Section B - The Vermont Standard
Transcription
Section B - The Vermont Standard
A Special Commemorative Edition of the nnivers A a h t WOODSTOCK r 5 Vermont Standard • FI • 34 20 19 09 VERMONT y 7 Section B RS O T T U I .S. SK W In cooperation with the Woodstock Resort Corporation and the Friends of Woodstock Winters March 12, 2009 WOODSTOCK The Pomo Lift newly installed at Suicide Six in 1954. (Photo Courtesy of Jonathan Robinson) 7 09 20 • FI • 34 The Gully House And Ski Hill Vermont Standard, Woodstock Thursday March 12 2009 19 1935 - 1950s nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT y Page Two-B RS TO T U .S. S KI- W THE GULLY House, left, was the epicenter of that ski hill. Above, skiers sun themselves and relax outside the Gully House. Henrietta Sharp, below, who won the 1941 Fisk Trophy. Clockwise from bottom left, Gully Swamp Tow in the 1940s. • Inside the Gully House, circa 1930s. • Ski legend, Sig Buchmayer sports a raccoon coat at the Gully. (Photos courtesy of the Friends of Woodstock Winters) 1937 - 1961 7 nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT Page Three-B y Vermont Standard, Woodstock • FI • 34 20 19 Suicide Six: The Early Years 09 Thursday March 12 2009 RS TO T U .S. S KI- W Bertram Leaves ‘The Gully’ To Open Suicide Six In 1937 By HEIDI WHITE Special To The Standard he next hill to succumb to Bunny’s entrepreneurial energy would be Suicide Six. He would have his eye on the hill for a few years before he could buy it, due to some difficulties in clearing the title for sale, but in 1937, the hill was his. He paid three dollars an acre for 30 acres, then bought the remaining land for $500. The hill was known as Seth Perry’s pasture at the time. It was also referred to as Hill number six on a topographical map that an expert had created for Bob Royce, when the innkeeper was thinking about building a ski tow. All six of the possible ski hills in town were numbered. After Bunny bought Hill number six, Dave Farrelly, a 1935 graduate from Woodstock Union High School remembers Bunny, Johnny Pulsifer, and himself winding down at the Village Tavern after a day of skiing the Gully. With the pitch of the hill in mind, they considered a number of treacherous sounding names. They would finally settle on Suicide Six, which had the alliterative sound that Bunny had hoped to achieve, having learned about alliteration in his high school English class. With the hill already cleared from years of pasturing sheep, Bunny had little clearing to do to get the hill skier-ready. Near the bottom, a small plateau had a number of stumps that he would have to remove. From Bunny’s 1979 interview, it appears that he blasted the stumps out, disturbing the concentration of a number of school children in the schoolhouse at the bottom of the hill as he did so. He did not make many friends with the teachers that year. On Christmas Day in 1937, Bunny brought in his first income from Suicide Six. By this time, there were many more skiers in the area from Boston and New York, so Suicide Six brought in a healthy crowd, keeping Bunny so busy with the ski tow that he rarely made it out to ski himself. He remembers standing at the vantage point of what was called the “military crest,” where he could observe the hill by looking up and down its slope. Early on, the hill became a favorite place for races. In those days, Bunny would advertise on the back of the Ski Bulletin, using the entire back page for an entry coupon that skiers would cut out, affix with a dollar bill, and place in an envelope to mail off to him. It didn’t matter what level skier you were in that day, everyone was welcome to race. On race day, everyone assembled at the top of the hill and with one start, the race began. One of the first races Bunny held were the NASTAR style races, in which skiers would speed down the steep Face with the hope of winning the gold, silver, or bronze stick pins Bunny offered. Alex Bright had set the time record at Suicide Six before Bunny placed a rope tow on the hill, at just over 57 seconds. Later, Tom Corcoran, who would go on to develop Waterville Valley in New Hampshire, would break the record nearly in half, speeding down in 27 seconds. He was able to do this after much studying of the course and marking it for the perfect path. When conditions were perfect, Corcoran rushed to the hill to do the timed trials, according to Bunny’s recorded account. Without the large grooming equipment of today, Bunny would groom the trails with the aid of three or four other men, hitting the trails with their snowshoes and skis, tamping down the snow until the end of the school day. Once the school kids were out for the day, he would have a bunch of them out on the hills to groom the rest. T AT LEFT, South Pomfret village overlooks the very early Suicide Six Ski Area. Below left, the popular skijoring in the 1940s. Below, Bunny Bertram enjoys a rare day off on the slopes. (Photos Courtesy of the Friends of Woodstock Winters and the Woodstock Historical Society) WINTER 802-457-1610 LEONARD’S GAS & ELECTRIC SERVICE RT 4 WEST, PO BOX 523 WOODSTOCK VT 05091 8AM - 5PM MONDAY-FRIDAY; 8AM - 12PM SATURDAYS GAS AND ELECTRIC SERVICE Providing the Woodstock community with professional service for over 56 years. CONGRATULATIONS TO GILBERT’S HILL ON 75 YEARS AND WOODSTOCK ON MAKING HISTORY ONCE AGAIN! SKI SALE 20% to 50% OFF Cunningham’s Ski Barn Since 1934 - oldest ski shop in the USA Great Prices & Quality Service Sales • Rentals Demos • Tune Ups SKI VOLKL, K-2, LINE SNOWBOARDS Heating • Sales & Service • Certified Technicians NITRO, K-2, VANS Come See Our New Addition To The Leonard’s Appliance Line: 1st pril rge A G o TIN rG RAF n Rive AFT so 88•R Hud 8 01-80 M’S Woodstock, Vermont • 1 Mile West of the Village on Route 4 802-457-1610 www.deadriver.com ski barn NGHA NI N U C CLOTHING BETTY RIDES KARBON • DNA Ascutney Mountain Resort Brownsville, VT 802-484-7000 North Creek, NY • 518-251-3215 Lake Placid, NY • 518-523-3706 www.cunninghamsskibarn.com 7 09 20 • FI • 34 Suicide Six: The Early