Category Columns

This past weekend I revisited Cranmore, the first lift-served ski area I ever skied. I skied there in the mid-1950s as part of the local school’s afternoon ski program. On the drive to North Conway, I was trying to recall… Continue Reading →

Richard Spademan grew up in Michigan and learned to ski at Boyne Mountain. He chose to pursue a medical career and graduated from the University of Michigan medical school. As an intern he designed and patented a better vascular catheter… Continue Reading →

First some additional input on Gordon Lipe and his Release Check. Bill Kornrumpf is a Stowe Host and a member of the Schenectady Wintersports Club (SWC). He recalls that when he joined in 1967 the club had a Lipe Release… Continue Reading →

Toni Matt was a victim of the most common skiing injury during the early days of organized skiing. Granted Matt’s was a severe case, but broken legs were a common occurrence. Before World War II, it is estimated that the… Continue Reading →

Last week I wrote about how an injury motivated Carroll Reed to establish a ski school. But most people associate the Carroll Reed name with ski shops and clothing. It turns out that during his recovery from the broken back,… Continue Reading →

In the early 1930s the Eastern Slope region of New Hampshire was seeing the same growing interest in skiing as Stowe. And also similar to Stowe, skiing accidents would inspire organizations that would stand the test of time. Carroll Reed… Continue Reading →

Organized skiing in the United States began in the 1930s. Here in Stowe that was driven by Roland Palmedo and the Amateur Ski Club of New York. As I wrote last week, falling in those days was an integral part… Continue Reading →

“Know the Code!” Around most ski areas today you’ll see signs that define a Code of Conduct for skiers and riders. But even before there was lift-served skiing there was a Code of Conduct for skiers. Some of the elements… Continue Reading →

Last week I talked about the challenges of winter driving in the RetroSki era and the merits of the much-maligned Corvair. I received more Corvair responses after the paper’s deadline last week as Larry Heath and Bill Kornrumpf joined the… Continue Reading →

Powder days and first tracks are a skier’s dream. Getting to the ski area on a powder day can be a skier’s nightmare! Generally the same weather that produces a good powder day also produces miserable driving conditions. Add into… Continue Reading →