Harris Hill Ski Jump 2022

Harris Hill Ski Jump

100th Anniversary

A special publication of the Brattleboro Reformer Thursday, February 17, 2022

2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide | Thursday, February 17, 2022

2022 Event Guide

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Thursday, February 17, 2022 | 2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide

Table of Contents

FROM THE ORGANIZERS

Letter from the organizers

2

Jump Directors

2

Governor’s Proclamation

3

Committee Members

3

Board and Organizing Committee

3

Competitors

4

Schedule and Information

4

The First 100 Years - Harris Hill History

5-7

Record Breakers

7

Marking the 100th Anniversary

8

Lighting the Hill

8

Commemorative Book

8

Step Up & Soar

9

Harris Hill Winners

10

Trophy Story

10

Sponsors

11

Brattleboro Jumpers of Note

11

Dear ski jump fans,

This year marks 100 years of ski jumping at Harris Hill, a milestone of extraordinary proportions by any standards. We’re celebrating this anniversary in grand style for everyone to enjoy. We’ve published a book, Harris Hill Ski Jump The First 100 Years, the colorful, engaging, history of the ski jump. We’ve erected a life-size ski jumper in flight at the head of Main Street, and installed lights on the ski jump hill so that we can, for first-time ever, have night jumping.

This weekend, the Retreat Farm’s field will once again be transformed into a 90-meter ski jumping event.

It will come alive with excitement, breathtaking jumping, the ringing of cow bells, music, food and fun for spectators and jumpers from near and far, past and present.

On Friday night, the Brattleboro Outing Club joins us as they too celebrate 100 years. Together, we will host jumping and fireworks, a free evening of fun for the community. Our Saturday and Sunday tournaments will be jam-packed with competition as we cheer on jumpers from the U.S. and abroad.

All of this, almost without exception, is made possible by volunteers. An allvolunteer organizing committee works year-round on the competition and the jump facility. People in the community and beyond generously donate their time, talent, equipment, professional skills, expertise and financial support for a myriad of tasks. It all comes together on ski jump weekend. It has been that way for 100 years.

And so, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary, we’re dedicating this year’s ski jumping competition to the volunteers and ski jumpers past and present who have made Harris Hill Ski Jump such an iconic favorite.

We applaud the legions of volunteers—the planners and pluggers; snowmakers, packers, groomers and plowers; starters, scorekeepers and meter markers; ticket-takers and parkers; announcers and anthem singers; sponsors, photographers, donors, designers and publicists; EMT’s and everyone else not named, but always necessary, who give their time, energy and expertise to make Harris Hill the beloved Brattleboro tradition that it is.

Bravo to all!

Fred Harris would be proud.

Kate McGinn & Liz Richards Co-Directors

HARRIS HILL SKI JUMP DIRECTORS

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Compiled by Dana Sprague

1922 - 1937

Fred Harris

1938 – 1947

RL Billings

1948

Donald Allen

1949 – 1953

Alan Sargent

1954

Charles Toms

1955

Francis Bement

1956

Tink Austin

1957 - 1977

Alan Sargent

1978 – 1984

Bernie Barrett

1985 – 1992

Dana Zelenakas

1993

Pat Howell

1994 – 2009

Pat Howell & Kate McGinn

2010 – 2015

Kate McGinn & Betsy Farley

2016 – 2022

Kate McGinn & Liz Richards

Tournament director Dana Zelenakas , 1985- Fred Harris, Tournament Director 1922-1937 1992, awards future Director of Competition Todd Einig, in 1991

COVER TOP PHOTO: NEW ENGLAND SKI MUSEUM

One of the earliest Harris Hill tournaments 1920s COVER BOTTOM PHOTO: STEVE MCLAUGHLIN

2 Fred Harris Memorial Tournament February 16, 2020

Tournament directors Tink Austin 1956, and Alan Sargent 1949-1953

Tournament Co-Directors Kate McGinn and Pat Howell, 1994-2009 PHOTOS: DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVES

WHEREAS,

of Vermont State ofStateVermont Executive Department A Proclamation Executive State ofDepartment Vermont Executive Department A Proclamation A Proclamation

CURRENT COMMITTEE MEMBERS

the Harris Hill Ski Jumping Competition is a celebrated Brattleboro, Vermont tradition that enjoys a rich history dating back to 1922; and

WHEREAS, WHEREAS,

the Harris Harris Hill Hill Ski Ski Jumping Jumping was Competition celebrated Vermont the visionisofa Fred HarrisBrattleboro, of Brattleboro who founded the tradition that enjoys a rich history dating to 1922; and Brattleboro Outing Club and theback Dartmouth Outing Club and, according to the

WHEREAS,

Spearheaded the campaign to rebuild Harris Hill Ski Jumping was the vision of Fred Harris of Brattleboro who founded the Brattleboro Outing Club and the Dartmouth Outing Club and, according to the the jump in 2005. She’s worked on the Harris has a reputation for organizing tournaments Vermont SkiHill Museum, was responsible for “puttingfirst-class America on Skis;” and that attract jumpers committee since 1987.

