History of skiing
Encyclopedia
Skiing
, or traveling over snow on wooden runners, has a recorded history of almost five millennia.
The first hints to the existence of ski
s are on 4500 to 5000 year old
rock drawings, e.g. at Rødøy
in Norway
(discovered 1933) or at Steinkjer
(discovered 2001), which depict a man on skis holding a stick. The oldest known ski, Kalvträskskidan
was found in 1924 in a mire near the village of Kalvträsk in the municipality of Skellefteå
, Sweden
, and has been carbon dated to roughly 3200 B.C. The earliest people to ski in Fennoscandia
were the distant ancestors of modern day Sami
. One of the earliest names used for the Sami was skridfinner/scricfinni/scritefinni/σκριϑίψινοι, which may be roughly translated as "skiing Sami".
The word ski
goes back to the Old Norse
word skíð meaning "a stick of wood"http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ski,http://www.bartleby.com/61/81/S0448100.html. In modern Norwegian this word is usually pronounced ˈʃiː. This word is now used in most languages in the world. Languages like English
and French
use the original spelling "ski", and modify the pronunciation. Languages like Italian
pronounce it exactly as in Norwegian
, and modify the spelling: "sci". German
and Spanish
adapt the word to their linguistic rules; "Schier" (however there is a form- Ski) and "esquí". Interestingly, many languages make a verb form out of the noun, such as "to ski" in English, "esquiar" in Spanish, "sciare" in Italian, or "schilaufen" (as above also Ski laufen or Ski fahren) in German which is not possible in Norwegian. In Swedish, a close relation to Norwegian, the word is "skidor" (pl.). However Finnish language
has its own ancient words for skis and skiing. In Finnish ski is suksi and skiing is hiihtää. The original European skiers, the Sami, also have their own words for skis and skiing. For example, the Lule Sami
word for ski is "sabek" and skis is "sabega".
in Asia. This is not verified. Also skis may have been used in Europe during and after the ice age
. All in all there are three different types of skis in the North of Europe and Asia:
s go back to two roots:
, from Morgedal
in Telemark
, Norway
has often been called the father of modern skiing for inventing the equipment and techniques that led to modern skiing as we see it today. Having grown up in the farmlands of Norwegian Telemark, Norheim invented a “birch” binding that enabled skiers to ski without the risk of losing their skis. Then, in 1870, Norheim introduced a short, curved, flexible ski he crafted in order to allow for easy turning in soft snow. Norheim, at the age of forty-three, went on to become the winner of the first Norwegian national skiing competition in Christiania (modern day Oslo
).
It is possible, however, that he actually did not invent anything, since there is little evidence to prove that he did. The story about Sondre as the father of modern skiing was largely constructed in Norway from the 1930s, especially in connection with the Olympic Winter Games in Oslo
in 1952. Most of the inventions attributed to Norheim were known a long time before him. Even still, Sondre Norheim proved an inspiration for generations.
Modern recreational skiing depended heavily on mechanized transport. Mountain resorts became commercially viable when city folk could reach them in winter by train beginning in 1868, and with the development of electrically-driven funiculars and aerial tramways beginning around 1880 (Karl Bittner, "Milestones in Ropeway History," 1984, Internationale Seilbahn-Rundschau).
Events in the development of modern skiing include:
Newspaper records survive of downhill ski racing in California's mining camps as early as 1854 (Nevada Journal, 10 March 1854, cited in E. John B. Allen, From Skisport to Skiing, 1993 University of Massachusetts .ress). "The first [ski race] clubs were formed in January 1861 at Onion Valley and La Porte." (ibid. p. 21)
The first identifiable American ski club was formed in 1867.
Alpine downhill racing as an organised sport commenced in Australia.
“Early skiing in Kiandra also featured competition, in fact a type of competition that was far ahead of its time.”
“I would like to commend you for having organised the first Alpine ski races in the history of our sport.” International Ski Federation. 10th May 2011
Ref.
At Kiandra, Australia, alpine skiing commenced in 1861, from the late 1880s and for the following twenty years, ladies’ downhill events were principally dominated by Barbara, Margaret and Mary Yan, the daughters of a Chinese man from the mountains of China and a lady from the Bavarian mountains in Germany. Barbara Yan won the "Downhill Alpine" event in August 1887. The results for children aged ten, are also recorded for the same year.
Mr. Frank Yan, won the 1896 major downhill event, and was presented with a gold fob and a pair of skis, 2740mm in length by NSW Member of Parliament, Mr. G. Miller.
In 1908, the first documented International and Intercontinental “Downhill Skiing Carnival” was held at Kiandra, Australia. The results were, (Winner) - Mr. Charles Menger, America. (Second) - Mr. R. Paterson, Australia. (Third) – Mr. Earl Prince, England.
The British, had learned to ski in Norway, or from friends who had, or from European skiers in the Alps, or from how-to books (e.g. How to Ski by Henry Hoek translatation by Adelrich Benziger, 1910; Alpine Ski-ing by Arnold Lunn,1921; Ski-Running by Katharine Furse, 1924). The first known book written in English on how to ski is Crichton-Somerville, Rickmers and Richardson’s Ski Running, 1904.
The Roberts of Kandahar Challenge Cup, was run in 1911 at Montana, Switzerland. Contestants skied an unmarked course against the clock down the Plaine Morte Glacier over rough snow and enough natural hazards to prevent contestants from simply running straight like the longboarders. "The Kandahar" was thereafter (and still is) held annually at Mürren, Switzerland. Emphasis on the importance of the descent prevailed in British racing and in everyday skiing as well.
The second bud of alpine racing was invented by British ski mountaineer Arnold Lunn in January, 1922, on the grounds of the Palace Hotel in Mürren where he persuaded some friends to race through a series of paired short wands stuck in the snow. The race was against the stopwatch and without regard to form, in contrast to contemporary Swiss controlled course contests where form counted.
Lunn’s slalom cleverly played speed off against control. The delightful tension between these opposites made the race so intriguing it spread quickly. With slalom gaining popularity, it became possible to run alpine combined races, scoring slalom and downhill together, as jumping and cross country had been scored jointly for Nordic combined titles. In 1924, Lunn helped found Mürren’s Kandahar Ski Club to promote alpine combined racing.
In the 1920s, the popularity of alpine skiing began to rise, thanks to the spread of ski guides teaching the stem technique. One by one, alpine resort hotels and inns arranged to stay open in winter to accommodate a growing group of alpine skiers in places like Kitzbühel, St. Anton and St. Moritz.
Ski competition in America evolved in the late 19th century and was organized nationally with the founding of the National Ski Association in Ishpeming, MI in February, 1905, which today is the site of the National Ski Hall of Fame
. The primary sport at the time was ski jumping, along with cross country skiing. Alpine skiing evolved later, as did modern day sports of freestyle skiing and snowboarding.
Today, the National Ski Association has evolved to become the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association, which manages all Olympic skiing and snowboarding competition programs in America.
was included were held in Tromsø
, Norway
in 1843. The first pure ski jumping event was held in Trysil
on January 22, 1862. Later, the yearly Husebyrennene events in Oslo
from 1879 were moved to Holmenkollen
from 1892, and Holmenkollen was to become the Mecca of ski jumping.
