a symphony of intermittent stumbling, cursing and frequent vomiting was, I’m sure, great entertainment for the throngs of co-eds along the racecourse. I remember one race in particular in Farmington where I not only artfully combined all of the above, but added an especially amusing touch by sticking a ski pole directly into the top of my right foot, finishing the race in great pain and with a bloody sock. An act to be replicated decades later by a certain Red Sox pitcher during a crucial World Series game.

So that was my context for cross-country skiing. An activity to be undertaken when absolutely required and avoided whenever possible. This less-than-enthusiastic attitude for the sport was further encouraged by the quality of the equipment during my racing hey-days: loose-fitting boots, easily-breakable wood skis and bamboo poles, and bindings that deluded the skier into thinking that he could actually control his skis on icy downhill runs. And skis without any edges, of course.

It’s not too much of a stretch to say that when I stepped up on the stage to accept my hard-earned Bowdoin degree in June of 1959, my first thought was, “Thank God, now I’ll never have to cross-country ski again!”

Although my antipathy toward the sport was clearly more exaggerated than the average skier, it’s apparent that very few people were eagerly embracing the activity during the 1960’s . It was during this period of time that I was cutting my teeth in the ski business, and alpine skiing was my life. When I left the business in the late 1970’s to embark on more mature, and fiscally-reliable pursuits, I was surprised…no, shocked…to hear that people were being lured to, and actually embarking on cross-country skiing for FUN!

So was born the renaissance of the sport, and the next act in the evolution of cross-country skiing from hunting to warfare to exploration to competition to recreation. I begrudgingly reintroduced myself to it, as I was taking a self-imposed hiatus from alpine skiing, and was pleasantly surprised with two things. First, the technology had evolved from wood to composite skis, from imitation to actual bindings that allowed you to actually control the skis, and from waxable wood bottoms (that never adequately and simultaneously accommodated the proper waxes for both uphill and downhill skiing) to fish scales that provided for both uphill traction and downhill gliding. Second, I was struck that without the need to better your competitors, you could actually ski along at a leisurely pace and even enjoy the serenity and the scenery and the exhilarating fun of being out in nature on a crisp winter day.

The popularity came about for a variety of reasons, including the increasingly prohibitive cost of alpine skiing for some folks. Additionally, there was a growing national awareness of the importance of physical fitness, so many people were becoming more active, and when the summer hiking season was over they were looking for a winter counterpart.

So that was my reintroduction, thankfully, to an activity I’ve grown to love. I will say that when the weather’s right, and I have the time, I’ll head for the hills with my alpine skis, but increasingly I’ll opt for the fun of a few hours out on the trail on my skinny ones.

 

 

mikemaginn

Remembering The Great Big Washington’s Birthday Touring Race

/5 Comments/in /by

Bang and everyone charges off across the hay field. The Washington's Birthday Race circa 1971 or so. Credit: Spencer Grant

Bang and everyone charges off across the hay field. The Washington’s Birthday Race circa 1971 or so.
Credit: Spencer Grant

 Such Fun. Should We Do It Again?

What a celebration of winter it was. Imagine several hundred cross-country skiers, some serious racers—even Olympians—, college kids, couples and families, office people (like us) up from the Big City, all in a long line, awaiting the gun in a big, snow-covered Vermont hayfield. Bang, and everyone charges off, either fast skating or slowly shuffling to the far end where the field funnels into a tractor road and the rest of the 20-km (12-mile) course beyond.

This was the Washington’s Birthday Touring Race, a “people’s race” in more or less the same tradition as Sweden’s Vasaloppet where you went from point to point or town to town, not stopping if you’re racing or stopping for a picnic snack if you weren’t. In 1963, Eric Barradale, a Brattleboro dentist and former Dartmouth Outing Club member, and a cluster of southern Vermont educators, business people and professionals, thought a race like the Vasa would help promote cross-country skiing in the US. Back then, Nordic skiing was esoteric, and an event like a great, big race would—and did— attract lots of attention.

A small group of SKIING magazine staffers participated in the 1971 edition along with about 1000 other folks. We arrived with brand new kangaroo skin boots, wooden skis, four pin bindings and bag of waxes. It was our first time ever on cross-country skis. In fact, SKIING magazine’s editor and our boss Al Greenberg gave us a lesson in his office before we left for Vermont in our rented car. “Just shuffle like you have bedroom slippers on and keep your arms moving.” Doug Pfeiffer, the editor-in-chief at the time, opined about ski wax. “Some concoctions are said to include whale blubber,” he hinted mysteriously. The hook was set. The night before the race, we learned how to put on pine tar and wax in the basement of the Whetstone Inn, in Marlboro. From that delicious aroma, we knew we were going to love it.

The GWBDR was modeled after Sweden's Vassalopett. Credit: CardCow

The GWBDR was modeled after Sweden’s Vassalopett.
Credit: CardCow

The first race in 1963 had 54 participants. Bob Gray, a two-time Olympian and student of John Caldwell, a long time coach, member of the 1952 Olympic team and eventually USSA team coach, was the winner. Bob told us in a recent interview the first race went from Hogback Mountain to Brattleboro. In subsequent years, the race was held on different courses throughout southern Vermont, some more challenging than others, all linking towns around the area. And the numbers of participants grew. Bob said, “We had the US Women’s Cross-Country team in one race. More and more competitive racers started coming.” That’s when Barradale started having second thoughts.