WHEREAS,

Vermont Ski Museum, was responsible for “putting America on Skis;” and from the U.S. and the world to compete on its 90-meter hill; and

WHEREAS,

Harris Hill has a reputation for organizing first-class tournaments that attract jumpers Hill of 18onnational and regional fromHarris the U.S. andhas thebeen worldthe to site compete its 90-meter hill; and championships, including the

WHEREAS,

Harris Hill has been the site of 18 national and regional championships, including the mostHarris recent Hill in 1992 hosted the National Championships; and England and the newest Skiwhen Jumpit is the only 90-meter ski jump in New

WHEREAS,

Harris Hill Ski Jump is the only 90-meter ski jump in New England and the newest (FIS) specifications; and Olympic size 90-meter jump in the country designed to International Ski Federation (FIS) specifications; and

WHEREAS,

WHEREAS,

WHEREAS, WHEREAS,

WHEREAS,

WHEREAS,

PHOTO BY: DANA SPRAGUE

Pat Howell Board President

most recent in 1992 when it hosted the National Championships; and

Olympic size 90-meter jump in the country designed to International Ski Federation Harris Hill Ski Jumping Competition is the successful, first class, international winter

PHOTO BY: ALLAN SEYMOUR

sports event that it Competition is, thanks inislarge part, to thefirst generous support of its many sponsors Harris Hill Ski Jumping the successful, class, international winter and Friends Hill, & generous Soar supporters, the Manton sports event that it of is, Harris thanks in largeStep part,Up to the support ofand its many sponsorsFoundation.

Dana Sprague special note Hill, is Leader Distribution Systems/Pepsi-Cola has and Of Friends of Harris Step Up & Soar supporters, and the MantonBrattleboro, Foundation. which Photographer, Archivist Of special note is Leader Distribution Brattleboro, which has been the Event Sponsor of the skiSystems/Pepsi-Cola jumping competition since 1986; and Involved since 1967; committee been the Event Sponsor of the ski jumping competition since 1986; and

member since 1994.

it is the legions of volunteers who give of their time, energy and expertise that make

it is Harris the legions volunteers who give ofbeloved, their time, energy and expertise make HillofSki Jump the iconic, long-standing traditionthat that it is. The twoHarris Hill Ski Jump the iconic, beloved, long-standing tradition that it is. The twoday tournament is run entirely by a volunteer board and organizing committee, as well day tournament is run entirely by a volunteer board and organizing committee, as well by hundreds of community volunteers on ski jump weekend; and as byashundreds of community volunteers on ski jump weekend; and

WHEREAS, WHEREAS,

the legacy ski jumping in Brattleboro is preserved for past, the legacy of skiofjumping in Brattleboro is preserved for past, current andcurrent future and future generations to the commitment of the Brattleboro community generations thanksthanks to the commitment of the Brattleboro community and beyond;and andbeyond; and

WHEREAS, WHEREAS,

in 2022 HarrisHarris Hill Ski 100 years of years ski jumping Brattleboro, in 2022 HillJump Ski celebrates Jump celebrates 100 of skiinjumping in Brattleboro, Vermont.

Vermont.

NOW, THEREFORE, NOW, THEREFORE,

I, Philip B. Scott, hereby proclaim February 19-20, 202219-20, as I, Philip B. Governor, Scott, Governor, hereby proclaim February 2022 as HARRIS HILL SKI JUMP WEEKEND

HARRIS HILL SKI JUMP WEEKEND in Vermont.

in Vermont.

PHOTO BY: DANA SPRAGUE

Chris Lamb & Sandy Harris

Committee member Sandy Harris with 2010 Hill Record Breaker, 2-Time Winner Chris Lamb

Given under my hand and the Great Seal of the State of Vermont on this 3rd my day hand of February, 2022.

Given under and theA.D. Great Seal of the State of

Vermont on this 3rd day of February, A.D. 2022.