The birth of competitive mogul skiing in the late 1960s led to freestyle: on-snow ballet, aerials & moguls grew to be considered legitimate forms of competitive skiing. Some of these new ways of skiing emphasized style rather than the traditional speed. The International Ski Federation (FIS) recognised freestyle as a discipline in 1979 and brought in new regulations regarding certification of athletes and jump techniques in an effort to curb some of the dangerous elements of the competitions. The first FIS World Cup series was staged in 1980 and the first FIS World Championships took place in 1986 in Tignes, France, featuring moguls, aerials and ballet. Freestyle skiing, where skiers perform aerial manoeuvres while skiing downhill, was a demonstration event at the Winter Olympic Games in Calgary in 1988. Mogul skiing was added to the official programme of the Albertville Games in 1992 and Aerials were added at the Lillehammer Games in 1994.
Telemark skiing
was revived in the US in the 1970s as a way of getting into quiet, steeper mountain environments with no ski lift development. Much of the early telemark equipment was do-it-yourself, cobbled together using unlikely combinations like flimsy rat-trap cross-country bindings, hockey skate boots, Hexcel alpine skis. European randonnée equipment like the Silvretta cable binding and the Rossignol Haute Route ski were always available in the US, but eventually manufacturers like Chouinard Equipment, Ltd.--now Black Diamond Equipment, Ltd.
--began importing more sophisticated gear specifically for telemark. By the 1990s they were designing their own, including innovative plastic telemark boots, cable bindings, dedicated stable yet lightweight backcountry skis & climbing skins. Randonnée
or Alpine Touring (AT) equipment continued to come primarily from Europe, when it came at all. With the new, supportive equipment telemark racing & extreme
competitions started.
The growth of snowboarding
in the 1980s appealed to a new generation of skiers with its counter-culture fashion & far easier learning curve. This injection of new, enthusiastic participants increased ski resort business & reinvigorated ski equipment design, leading to fatter, more stable skis. As with all youth movements, new vocabulary was required for the same old activities & sliding over snow became known as "riding", even for skiers. Various forms of competition developed, including traditional gate racing, but also half-pipe
tricks, boardercross
& extreme backcountry competition.
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
, or traveling over snow on wooden runners, has a recorded history of almost five millennia.
Ancient history
Ski
A ski is a long, flat device worn on the foot, usually attached through a boot, designed to help the wearer slide smoothly over snow. Originally intended as an aid to travel in snowy regions, they are now mainly used for recreational and sporting purposes...
s are on 4500 to 5000 year old
26th century BC
The 26th century BC is a century which lasted from the year 2600 BC to 2501 BC .-Events:*c. 2900 BC – 2334 BC: Mesopotamian wars of the Early Dynastic period continue....
rock drawings, e.g. at Rødøy
Rødøy
Rødøy is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vågaholmen. The municipality consists of islands outside Norway's second biggest glacier, Svartisen.Rødøy was established as a...
in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
(discovered 1933) or at Steinkjer
Steinkjer
is a town and a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherad region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Steinkjer, which is also the seat of the county government...
(discovered 2001), which depict a man on skis holding a stick. The oldest known ski, Kalvträskskidan
Kalvträskskidan
Kalvträskskidan is possibly the oldest ski ever found. It was found in the autumn of 1924, as a group of men digging a ditch through a mire near the village of Kalvträsk near Skellefteå encountered some wooden objects at a depth of 1.5 metres. They carefully extracted the objects that turned out to...
was found in 1924 in a mire near the village of Kalvträsk in the municipality of Skellefteå
Skellefteå
-Industry:*Boliden AB, a big mining and smelting company*Alimak*Natural User Interface Technologies AB - NUITEQ, a promising emerging technology start-up company-Sports:*Skellefteå AIK, an ice hockey team in the highest Swedish league, Elitserien....
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, and has been carbon dated to roughly 3200 B.C. The earliest people to ski in Fennoscandia
Fennoscandia
Fennoscandia and Fenno-Scandinavia are geographic and geological terms used to describe the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula, Karelia and Finland...
were the distant ancestors of modern day Sami
Sami people
The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
. One of the earliest names used for the Sami was skridfinner/scricfinni/scritefinni/σκριϑίψινοι, which may be roughly translated as "skiing Sami".
The word ski
Ski
A ski is a long, flat device worn on the foot, usually attached through a boot, designed to help the wearer slide smoothly over snow. Originally intended as an aid to travel in snowy regions, they are now mainly used for recreational and sporting purposes...
goes back to the Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
word skíð meaning "a stick of wood"http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ski,http://www.bartleby.com/61/81/S0448100.html. In modern Norwegian this word is usually pronounced ˈʃiː. This word is now used in most languages in the world. Languages like English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
use the original spelling "ski", and modify the pronunciation. Languages like Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
pronounce it exactly as in Norwegian
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
, and modify the spelling: "sci". German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and Spanish
Spanish people
The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
adapt the word to their linguistic rules; "Schier" (however there is a form- Ski) and "esquí". Interestingly, many languages make a verb form out of the noun, such as "to ski" in English, "esquiar" in Spanish, "sciare" in Italian, or "schilaufen" (as above also Ski laufen or Ski fahren) in German which is not possible in Norwegian. In Swedish, a close relation to Norwegian, the word is "skidor" (pl.). However Finnish language
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
has its own ancient words for skis and skiing. In Finnish ski is suksi and skiing is hiihtää. The original European skiers, the Sami, also have their own words for skis and skiing. For example, the Lule Sami
Sami languages
Sami or Saami is a general name for a group of Uralic languages spoken by the Sami people in parts of northern Finland, Norway, Sweden and extreme northwestern Russia, in Northern Europe. Sami is frequently and erroneously believed to be a single language. Several names are used for the Sami...
word for ski is "sabek" and skis is "sabega".
Invention
There are six possible roots from which skis might have developed:- The pedal snowshoe, which was an oval wooden board later covered with fur.
- The sledge runner, a possible model for the ski.
- The fur shoe, which was a combination of moccasins and sandals and worn together with pedal snowshoes.
- The marsh shoe, later was taken to colder regions.
- The canoeCanoeA canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
or the coracleCoracleThe coracle is a small, lightweight boat of the sort traditionally used in Wales but also in parts of Western and South Western England, Ireland , and Scotland ; the word is also used of similar boats found in India, Vietnam, Iraq and Tibet...
, both used in northern regions from very early on. Having been used as sledges, small ones might have served as proto-skis. - Spontaneous invention.
Early skis
Different types of skis have emerged at various regions at about the same time. One suggested original inventors of skis seem to be the people of the Sayan MountainsSayan Mountains
The Sayan Mountains are a mountain range between northwestern Mongolia and southern Siberia, Russia.The Eastern Sayan extends from the Yenisei River at 92° E to the southwest end of Lake Baikal at 106° E...
in Asia. This is not verified. Also skis may have been used in Europe during and after the ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
. All in all there are three different types of skis in the North of Europe and Asia:
- The Southern type has a horizontal toe-piece binding. One can distinguish the FennoscandiaFennoscandiaFennoscandia and Fenno-Scandinavia are geographic and geological terms used to describe the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula, Karelia and Finland...
n type and the Russo-Baltic type. Modern ski bindings are based on the Fennoscandian model of the 19th century. The bindings of Telemark skiTelemark skiingTelemark skiing is a form of skiing using the Telemark turn. Unlike alpine skiing equipment, the skis used for telemarking either have a binding that only connects the boot to the ski at the toes, just as in cross-country skiing, or may be released to only connect there.Telemark turns are led with...
were developed from this type. - Eastern Siberian type is a thin board with a vertical four-hole binding. Sometimes it is covered with fur.
