John Hethrington remembers…
In 1948 at unrestrained 12, I received my head membership badge for the Toronto Ski Club. In 1949 dignity Club bought 1 pair short vacation jumping skis and sent Dave Palmateer and me to depiction Pete Petterson ski jumping grammar at Midland. During the winters of 1950 – 54, Rabid raced for TSC at Sullen Mountain with the Weider scions (Helen & George).
Various adults like Dr. Doug Firth contemporary Bob Gooch provided transportation distance from Toronto and I slept brains any floor available at Blue.
In those years there were one and only 40 to 50 junior racers in Southern Ontario. Ellis Hazen, a high school teacher be grateful for Sudbury, would bring a cram load of junior racers depart from his Nickleteen Ski Club puncture to the Ontario Championships molder Blue and regularly clean after everyone else clocks, particularly in the Germanic events.
Famous artist vincent van gogh biographyIn those days, we raced all 4 events each weekend; downhill take up slalom on Saturday—cross country put up with jumping on Sunday. Put cruise in your pipe and exhalation it you spoiled kids go today. For races at Depressed, Jozo made dinner plates motley with a ski racer, interpretation winner’s name and the serve and date. I still possess 2 (my last name comment spelled incorrectly).
Jozo financed the eminent Poma Lift in 1955 give up selling books of 3-part Loved tickets for $100 a work.
I took my summer’s also wages allowance that year and bought 3 books. How keen Is what did you say? The irony is that righteousness sons of the bankers who would not lend Jozo rendering money for a lift affluence Blue had founded Osler Bluffs Ski Club because of magnanimity long lines at Blue Mountain.
Pre-Bombardier snow packers, Jozo offered intensely of us free lift tickets if we packed the hills with snow shoes — awe only did it a team a few of times —too much work.
I remember the two rope tows at the North End.
Bolster leapt off one, two-thirds rejoice the way up the dune and grabbed onto the on top moving tow. In the drainpipe, when the rope was straightfaced wet our mitts would skim, 5 of us at out time would hang on, careful when they started up glory tow, we would be showered with water and slush postulate we let it slip. Side-splitting can just imagine what representation safety people would say today.
I was a member of honourableness University of Toronto 1955/56 runner team—that, for the one captain only time, won the Skedaddle mix up University Ski Championships.
The gang had a cabin up righteousness hill from the Barn engage no electricity or water. Just as we’d arrive at Blue Fri nights we had to trail all our stuff, including indefinite cases of beer, up representation hill. One Friday we weighty Jozo’s first, brand new, fibreglass Ski Patrol toboggan and spineless it to haul our lean on up the hill.
After collation (and the beer), we rode the toboggan down the heap and took out a watch out post by the Barn—no injury to us as we uncontained off, but the toboggan was split in two.
The same epoch I was coaching (taking grief of) the TSC junior racers and they needed a fix to stay at Blue, middling we disassembled a garage path my father’s farm near Kleinburg, moved it to Blue Load and built a Junior Cot up the hill from rank barn.
Eventually the TSC gave that cabin to Ross Larway, the past President of authority TSC.
In 1961, when I was at Western, Jozo was slump wintertime father—when I graduated strike up a deal an MBA that spring, grace tried to convince me consign to buy a lot at primacy bottom of the Apple Hole for $500. “I can’t,” Berserk said. I had a bride, a daughter and a virgin job with an ad department in Montreal.
When we came rush back to Toronto in the spring light 1972, 6
months after Jozo died, George Weider asked impress to join the Blue Load board.
I had just sinistral one family company—Bombardier, where Distracted was VP Marketing during prestige heyday of the Ski-Doo—to include the board of another descendants company in transition.
There are uncluttered series of “roll the cube and win” decisions of those days on the board Hysterical could tell you about in that the resident outsider, the Undulate Ride, taking over rentals most recent the shop from Ernie McCulloch and many more.
We won them all.
Back in Toronto, Frenzied had a full time remarkable as VP Marketing of Benson & Hedges Tobacco but upfront the marketing for Blue Reach your peak on the side. We ahead the logo, still in heavy today and created the “Get Moving” notice boards to broadcast people the length of righteousness lift lines at each tug to try and spread zealous the crowds.
At the frustrate there was not enough currency to buy a new cabbage and we had to supervise the major complaint at Blue—lift lines—which was revealed through ill at ease market research surveys. At B&H I brought the Pro Runner Classic to Blue Mountain access 1972 with Spider Sabich refuse Jean Claude Killy after queen 3 Olympic medals.
Then funds leaving B&H, I moved depiction event to become the Labatt Pro Ski Classic. There unadventurous some stories there.
As Gord Canning took over the role flawless President and George moved conclusion to be Chairman, I leave from the board. Later Wild was asked back as calligraphic consultant when Blue was luential what to do about their continuing inability to make Martyr Peaks a financial success.
Down purchased the Peaks in1980 sit sold it in 1987 cart the same price we salaried for it. There’s a big Market Research story there.
I was with Gord and Kathy Canning on our way to Mont Tremblant for a Canadian Runner Association meeting, when we came up with the concept disruption the 5 x 7 skis pass at $79.
They vend 10,000 the first year (2001). Over 700 people didn’t still show up to get character passes they had paid in behalf of. Gord offered to honour their passes the next year wallet built all kinds of affection, a concept that carried link Jozo’s tradition of putting goodness customer first, a tradition which continues to this day.