Years Vermont Standard, Woodstock Thursday March 12 2009 19 1937 - 1961 nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT y Page Four-B RS TO T U .S. S KI- W Night Skating To Victrola Music Makes Woodstock Green A Hot Spot W hile the ski industry experienced its initial boom and settled into a calmer holding pattern throughout the thirties, visitors to Woodstock could enjoy any number of winter sports throughout the town. Undeveloped ski hills like Blake Hill on Route 4 and some on Dunham Hill and Mount Peg continued to attract skiers who were still willing to climb the hills unaided by newfangled tows. Snowshoeing enthusiasts could strike off on trail or in any direction they liked, and ice skating, which had historically been part of Woodstock winters found it’s way to The Green, though local memory differs on the exact time period of its arrival there. Joan Wilder Pearsons (recently deceased) remembered the rink in the early forties. In a January 23, 1997 article in the Vermont Standard, she wrote that the Woodstock Rotary Club, the Woodstock Fire Department, and the Woodstock Electric Company were generous contributors to the small rink, giving freely of their time and money in its creation. She also credits an unnamed light company for providing light for night skating, of which she was a big fan. Pearson’s father, a self-taught figure skater that enjoyed practicing his moves with figure skating book in hand, would create routines that the two would practice on The Green. They practiced their routines to background music produced by a 1920’s Victrola that they pulled out onto the ice in a sled. She describes how they would wind up the Victrola and skate for the two minutes allowed to them by player, then wind it again and return to their routine. The machine played Viennese Waltzes, Polkas, and Great American Marches. Later, the Woodstock Inn would use a set of loudspeakers to play music for the public. Pearsons told of professional skaters from New York and Boston that would stay at the Woodstock Inn and skate at the rink, much to the joy of onlookers. Farrelly places the rink further back in time, to the late twenties and thirties. In a 1997 article written by Kathie Wendling in her Vermont Standard column Historically Speaking, Wendling relays Farrelly’s memories of a rink where he practiced figure eights with his dad and played around with his hockey stick and puck. He remembers that Gillingham’s sold skates and eventually offered to sharpen skates with their patented skate grinder. CLOCKWISE from left, a poster promoting Bunny Bertram’s Suicide Six. • A scenic shot of Prosper Ski Hill when it was serviced by one long rope tow. • Gertrude Mertins skiing with Billy and Dana Emmons.• Ski jumping at Prosper Ski Hill in the 1940s. (Photos Courtesy of the Friends of Woodstock Winters and the Woodstock Historical Society) CONGRATULATIONS Dale R. Walters Mountain Wire Rope Service Aerial Tramway Wire Rope • Slicing • Repairs Inspection • Sales 507 Chestnut Street, Sunbury, PA 17801 Phone: 570-286-0644 Fax: 570-286-5134 email: [email protected] • www.splicr.com Skiing Heritage Journal…A must read packed with enlightening and entertaining articles which preserve skiing history and increase awareness of the Sport’s Heritage. Go to skiinghistory.org or call Jennifer Ament at 720-963-4204 to learn more, to subscribe to the quarterly Skiing Heritage, and to join ISHA. LIFT YOUR SPIRITS AT BENTLEYS! Over 30 Years Of Après-Ski In The Heart Of Woodstock, VT Serving Lunch, Dinner & Sunday Brunch Extensive Menus For Every Taste & Appetite Refreshing Cocktails • Regional Microbrews Great Live Music • Dancing After Dark Named one of twenty-Àve Widescreen Plasma & LCD Televisions “little-known hot spots” in the USA. Fantastic Daily Chef’s Specials Cosmopolitan Magazine Fun Children’s Menu Sept. 2007 Open Daily! www.bentleysrestaurant.com • Join Our New Facebook Group 3 Elm Street • Woodstock, Vermont • 802-457-3232 7 1937 - 1961 nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT Page Five-B y Vermont Standard, Woodstock • FI • 34 20 19 Suicide Six: The Early Years 09 Thursday March 12 2009 RS TO T U .S. S KI- W WWII Takes Its Toll On Ski Area Development Everywhere P rior to their purchase of the grinder, skaters got their skates sharpened by Tink Day or maybe at George Charon’s blacksmith shop for 25 cents. Farrelly remembered George Goodrow as the best figure skater in town and the only one to own skates with a “rocker bottom and the teeth on the toe end.” Farrelly started skating on double runners that strapped onto his winter boots and which made for unreliable bindings. The upgrade from those that strapped on were those that fastened with a clamp. Farrelly liked them better for hockey, but wasn’t truly happy with his skating equipment until he finally got a pair of shoe skates. Farrelly remembered the rink closing down in 1950. During World War II, much of the ski industry shut down and the government sent many of the most talented service-aged skiers in the northeast to train just outside of Leadville, Colorado, to be part of the 10th Mountain Division of the United States Army. According to Jeff Leich, the Executive Director of the New England Ski Museum in Franconia, New Hampshire, at the time, the War Department didn’t know anything about training troops for mountain warfare, so they outsourced the job to the National Ski Patrol, which was still young, having been formed in 1938. In order to become a soldier in the 10th Mountain Division, applicants were required to present three letters of recommendation and to fill out an application that asked a number of questions about the physical abilities and experiences of the applicant. Not every soldier went through that process, but most did. Once they were accepted into the Division, soldiers were trained in a facility in Colorado in what Leich describes as “probably the longest training regimen.” In 1945, the 10th Mountain Division arrived in Italy, where they engaged in mountain warfare in the Apennine Mountains