______________________ Brittney L. Wilson Secretary of Civil and Military Affairs ______________________

Brittney L. Wilson Secretary of Civil and Military Affairs

Philip B. Scott Governor

PHOTO BY: DOUG LEARNED

Spencer Knickerbocker Committee Member Nordic combined Director, and Competitor

“Proud to be a presenting sponsor of Harris Hill Ski Jump”

(800) 222-6016 TheRichardsGrp.com

Patricia Howell, President Liz Richards, Vice President Sandy Harris, Secretary Gail Bourque, Treasurer Tom Durkin Todd Einig Kate McGinn Andrew Rome Sally Seymour

The Organizing Committee This all-volunteer group works year-round to put on this twoday winter sporting event. The committee is comprised of people who have a passion for ensuring that this extraordinary tradition continues. The group includes former jumpers, coaches, specialists in hill maintenance and grooming, people skilled in professional sports announcing, marketing, communications, and operations management.

Kate McGinn, Co-Director Liz Richards, Co-Director Gail Bourque Jennifer Donovan Tom Durkin Kathryn Einig Todd Einig Jason Evans Melissa Galanes Sandy Harris Patricia Howell Spencer Knickerbocker Paul Nasuta Amber Pillsbury Dana Sprague Sally Seymour Karen Zelenakas

Special Projects Mel Martin Allan Seymour

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______________________ Philip B. Scott ______________________ Governor

Board of Trustees

2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide | Thursday, February 17, 2022

GOVERNOR’S PROCLAMATION

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Thursday, February 17, 2022 | 2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide

Harris Hill Ski Jump Competitors: 2022 United States

Introduction of competitors

PHOTO BY: DANA SPRAGUE

Dylan Amy Skylar Amy Haley Brabec Ian Carmack Cooper Dodds Hunter Gibson Angelo Goodwin Sawyer Graves Estella Hassock Austin Johnson Rudger Klug Spencer Knickerbocker Jack Kroll Nathan Krotz Chris Lamb Eli Larkin

Bonnie Larson Ethan Maines Kai McKinnon Thomas Miller Eva Minotto Isak Nichols Liam Nichols Lucas Nichols Elias Oswold Macey Olden Ryder Olden Owen Park Mitchell Penning Tyler Phillips Nathan Rind Root Roepke Emma Russell Adeline Swanson

Arthur Tirone Rueben Vetsch Ella Wilson Ronen Woods Anna Zigman

SLOVENIA Ugh Rosar Zak Silih

NORWAY Ole Kristian Baarset Eirik Fystro Anders Ladehaug

ICELAND

Anton Oyvindsson

2022 Schedule & Information Competition Schedule Friday, February 18, 2022: 6-8 p.m______ 100th anniversary joint celebration of Harris Hill Ski Jump and Brattleboro Outing Club 7:00 p.m_____ Target Jump Competition 8:00 p.m_____ Fireworks

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Saturday, February 19, 2022: Pepsi Challenge and US Cup Competition 10:00 a.m____ Gates open / Jump training 11:30 a.m_____ Opening ceremonies 12:15 p.m_____ Trial round 1:00 p.m______ Round 1 1:45 p.m______ Round 2 2:30 p.m_____ Target Jump Award ceremonies immediately following event at the base of Harris Hill

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Sunday, February 20, 2022: Fred Harris Memorial Tournament 10:00 a.m____ Gates open / Jump training 11:45 a.m_____ Opening ceremonies 12:30 p.m____ Trial round 1:15 p.m______ Round 1 2;00 p.m_____ Round 2 2:45 p.m_____ Target Jump Award ceremonies immediately following event at the base of Harris Hill

PHOTO BY: DANA SPRAGUE

Brattleboro resident Kristina Meima sings the National Anthem at opening ceremonies each year

House & Barn Restoration ★ structural restoration-repair and/or replacement of ★ new foundations constructed under existing damaged foundations, sills, joists, framing timbers buildings ★ recycling & dismantling of old barns & re-assembly ★ barn frames, timbers, barn board & antique Wood for sale ★ tasteful remodeling of and additions to Period Homes

www.oldbuildingfix.com

Chris Parker

(802) 257-4610 • (802) 579-5163

Harris Hill, celebrating its centennial, boasts a high-flying history

SANDY HARRIS COLLECTION

(This essay by Brattleboro writer Kevin O’Connor is adapted from the book, “Harris Hill Ski Jump: The First 100 Years,” available at local stores and on harrishillskijump.com.)

green-laden hill on Cedar Street in December of 1921. In a month, workers cut trees, blasted rocks, smoothed the slope and constructed 350 steps up to a wood trestle for an inaugural jump that drew a crowd of 2,500 people Feb. 4, 1922.

