Ski Hall of Fame to honor inductees this weekend at Deer Valley

For the first time in history, the U.S. National Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame will induct its honorees at a ski resort this weekend when it meets for the ceremony at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, Utah, from April 3–5.
The class of 2008 includes Cary Adgate, Bill Briggs, Nelson Carmichael and Liz McIntyre.

At age 17, Adgate won the U.S. Junior National Championship. In 1973, he joined the U.S. Ski Team and won the Can-Am overall and giant slalom championships, as well as the Roch Cup downhill/overall championship. He won six U.S. Alpine Championship titles and was an Olympian in 1976 and 1980. He became a professional skier in 1981, going on to win 25 races and the 1984 U.S. Pro Championships. In 2005 he was Ski Racing’s Master Racer of the Year. He is currently a snowsports ambassador for Boyne USA Resorts, where he continues his support of ski racing.

American ski mountaineering pioneer Bill Briggs began as a certified instructor in 1955. Three years later, he founded the Bill Briggs Ski School at Suicide Six Ski Area in Vermont. In 1958, Briggs was part of a team that made the first 100-mile traverse from the Bugaboos to Rogers Pass, B.C. He notched a number of first descents by skiing down Mount Rainer, Middle and South Teton, Mount Moran and the Grand Teton, all with a congenital hip defect. As the founder of the Great American Ski School, Briggs established the Certainty Training Method (CTM) for ski instructors. He continues as director of the Snow King Ski School in Jackson, Wyoming.

Nelson Carmichael of Steamboat Springs joined the U.S. Ski Team in 1984 straight out of high school; four years later, he won back-to-back World Cup mogul championships in 1988 and 1989. He was on the first ever freestyle Olympic podium in 1992, winning the bronze. After winning six U.S. Championships and 12 World Cup events and conducting several professional tours, he retired from competition and put down roots at Steamboat Ski Resort.

Freestyle skiing legend Liz McIntyre’s U.S. Ski Team career spanned 20 years, first as an athlete (1986–98), then as a moguls coach (1999–2006). As an athlete, she claimed an Olympic silver medal at the 1994 Lillehammer Games, tallied four World Cup podiums and earned 18 World Cup top-10 finishes. As a coach, McIntyre mentored Olympic medalists Shannon Bahrke, Toby Dawson and Travis Mayer; she also led the team into new territory as inverted maneuvers were made competition-legal.
 
Attendees of the three-day event will have the opportunity to meet and ski with inductees as well as skiing legends Stein Eriksen, Nikki Stone, Trace Worthington and Alan Engen. Worthington will host a special morning of skiing with the guests of honor at Deer Valley; Engen will lead a ski day at Alta. The weekend will also be an occasion to celebrate Alta’s 70th anniversary.

The honorees were selected by an independent committee of ski professionals, historians, and writers chaired by Paul Bousquet and elected by a national panel. Following the Park City event an enshrinement will take place in Ishpeming, Michigan in September, 2009. 

For more information go to www.skihall.com.

For the first time in history, the U.S. National Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame will induct its honorees at a ski resort when it meets this weekend for the ceremony at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, Utah, from April 3–5. The class of 2008 includes Cary Adgate, Bill Briggs, Nelson Carmichael and Liz McIntyre.

At age 17, Adgate won the U.S. Junior National Championship. In 1973, he joined the U.S. Ski Team and won the Can-Am overall and giant slalom championships, as well as the Roch Cup downhill/overall championship. He won six U.S. Alpine Championship titles and was an Olympian in 1976 and 1980. He became a professional skier in 1981, going on to win 25 races and the 1984 U.S. Pro Championships. In 2005 he was Ski Racing’s Master Racer of the Year. He is currently a snowsports ambassador for Boyne USA Resorts, where he continues his support of ski racing.

American ski mountaineering pioneer Bill Briggs began as a certified instructor in 1955. Three years later, he founded the Bill Briggs Ski School at Suicide Six Ski Area in Vermont. In 1958, Briggs was part of a team that made the first 100-mile traverse from the Bugaboos to Rogers Pass, B.C. He notched a number of first descents by skiing down Mount Rainer, Middle and South Teton, Mount Moran and the Grand Teton, all with a congenital hip defect. As the founder of the Great American Ski School, Briggs established the Certainty Training Method (CTM) for ski instructors. He continues as director of the Snow King Ski School in Jackson, Wyoming.

Nelson Carmichael of Steamboat Springs joined the U.S. Ski Team in 1984 straight out of high school; four years later, he won back-to-back World Cup mogul championships in 1988 and 1989. He was on the first ever freestyle Olympic podium in 1992, winning the bronze. After winning six U.S. Championships and 12 World Cup events and conducting several professional tours, he retired from competition and put down roots at Steamboat Ski Resort.

Freestyle skiing legend Liz McIntyre’s U.S. Ski Team career spanned 20 years, first as an athlete (1986–98), then as a moguls coach (1999–2006). As an athlete, she claimed an Olympic silver medal at the 1994 Lillehammer Games, tallied four World Cup podiums and earned 18 World Cup top-10 finishes. As a coach, McIntyre mentored Olympic medalists Shannon Bahrke, Toby Dawson and Travis Mayer; she also led the team into new territory as inverted maneuvers were made competition-legal.
 
Attendees of the three-day event will have the opportunity to meet and ski with inductees as well as skiing legends Stein Eriksen, Nikki Stone, Trace Worthington and Alan Engen. Worthington will host a special morning of skiing with the guests of honor at Deer Valley; Engen will lead a ski day at Alta. The weekend will also be an occasion to celebrate Alta’s 70th anniversary.

The honorees were selected by an independent committee of ski professionals, historians, and writers chaired by Paul Bousquet and elected by a national panel. Following the Park City event an enshrinement will take place in Ishpeming, Michigan in September, 2009. 

For more information go to www.skihall.com.