in Italy. Over the course of World War II, they would lose 1,000 to death and 4,000 would leave wounded. According to Leich, the casualty rate ran near 25 percent of the troops sent into battle. The ski-ready troops were possibly disappointed to find that they would not have much of an opportunity to use their Alpine skills in Europe. The Division did not end up using skis in Italy, except in a few minor incidences. Most of the warfare required climbing and maneuvering in mountainous terrain. Their physically arduous training in the Rockies paid off in their ability to form an elite combat unit. Local historian and photographer Sherm Howe remembers John Jay, who joined the 10th Mountain Division in 1942. Jay was a well-known filmmaker who would spend his winters skiing and shooting film of his experiences, his summers splicing and developing the film into movies and his springs traveling from town to town showing his films. Howe remembers Jay bringing his films to Woodstock each month and laughing at the dry, humorous commentary that made Jay’s films a joy to watch. Jay would return from the 10th Mountain Division to continue film making and writing in 1945. When the troops came home from the war, many of the vets were integral in founding and developing ski areas across the United States from the fifties through the seventies. Skiers were no doubt thrilled when the Woodstock slopes opened up for business again. And so was Wallace “Bunny” Bertram, who had lost three years of income. Celebrating Our 21st Year Servicing Maine To Florida! *Reserve Your 2009 Wedding Plans, Garden Parties and All Special Events* AT LEFT, ski pioneer Bunny Bertram, far left, and Vermont Gov. Lee Emerson (2nd from right) join some colleagues in dedicating the poma lift at Suicide Six. Below left, the old Woodstock Inn. Below, skiers take a break at the Mount Tom Skiway base lodge overlooking the beginner slope. (Photos Courtesy of the Friends of Woodstock Winters and the Woodstock Historical Society) Congratulations On 75 Years! from John Durfee and all the staff at Bethel Mills A Full Service Florist — Beautiful House Plants — Dried Flowers From Around The World! Complete Interior Design Services Complete Residential Design Services Art — Lighting — Furniture Fabrics — And More RE-OPEN MID APRIL 2009 Call Naples, Fla. offi office ce to reserve your upcoming Vermont events! 239-261-7999 — 828-200-9742 28 Pleasant Street • Woodstock, VT 05091 • 1.802.457.1793 UNION ARENA COMMUNITY CENTER Congratulations Woodstock for contributing to another great piece of history! Happy 75th Gilbert’s Hill! Main St., Bethel, VT 802-234-9951 Congratulations Woodstock on 75 Years of Unique Ski History! Dynamic Business Solutions, Inc. Improving business life through technology Birthday Parties, Special Events, Public Skating, Facility Rentals 496-3 Woodstock Road, Woodstock, VT 05091 802-457-2500 www.unionarena.org www.D-B-S.com 7 09 20 • FI • 34 Suicide Six: The Early Years Vermont Standard, Woodstock Thursday March 12 2009 19 1937 - 1961 nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT y Page Six-B RS TO T U .S. S KI- W Poma Lift Installed In 1954 At Suicide Six For $40,000 A shortage of electricity after the war forced Bunny to run only one electric ski tow at a time, but nevertheless, he was back in business. A shack at the bottom of Suicide Six served as a lodge for the skiers. The building had seven windows out of which one could gaze up at the hill and a huge fireplace that fit four-foot logs according to Bunny’s account. Any injured skiers were brought to the lodge on a toboggan, on which they would lay in front of the fireplace until the doctor arrived to help them. The lodge served food and non-alcoholic drink to skiers but served mainly as a warming hut. Bunny never used a cash register during all of the years he ran the hill and, since he was constantly working the lifts and ensuring the safety of all aspects of the hill, he was lucky to have a friend he could trust with the money. Bill “Pearly” Wheeler had helped Bunny clear the trails of the Gully and continued to act as his head cashier at the hill, keeping careful watch on the money they brought in. Pearly had his own unique way of attending to the safety of Bunny’s income. According to Bunny’s account, Pearly used homemade moneybags to hold the bills and when one bag would fill to capacity, he’d hide it in the sand pile Bunny used to sand his road. Bunny soon found out what Pearly had done and asked him what would happen if somebody got their car stuck and grabbed some sand to help themselves out. One other time, Pearly hid a moneybag between Bunny’s bed mattresses and it wasn’t until spring cleaning time that Bunny found the money. If Pearly was peculiar in his habits, it did not seem to bother Bunny. Bunny trusted him completely and in his 1979 conversation with Emerson, said, “he made me feel ashamed of myself, he was so honest.” As ski lift technology advanced across the country, a man named Ernie Constam patented many of the lifts. In a move that would ultimately prevent him from keeping up with the competition and therefore would mean the loss of revenue, Bunny refused to pay the patent holder for his rights. It was not until 1954 that Bunny would purchase a Poma lift for $40,000. As with the rope tow, things were bound to go wrong and it was just before Washington’s birthday when all 90 of the hangers on the Poma lift stretched, according to Bunny’s account. Bunny had to remove all of the hangers and their springs and haul them to Worcester, Mass., where the springs were replaced just in time for the president’s birthday. The Poma lift increased Bunny’s capacity exponentially, making it possible to lift 950 skiers in one hour. It placed the hill in an entirely different league By 1961, Bunny was ready to pass the responsibility of the hill to new ownership, selling it to Laurance Rockefeller. In his 1979 taped interview, Bunny admitted that he was relieved to “get rid of it.” “Things were getting more expensive all the