2023 - 2024 Far West Skier's Guide - 61

2023 Western Ski
Heritage Award
Mikaela Shiffrin was a recipient of the
President's Award for her outstanding
achievement this year as the FIS World Cup
Alpine Record Holder, a record that many
thought would never be broken.
photo provided by U.S. Ski and Snowboard
Nick Cowell, Editor of The Councilman
for FWSA, received the President's
Award for his perseverance and
dedication to producing a quality
publication. The award was presented
at a North Island Snowdrifters meeting
post Convention.
photo by Barbara Blasè
Congratulations to all the Award Recipients!
John W. Lundin was the recipient of the Western
Ski Heritage Award. Presenting the award
was the program sponsor, Larry Young, Senior
Sales Manager for Steamboat Ski and Resort
Corporation, with Jane Wyckoff, FWSA History
Committee Chair.
photo by Steve Strickland / Strictly Photography
John W. Lundin - the Recipent of the 2023
Western Ski Heritage Award
Work to Preserve Ski Jumping History, Expressing Norwegian Identity,
and its Role in the Development of Skiing in America
by Jane Wyckoff,
History Committee Chair, FWSA
John W. Lundin was the recipient of the 2023 Western Ski Heritage
Award. Lundin is a prolific writer and award-winning author of
books and articles regarding ski jumping, ski resorts and Sun Valley
Ski Club. His book, " Skiing Sun Valley: a History from Union Pacific to
the Holdings, " published in 2020, is an in-depth history of the country's
first destination ski resort, where modern skiing in this country began.
During the COVID-19 quarantine, John also published two additional
books, " Sun Valley, Ketchum & the Wood River Valley, " and " Ski Jumping
in Washington State: a Nordic Tradition. " The second book is a companion
to an exhibit on ski jumping at the Nordic Museum that he helped
prepare. He also wrote, " Early Skiing on Snoqualmie Pass, " published
in 2017. Both this book and his recent book on Ski Jumping in Washington
State, were winners of the Skade Award from the International
Skiing History Association (ISHA). His most recent publication is a
history of the Sun Valley Ski Club, founded in 1936.
John was born and raised in Seattle. He received a B.A. and J.D.
degrees from the University of Washington and a Master of Urban and
Regional Planning from George Washington University. He practiced
law in Washington, D.C. and Seattle as a federal attorney, and as a private
practice trial attorney in federal court.
Lundin has introduced the history of ski jumping in this country
to many thousands of people. Parts of his 2021 exhibit at the National
Nordic Museum are available online (including his lecture and interview
of Olympic ski jumpers). The Sun Valley exhibit was available
during the March, 2022 Ski Week in Sun Valley. His ski jumping exhibit
at the Washington State Ski & Snowboard Museum is on-going.
His TV show on ski jumping in Sun Valley continues to attract viewers
online, and his magazine articles are accessible to the public. His
March 22 article, " Sun Valley's Ruud Mountain: the Forgotten Era of Ski
Jumping, " in Skiing History magazine can be seen on-line, and is a permanent
part of ISHA's historical collection.
Awareness of the rich history of ski jumping has grown, and its
significance to this country has become much better known as the result
of his work. Collectively, he has raised awareness of how important
ski jumping was to this country. Ski Jumping was brought to this
country by Norwegian immigrants, which for decades was the most
popular form of skiing. International ski jumpers competed all over
the northern tier of our country, the Rocky Mountains and in California,
against U.S. jumpers. Tournaments regularly attracted 5,000 -
10,000 spectators, and national ones 100,000. It was not until the latter
half of the 1930's that Alpine skiing became popular, later overtaking
Nordic skiing in appeal and popularity.
John is now working internationally to link our ski jumping history
with the old world. In July, 2022 he met with the Director of the
Holmenkollen Ski Museum in Oslo, Norway, and they are pursuing a
formal relationship between that museum and the Washington State
Ski & Snowboard Museum. Lundin is a founding member and on the
board of the museum. He has offered to help prepare an exhibit for
their upcoming 100th Anniversary, on " Ski Jumping in America: Norway's
Gift to the New World. "
The Western Ski Heritage Award is sponsored by Steamboat Ski
& Resort Corporation. The winner is awarded a trip for two to Steamboat.
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Far West Skier's Guide 2O23 - 2O24
61
FWSA President's Award
2023 - 2024 Far West Skier's Guide

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