- There is still another type. It has a horizontal stem-hole binding. One can distinguish between the types used by SamiSami peopleThe Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
(and some other Fenno-ugrics) and a type used in Central and Northern Siberia. Cross-countryCross-country skiingCross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...
skis were developed from the type used by the SamiSami peopleThe Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
.
Ski poles
Ski poleSki pole
Ski poles are used by skiers to improve balance and timing. Early ski poles were simply sticks, then bamboo , then steel . In 1958, Ed Scott invented the aluminium ski pole...
s go back to two roots:
- The walking stick was used to keep balance.
- The ski pole developed from a spear or a bow used for hunting. Double poles were used to reach a higher speed on skis, and better hunting.
Modern history of skiing
Pioneer Sondre NorheimSondre Norheim
Sondre Norheim, born Sondre Auverson, was a Norwegian skier and pioneer of modern skiing. Sondre Norheim is known as the father of Telemark skiing.-Background:...
, from Morgedal
Morgedal
Morgedal, of the municipality of Kviteseid in the county of Telemark Norway, is called the cradle of skiing.Morgedal, Norway is a village whose most famous residents were Sondre Norheim, known to be the father of modern skiing plus Torjus Hemmestveit and Mikkjel Hemmestveit...
in Telemark
Telemark
is a county in Norway, bordering Vestfold, Buskerud, Hordaland, Rogaland and Aust-Agder. The county administration is in Skien. Until 1919 the county was known as Bratsberg amt.-Location:...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
has often been called the father of modern skiing for inventing the equipment and techniques that led to modern skiing as we see it today. Having grown up in the farmlands of Norwegian Telemark, Norheim invented a “birch” binding that enabled skiers to ski without the risk of losing their skis. Then, in 1870, Norheim introduced a short, curved, flexible ski he crafted in order to allow for easy turning in soft snow. Norheim, at the age of forty-three, went on to become the winner of the first Norwegian national skiing competition in Christiania (modern day Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
).
It is possible, however, that he actually did not invent anything, since there is little evidence to prove that he did. The story about Sondre as the father of modern skiing was largely constructed in Norway from the 1930s, especially in connection with the Olympic Winter Games in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
in 1952. Most of the inventions attributed to Norheim were known a long time before him. Even still, Sondre Norheim proved an inspiration for generations.
Modern recreational skiing depended heavily on mechanized transport. Mountain resorts became commercially viable when city folk could reach them in winter by train beginning in 1868, and with the development of electrically-driven funiculars and aerial tramways beginning around 1880 (Karl Bittner, "Milestones in Ropeway History," 1984, Internationale Seilbahn-Rundschau).
Events in the development of modern skiing include:
- In the 17th century the baron of Valvasor wrote reports on skiing activities in SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
. - The usefulness of skis for military purpose sped up their development and spread. The Norwegian military had skiing competitions from the 1670s.
- The first known civilian ski race took place in TromsøTromsøTromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
, Norway, in 1843. (No supporting primary evidence supplied.) - 1861, the first identifiable and ceaseless alpine ski club was formed at Kiandra, Australia. (Confirmed by International Ski Federation. May 2011.) (Kiandra snow shoe clubKiandra snow shoe clubThe club was formed in 1861 by three Norwegians, Elias Gottaas, Soren Torp and Carl Bjerknes on the Kiandra Gold Fields, NSW. This original Kiandra ski club is now recognised as the first snow ski club in the world, it also carries the distinction of being the longest continuously operating...
) Club History -- - 1861, unidentified ski clubs were reported to be formed at Onion Valley and La Porte, California. (see below Alturas ski club 1867.)
- 1861, the "Trysil Skytte- og Skiløberforening" (Shot and Ski Practitioner Association) was founded in TrysilTrysilTrysil is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Innbygda...
, HedmarkHedmarkis a county in Norway, bordering Sør-Trøndelag, Oppland and Akershus. The county administration is in Hamar.Hedmark makes up the northeastern part of Østlandet, the southeastern part of the country. It includes a long part of the borderline with Sweden, Dalarna County and Värmland County. The...
, Norway. Held their first competition January 1862. - 1862, The first ski made specifically for organised alpine downhill racing was known as a "Skate" followed by the "Kiandra Kick-in" and "Butterpat". It was on this type of Australian ski, that the first fully documented ladies and children downhill events were held with names and results recorded.
- Skis were used in the Sierra Nevada gold fields in 1850 and later to ferry mail from Carson City, NevadaCarson City, NevadaThe Consolidated Municipality of Carson City is the capital of the state of Nevada. The words Consolidated Municipality refer to a series of changes in 1969 which abolished Ormsby County and merged all the settlements contained within its borders into Carson City. Since that time Carson City has...
, to Placerville, CaliforniaPlacerville, CaliforniaPlacerville is the county seat of El Dorado County, California. The population was 10,389 at the 2010 census, up from 9,610 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Sacramento–Arden-Arcade–Roseville Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
, in 1856, crossing 94 miles (151.3 km) in 4 days. Downhill ski races (at up to 90 mph) were organized between competing mining camps by 1857, and hit their peak in 1869, under the rules of the Thompson Alpine ClubAlpine ClubThe first Alpine Club, founded in London in 1857, was once described as:Today, Alpine clubs stage climbing competitions, operate alpine huts and paths, and are active in protecting the Alpine environment...
. - In 1867, the "Alturas Snowshoe (ski) Club", was formed at La Porte, California.
- In 1875, the first ski club (?), and two years later the first ski school were founded in Kristiania (now OsloOsloOslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
). - In the 19th century the Telemark ski revolutionized alpine skiingAlpine skiingAlpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...
, being the first ski with a remarkable waist making it much easier for skiers to turn. - The Englishman William Cecil SlingsbyWilliam Cecil SlingsbyWilliam Cecil Slingsby was an English mountain climber and alpine explorer.Slingsby first visited Norway in 1872 and fell in love with the country. He has been called the discoverer of the Norwegian mountains, and the father of Norwegian mountaineering...
, the "father of Norwegian mountaineeringMountaineeringMountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...
", helped inspire ski mountaineeringSki mountaineeringSki mountaineering is form of ski touring that variously combines the sports of Telemark, Alpine, and backcountry skiing with that of mountaineering...
after his crossing of the 1,550 m high (5,800 ft) Keiser Pass, Norway, on skis in 1880. - The gold mine owner Ignaz Rojacher from RaurisRaurisRauris is a municipality in Salzburg in the area of Pinzgau in Austria. There are about 3,150 inhabitants living in Rauris.- Geography :...
(SalzburgSalzburg-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
) and the German Wilhelm Ritter von Arlt brought the first pair of skis from FalunFalunFalun is a city and the seat of Falun Municipality in Dalarna County, Sweden, with 36,447 inhabitants in 2005. It is also the capital of Dalarna County...