time,” said Bunny, who had enjoyed free electricity and free hill rental during the earliest days of his career in the ski industry. “The competition was so great, you know, with these other areas all around and all that…And the work was getting pretty hard, too.” Bunny would miss the work for a while, but would continue to enjoy the afterglow of nearly thirty years of memories of races, ski tow snafus and friends earned along the way. He would go on to work in Construction until November of 1978. In 1981 he was inducted into the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame in recognition of his contributions to the birth and growth of the sport of modern-day skiing. SKI GUESTS arrive at the Woodstock Inn in the 1950s, left. Butch Sutherland, below, Woodstock’s present day fire chief, was the Vermont high School Slalom Champ and New England Giant Slalom Champ in 1957. Woodstock High School Ski Team in 1957, left below, left to right, Bob Summers, Bob Lewis, Allen Sawyer, Jim Ransehousen, Dwight Camp, Lindley “Butch” Sutherland, Peter Hall, Paul Sawyer and Coaches Brown and Kasprzak. (Photos courtesy of the Friends of Woodstock Winters and Butch Sutherland) THE FOLLOWING SPONSORS SUPPORT AND ENCOURAGE WOODSTOCK’S UNIQUE SKI HISTORY Juniper Hill Inn & Cornish Colony Art Museum Vermont Country Real Estate The Woodstock Gallery Your Source For Vermont Real Estate From Folk Art To Fine Art Windsor, VT Find Out Why Woodstock Area Sellers And Buyers Are Now Looking To juniperhillinn.com cornishcolonymuseum.com Congratulations To Woodstock And Our Entire Region For Its Proud History Of Skiing & Winter Activities Woodstock Beverage Route 4 East Woodstock, Vermont 802-457-1326 VERMONT COUNTRY REAL ESTATE 802-457-0000 1211 Route 12 Woodstock, VT 05091 Featuring SABRA FIELD’S New Print Of Suicide Six ‘Snow Light’ Come See Sabra Field’s Prints And Our Selection Of Regional Artists The Yellow Gallery Across from Bentley’s 802-457-2012 VermontCountryRealEstate.com www.woodstockgalleryvt.com White River Toyota Simple Energy 303 Sykes Ave. White River Jct., VT 99 North Main St. West Lebanon, NH 802-299-2800 802-457-2851 603-298-7200 www.whiterivertoyota.com Celebrating Our 4th Year As A President’s Award Dealer www.simpleenergy.biz Vermont Standard, Woodstock Thursday March 12 2009 Page Seven-B 7 Vermont Standard, Woodstock 09 Thursday March 12 2009 • FI • 34 20 19 Winter Fun In Woodstock Wasn’t Just About Skiing nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT y Page Eight-B RS TO T U .S. S KI- W CLOCKWISE FROM TOP, metal skis acted as a runner on these “ski planes” that flew across Silver Lake in Barnard. • A winning ski plane operator poses proudly for the camera. • Mary French (far left), mother of Mary French Rockefeller, enjoys a Travis Sled with some friends. • An up and coming flyer has some fun with a ski plane. Snow rolling at the Gulley. (Photos Courtesy of the Friends of Woodstock Winters, Dan Atwood and Harold Parsons) DIESEL AUTOMOBILE Congratulations TECHNICIAN POSITION Woodstock Now Available at TED GREEN FORD On 75 Years Excellent Benefits, Paid Vacations, Uniforms, Health Insurance Provided. Applicant must have own l d bOldest ForddDealer!” f “New England’s Of Unique Ski History. Rt.100 Stockbridge,VT 802.234.5301 www.tedgreenford.com 800.649.1913 Ci Commercial Interiors & Lodging Suppliers, Inc. Specializing in Commercial Furnishings & Supplies Restaurant Supplies & Equipment • Design Services Thom Rothfuss Account Executive Vermont Office: Customer Service: (800) 839-9403 2217 Maple Street Fax: (603) 595-0664 Waltham, Vermont 05491 Cell: (802) 349-8856 Phone & Fax: (802) 877-2463 [email protected] Spring Fling at Bromley Mountain Saturday and Sunday, March 21& 22 All Day Lift Tickets $39! “If you can find a resort that feels relaxed and welcoming on the busiest day of the season, you have found a true friend. Families, meet Bromley. You’re going to get along just fine.” – SKI Magazine www.bromley.com Current Conditions: 866-856-2201 WE SPEAK SKIING!!! Henderson’s Ski & Snowboards 256303 Route 4, Quechee, VT (802) 295-1973 • 9:00AM - 6PM “Run By Skiers & Riders For Skiers & Riders” visit us at: www.hendersonskis.com Route 11, 6 miles from Manchester, VT 802-824-5522 7 1961 - Present nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT Page Nine-B y Vermont Standard, Woodstock • FI • 34 Suicide Six: The Resort Years 20 19 09 Thursday March 12 2009 RS TO T U .S. S KI- W Rockefeller Buys Mt. Tom, Suicide Six Ushering In Resort Era By JONATHAN ROBINSON, Special To The Standard y late 1950s and early 1960s, the ski industry was in a rapid ascent throughout the country, with new ski areas opening every year. Many of the older, smaller ski centers which had been around since the earliest days, found themselves increasingly one-upped by larger areas with more lifts, longer trails and more snow-making capability. It was during this peak period that New England had more ski areas than at any other time in history. With that great expansion, however, came inevitable dangers, namely, unsustainable growth. A great number of smaller rope-tow type areas found it impossible to compete, eclipsed by the ever-increasing tide of bigger and better mountains. Despite its rich and celebrated history, Pomfret’s Suicide Six could very well have been one of those destined for the scrap heap of forgotten areas. Even though the first ski lift in the U.S. got its start only a ridge away, by 1961, ski pioneer Bunny Bertram was realizing how difficult it was to “play with the big boys”. It only took a span of five years to change the ski area calculus in the immediate region, with the addition of Ludlow’s Okemo in 1956 and Killington Basin in 1958, right in Woodstock’s backyard. With increased local competition for skier dollars, not to mention all of the other places in New England (and beyond) that folks could go to ski at that time, small areas like Suicide Six felt the squeeze. When asked if he (Bunny) thought he might like to get back into the ski business again in a January, 