Since its opening, Harris Hill has hosted nine national championships, starting in 1924 with

DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVE

the first finals held in the East and continuing up — “aside from a few hardscrabble years when winter was barren and when World War II raged,” the tribute sign says — to the U.S. qualifiers for the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.

At its zenith in 1951, the jump set athlete and attendance

records with 168 sportsmen and 10,000 spectators — fittingly, on the day the facility was officially named “Harris Hill.”

Back before liability insurance and high school hockey, local teenagers considered the sport as common as football, basketball or baseball. Dana Sprague knows the jump both as a past athlete up

DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVE

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Frederick Henry Harris was a young contemporary of the Wright brothers — inventors of the airplane in the dizzyingly heady days at the dawn of the 1900s — when the Brattleboro college student first strapped wooden slats to his feet and catapulted off a snow-covered ramp.

“Broke my skis all to pieces,” Harris penned in his diary.

But two more timbers brought two more tries.

“Fell twice,” he wrote.

But again, persistence.

“Tried jump several times, and at last made it,” Harris proclaimed. “Hurrah! twice Oh! ye!

Gods!”

If only Harris could foresee what it all would snowball into.

When the Vermonter built what’s now the Harris Hill Ski Jump in his hometown in 1922, he needed only a few planks for a launchpad and two more to lash to his boots to leap off a peak 30 stories high at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour.

But to attract a current-day crowd of world-class athletes and several thousand spectators, a nonprofit volunteer committee had to raise nearly $600,000 upon the start of the new millennium to rebuild the venue — now the only Olympic-size ski jump in New England and one of a mere six of its height in the nation.

That’s just the latest wrinkle in a century-long history of rising

above seemingly insurmountable odds.

Neither “skiing” nor “ski jumping” were household words in the United States when Harris — a sportsman turned stockbroker who lived from 1887 to 1961 — “early saw the light and, gathering disciples to himself, began to preach a gospel,” the late historian Frederick Van de Water once wrote.

A pioneering “extreme skier,” Harris is credited with making the earliest slalom descents of Mount Washington in New Hampshire and Whiteface in New York. Harris founded the Dartmouth Outing Club — the first such organization of its kind in the country — in 1909, then created the Brattleboro Outing Club in 1922, the same year he built the ski jump with $2,200 of his own money.

Harris had eyed an ever-

2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide | Thursday, February 17, 2022

THE FIRST 100 YEARS

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Thursday, February 17, 2022 | 2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide

LEWIS R. BROWN PHOTO, COURTESY BRATTLEBORO HISTORICAL SOCIETY

DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVE

DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVE

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on the launch and as its present historian and photographer down on the landing.

Sprague can tell you the hill’s Winged Ski Trophy has been retired by six jumpers who each won at least three times — Torger Tokle of Norway in 1942, his brother Arthur Tokle in 1951, Art Devlin of Lake Placid, N.Y., in 1957, Hugh Barber of Brattleboro in 1974, Vladimir Glyvka of Ukraine in 2000 and Blaz Pavlic of Slovenia in 2020.

(Another one of Sprague’s don’t-try-this-at-home tidbits: “In 1927,” his timeline reports, “Reginald and Carol Kendall of Norwich take a toboggan off Harris Hill and through a flaming hoop.”)

But natural tree-lined hills like the one Harris cleared by hand eventually gave way to metal towers with slick plastic ramps that don’t need help from Mother Nature. The local jump’s survival is due less to its storied past than to the ongoing support of its present caretakers.

Volunteers added a snowmaking system in 1985 (thanks to the Mount Snow ski area in West Dover) and a new $20,000 judging stand in 2003 (courtesy of the Brattleboro Rotary Club).

In 2005, as the late Harris was inducted into the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum’s Hall 6 of Fame, a 16-year-old Slovenian

borrowed another jumper’s skis (an airline had lost and then broken his) to continue the founder’s tradition and fly off with that year’s annual tournament.

Soon after, the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association, concerned less with the hill’s history than its seemingly antique wooden takeoff, ruled the jump unsafe and refused to sanction any more competitions.

The venue sat unused for three winters as volunteers sought designs and dollars not only to replace the tower but also to add a steel launch ramp, peakto-parking lot staircase, required safety features and water and electrical fixtures for snowmaking.

