Tag Archive for: Dick Durrance

mikemaginn

Mystery Glimpse: Home Movies

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Vintage Scenes Of Skiing.

Here’s a different Mystery Glimpse challenge.  Correspondent Don Burch has uncovered some old home movies from an online video archive.  Can you spot where this footage might have been taken? Are there clues in these different videos that might reveal when these were taken? Even if you can’t identify the locations, check out that equipment and the bota bag. Just click on the image below. Does anyone use a bota bag these days? Anyway, have fun with these memories. 

Last Week

Here’s the photo with Durrance’s autograph. Credit: Ski History

This photo of Dartmouth’s Dick Durrance with an intense “look” comes from a book published by Friedl Pfeiffer in 1939.  The Sun Valley Ski Book was a pictorial ski instruction book, containing action shots of celebrity skiers of the day.  We discovered this photo in an article in Ski History Magazine, the publication of the International Ski History Association. The specific book this was taken from was discovered in bookstore by long-time skier Marc Corney. Not only does it contain a collection of spectacular photos, each photo has an autograph of the subject.  There’s also four pages of autographs from various people who apparently were invited to sign the book which most like belonged to none other than the author Friedl Pfieffer.  You can read the whole fascinating story by clicking here. There are lots more pictures, too. And please consider supporting the International Ski History Association while you are at it.

Autograph: “Don’t be frightened. He’s too small to hurt you even with that look!” Credit: Ski History

 

mikemaginn

Mystery Glimpse: Dancing, Where?

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It Was A Famous Apres Ski Hangout Back In The Day.

Hint: Think Colorado. What place? What year? Thanks to the Colorado Snowsports Museum for this blast from the past.

Last Week: Bang, Bang

As we said last week, it’s not what you think. It sure looks like the 10th Mountain in training at Camp Hale, as several readers have guessed.

Here’s the story of the photo, taken from the library archives of the Alf Engen Museum, Park City, as explained by Jon Green, the museum’s operations manager.

Taken around 1942, this image shows paratroopers from Fort Benning, GA, who were sent to Alta to learn how to ski and fight in the snow.

From the book, Dick Durrance: The Man On The Medal, The Life And Times Of America’s First Great Ski Racer, as told by the inimitable John Jerome:

“In the fall of 1941, a few months before the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, [the 17-time national championship ski racer] Dick Durrance got a call from a Jack Tappan, an army colonel, who asked if he was interested in training paratroopers for ski warfare. Washington had determined that the U.S. would probably soon be involved in a war in Europe, and part of it might be fought in the Alps in the winter.” At the end of that winter, Dick and his fellow instructors determined that “maybe a third of the troopers would become pretty good skiers, the middle third could get by, but the other third had better stay in the paratroopers and forget it.”

Just after Pearl Harbor, early elements of what became the 10th Mountain were activated. The planners decided to recruit active skiers and outdoorsmen who actually knew mountain sports, rather than convert standing regiments of troops, even highly trained paratroopers. Perhaps the lessons learned by Dick Durrance at Alta led to that wise decision.

Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

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Something Old. Something New.

I just read two books about trails.

The old one is American Skiing, published in 1939. It’s author, Otto Schniebs, was one of the Arlberg Technique pioneers in New England and contributed to the development of several areas.  He founded the American Ski School of Boston and coached at Dartmouth College and later at St. Lawrence University.

When was the last time you saw someone do this?

The first chapter, “Adventure on Skis in the Colorado Rockies,” is a colorful account of a Spring visit to the Elk Mountains between Aspen and Crested Butte. This was ’39 and Aspen didn’t start as a ski area until ’46; Crested Butte in ’62. Schniebs and his companions encounter a variety of terrain, snow and avalanches. The text is fun to read and is richly illustrated with photos. Throughout are page references to technique, which is covered in the next section, where he uses motion picture stills to explain a full range of ski moves ranging from those for beginners to achieving jump turns, and somersaults!

This is followed by ruminations about organizing ski areas, building trails and slopes, a single sentence on mechanical lifts, longer sections on ski patrol, developing instructors, ski schools, and equipment.

The book has many photos, including a fold-out panorama of the northern Adirondacks (Whiteface to Mt. Marcy to Redfield in Winter), a classic shot of Dick Durrance, skiers in Tuckerman’s Ravine, etc.

I’ve had my copy since 1962. Google shows first edition copies for less than $50.

The new book is On Trails: An Exploration, by Robert Moor. This New York Times Bestseller is a wonderful read. The information — it does not cover ski trials — is fascinating and presented with graceful and engaging prose. We accompany the author as he explores a multitude of ancient and modern trails. His observations take us into the realms of natural and human history, economics, philosophy, and literature. Who knew that studies of how ants travel have been digitized and the results used to inform flows in factories and warehouses? The trail and road walkers he encounters range from amusing to weird. I highly recommend On Trails. The pages turn on their own.

New Zealand

Mt Hutt has a 120″ base, and plans to remain open through October 15. The 6800’+ resort is one of the highest in New Zealand.

Vermont

Listed below are the deadlines for lowest season pass prices in Vermont. Note the threshold ages for skiing free (some may require a small processing fee).

  • Bolton Valley: September 25 Ski Free: 75
  • Bromley Mountain: October 15
  • Burke Mountain: October 9
  • Jay Peak Resort: October 9
  • Killington Resort: October 12 Ski Free: 80
  • Mad River Glen: October 15 Ski Free: 70
  • Magic Mountain: October 15
  • Middlebury Snow Bowl: November 30 Ski Free: 70
  • Mount Snow Resort: October 18
  • Okemo Mountain Resort: October 9
  • Pico Mountain: October 12 Ski Free: 80
  • Smugglers’ Notch Resort: October 31
  • Stowe Mountain Resort: October 8
  • Stratton Mountain Resort: October 9
  • Sugarbush Resort: September 13; Boomer Pass (Age 65-89) Price: $139; includes midweek, non-holiday skiing at Lincoln Peak and Mt. Ellen. Ski Free: 90

Other

Take five minutes and give yourself a treat. The Man at the End of the World is a beautiful video about an older couple living in Tierra del Fuego, Chile. If you enjoy the clip, click “like’ in the lower right corner to help it score well in a video competition.

 

 

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

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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?