“There were racers knocking people off the track,” said Gray. “Barradale got discouraged.” The charm of a citizen’s race was disappearing as more and more serious racers showed up. Over the years, we had always thought the race was finally called off because of lack of snow. We asked Bob Gray if that was the reason. “No, it was because the race became too much of race.”

The final official Washington’s Birthday Race was held in 1973. Bob Gray was in that one, too, as he was in five since 1963. The people’s race run by a group of volunteers was experiencing the embarrassment of success. Too many details, too many arrangements, and too many racers. “After 1973, there were about five years where we had loop races around the a county club in Brattleboro for real racers, but the basic idea was lost,” said Gray. Gray said he got to keep the Winner’s Bowl when the race “retired”.

Gilbert_Stuart_Williamstown_Portrait_of_George_WashingtonIn 1971, our group from SKIING managed to come in dead-last. Our wax had long gone, we got lost, yet we laughed our way to end point at Putney School. We did get a pin for finishing. It instantly became one of our proudest possessions.

Should we have another generation of the Washington Birthday Race? Would you go?

 

seniorsskiing

Why Ski?

/2 Comments/in , /by

From NSP Eastern Division Safety Team, Corinth, NY

whySki__

seniorsskiing

Breaking News: Mount Snow to Celebrate 60th Anniversary on Founders Day, December 12

/2 Comments/in , /by

Walt Schoenknecht’s Vision Was Far and Creative

When Mount Snow’s visionary founder, Walter Schoenknecht, stood atop Mount Pisgah in over a foot of freshly fallen snow back in autumn of 1949, he knew he had found the perfect place to build his dream ski resort.  Only a few years later, Walt had purchased the land around the base of the mountain from the family of Rueben Snow and subsequently renamed the mountain in his honor – which is where the name “Mount Snow” was derived from.

The Original Lift at Mt. Snow. Credit: Mt. Snow

The Original Lift at Mount Snow.
Credit: Mount Snow

On December 12, 1954, Mount Snow opened for the first time to skiers with two rope tows and two chairlifts that transported guests up to seven trails.  In only a few years since its debut, Walt had transformed the mountain into the premier winter playground of the East with expanded terrain and off-the-wall amenities for the time like a heated outdoor pool, an indoor skating rink and state-of-the-art chairlifts.

Schoenknecht’s boundless energy, ambition and creativity had many comparing him to another such pioneer of that day named Walt Disney.  And while not all of his ideas were perfect, including sending a proposal to the Atomic Energy Commission to detonate an atomic bomb at the base of the mountain to create more vertical, many of his initiatives became standard practice for the ski industry like snowmaking, modern lifts and off-mountain amenities.

Now 60- years later, Mount Snow carries on Walt’s pioneering spirit by being in the forefront of on-mountain technology and trends.  There is much to celebrate this Founders Day, as December 12 has become known at the southern Vermont resort, with the celebration continuing throughout the weekend.

Mount Snow is offering $12 lift tickets to ski and ride on Founders Day, which can only be purchased at least 24 hours in advance online.  There will be a comprehensive historical display in the Main Base Lodge, lift line giveaways, birthday cake for everyone, throwback parties, live music, scavenger hunts and more.  The resort is inviting everyone to wear their favorite retro ski gear to honor the styles of the past, and there is an “old school” bamboo gate ski race planned for Sunday, December 14 that will even have a straight ski category.

For more information about the Founders Day Weekend 60th anniversary celebration and to purchase $12 lift tickets for December 12, visit www.mountsnow.com/events/calendar/founders-day.

To learn more about Mount Snow’s history, visit www.mountsnow.com/the-mountain/our-history.

When Skiing Was New: Early Scenes From 30s To 50s

/1 Comment/in , /by

Skiing was once considered a fad like Mah-Jong.  That was a long time ago.

Here’s a seven-minute series of clips from John Jay’s “Ski Down The Years”, a visual history of skiing from the early days of rope tows in the mid-30s in New England to the FIS championships at Aspen in 1950.  From our current perspective, those initial attempts appear at once hardy and comical.

A flop on the Inferno, Mt. Washington, circa late 1930s. Credit: John Jay.

A flop on the Inferno, Mt. Washington, circa late 1930s. Credit: John Jay.

Ski Mobile in North Conway, mid-1930s. Credit: John Jay

Ski Mobile in North Conway, mid-1930s. Credit: John Jay

Oh, the technique! Downhill shoulders leading through a turn.  Bending forward at the waist.  Oh, the savior-faire.  Lowell Thomas, the celeb journalist, has a knowing air about him as he adjusts his skis.  And Gary Cooper puffing away at Sun Valley.  Oh, the early glory of powder skiing.  There’s a series of shots of Dick “Straight Down” Durrance skiing powder at Alta.  Amazing.  Most interesting is the formation skiing of the Tenth Mountain Division training on Mt. Rainier.

We’re lucky we have this kind of footage to reflect upon.  We remember the legacy of those early days in our own first skiing gear and experiences in the mid-1960s.  Leather lace-up boots, bear trap bindings, army surplus goggles, rope tows.  What equipment from your first days can you track back to that glorious time?