(Sweden) to Rauris in winter 1885/1886. - In 1888 the Austrian Max Kleinoschegg had his first attempts on skis on the Ruckerlberg near GrazGrazThe more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
. - Also in 1888, the Norwegian Fridtjof NansenFridtjof NansenFridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen was a Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. In his youth a champion skier and ice skater, he led the team that made the first crossing of the Greenland interior in 1888, and won international fame after reaching a...
made the first crossing of GreenlandGreenlandGreenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
, travelling from East to West on skis. The report on his expedition, Paa ski over Grønland, was published in 1890 in both Norwegian and English, and later in German. It aroused great interest in skiing in Europe and the United States, as well as creating a Norwegian national hero. From then on skiing was regularly in the news, and was soon adopted as a pastime and a sport by the wealthier classes of Europe, as well as being adopted by the military in several countries. - The first ski club in central Europe was founded at MunichMunichMunich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Germany, during the winter of 1890 to 1891. - In 1891 the Austrian hotelier Toni Schruf (in collaboration with Max Kleinoschnegg) ascended the Stuhleck (1782m) near MürzzuschlagMürzzuschlagMürzzuschlag is a town in northeastern Styria, Austria, the capital of the Mürzzuschlag District. It is located on the Mürz river near the Semmering Pass, the border with the state of Lower Austria, about southwest of Vienna. The population is 8,745...
in the SemmeringSemmeringFor the town of the same name, see Semmering, Austria.Semmering is a mountain pass in the Eastern Northern Limestone Alps connecting Lower Austria and Styria, between which it forms a natural border.-Location:...
region, the first significant mountain in AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
which was ascended on skis. - The German Wilhelm Ritter von Arlt made the first ski ascent of over 3,000 m, when he climbed the Rauris Sonnblick (3,105 m / 10,187 feet high) in 1894. In doing so, he became the father of ski mountaineering. He was also the starter of summer skiing, for he took the first significant summer ski tour on August 30, 1897
- The first ski tour in the Alps took place in 1894 when the local Branger brothers teamed up with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle--creator of Sherlock HolmesSherlock HolmesSherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
--for a traverse from Davos (Frauenkirch) to Arosa. Conan-Doyle was living in the area as his wife took the cure for TB. He ordered the skis from Norway & applied himself to learning to ski as a cure for his enforced idlement in the sleepy Alpine town. - In 1896 the German ski pioneer Wilhelm Paulcke ascended the Oberalpstock on his Norwegian skis. In 1897 he crossed the Bernese OberlandBernese OberlandThe Bernese Oberland is the higher part of the canton of Bern, Switzerland, in the southern end of the canton: The area around Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, and the valleys of the Bernese Alps .The flag of the Bernese Oberland consists of a black eagle in a gold field The Bernese Oberland (Bernese...
in Switzerland and skied to 4,200 m on Monte Rosa in 1898. - Dr. Hermann Seiler - President of the Monte Rosa section of the Swiss Alpine Club and coproprietor of the Seiler Hotels Zermatt - organizes the first ski training course that ever took place in Switzerland in January 1902. Capable students, the 12 guides ascend Cima di Jazzi on their fourth day (cf. Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 8 February 1952, Nr. 282).
- The first packaged ski holidays took place in 1903, to AdelbodenAdelbodenAdelboden is a municipality in the Frutigen-Niedersimmental administrative district in the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland.-Geography:Adelboden lies in the west of the Berner Oberland, at the end of the valley of the Engstlige river, which flows in Frutigen into the Kander river.Adelboden is a...
, Switzerland, organised on a commercial basis by Sir Henry LunnHenry Simpson LunnSir Henry Simpson Lunn was an English humanitarian and religious figure, and also founder of Lunn Poly, one of the UK's largest travel companies....
under the guise of the Public Schools Alpine Sports Club, which booked entire hotels. Winter holidays in Switzerland had become very popular with the British aristocracy since the first winter tourists to St Moritz in 1864. - A National Ski Tournament was held in Ishpeming, MichiganIshpeming, MichiganIshpeming is a city in Marquette County in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 6,686 at the 2000 census. This is down from a higher population in the 1950s and 1960s when the economically supportive iron ore mines had a much higher employment level...
, in 1905, including a 393 ft (119.8 m)-high ski jump. - Competitive skiing in America was organized with the founding of the National Ski Association in Ishpeming, Mich. in February, 1905 (today known as the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association
- 1908, The first fully documented International Alpine Ski Carnival was held in Kiandra, Australia. The alpine downhill event was won by Charles Menger (Denver, USA), second was R. Paterson (Australia) third was Earl Prince (England). (Kiandra snow shoe clubKiandra snow shoe clubThe club was formed in 1861 by three Norwegians, Elias Gottaas, Soren Torp and Carl Bjerknes on the Kiandra Gold Fields, NSW. This original Kiandra ski club is now recognised as the first snow ski club in the world, it also carries the distinction of being the longest continuously operating...
)
- In 1908 The Alpine Ski ClubAlpine Ski Club- The Alpine Ski Club :The Alpine Ski Club is an active club of ski mountaineers based in the UK and the first ski mountaineering club in Great Britain.The objectives of the club are to:# Promote mountaineering on skis...
is founded by Arnold LunnArnold LunnSir Arnold Henry Moore Lunn was a famous skier, mountaineer and writer. He was knighted for "services to British Skiing and Anglo-Swiss relations" in 1952.He was born in Madras, India and died in London.-Early life:... - The first purpose-built cable to pull skiers was set up by Robert Winterhalder, a hotel owner in Schollach in Germany's Schwarzwald, in 1908. He took out a patent the following year. It was an overhead cable running on four or five wooden towers,powered by a water mill and later by an electric motor, itself powered by a small hydroelectric plant at the hotel. Cable run was 280 meters over a 32-meter vertical—about 100 feet. Skiers or tobogganers could grab a handle or harness.
- A major downhillDownhillDownhill is an alpine skiing discipline. The rules for the Downhill were originally developed by Sir Arnold Lunn for the 1921 British National Ski Championships....
ski race, the Roberts of Kandahar Cup took place in Crans-MontanaCrans-MontanaCrans-Montana is a ski resort in western Switzerland, in the heart of the Swiss Alps in the canton of Valais. It is located on a plateau above Sierre at an elevation of about 1500 m above sea level, allowing good view over the Valais Alps and Weisshorn in particular...
(Crans-sur-Sierre) in 1911, organised by Arnold LunnArnold LunnSir Arnold Henry Moore Lunn was a famous skier, mountaineer and writer. He was knighted for "services to British Skiing and Anglo-Swiss relations" in 1952.He was born in Madras, India and died in London.-Early life:...
with the cup donated by Lord Roberts of KandaharKandaharKandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
(Frederick Roberts, 1st Earl RobertsFrederick Roberts, 1st Earl RobertsField Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts, Bt, VC, KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, KStJ, PC was a distinguished Indian born British soldier who regarded himself as Anglo-Irish and one of the most successful British commanders of the 19th century.-Early life:Born at Cawnpore, India, on...
), a distinguished Field Marshal in the British Army. - 1924 saw the foundation of the International Ski FederationInternational Ski FederationThe International Ski Federation, known by its name in French, Fédération Internationale de Ski is the main international organisation for ski sports...
in ChamonixChamonixChamonix-Mont-Blanc or, more commonly, Chamonix is a commune in the Haute-Savoie département in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. It was the site of the 1924 Winter Olympics, the first Winter Olympics...