Volunteers feared that funding 50 tons of steel and 160,000 pounds of cement was too big a leap, even with generous community giving. Miraculously, they received an unsolicited $130,000 from the New York-based Manton Foundation.

“How many times have rookies like us, who are doing this completely pro bono with little fundraising background, wished for one angel donor who would just rescue them?” volunteer Patricia Howell said upon receiving the gift in 2008.

Supporters would reap a total of nearly $600,000 to reopen the hill in 2009. Spencer Knickerbock-

DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVE

PHOTO BY: ALLAN SEYMOUR

er was a 16-year-old Brattleboro Union High School sophomore when he made history of sorts by being the first athlete to test out the 90-meter jump before its grand reopening.

“I think it was important to have a local do it,” Knickerbocker said after his successful flight, “because the whole community came together for the fundraising support.”

(For a moment, Knickerbocker’s inaugural leap was recordsetting, too: Because the renovated steel takeoff ramp is higher than its wooden predecessor, officials retired their old record book and opened a new one.)

Harris Hill, being a real slope rather than a ramp atop scaffolding, is one of the few venues in the country that allows spectators to climb it to eye athletes up close.

DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVE

PHOTO BY: JOSHUA FOOTE

“We think it’s a great thing for people to get an appreciation of the speed and skill that’s required,” says Rex Bell, a former coach of the U.S. Olympic ski

the first International Ski Federation cup competition ever held in the United States.

“When most ski jumpers climb to the summit of Harris Hill, they can see all the way to New Hampshire,” Pulitzer Prizewinning journalist Stan Grossfeld wrote in the Boston Globe that year. “But Karin Friberg, 22, who routinely trains with the U.S. women’s ski jumping team, can see Sochi, Russia.”

That’s because Brattleboro welcomed female athletes long before they competed in the Olympics — which began with male ski jumpers at the first Winter Games in 1924 but didn’t allow women until 2014.

As for the future? The hill is reaching out to new generations on its website, harrishillskijump. com. But it’s still grounded just above a cornfield as one of the few natural jumps on the continent.

“Everyone who has contributed to preserve the tradition of ski jumping in Brattleboro can be proud,” volunteer Liz Richards said upon the hill’s most recent restoration. “Proud that we did not let this amazing piece of local history become history.”

2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide | Thursday, February 17, 2022

ABOVE PHOTO BY: SALLY SEYMOUR | BELOW PHOTO BY: JUSTIN ALTMAN

jumping team who helps lead hill competitions.

Visitors also can see how snowmaking guns funnel and freeze gallon upon gallon of water before grooming machines smooth the result.

“If we get a foot of natural snow and compact that, it’s 2 inches,” says Jason Evans, a Dummerston contractor in charge of hill preparation. “And natural snow melts a lot quicker than man-made snow. No matter how much snow falls, we still make it.”

Because the jump is managed and maintained by volunteers, it opens only one weekend a year — traditionally for a two-day February competition capped by the annual Fred Harris Memorial Ski Jumping Tournament. Harris’ daughter, Sandy, presents the contest’s Winged Ski Trophy, just as her father and mother, Helen, did.

“I want to do this because of how much this community has honored my father,” she says. “It means a lot to me to think Brattleboro has carried on his vision, his passion, his legacy.”

And a history that continues to spark interest. In 2012, the hill celebrated its 90th anniversary with a new coaching tower and

RECORD BREAKERS

Harris Hill Ski Jump Record Breakers Jumper

Feet

2017 2010 2009 2001 1996 1995 1987 1986 1982 1978 1975 1974 1969 1965 1951 1942 1941 1938 1936 1933 1925 1924 1923 1922

Blaz Pavlic, Slovenia Chris Lamb, Andover, NH Christian Reiter, Austria Primoz Delavec, Slovenia Vladimir Glyvka, Ukraine Alex Diess, Austria Risto Laakonen, Finland Reed Zuchlke, EauClaire, WI Jeff Volmrich, Lake Placid, NY Chris Bergrav, Dartmouth Chris Bergrav, Dartmouth Hugh Barber, Brattleboro Adrian Watt, Duluth, MN Wolfgang Happle, Germany Art Tokle, NY – Norway Torger Tokle, NY – Norway Torger Tokle, NY – Norway Birger Ruud, Norway Aurele Legere, Rumford, ME Harold Sorensen, Brooklyn, NY Bing Anderson, Berlin, NH Henry Hall, Detroit, MI Norman Berger, Montreal Bing Anderson, Berlin, NH

341 (104 meters) 335 331.65 320 310 304 299 287 279 261 259 256 251 241 239 230 223 220 197 192 190 180 160 158

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PHOTO BY: DANA SPRAGUE

Slovenian Blaz Pavlic, winner of the 2017 Fred Harris Memorial Tournament and new hill record holder.

