I sat in the back of the Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame induction with old friends and new friends. It was the final night of a great week that included tours of the Olympic facilities and a lot of snowboarding. As a newbie to the world of winter sports, I didn’t know many people in the snow sports world before getting invited to cover the events.
After getting the invitation to attend, I looked up those that were being inducted into the Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame. There were some names I recognized and some I never heard of.
The new members of the Ski and Snowboard Hall of fame are:
Sarah Billmeir: At a young age, Sarah lost her left leg to cancer, but still became one of the most decorated Paralympic alpine skiers of all time. She competed in the Winter Paralympic Games in the 1990s and early 2000s. During those years, she earned a total of 13 medals, including 7 gold. After retiring, she graduated from Harvard Medical School and is currently a surgeon at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and continues to be an advocate for adaptive sports.
Barrett Christy Cummins: When snowboarding first took off, Cummins held a prominent role in the blooming popularity. In the 90s, she earned multiple medals at the Winter X Games and represented the US in the 1998 Winter Olympics, where women’s snowboarding made a debut. Besides her work riding snowboards, she is also influential in designing snowboards for women. She was the first women’s snowboarder to have a trick named after her, called “The Barrett Roll.” She was named Transworld Female Snowboard Rider of the year twice.
Denny and Chris Hanson: The Hansons were pioneers in the ski boot industry. They started out as speed racers in the 50s and 60s and founded Hanson Ski Boots in the 70s. They were on a mission to create a comfortable performance ski boot. Their innovations inspired other companies to create their own version of rear-entry boots. Their boots have had a lasting impact on the industry, making skiing more inclusive and accessible.
Hannah Kearney: Hannah is a freestyle skier and collected gold in the 2010 Winter Olympics. She also won a bronze at the 2014 Winter Olympics and has won multiple World Cup titles and World Championship medals. She is one of the most decorated and popular athletes in her sport.
Greg Lewis: Lewis’s voice has long been in the background of some of ski racing’s most thrilling moments. Starting in the 70s, Lewis has covered the Summer and Winter Olympics for over 30 years, causing him to be a two-time Emmy nominee. He has written and narrated ski films and written for Skiing Magazine.
Jimbo Morgan: Jimbo was a groundbreaking freestyle skier who created the term “Freeski.” He was the first person to be photographed grasping skis in the air and was included on the US Speed Skiing Team from 1988 to 1992. His boundary pushing and intriguing personality helped several ski films find success. After his Olympic run, he transitioned to mountain skiing. 1n 1997, he organized, “Lords of the Boards,” a skiercross competition that united skiers and snowboarders.
Chuck and Jan Perkins: Icons of the ski industry, Chuck & Jan opened their Alpine Shop in Burlington, Vermont, in 1963. Their store became a skiers hotspot that has lasted for decades. Besides retail, the couple were passionate about ski history and desired to preserve the legacy of the sport. The skiing couple helped establish the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum in Stowe by raising funds and working the town to secure a home. Throughout their careers, they supported the 10th Mountain Division veterans and helped tell their stories.
Park Smalley: “The Father of Freestyle,” Park was the first coach of the US Freestyle Skit Team, leading his athletes to 7 Nations Cups, 114 World Cup victories, and 332 visits to podiums. Besides being a coach, he was an Olympic Freestyle commentator and helped establish the International Freestyle Skiers Association.
As I sat in a room full of expert snowboarders and skiers, I felt out of place. Growing up as a kid in Oklahoma with limited funds, I never had an opportunity to visit a mountain, let alone ride down one on skis or a snowboard. When I moved to Ohio as a teenager, I tried skiing once with a friend who grew up skiing, and that one trip wasn’t much fun since I did not know what I was doing. When my friends in college decided one late night to visit an all-night ski spot, I went along, but mainly sat at the bar while the others shredded on the slopes. I had no fascination with snow sports outside of watching the Olympics every 4 years.
And then one day while bartending, the X Games played on a TV behind me. Throughout that night of tossing drinks behind a bar, I would constantly glance up at the TV. The snowboarders all looked cool with their colorful gear and lifestyle. I instantly wished I had grown up near a mountain with extra cash to burn.
After that night, I would watch snowboarding competitions on TV whenever they were on, but resigned to the belief that I would never be cool enough to ride a board. Many years later, I got the chance.
My family went on a trip to Mont Tremblant and while everyone else rented skis and took classes, I got my first taste of snowboarding. I rented a board and quickly found out that snowboarding is hard. Not just hard, but almost impossible to pick up in the middle stages of life. Even with fall after fall, I loved it. Other snowboarders and skier flew around me, while I slowly traversed down the mountain. After that trip, I still wasn’t ready to commit to the snowboarding lifestyle and only went once a year on what became an annual snow trip to Tremblant. Three of my kids went with skiing while my youngest son picked up snowboarding. Whenever I snowboarded with my son, he aimed his board down the mountain, while I slowly made turns.
Then, this year the snowboarding bug fully took over. Maybe it was being 50 and trying to fit in all the things I wanted to do. I bought my first snowboard and used my Indy Pass to try out new mountains. I added snowboarding trips to my calendar and worked with snow sports brands and resorts. I’m still not fast, but I love being on the mountain as the crushing sound of snow flies up from my board.
As I sat in the back of the Herb Brooks Arena, with little to nothing in common with others in the room, I saw a common thread from the legends being honored on stage. Most of the newly inducted Hall of Famers spoke about the role their parents played in their lives. They had dads and moms that drove them to practices, events, and encouraged them to follow their dreams. They forked up cash so they could buy gear, pay for coaching, and provided means to take their dreams to the mountains. That was something I could relate to.
Being a dad, my ultimate goal is to see my kids succeed in whatever their dreams are. I’ve run my kids around from soccer practices and games, gone to music recitals, sat in rooms while chess tournaments went on, been on the PTA, and pushed my kids to follow their dreams. It’s hard to become a legend without parental support.
It was also lovely and encouraging to see the men and women on stage pass on their love for skiing and snowboarding to their children. Many of the hall of fame parents spoke about their children, often while choking up. You don’t need to be an expert to understand the love a parent has for a child.
To the newest Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame class, congratulations! And to the parents that helped provide the way to get there, congrats to you as well.
Here are some of my snowboarding stories:
Snowboarding Whiteface Mountain, Home of the 1980 Olympics
Playing Catchup: Being the slow one on the mountain during a family ski/snowboard vacation
Snowboarding in Ukraine
Feeling the Love for Black Mountain in New Hampshire
Snowboarding Gift Guide
Fleeing NYC to Hunter Mountain for a Quick Snowboarding Vacation
Snowboarding Tips for Beginners
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