, France. - The RottefellaRottefellaRottefella is a Norwegian ski binding manufacturer.-Rottefella/Fischer Partnership:Taking effect beginning of the 2007-2008, Rottefella will be the official bindings of Fischer Skis boots. Presently, Fischer boots use the Salomon Nordic System Rottefella is a manufacturer of NNN bindings...
(rat trap) lightweight toe binding was invented by Bror WithBror WithBror With , born in Norway's capital Kristiania, was a mechanical engineer, inventor and industrialist. He graduated in 1925 from the Norwegian Institute of Technology....
of Norway. The binding was a great success at the St. MoritzSt. MoritzSt. Moritz is a resort town in the Engadine valley in Switzerland. It is a municipality in the district of Maloja in the Swiss canton of Graubünden...
Olympics the following year, and has been, in various forms, the preferred cross country ski binding ever since. - In March 1928, downhillDownhillDownhill is an alpine skiing discipline. The rules for the Downhill were originally developed by Sir Arnold Lunn for the 1921 British National Ski Championships....
and the modern slalomSlalom skiingSlalom is an alpine skiing discipline, involving skiing between poles spaced much closer together than in Giant Slalom, Super-G or Downhill, thereby causing quicker and shorter turns.- Origins :...
events were combined for the first time to form the Arlberg-Kandahar open international alpine skiingAlpine skiingAlpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...
competition, organised by Arnold LunnArnold LunnSir Arnold Henry Moore Lunn was a famous skier, mountaineer and writer. He was knighted for "services to British Skiing and Anglo-Swiss relations" in 1952.He was born in Madras, India and died in London.-Early life:...
and Hannes SchneiderHannes SchneiderJohann "Hannes" Schneider was an Austrian Ski instructor of the first half of the twentieth century.He was born in the town of Stuben am Arlberg in Austria as a son of a cheese maker. In 1907 he became a ski guide at the Hotel Post in St. Anton, Austria where he began work on what became known as...
in St. AntonSt. AntonSankt Anton am Arlberg is a village and ski resort in Tyrol, western Austria, with a permanent population of approximately . It is situated at above sea level in the Tyrolean Alps, with Aerial tramways and chairlifts up to . It is also a popular summer resort among trekkers and...
, Austria. This event was to become the real starting point of international Alpine ski racing. - At the invitation of the FIS, the Ski Club of Great BritainSki Club of Great BritainThe Ski Club of Great Britain is a recreational snow sports club, founded on May 6, 1903. It is a not-for-profit organisation. The Ski Club was until the 1960s responsible for the British racing teams.-Respect the Mountain campaign:...
organised downhill and slalom races in parallel with the 1928 Second Winter Olympics at St Moritz. - In 1929, Orland Bartholomew skied alone over 300 miles (482.8 km) of California's High Sierras from Cottonwood Creek to Yosemite National ParkYosemite National ParkYosemite National Park is a United States National Park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain...
roughly following the line of the summer route that is now known as the John Muir TrailJohn Muir TrailThe John Muir Trail is a long-distance trail in the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California, running between the northern terminus at Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley and the southern terminus located on the summit of Mount Whitney . For almost all of its length, the trail is in the High Sierra...
. This included the first winter ascent of the highest peak in the lower 48, Mt. Whitney. Bartholomew sustained himself on the expedition using food caches placed over the summer. - The first resort-based ski school in the U.S. was opened in Sugar Hill, New HampshireSugar Hill, New HampshireSugar Hill is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 563 at the 2010 census. Sugar Hill is a venerable resort community which overlooks the White Mountain National Forest, with views of the Presidential, Franconia, Kinsman and Dalton ranges.- History :This town...
(at that time part of LisbonLisbon, New HampshireLisbon is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,595 at the 2010 census. Lisbon hosts an annual "Lilac Festival" on Memorial Day weekend....
) in 1929, by Katharine "Kate" Peckett, with her husband, Austrian immigrant ski instructor Sig Buchmayer. The same year, organized ski trains from Boston began running to the White MountainsWhite Mountains (New Hampshire)The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. Part of the Appalachian Mountains, they are considered the most rugged mountains in New England...
of New Hampshire, where summer tourist trains had been going for decades. - Ski jumping and cross-country competition were events in the 1932 winter Olympics at Lake Placid, New YorkLake Placid, New YorkLake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a population of 2,638....
. - In 1931, Sir Arnold LunnArnold LunnSir Arnold Henry Moore Lunn was a famous skier, mountaineer and writer. He was knighted for "services to British Skiing and Anglo-Swiss relations" in 1952.He was born in Madras, India and died in London.-Early life:...
organised at MürrenMürrenMürren is a traditional Walser mountain village in Bernese Oberland, Switzerland, at an elevation of 1,650 m above sea level and unreachable by public road....
the first World Championships in Downhill and Slalom Racing. He did the same in 1935, these being the only occasions in history when one country (Britain) has organised the World Championships of any sport on the territory of another country. - First rope-tow in America was developed in 1932, by Alex Foster and operated at Shawbridge, Quebec, using an old automobile with the rope looped around a wheel rim. Similar device copied and used in the U.S. in 1934, in Woodstock, Vermont.
- First aluminum skis, 1934, France.
- T-bar implemened at DavosDavosDavos is a municipality in the district of Prättigau/Davos in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of 11,248 . Davos is located on the Landwasser River, in the Swiss Alps, between the Plessur and Albula Range...
in 1935, outgrowth of J-bar invented same year by Dartmouth Outing ClubDartmouth Outing ClubThe Dartmouth Outing Club is the oldest and largest collegiate outing club in the United States. Proposed in 1909 by Dartmouth College student Fred Harris to "stimulate interest in out-of-door winter sports", the club soon grew to encompass the College's year-round outdoor recreation and has had...
of Hanover, New HampshireHanover, New HampshireHanover is a town along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 11,260 at the 2010 census. CNN and Money magazine rated Hanover the sixth best place to live in America in 2011, and the second best in 2007....
(first overhead-cable ski lift). - First heel-grip cable binding implemented in 1935 by Kandahar.
- In December 1935 the Mt Baker Development Company began operating a cable-drawn sled called a "ski escalator" that carried skiers from Terminal Lake up Panorama Dome. Early in 1936, after the sled had been in operation less than a month, Arthur Brandlund, the developer of the lift, was killed in an avalanche that came off Panorama Dome.
- Used as a summer get-away for early MormonsMormonsThe Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, a religion started by Joseph Smith during the American Second Great Awakening. A vast majority of Mormons are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while a minority are members of other independent churches....
in Salt Lake City, Utah, Brighton Ski Area began in 1936 when members of the Alpine Ski Club built a rope tow from wire and an old elevator motor. - World's first overhead chairliftChairliftAn elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel cable loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs...
built at Sun Valley, IdahoSun Valley, IdahoSun Valley is a resort city in Blaine County in the central part of the U.S. state of Idaho, adjacent to the city of Ketchum, lying within the greater Wood River valley. Tourists from around the world enjoy its skiing, hiking, ice skating, trail riding, tennis, and cycling. The population was 1,427...