1979 interview in Skiing Magazine, Bunny told Paul Robbins: “No sir. I thought I was damn lucky to get out of the business, and I still do. I wasn’t exactly working on a shoestring, but it was close to it. Where would I be with the jumps in insurance, fuel, energy and labor? No sir, it was fun and the memories are pleasant…but I don’t have the slightest desire to be back in the middle of it.” In retrospect, and with that quote in mind, 1961 proved to be the perfect time for Laurance S. Rockefeller to come along. Third of the four grandsons of industrialist John D. Rockefeller, Laurance Spelman Rockefeller had a long and storied connection to Woodstock. It was here that, in 1934, he married Mary Billings French, granddaughter of Frederick Billings, at the Woodstock Congregational Church. Over the following years he would develop a native’s devotion to the area. Throughout the rest of his life he was continually involved with preservation and civic improvement projects in the pursuit of keeping Woodstock the pristine, storybook New England town it had always been. B 9Ê-Ê,*",/-Ê JÊ- -° " MT. TOM SKI AREA, also owned by Laurance Rockefeller, shown above in summer, was a location where many children first learned to ski. Shown below and inset, the construction of the ski lifts at Mt. Tom in the 1960s. Left, Clarence “Red” Mills operating the main lift at Mt. Tom with an unknown child. (Photos courtesy of the Woodstock Historical Society and Jim Mills) .%7Ê-"*Ê" L>ÃÃ ««}°V CELEBRATING OUR TH 50 ANNIVERSARY thank you And a Happy 75th Anniversary to the ÀUVWVNLWRZLQ$PHULFD on Gilbert’s Hill in Woodstock, VT " /ÊÓ°nÊ-Ê1*Ê/Ê /" Ê," "* Ê,9Ê1 /Ê /ÊÊÊnäÓ{ÓÓÎÓÎ{ Insuring the ski industry for 47 of its 75 years. For more information contact: Bo Adams, [email protected] MountainGuard Insurance Program 1 New Hampshire Ave, Suite 200 Portsmouth, NH 03801 603-334-3002 www.mountainguard.com 7 1961 - Present nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT Vermont Standard, Woodstock y Page Ten-B • FI • 34 Suicide Six: The Resort Years 20 19 09 Thursday March 12 2009 RS TO T U .S. S KI- W Suicide Six Is 2nd Ski Area In VT To Have Snowmaking Ability W hatever it was that Rockefeller was doing to help preserve the town, he always felt that he was doing it to protect “Mary’s hometown” as they’d come to think of it. Much has been written about Rockefeller’s conservation and beautification efforts in Woodstock over the last 70 years, from the burying of electric and phone lines in town, to his building renovations, as well as his continual work at Billings Farm & Museum and the creation of the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park. He certainly spared no expense in securing for the town a future whereby any new developments would gracefully coexist with those already established. Within the first two to three winters (1960-63) under Rockefeller’s new ownership at the Mt. Tom Ski Area, the two old rope tows were replaced by two Poma lifts, snowmaking was installed along with a new “snow packer” (groomer). A new warming hut was built with a cafeteria, first aid room and sun deck. Mt. Tom had opened with its first rope tow in 1936 as Jim Parker’s Ski School and Tow, later as the (Johnny) Pulsifer Tow in the 1940s, and then owned and operated by Maurice Wood throughout the 1950s. It was during that last period that Spencer Field, a local skier since the early 1940s, taught skiing at Mt. Tom, before becoming Bunny Bertram’s first paid ski patroller at Suicide Six in 1955. During the Rockefeller years, Mt. Tom continued as a place for family skiing, as well as being a “feeder” hill for Suicide Six for the next 20 years, where newer skiers would cut their teeth on the gentler slopes of Mt. Tom before heading up the road to the far greater challenges that Six offered. By 1979, skier visits were down to where it was deemed necessary to scale back the operation and only offer skiing on weekends and holidays for the following winter of 1979-80. Unfortunately, Mother Nature failed the northeast miserably that winter. That season’s two six-inch snowfalls in March only hastened the decision to close Mt. Tom altogether. In 1961, the year after the purchase of Mt. Tom, Rockefeller bought Suicide Six from Bunny Bertram, who, after 27 years and three ski areas later, was ready to get out of the business for good. Of course, the thought of an outsider coming in to take over two small, local family ski areas did not sit well with many of the regulars. Waves of local resentment reverberated. Rockefeller had purchased the two ski areas, the Woodstock Country Club, the White Cupboard Inn and other properties, reminding many of Laurance’s father, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and his similar efforts to restore Colonial Williamsburg (VA) earlier in the century. Locals saw no reason to “restore” Woodstock-- they thought it was fine just the way it was--although the creeping gentrification, both in town and at the ski areas, was hard to ignore. One of the first changes in this new era was the installation of a snowmaking system, only four years after Vermont’s first man-made snow success at nearby Mt. Ascutney in 1957. The system was put together by three employees of the Woodstock-based Poma company: Paul “Reds” Ostrowsky, Clarence “Red” Mills and Bob Pearsons, who would later go on to work at Suicide Six for 40 years. These gentlemen were also responsible for much of the trail clearing and lift installations at many other ski areas, including Stowe, Sugarbush and Okemo, among others. Claude Gaudin was the manager of both Six and Tom from the 1950s until the early 1970s, when he died unexpectedly during a trip to Australia. THE ORIGINAL Warming House at Suicide Six, above, built by Rockefeller in the 1960s. Laurance and Mary French Rockefeller, left, announcing plans for Vermont’s first National Park, The Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Park, early 1990s. Suicide Six, below, showing the Warming House and earlier Lodge, both demolished to make way for the present day structure. The Rockefeller’s at the opening of the new Woodstock Inn and Resort in November of 1969 with Governor Deane Davis, below left. (Photos Courtesy of the Woodstock Historical Society and Jonathan Robinson) VERMONT’S VERY BEST... 