Year

7

Thursday, February 17, 2022 | 2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide The Brattleboro Reformer | Reformer.com 8

MARKING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY

Sculpture Celebrates 100 Years

PHOTO BY: ALLAN SEYMOUR

To help celebrate a century of support from the Brattleboro community, the Harris Hill Ski Jump Committee commissioned a sculpture that will reside on Main Street each December, January and February.

The all-metal sculpture was designed by Mel Martin of Newfane, who also managed its fabrication and installation. The sculpture offers up a more vibrant view at night thanks to 500 solar-powered LED lights.

Eleven months start to finish, the sculpture was installed in early January. The ski jumper was cut from solid aluminum plate by GS Precision of Brattleboro who generously donated time and material. The jumper is held aloft by a steel arch 17 feet high and 9-1/2 feet wide. The entire piece is covered by a metallic blue coating applied

by Khameleon Koatings. All told, a dozen individuals and businesses from Chicago to Brattleboro were involved in the process, most of whom donated their services.

LIGHTING THE HILL

Let There Be Light Thanks to the recent installation of lights on the ski jump and in the outrun, Harris Hill will be hosting its first ever, Friday night exhibition jumping. Jumpers will compete in a festive, fun Target Jump. The jumper who lands closest to the target painted on the Hill, is the winner.

Dummerston resident, Allan Seymour, designed and managed the lighting project.

He built lights for the in-run and coaches’ stand, and Consolidated Communications donated two utility poles for lights on the hill and outrun. A San Diego firm conducted an engineering study and specified the LED lights. Allan worked closely with Director of Competition Todd Einig to ensure that the lighting would meet the jumpers’ needs.

Lighting the hill was inspired by the Organizing Committee’s idea to hold an anniversary celebration on Friday night, Feb. 18th of ski jump weekend. In addition to night jumping, the evening will include fireworks and a giant birthday cake. The evening is celebrated in conjunction with the Brattleboro Outing Club (BOC) which was also founded by Fred Harris, and is celebrating its own 100 year anniversary.

The evening is free—a thank you to the community and the volunteers that make the ski jump possible. Festivities begin at 6 p.m. at Harris Hill.

PHOTO BY: ALLAN SEYMOUR

COMMEMORATIVE BOOK

Commemorative book tells the stories of 100 years

PHOTO BY: ALLAN SEYMOUR

Harris Hill Book Committee, L/R: Kevin O’Connor, Pat Howell, Lynn Barrett, Mel Martin, Dana Sprague, Sally Seymour Harris Hill Ski Jump – The First 100 Years chronicles the colorful history of the annual, winter competition that has attracted athletes from 17 countries around the globe and spectators for 100 years.

Starting with its namesake, Fred Harris, a Brattleboro native, the history unfolds through the decades – colossal challenges to triumphant moments in what’s become an iconic, annual event thanks to the support of PHOTO BY: MEL MARTIN local volunteers and sponsors who made it all happen. A tradition that continues to this day.

The 120-page soft cover book is narrated in a storytelling style by Brattleboro writer Kevin O’Connor. The opening sections are full of rare, black and white images from private collections and archives. There are stories about the Winged Ski Trophy and the evolution of jumping styles.

The book recently won the Skade Award from the International Skiing History Association. Copies can be purchased at local and regional bookstores, the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum in Stowe, Vermont, the New England Ski Museum in Franconia, NH and on-line at HarrisHillSkiJump.org.

“Own” a Step

ABOVE PHOTO BY:DOUG LEARNED | BELOW PHOTO: DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVE

Official lOdging Partner Of the 2022 harris hill ski JumP – WELCOME ATHLETES! –

Conveniently situated off I-91, our beautiful accommodations offer the perfect location for your family to stay.

100 CHICKERING DRIVE, BRATTLEBORO, VT • 802-257-2400

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PHOTO BY: KELLY FLETCHER

In 2007, the Harris Hill Ski Jump launched the “Step Up & Soar” capital campaign to help raise money to rebuild the tower and in-run. The idea? For $1,000, donors could “own” one of the 209 numbered steps that climb along the side of the hill to the top, including 22 steps in the starting gate, all visibly numbered. Donors could choose their number and name or one of a family member, friend, pet, loved one, business and have it listed on the kiosk at the base of the hill.