, in 1936. - Third Winter Games of Olympics, at Garmisch 1936, include world's first alpine events: downhill and combined slalom.
- First U.S. aerial tramway, installed at Cannon MountainCannon Mountain (New Hampshire)Cannon Mountain is a peak in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Known for both its technical rock and ice climbing and its skiing , the mountain was home to the Old Man of the Mountain until the formation collapsed on May 3, 2003...
in 1938. - In late 1939, the USSR invaded its small north-western neighbor FinlandFinlandFinland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. In the ensuing 3 and 1/2 months of intense combat of the Winter WarWinter WarThe Winter War was a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland – and ended on 13 March 1940 with the Moscow Peace Treaty...
, Finnish ski troops all but annihilate a Soviet flanking manoeuver into northern Finland's forests. On long narrow wooden skis, precursors to modern cross-country skis, the Finns surround unwieldy columns of ill-trained Soviet conscripts bogged down in the snow, overrun and butcher them piecemeal. The invasion is thwarted; the Finns kill an estimated quarter-million Red Army troops and wound at least that many more. Finnish casualties total fewer than 10 percent of the Soviets'. The episode marks the largest-scale and most effective use of ski troops in history. It reinforces the arguments of US military skiing advocates just before America enters the war. - In 1943, President Roosevelt authorized the formation of the 10th Mountain Division. At the termination of WWII, 10th Mountain members returned to the States & become a major force in the development of U.S. downhill skiing. Some of the notable 10th Mountain veterans include:
- Montgomery AtwaterMontgomery AtwaterMontgomery Meigs "Monty" Atwater was an American avalanche researcher, forester, skier, and author. He is considered the founder of the field of avalanche research and forecasting in North America....
, founded the country's first avalancheAvalancheAn avalanche is a sudden rapid flow of snow down a slope, occurring when either natural triggers or human activity causes a critical escalating transition from the slow equilibrium evolution of the snow pack. Typically occurring in mountainous terrain, an avalanche can mix air and water with the...
study & mitigation program at Alta, Utah. - Pete SeibertPete SeibertPeter W. Seibert was an American skier and the founder of Vail Ski Resort in Colorado. In 1980 he was inducted into the Colorado Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame....
, founder of Vail Ski Resort. Prior to deployment in Italy, the 10th Mountain Division trained at Camp Hale, Colorado, a few miles up a canyon from present day Vail, Colorado. - Paul PetzoldtPaul PetzoldtPaul Kiesow Petzoldt was one of America's most accomplished mountaineers. He is perhaps best known for establishing the National Outdoor Leadership School in 1965. Paul made his first ascent of the Grand Teton in 1924 at the age of 16, becoming the youngest person at the time to have done so...
, founder of the National Outdoor Leadership SchoolNational Outdoor Leadership SchoolThe National Outdoor Leadership School , is a non-profit outdoor education school based in the United States dedicated to teaching environmental ethics, technical outdoor skills, safety and judgment, and leadership on extended wilderness expeditions... - Bill BowermanBill BowermanWilliam Jay "Bill" Bowerman was an American track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc. Over his career, he trained 31 Olympic athletes, 51 All-Americans, 12 American record-holders, 24 NCAA champions and 16 sub-4 minute milers...
, track and field coach at the University of Oregon and co-founder of Nike, Inc.Nike, Inc.Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
- Montgomery Atwater
- Artificially made snow, 1952 at Grossinger's in New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Other evidence suggests that Art Hunt, Wayne Pierce and Dave Richey of Connecticut built a snowmaking device, using compressed air and water, which they implemented in 1950; - Fiberglass skis successfully marketed in 1960 by KneisslKneisslKneissl is an Austrian manufacturer of hand made skis, biking and tennis equipment and apparel, based in Kufstein in the state of Tyrol and established by Franz Kneissl in 1861. Kneissl was accredited with the invention of “big foot” skis.-External links:...
, Plymold, Sailer. - At the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, American Billy Kidd won a silver medal in the alpine skiing slalom competition, the first alpine skiing medal ever by an American. With American Jimmy Huega capturing the Bronze medal in the same event, the United States experienced a boom in interest in alpine skiing and ski racing.
- All-plastic boots introduced by Lange in 1964.
- 2011 marks the 150th anniversary of Alpine Ski Clubs.
Ski racing
In his book from the 16th century, "Historia de Gentibus Septentrionalibus" (History of the Nordic Peoples), Olaus Magnus provides one of the first published descriptions of ski competitions.Newspaper records survive of downhill ski racing in California's mining camps as early as 1854 (Nevada Journal, 10 March 1854, cited in E. John B. Allen, From Skisport to Skiing, 1993 University of Massachusetts .ress). "The first [ski race] clubs were formed in January 1861 at Onion Valley and La Porte." (ibid. p. 21)
The first identifiable American ski club was formed in 1867.
Alpine downhill racing as an organised sport commenced in Australia.
“Early skiing in Kiandra also featured competition, in fact a type of competition that was far ahead of its time.”
“I would like to commend you for having organised the first Alpine ski races in the history of our sport.” International Ski Federation. 10th May 2011
Ref.
At Kiandra, Australia, alpine skiing commenced in 1861, from the late 1880s and for the following twenty years, ladies’ downhill events were principally dominated by Barbara, Margaret and Mary Yan, the daughters of a Chinese man from the mountains of China and a lady from the Bavarian mountains in Germany. Barbara Yan won the "Downhill Alpine" event in August 1887. The results for children aged ten, are also recorded for the same year.
Mr. Frank Yan, won the 1896 major downhill event, and was presented with a gold fob and a pair of skis, 2740mm in length by NSW Member of Parliament, Mr. G. Miller.
In 1908, the first documented International and Intercontinental “Downhill Skiing Carnival” was held at Kiandra, Australia. The results were, (Winner) - Mr. Charles Menger, America. (Second) - Mr. R. Paterson, Australia. (Third) – Mr. Earl Prince, England.
The British, had learned to ski in Norway, or from friends who had, or from European skiers in the Alps, or from how-to books (e.g. How to Ski by Henry Hoek translatation by Adelrich Benziger, 1910; Alpine Ski-ing by Arnold Lunn,1921; Ski-Running by Katharine Furse, 1924). The first known book written in English on how to ski is Crichton-Somerville, Rickmers and Richardson’s Ski Running, 1904.
The Roberts of Kandahar Challenge Cup, was run in 1911 at Montana, Switzerland. Contestants skied an unmarked course against the clock down the Plaine Morte Glacier over rough snow and enough natural hazards to prevent contestants from simply running straight like the longboarders. "The Kandahar" was thereafter (and still is) held annually at Mürren, Switzerland. Emphasis on the importance of the descent prevailed in British racing and in everyday skiing as well.
The second bud of alpine racing was invented by British ski mountaineer Arnold Lunn in January, 1922, on the grounds of the Palace Hotel in Mürren where he persuaded some friends to race through a series of paired short wands stuck in the snow. The race was against the stopwatch and without regard to form, in contrast to contemporary Swiss controlled course contests where form counted.