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WRIGHT & REEVES, PLC established 1898 P.O. Box 239 • Woodstock, Vermont • 802.457-2400 Plumbing & Heating Deep Well Pump Handling Equipment Deep Well Pump Handling Equipment Radiant Heating Systems Complete Water Systems Complete Water Systems Water Conditioning Water Conditioning New Construction New Construction Renovations Renovations Oil Burners Oil Burners 24 HOUR PLUMBING & HEA TING SER VICE AT RV Dishwashers • Disposals • Compactors acknowledges with grateful appreciation the support of our clients, colleagues & the Woodstock community over the past 32 years. We look forward to continuing to serve our clients in the following areas: Sunset Farm Office THOMAS P. WRIGHT DAVID W. REEVES Estate Planning & Trusts Real Estate Corporations & Partnerships Personal Injury Employment Law Family Law Trial & Dispute Resolution Sunset Farm Offices, Suite 1A • Woodstock, VT 05091 Phone: (802) 457-2268 • Fax (802) 457-2270 7 09 20 • FI • 34 Suicide Six: The Resort Years Page Eleven-B Thursday March 12 2009 19 1961 - Present nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT y Vermont Standard, Woodstock RS TO T U .S. S KI- W Woodstock Resort Opens New Ski Touring Center H e was succeeded by Bob Pearsons, who had been working under him at Mt. Tom in 1960 and at Suicide Six starting the following year. Bob finally retired in 2001 after 40 years of remarkable service, handing the reins over to long-time mountain employee Bruce Maxham, who continues as mountain manager to this day. In January, 1964, on the 30th anniversary of the first American ski tow on Gilbert’s Hill, then-Governor Phillip H. Hoff dedicated an historic marker by the roadside at the site. Many in attendance at the ceremony included those who were there on the day it started, regaling the crowds with colorful tales of their early visits. That roadside monument still stands today as a testament to the dedication of those skiing pioneers. Throughout the 1960s and 70s, Suicide Six and Mt. Tom served as sister areas, with a lift ticket that was good at both areas. To reduce the confusion caused by another Mt. Tom ski area of the same name in Holyoke, Mass., Suicide Six and Mt. Tom were marketed as Woodstock’s Six and Tom through much of the 1970s. With that title, it also connected the two areas in skiers’ minds with the town of Woodstock. These efforts to lure skiers to Woodstock had varying degrees of success, but the two areas always were seen as havens for the locals. This created an atmosphere of community and togetherness that could be seen in the face of every youngster that skied there. It may have been owned by Rockefeller, but you wouldn’t have known it by talking to any of those young skiers. They always thought of it as “their” mountain! It was with that realization that the future of local skiing, and skiing in general, resided in the hopes of the young skiers eager to take up this great American pastime. With that in mind, Spencer Field and Jimmy Mills, under the aegis of the Woodstock Ski Runners Club, instituted a program in the late 1960s and early 70s to distribute 100 pairs of skis each year to local kids who were without equipment. This, along with the club’s Friday afternoon free skiing program, aimed to foster their interest and love of the sport, thereby helping to create the next generation of local skiers. Unfortunately, after a few years, the free ski distribution was deemed an unacceptable insurance risk and the program was stopped. The Friday afternoon ski program continues to this day,. Around 1970, the year after the new Woodstock Inn opened, the Inn debuted its ski touring center for the cross-country devotees that were growing in number at that time. The Nordic Center, based in the winter at Woodstock Resort’s Country Club, grew over the years to nearly 75 km of trails and meadow runs through the golf course and on Mt. Tom as well. It continues to this day as one of the premier touring facilities in New England. For 20 years after its rope tows were replaced by Poma lifts in 1954, Suicide Six had soldiered on as a smaller, yet quite potent ski area, as well as a fertile breeding ground for hopeful ski racers. It had become widely believed since its inception in 1937, that if you were good enough to ski down the Face, it was only because you were equally tough enough to ride the rope tow (and later the Poma lift) all the way to the top. By the mid70s though, things were about to change again. To further the progress of the ski area, the summit Poma lift was replaced by a new, 2,000-foot double chairlift in 1976, a move which was roundly applauded. Ski Industry Icon BUNNY BERTRAM, above, in his later years. Bunny with Santa Claus, below, at Suicide Six in the late 1970s. Left, standing beside the trail at Suicide Six that bears his name in 1978. 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Because of this success, we have become a leading distributor of Foodservice disposables, Janitorial, Packaging, and Of¿ce Supplies in Vermont and New Hampshire. www.wrpaper.com Congratulations and thank you Woodstock for enhancing our wonderful winters with the joy of modern day skiing! 