This popular campaign continues today to support the year-round hill maintenance and improvements. To date, 133 steps have been sold and it is hoped that a sell-out of the remaining 76 steps can happen during this anniversary year.

To purchase a step, pick a number, indicate the name or names to appear next to the number, and send a check (payable to Harris Hill Ski Jump, Inc.) for $1,000.

Harris Hill Ski Jump PO Box 8284 Brattleboro, Vermont 05304 For more information go to harrishillskijump.com.

2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide | Thursday, February 17, 2022

STEP UP & SOAR

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Thursday, February 17, 2022 | 2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide

A History of its Own When Fred Harris commissioned the famed jeweler Cartier to create a Winged Ski Trophy for anyone who won the ski jump three times, he didn’t know it would take 20 years before he’d have to call for another.

His original design delicately paired two skis and two ski poles to support the trophy above its base.

Norwegian Torger Tokle became the first competitor to retire the original trophy. Tokle’s brother Arthur would go on to retire its replacement in 1951.

Among changes to the second

Harris Hill Ski Jump Winners

Compiled by Dana Sprague 1922 John Carleton, Dartmouth, USA 1922 Bing Anderson, Berlin, NH, USA 1923 Alf Jansen, Chicago, IL, USA 1924 Lars Haugen, Canton, SD, USA 1925 Norman Berger, Montreal 1926 Ole Jansen, Brooklyn, NY, USA 1927 Everett Davidson, Berlin, NH, USA 1928 Harlvor Bjorngaard, Redwing, MN, USA 1929 Strand Mikkelsen, Greenfield, MA, USA 1930 No Jump - No Snow 1931 Harold Sorensen, Brooklyn, NY, USA 1932 No Jump – No Snow 1933 Harold Sorensen, Brooklyn, NY, USA 1934 Rolf Munson, Lake Placid, NY, USA 1935 Sigurd Jorgensen, Norway 1936 Aurele LeGere, Rumford, ME, USA 1937 No Jump - No Snow 1938 Birger Rudd, Norway 1939 Merrill Barber, Brattleboro, VT, USA 1940 Torger Tokle, Norway 1941 Torger Tokle, Norway 1942 Torger Tokle, Norway 1943 No Jump – War 1944 No Jump - War 1945 No Jump - War 1946 Art Devlin, Lake Placid, NY, USA 1947 Merrill Barber, Brattleboro, VT, USA 1948 Arthur Tokle, Norway 1949 Arthur Tokle, Norway 1950 Art Devlin, Lake Placid, NY, USA 1951 Arthur Tokle, Norway 1952 Sigurd Sorensen, Norway 1953 Jon Riisnaes, Norway 1954 Art Devlin, Lake Placid, NY, USA 1955 Art Devlin, Lake Placid, NY, USA 1956 Roy Sherwood, Salisbury, CT, USA 1957 Art Devlin, Lake Placid, NY, USA 1958 Art Devlin, Lake Placid, NY, USA 1959 Bernie Dion, Lebanon, NH, USA 1960 Roy Sherwood, Salisbury, CT, USA 1961 Ansten Samuelstuen, Steamboat Spring, CO, USA 1962 Art Tokle, Brooklyn, NY - Norway 1963 Kjell Sjoberg, Sweden 1964 Jacques Charland, Threerivers, Quebec 1965 Sepp Lichtenegger, Austria 1966 Eric Merrill, Brattleboro, VT, USA 1967 John Bower, Auburn, ME, USA 1968 Peter Robes, Etna, NH, USA 1969 Adrian Watt, Duluth, MN, USA 10 1970 Peter Robes, Etna, NH, USA

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design was the elimination of the skis and poles. U.S. Olympian Art Devlin would take this version home at Brattleboro’s first Winter Carnival in 1957. Local jumper Hugh Barber retired its replacement in 1974.

The third design took on a dramatically different look. It took 26 years before Ukrainian Vladimir Glyvka retired it in 2000. The most recent trophy, designed by Harris’ daughter Sandy, was made from butternut wood and Vermont marble, and went home with Slovenian Blaz Pavlic in 2020.

