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[Read More…]
“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.] 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[Read More…]
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[Read More…]
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,[Read More…]
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[Read More…]
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[Read More…]
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[Read More…]
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[Read More…]
St. Bernard, The Doggie’s Namesake, Is An Actual Saint. [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[Read More…]
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[Read More…]
Dire Straits Require Heroic Acts. 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![Read More…]
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[Read More…]
Quaint Museum Reveals Steamboat Spring’s Rich History. 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[Read More…]
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.] The website says: “May 28, 2017[Read More…]
Remember Skiing On Wooden Skis With A Pine Tar Base And Lathered In Klistervox? Wasn’t That Long Ago. 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.[Read More…]
Western PA Pioneer Area Comes Back To Full Operation. 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[Read More…]
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?” The big red boxy thing is one of Cannon’s original tram cars from 1938.[Read More…]
A Personal Experience As Told To Alan K. Engen. 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[Read More…]
What Is Old Is New Again. 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[Read More…]
ISHA’s 2016 Skiing History Week at Aspen. 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![Read More…]
John Christie, Ski Industry Veteran, Re-Discovers His Love For Cross-Country Skiing. 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[Read More…]
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[Read More…]
From NSP Eastern Division Safety Team, Corinth, NY
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[Read More…]
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[Read More…]