10 x 16 Run-in Shed Reg. $3,745 Now $2,996 SAVE $749 NEW SPRING INVENTORY ARRIVING WEEKLY Financing Available • FREE Delivery within 50 miles • Sales Ends 3/30/09 Previous sales excluded • not to be combined with other offers from Choose -stock in 0 over 20 Limited Winter Hours - Call for Assistance • www.gardentimeinc.com 1091 US Rt. 7 North, Rutland 05701 • (802)747-0700 652 Quaker Road, Queensbury, NY 12804 • (518)793-8555 7 1961 - Present nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT Vermont Standard, Woodstock y Page Twelve-B • FI • 34 20 19 Suicide Six: The Resort Years 09 Thursday March 12 2009 RS TO T U .S. S KI- W 1st National Snowboarding Championship Held At Suicide Six H owever, that same summer also saw a change that was not as well-received as the new lift. After years of seeing the monstrous mogul fields that sprouted on the Face winter after winter, it was deemed a good idea to try and tame the slope, or at least, a good portion of it. That was done by reshaping the contour of the Face with a bulldozer, creating a shelf of sorts, which now acts as a boulevard across the middle of the steep, open slope. This move was seen as an improvement by some, but many local old-timers saw it as something akin to drawing a mustache on the Mona Lisa. Though slightly de-fanged, much of the Face will still drain the blood from many a tyro’s countenance. Two years later, in the summer of 1978, the new $400,000 base lodge was built, with gorgeous high-beamed ceilings and towering windows facing the slopes. It was a fantastic upgrade from the old warming hut, which, over the years had been cobbled together like a house-that-Jack-built chicken coop. That summer also saw the 1,200-foot Poma lift replaced by a new 1650-foot double chairlift and increased snowmaking coverage to two-thirds of the mountain. In 1979, Paul Graves, now of Reading, went insane on a snurfer — a precurser to a snowboard — at the Annual Snurfer Contest in Michigan. He did flips, bent down on the board halfway through, and did four sliding 360s. Also in 1979, Graves appeared riding a Snurfer in a LaBatt’s beer commercial. The history of snowboarding has finally begun to include more than just a handful of people. People all over Canada and the northern U.S. saw Graves in the commercial and wanted to try it out for themselves. In 1982, a very important part of the history of snowboarding took place. Paul Graves organized the very first National Snowboarding Championships at Suicide Six Ski Area in Woodstock. Sports Illustrated, Good Morning America, and The Today Show all covered some aspect of the contest. Throughout Suicide Six’s history, ski racing has always played an integral part, dating back to 1937 and the annual races that were put on by the Woodstock Ski Runners. That year, which was the sixth annual event, the race was renamed The Fisk Trophy Race, after Mrs. Harvey (Elizabeth) Fisk who donated the silver bowl which bears her name. First won by U.S. Olympic Ski Team member Alexander Bright, the Fisk Trophy Race is the longest running individual ski race in the country. Suicide Six has also played host to countless other races, from the local interscholastic and collegiate races to the Junior Class III and IV Championships, as well as hosting the New England Masters’ Bunny Bertram Memorial Race. Shopping for a New Kitchen... PAUL GRAVES of Reading, pictured at left at the 1982 Snowboard Nationals at Suicide Six and below right in 1977 at Powder Ridge Ski Area in Connecticut, is regarded as a pioneer of snowboarding and was National Freestyle “Snurfboard” Champion in the late 1970s. Inset, the first known prototype for a snowboard and an early snurfer board. At below left, Will Peabody streaks down “Six” on an early snowboard. (Photos Courtesy Paul Graves) Bruno Associates, Inc., P.C. Route 4 East, The Mill • P.O. Box 387 Woodstock, Vermont 05091 802.457.3560 (fax) 802.457.4853 PROFESSIONAL CIVIL ENGINEERS in VT & NH LICENSED LAND SURVEYORS LICENSED WASTEWATER DESIGNERS PLANNERS COMPLETE CIVIL DESIGN LARGE & SMALL SCALE DEVELOPMENT FEASIBILITY STUDIES PERMIT CONSULTING • brunoassociates.com • • Upscale & Affordable Kitchens • Offering Countertops in Corian, Formica, and Granite • Our Kitchen Professionals Feature 20-20 Computer Design Free Estimates Installations Available MT. TOM FARMERS MARKET • OPEN MAY - OCTOBER • Open Saturdays 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Plenty of Free Parking Mt. Tom parking Lot, Route 12, 1/2 Mile North of Woodstock Congratulations On 75 Years! Baked Goods - Plants - Produce - Pickles - Jams Local Meats - Crafts - and soooo much more! Rain Or Shine 7 1961 - Present nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT Page Thirteen-B y Vermont Standard, Woodstock • FI • 34 Suicide Six: The Resort Years 20 19 09 Thursday March 12 2009 RS TO T U .S. S KI- W Bourdon Memorial Race, Friends Of Woodstock Winters Created S uch an emphasis helped spawn many accomplished ski racers, including Lindley “Butch” Sutherland, 1984 Olympic downhiller Peter Field (son of Spencer), and many more. In 1999, the Bob Bourdon Memorial Race was inaugurated by a group of local ski historians, The Friends of Woodstock Winters. The Bourdon Race was a four-event relay race created to benefit the Bob Bourdon Memorial Scholarship Fund, which was awarded to an aspiring winter sports athlete from the Woodstock area. The “Bourdon Man” award that year went to Charlie Kimbell, the all-event winner. Unfortunately, for organizational reasons, the race was only run in 1999, but the work of The Friends of Woodstock Winters continues. The Friends group was incorporated on August 11, 1994. Founders included Sherman Howe, his wife Anne F. (Petie) Howe (daughter of Elizabeth Fisk), their daughter Margaretta Howe, Coleman Hoyt and John Wiggin. The group’s mission, as stated in its 2003 newsletter, was to collect, preserve and display items of Woodstock ski history for the education and enlightenment of the local population, to serve as a resource for local winter historical research and to encourage the continuation and expansion of winter sports in the area. The year after it began, the Friends staged their first race at Six, The Bob Bourdon Inferno Race, down Six’s Back Scratcher trail, on March 3, 1996. The group was also instrumental in organizing this year’s festivities celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the inauguration of the country’s first rope tow on Gilbert’s Hill. Today, the core group of the Friends consists of Sherm and Grettie Howe, Paul Bousquet, whose family started Bousquet’s Ski Area in Pittsfield, Mass., back in 1935 and Phil