1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Scott Berry, Deadwood, SD, USA Hugh Barber, Brattleboro, VT, USA Hugh Barber, Brattleboro, VT, USA Hugh Barber, Brattleboro, VT, USA Jerry Martin, Minneapolis, MN, USA Walter Malmquist, Post Mills, VT, USA Scott Sobezak, Cloquet, MN, USA Chris Bergrav, Norway Walter Malmquist, Post Mills, VT, USA No Jump - No Snow No Jump - No Snow Jeff Volmrich, Lake Placid, NY, USA Chris Hastings, Norwich, VT, USA Hans Johnston, Carlisle, MA, USA Jan Henrick, Troen, Norway Jeff Volmrich, Lake Placid, NY, USA Risto Laakkone, Finland Stefan Horngahar, Austria Steiner Bratten, Norway Mike Holland, Norwich, VT, USA Andraz Kopal, Yugoslavia Dimitri Zucz, Russia Andreas Aschauer, Austria Harold Deiss, Austria Jim Holland, Norwich, VT, USA Vladimir Glyvka, Ukraine Randy Weber, Steamboat Springs, CO, USA No Jump - No Snow Vladimir Glyvka, Ukraine Vladimir Glyvka, Ukraine Tadej Lenic, Slovenia Casey Colby, Lake Placid, NY, USA Jakob Seifried, Austria Luka Bardorfer, Slovenia Primoz Kozar, Slovenia No Jump – Construction No Jump - Construction No Jump - Construction Christian Reiter, Austria Chris Lamb, Andover, NH, USA Mike Glasder, Cary, IL, USA Anders Johnson, UT, USA Chris Lamb, Andover NH USA Miran Zupancic, Slovenia Samet Karta, Turkey Gasper Bartol, Slovenia Blaz Pavlik, Slovenia Claudio Mörth, Austria Blaz Pavlik, Slovenia Blaz Pavlik, Slovenia

Harris Hill Sponsors 2022 Presenting Sponsor: Pepsi, Leader Distribution Systems Lead Sponsors: G. S. Precision Mount Snow North Star The Richards Group Whetstone Craft Beers Mascot Sponsor: Brattleboro Savings & Loan Transportation Sponsor: Auto Mall Jumper Sponsors: BPOE 1499 Brattleboro Country Club Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Brattleboro Outing Club C & S Wholesale Grocers Fidium Fiber New Chapter Peoples United Bank The Windham Foundation Vermont Innovation Box

Banner Sponsors: Allard Lumber Barrows Fisher Oil Bagel Works, Inc. Bradley House/Holton Home Brattleboro Auto Body and Detailing Brattleboro Food Coop Brattleboro Portable Storage Cersosimo Industries Downtown Brattleboro Alliance Four Columns Inn Howard Printing Landmark College Northern Roots Salon Perkins Home Center Rentals Plus, Inc. 802 Credit Union St. Michael Catholic School Scott Farm, a Property of The Landmark Trust USA The Grammar School Thompson House Communications and Media: Brattleboro Chamber of Commerce Brattleboro Community Television The Brattleboro Reformer The Commons WTSA Lodging Partner: Holiday Inn Express

DANA SPRAGUE ARCHIVE

Brattleboro Ski Jumpers Of Note 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Fred Harris Merrill “Mezzy” Barber Dana Zelenakas Hugh Barber Bernie Wells Eric Merrill James Galanes Drew Richards Todd Brooks Phil Rancourt Kevin Whitworth Dave Lantz Willy Graves

14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Tim Barrett Jerry Galanes Jim Baker Dave Austin Cy Moss Gordon Ulmer Phil Dunham Dave Harris Jeff Baker Dave Merrill Spencer Knickerbocker Doug Lantz

Best Wishes for the next 100 years

Harris Hill Ski Jump

the Athletes, their Teams & Spectators!

Brattleboro ELKS #1499

17 Putney Road Brattleboro, VT 05301 802-254-5933

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Twin Banner Sponsors: Anson Baldwin Tree Service Brattleboro Area Realty Brattleboro Ford Brattleboro Retreat Brattleboro Subaru Cota & Cota Dave Manning Eastern Ski and Nordic Combined Foard Panel GPI Construction Green Mountain Creamery J. Evans Construction Lawton Floor Design Marina Restaurant

Retreat Farm Savings Bank of Walpole SERVPRO of Keene Stop & Go Instant Oil Change Swiss Precision Turning Trust Company of Vermont Vermont Country Deli Wells Fargo Advisors

2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide | Thursday, February 17, 2022

PHOTO BY: STEVE MCLAUGHLIN

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Thursday, February 17, 2022 | 2022 Harris Hill Ski Jump Event Guide