Lunn’s slalom cleverly played speed off against control. The delightful tension between these opposites made the race so intriguing it spread quickly. With slalom gaining popularity, it became possible to run alpine combined races, scoring slalom and downhill together, as jumping and cross country had been scored jointly for Nordic combined titles. In 1924, Lunn helped found Mürren’s Kandahar Ski Club to promote alpine combined racing.
In the 1920s, the popularity of alpine skiing began to rise, thanks to the spread of ski guides teaching the stem technique. One by one, alpine resort hotels and inns arranged to stay open in winter to accommodate a growing group of alpine skiers in places like Kitzbühel, St. Anton and St. Moritz.
Ski competition in America
Newspaper records survive of downhill ski racing in California's mining camps as early as 1854 (Nevada Journal, 10 March 1854, cited in E. John B. Allen, From Skisport to Skiing, 1993 University of Massachusetts Press). "The first [ski race] clubs were formed in January 1861 at Onion Valley and La Porte." (ibid. p. 21)Ski competition in America evolved in the late 19th century and was organized nationally with the founding of the National Ski Association in Ishpeming, MI in February, 1905, which today is the site of the National Ski Hall of Fame
National Ski Hall of Fame
The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum is located in the City of Ishpeming in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, the birthplace of organized skiing in the United States...
. The primary sport at the time was ski jumping, along with cross country skiing. Alpine skiing evolved later, as did modern day sports of freestyle skiing and snowboarding.
Today, the National Ski Association has evolved to become the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association, which manages all Olympic skiing and snowboarding competition programs in America.
Ski jumping
The first skiing events where ski jumpingSki jumping
Ski jumping is a sport in which skiers go down a take-off ramp, jump and attempt to land as far as possible down the hill below. In addition to the length of the jump, judges give points for style. The skis used for ski jumping are wide and long...
was included were held in Tromsø
Tromsø
Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
in 1843. The first pure ski jumping event was held in Trysil
Trysil
Trysil is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Innbygda...
on January 22, 1862. Later, the yearly Husebyrennene events in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
from 1879 were moved to Holmenkollen
Holmenkollen ski jump
Holmenkollbakken is a large ski jumping hill located at Holmenkollen in Oslo, Norway. It has a hill size of HS134, a construction point of K-120, and a capacity for 30,000 spectators. Holmenkollen has hosted the Holmenkollen Ski Festival since 1892, which since 1980 have been part of the FIS Ski...
from 1892, and Holmenkollen was to become the Mecca of ski jumping.
After WWII
Through the 1950s and '60s skiing became a sport for a newly affluent middle class. Building on a European tradition of ski film-making dating back to Arnold Fanck in the 1920s, American film-makers like John Jay, Dick Durrance, Warren Miller and Dick Barrymore toured North America each fall promoting the sport in local theatres. In Europe, following a post-war boom in construction of hydroelectric dams, mountain communities promoted the construction of lifts and new hotels. Real-estate prices in ski resorts rose swiftly, driven by an average 15% annual growth until 1973. In that year, the OPEC oil embargo started a long series of economic recessions and inflation—the dreaded stagflation—that stalled the growth of the sport, especially in North America. By 1982, with interest rates running over 20%, most US factories were unable to finance summertime production; they either closed up shop or moved production to Europe. Resort companies began to consolidate, leading to the growth of large corporations like SKI, Intrawest, Aspen Ski Co., Vail Resorts, Resorts of the Canadian Rockies and Powdr Corp.The birth of competitive mogul skiing in the late 1960s led to freestyle: on-snow ballet, aerials & moguls grew to be considered legitimate forms of competitive skiing. Some of these new ways of skiing emphasized style rather than the traditional speed. The International Ski Federation (FIS) recognised freestyle as a discipline in 1979 and brought in new regulations regarding certification of athletes and jump techniques in an effort to curb some of the dangerous elements of the competitions. The first FIS World Cup series was staged in 1980 and the first FIS World Championships took place in 1986 in Tignes, France, featuring moguls, aerials and ballet. Freestyle skiing, where skiers perform aerial manoeuvres while skiing downhill, was a demonstration event at the Winter Olympic Games in Calgary in 1988. Mogul skiing was added to the official programme of the Albertville Games in 1992 and Aerials were added at the Lillehammer Games in 1994.
Telemark skiing
Telemark skiing
Telemark skiing is a form of skiing using the Telemark turn. Unlike alpine skiing equipment, the skis used for telemarking either have a binding that only connects the boot to the ski at the toes, just as in cross-country skiing, or may be released to only connect there.Telemark turns are led with...
was revived in the US in the 1970s as a way of getting into quiet, steeper mountain environments with no ski lift development. Much of the early telemark equipment was do-it-yourself, cobbled together using unlikely combinations like flimsy rat-trap cross-country bindings, hockey skate boots, Hexcel alpine skis. European randonnée equipment like the Silvretta cable binding and the Rossignol Haute Route ski were always available in the US, but eventually manufacturers like Chouinard Equipment, Ltd.--now Black Diamond Equipment, Ltd.
Black Diamond Equipment, Ltd.
Black Diamond, Inc. is a developer, manufacturer, and distributor of climbing, mountaineering and backcountry ski equipment. The company was formed out of Chouinard Equipment Ltd., and is currently based in Holladay, Utah, near Salt Lake City.- History :...
--began importing more sophisticated gear specifically for telemark. By the 1990s they were designing their own, including innovative plastic telemark boots, cable bindings, dedicated stable yet lightweight backcountry skis & climbing skins. Randonnée
Randonnée
Randonnée can refer to:* Brevet , an organized long-distance bicycle ride* Isle of Wight Randonnee , a yearly cycling event held on the Isle of Wight* Ski touring, a form of backcountry skiing...
or Alpine Touring (AT) equipment continued to come primarily from Europe, when it came at all. With the new, supportive equipment telemark racing & extreme
Extreme skiing
Extreme skiing is skiing performed on long, steep slopes in dangerous terrain. The sport is performed off-piste.The French coined the term 'Le Ski Extreme' in the 1970s...
competitions started.
The growth of snowboarding
Snowboarding
Snowboarding is a sport that involves descending a slope that is covered with snow on a snowboard attached to a rider's feet using a special boot set onto mounted binding. The development of snowboarding was inspired by skateboarding, sledding, surfing and skiing. It was developed in the U.S.A...
in the 1980s appealed to a new generation of skiers with its counter-culture fashion & far easier learning curve. This injection of new, enthusiastic participants increased ski resort business & reinvigorated ski equipment design, leading to fatter, more stable skis. As with all youth movements, new vocabulary was required for the same old activities & sliding over snow became known as "riding", even for skiers. Various forms of competition developed, including traditional gate racing, but also half-pipe
Half-pipe
A half-pipe is a structure used in gravity extreme sports such as snowboarding, skateboarding, skiing, freestyle BMX, and inline skating. The structure is wood, concrete, metal, earth, or snow. It resembles a cross section of a swimming pool, essentially two concave ramps , topped by copings and...
tricks, boardercross
Boardercross
Snowboard cross is a snowboard competition in which a group of snowboarders start simultaneously atop an inclined course, then race to reach the finish line first...
& extreme backcountry competition.
Austrian ski pioneers
- Mathias ZdarskyMathias ZdarskyMathias Zdarsky was an early ski pioneer and is considered one of the founders of modern Alpine skiing technique. He was probably Austria's first ski instructor. He was also a teacher, painter and sculptor....