Camp, publisher of the Vermont Standard. Phil was also the first director of the New England Ski Areas Council (NESAC), which was first organized in 1968 (and headquartered in Woodstock) to collect and disseminate the snow and ski reports of the day. Snow reporting until that time was a very loose arrangement, without any firm guidelines or rules to be of any serious use to the skiing public. NESAC was the first clearinghouse of its kind for gathering snow condition information from the ski areas and then sending it out to the news services for the public’s use in deciding which area had the best conditions and snowfall. They were considered to be the first independent service of its kind. By the early 1970s, the demand for the service expanded beyond New England and the name was changed to NESAC/Snocountry Worldwide. In 1997, after 30 years of service, Phil passed the reins to Tom Cottrill, who continues as director today. Since its creation in 1892, the Woodstock Inn has been the focal point in POLARIS RANGER: HARD WORKING, LEFT, a map of various trails at Suicide Six. Above, Skiers in front of the old warming house at Suicide Six. Below right, the new Union Arena exemplified the evolution of winter recreation in Woodstock. Below left, the present day lodge at Suicide Six. Inset, a helicopter transports a Poma lift tower at Suicide Six. (Photos by Rick Russell and Courtesy of the Friends of Woodstock Winters) town for visitors from around the world. During its first heyday in the late1800s through the first third of the next century, under the management of Arthur Wilder, the Inn offered its guests all manner of activities and amusements, none more popular than those enjoyed during the winter months. There was skiing, tobogganing, ice skating, snowshoeing, sleigh rides and much more to keep the guests coming back year after year. Except for a few years during the Depression when the Inn was closed during the winter months due to financial constraints and poor snow, the Inn has had a long tradition of treating its guests with the utmost in service, quality and great dining. THE POLARIS RANGER IS THE HARDEST WORKING, SMOOTHEST RIDING OFF-ROAD UTILITY VEHICLE YOU CAN BUY. When Laurance Rockefeller bought the old Inn in 1968 and built the current one behind it as its replacement, a new chapter was born in Woodstock history. As it has done for more than 100 years, the Woodstock Inn continues to provide an unequaled experience for its guests, with yearround activities for all interests. • I am very grateful for the help of the those without whose help this article could not have been written: Sherm Howe, Spencer Field, Grettie Howe, David Donath, Stu Repp, John Wiggin, Phil Camp, Jimmy Mills, Bob Pearsons and Tom Cottrill. Quechee Junction Route 4 & I-89 296-6617 • Exclusive, available Electronic Fuel Injection • Exclusive Lock & Ride™ Cargo System • Loading Payload, Towing & Cargo capabilities • Legendary Smooth Polaris Independent Rear Suspension Congratulations on 75 Years!! • Exclusive Seating for Three L.W. GREENWOOD & SONS, INC. E. RANDOLPH, VT 802.728.5453 313 Vt. 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Spring¿eld, VT BENCHES • 802-886-2221 Cash & Carry or Professionally Installed • In-Season: M-F 7-5 Sat 9-12 • Winter: M-F 8-5 Professional Installation 802-886-8585 Division of Springfield Fence Gate Automation 7 09 20 • FI • 34 Woodstock Pulls Out All The Stops In ‘84 Vermont Standard, Woodstock Thursday March 12 2009 19 50th Celebration nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT y Page Fourteen-B RS TO T U .S. S KI- W Bringing Gilbert’s Tow Back To Life CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT, Bruce Gould, Chet Williamson, Tom Wright (kneeling), Bill Alsup, Bill Currier and Phil Camp helped engineer the reenactment of the nation’s first ski tow on its 50th anniversary. • The state historic marker commemorating the first ski tow. • The Tenth Mountain Division “Pando Commandos” put on a real show. • The view from the top of Gilbert’s Hill before the relay race. • Cecilia Hoyt dons a 1930s outfit in the DuPont Vintage Skiwear Competition. • Gov. Richard Snelling (left) and a friend wait for their turn at the rope tow. • A smiling Sel Hanna at the skiwear contest. • The “Skiing Governor” Richard Snelling.• Bill Hoyt (left) and Frankie O’Rear enjoy a snowy moment. • The ski tow in full force. • Bob Bourdon steps up to the newly invigorated rope tow. (Photos Courtesy of the Friends of Woodstock Winters and the Woodstock Historical Society) 7 09 20 • FI • 34 Woodstock Community Remembers ‘34 Page Fifteen-B Thursday March 12 2009 19 75th Celebration nnivers ar hA 5t WOODSTOCK VERMONT y Vermont Standard, Woodstock RS TO T U .S. S KI- W CLOCKWISE from left, a line of flags marks the route of the Gilbert’s Hill rope tow. • Woodstock resident Bill Blaiklock presses on during the Union Arena’s Winter Triathlon. • From left to right, State Rep. Mark Mitchell, Woodstock’s Winterfest Coordinator Charlie Kimbell, Gov. Jim Douglas, Dorothy Douglas and State Rep. Alison Clarkson pose for a shot at the Fisk Trophy Race at Suicide Six. • The historic house at the bottom of Gilberts Hill. • At the Winterfest Film Festival are local students Andrew Holson, Galin Foley and Charlie Kahn. • Maggie Parker, 6, and her mom, Shelly hit the dance floor at the Suicide Six lodge. • Peter Schouw of Connecticut at the Winter Triathlon. •Bobby Farrell tackles the Fisk Race course. (Rick Russell, Dan Powell Photos) DOMINION GRANITE INC. Granite - Quartz - Marble - Slate Happy 75th! Proud to be part of your celebration. NORMAND La LaPENNA Owner [email protected] P.O. Box 305 Beebe Plain Vermont 05823 1-800-567-2747 Fax: 1-819-876-7644 Page Sixteen-B Thursday March 12, 2009 C O N G E X C E E D R A T Y O U R U L Vermont Standard, Woodstock A T I O N S E X P E C T A T I O N S For almost 115 years, The Granite Group has been a full service wholesale distributor of plumbing, heating, cooling & water supplies. 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