, the so-called "Father of Alpine Skiing", started skiing in 1890. He altered his Norwegian skis by shortening them and later on he invented the first alpine binding for his skis, which he called Lilienfelder binding.
- In 1896 he published his first book on skiing technique. Zdarsky stemmedStem (skiing)The stem technique in skiing is a method for turning the skier. It is usually credited to the Austrian Mathias Zdarsky who developed it in the 1890s. Its variations gradually replaced the telemark technique in Alpine skiing....
the downhill ski out, leaned inside to the pole, unweighted the inner ski and brought it parallel, he used rotation technique. He taught skiing and invented ski acrobatics. - The first slalomSlalom skiingSlalom is an alpine skiing discipline, involving skiing between poles spaced much closer together than in Giant Slalom, Super-G or Downhill, thereby causing quicker and shorter turns.- Origins :...
race was directed by Zdarsky and took place at Muckenkogel, Lilienfeld, in 1905.- Georg Bilgeri published the book "Alpine skiing" about Norwegian and Zdarskian skiing technique in 1910. He invented the use of two poles and focused on snow plow, snow plow turnsSnowplough turnThe snowplough turn is a ski braking and turning technique taught to beginners. The front tips of the skis are brought together and the tails pushed wide apart, with the knees rolled inwards slightly...
and stem turnsStem (skiing)The stem technique in skiing is a method for turning the skier. It is usually credited to the Austrian Mathias Zdarsky who developed it in the 1890s. Its variations gradually replaced the telemark technique in Alpine skiing....
. With his program the first ski schools started their work in the TyrolGerman TyrolGerman Tyrol is a historical region in the Alps now divided between Austria and Italy. It includes largely ethnic German areas of historical County of Tyrol: the Austrian state of Tyrol and the province of South Tyrol but not the largely Italian-speaking province of Trentino .-History:German...
. - Johannes Schneider introduces the Norwegian Stem ChristieStem ChristieThe stem Christie is a technique in skiing for turning. It is a refinement of the basic stem technique, where prior to the turn the uphill ski is stemmed from being parallel with the downhill ski to form a V shape....
method of turning in 1910. In 1922 Hannes (originally named Johannes) Schneider founded Austria's first ski school in St. AntonSt. AntonSankt Anton am Arlberg is a village and ski resort in Tyrol, western Austria, with a permanent population of approximately . It is situated at above sea level in the Tyrolean Alps, with Aerial tramways and chairlifts up to . It is also a popular summer resort among trekkers and...
. In the year 1926, two years after the formation of the International Ski FederationInternational Ski FederationThe International Ski Federation, known by its name in French, Fédération Internationale de Ski is the main international organisation for ski sports...
(FIS) in ChamonixChamonixChamonix-Mont-Blanc or, more commonly, Chamonix is a commune in the Haute-Savoie département in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. It was the site of the 1924 Winter Olympics, the first Winter Olympics...
, France, he published the book "Miracle of the SnowshoeSnowshoeA snowshoe is footwear for walking over the snow. Snowshoes work by distributing the weight of the person over a larger area so that the person's foot does not sink completely into the snow, a quality called "flotation"....
" together with Dr. Arnold FanckArnold FanckArnold Fanck was a pioneer of the German mountain film....
. - The Parallel turnParallel turnThe parallel turn in alpine skiing is a method for turning. It is based on the idea of rolling the ski onto one edge, allowing it to bend into an arc. The ski then follows the arc shape and turns, without sliding. This is in contrast to earlier techniques like the stem Christie, which accomplishes...
was invented by ski instructor Anton SeelosAnton SeelosAnton Seelos was an Austrian alpine skier and world champion.In the 1930s, Seelos invented the Parallel turn and became a world champion in the slalom and alpine combination in 1933, and again in slalom and in combination in 1935.Seelos worked as professional ski instructor, and was therefore not...
from SeefeldSeefeld, TirolSeefeld in Tirol is a municipality of the Innsbruck-Land District in the Austrian state of Tyrol, located about northwest of Innsbruck. With more than one million overnight stays each year, it is one of the most popular Tyrolean tourist destinations especially for skiing in winter, but also for...
in TyrolTyrol (state)Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
, who won the 1933 World Alpine Championships 1933 in Innsbruck. This style became popular after he became instructor of Christl CranzChristl CranzChristl Franziska Antonia Cranz-Borchers was a German alpine skier. Crantz was the dominating skier of the 1930s winning twelve world championship titles between 1934 and 1939. At the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen she won the Alpine skiing combined competition .Cranz was born 1914...
and Émile AllaisÉmile AllaisÉmile Allais is a former champion alpine ski racer from France; he won all three events at the 1937 world championships in Chamonix and the gold in the combined in 1938...
and the French national team and their victories in the 1937 and 1938 World Alpine Ski Championships.
- Georg Bilgeri published the book "Alpine skiing" about Norwegian and Zdarskian skiing technique in 1910. He invented the use of two poles and focused on snow plow, snow plow turns
Norway
- Holmenkollen Ski MuseumHolmenkollen Ski MuseumHolmenkollen Ski Museum , located at the base of the Holmenkollen ski jump in Oslo, Norway, is the world's oldest ski museum, being founded in 1923....
in OsloOsloOslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King... - Kongsberg Skiing MuseumKongsberg Skiing MuseumKongsberg Skiing Museum is a museum of skiing, located in Kongsberg, Norway. It was initially created by the two friends and well known ski jumpers, Birger Ruud and Petter Hugsted...
in KongsbergKongsbergis a town and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. It is located at the southern end of the traditional region of Numedal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsberg.... - Norsk skieventyr, in MorgedalMorgedalMorgedal, of the municipality of Kviteseid in the county of Telemark Norway, is called the cradle of skiing.Morgedal, Norway is a village whose most famous residents were Sondre Norheim, known to be the father of modern skiing plus Torjus Hemmestveit and Mikkjel Hemmestveit...
, Norway
External links
- The Progression of an Obsession: Ski History 4,000 B.C. - 1930
- ColoradoSkiHistory.com
- History of skiing in Australia
U.S.
- International Skiing History Association
- New England Ski Museum in Franconia, New HampshireFranconia, New HampshireFranconia is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,104 at the 2010 census. Set in the White Mountains, Franconia is home to the northern half of Franconia Notch State Park. Parts of the White Mountain National Forest are in the eastern and southern portions...
- Colorado Ski Museum in Vail, ColoradoVail, ColoradoThe Town of Vail is a Home Rule Municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The population of the town was 4,589 in 2005. The town was established and built as the base village to Vail Ski Resort, with which it was originally conceived...
- U.S. National Ski Hall of Fame and Museum in Ishpeming, MichiganIshpeming, MichiganIshpeming is a city in Marquette County in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 6,686 at the 2000 census. This is down from a higher population in the 1950s and 1960s when the economically supportive iron ore mines had a much higher employment level...
- USSA historical timeline featuring history of ski competition in America from the 19th century to today
- Alf Engen Ski History Museum and 2002 Olympic Winter Games Museum in Park City, UtahPark City, UtahPark City is a town in Summit and Wasatch counties in the U.S. state of Utah. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake City's east edge of Sugar House along Interstate 80. The population was 7,558 at the 2010 census...