by Rick Hamlin | Feb 15, 2024 | National News
In our last chapter, the death of Dole’s friend Frank Edson inspires Dole to study ski safety.
Mount Mansfield in Stowe, Vermont was selected as the venue for the 1938 National Downhill and Slalom Races. More accurately called an international ski race, racers would come from the United States, Germany, Austria, and France. Frank Griffin, the President of the Mount Mansfield Ski Club, asked Charles Minot “Minnie” Dole if he would form and lead a special ski patrol to serve as the safety and rescue team for the races. With the Mansfield Patrol forming the nucleus and the Burlington and Pittsfield Patrols buttressing the ranks, Dole dove into the logistics of providing ski patrol services to such a high-profile event with this “super patrol.” The racing was to take place on the Nose Dive trail, a steep and challenging trail cut by the Civilian Conservation Corps under the supervision of Charles Lord, future NSP National Appointment #61.
The trail would be divided into segments with patrollers stationed within each segment. Each patroller station would have visual contact with the patrol stations above and below on the trail. Every station was supplied with a full complement of rescue equipment, including a rescue toboggan. The plan mapped out by Dole was that if a racer was injured and needed evacuation, the closest station would perform the rescue and evacuation. The recently vacated station would be infilled from the station below, with all stations below the accident moving up. Crowd control was another important safety consideration, so Dole prepared a document to hand out to spectators entitled “How to Behave While Watching A Race.” Only racers, race officials, and patrollers were allowed to have skis on the mountain. A new bar had been set for safety at ski races. His efforts did not go unnoticed.
Charles Minot “Minnie” Dole
Saturday, March 5, 1938, saw fierce racing on the Nose Dive. Dole was positioned at one of the seven turns at the top of the trail, a turn known as “Shambles Corner.” He was approached by Roger Langley, future NSP National Appointment #1, who was the head of the National Ski Association of America, the largest and most influential ski association in the United States. He commended Dole on the excellent organization and focus on event safety. Just before the first skier, Ted Hunter (who had previously won the Edson Trophy as first place amateur racer at the first annual race created as a memorial to Dole’s friend Franklin Edson III) sped by, Langley spoke to Dole. Dole would recall later that Langley was very complimentary of his efforts to organize the “super patrol” and that Langley felt that having more patrols to advance skier safety would be a great benefit to the skiing community. Langley then inquired if Dole would consider becoming the chair of a new committee, the National Ski Patrol Committee, as a part of the National Ski Association of America. Standing at Shambles Corner, Dole agreed to Langley’s request and the concept of a National Ski Patrol came to fruition.
A year later, in 1939, a biplane was flying up the valley, over the town of Stowe and headed for Mount Mansfield. Who were the occupants, and what was the change that would move the ski world on its axis? The pilot, Roland Palmedo, National Appointment #2 of the National Ski Patrol, and the head of the Amateur Ski Club of New York and his passenger, also a member of the ASCNY, Stuart Gillespie, National Appointment #13, were flying over the site of a proposed chairlift, being spearheaded by Palmedo. When completed, it would be the longest chairlift in the world. The sport of skiing was about start a period of explosive growth and the National Ski Patrol was preparing to meet the needs of this sport by providing service and safety to all skiers.
If you are reading this as a registered patroller, or as a candidate who aspires to join the ranks of one of the largest rescue organizations in the world, you too are a part of the NSP history. Each of us forms a thread that has been woven into a wonderful tapestry of history and service to the public. This tapestry continues to be woven every day that we display the cross on our backs, a symbol that has signified “Service and Safety” and high quality aid provided at no cost since our founding in 1938.
Rick Hamlin, NSP Historian
Rick Hamlin is the NSP National Historian and he plans to contribute regularly to Trail Sweep. Please watch for our next chapter in future issues of Trail Sweep.
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If you would like to learn more about the history of the National Ski Patrol and its founders and the early days of skiing, the following are excellent resources:
“Roland Palmedo, A Life of Adventure and Enterprise,” by Philip F. Palmedo, (2018), published by Peter E. Randall
“Adventures in Skiing,” by Minot (Minnie) Dole. (1965), published by J. Lowell Pratt and Company, Inc.
“The National Ski Patrol, Samaritans of the Snow”, by Gretchen R. Besser (1983), published by The Countryman Press.
“Skiing in the Americas”, by John Jay (1947), published by The MacMillan Company.
“Ski Sentinels, The story of the National Ski Patrol” (Video), A Rick Moulton Film produced by the New England Ski Museum.
by Rick Hamlin | Jan 10, 2024 | National News
Charles Minot “Minnie” Dole
<<< In our last chapter, Minnie Dole was injured in a ski accident so severely that they thought he might never walk again, let alone ski.
While still on crutches and convalescing from his broken leg earned on the Toll Road in Stowe in 1936, Minnie Dole’s good friend and ski companion, Franklin Edson III, came to visit. Frank informed Minnie that The ASCNY had asked him to round out a race team to compete at an interclub meet that was to be held in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Races at this time were truly “downhill” races, with no speed control sections or gates, just a start and finish between a long segment of open trail.
Minnie protested and told Frank that he did not think that Frank was ready for this level of ski challenge as Dole felt he was only a fair skier, about at his same level. Frank, known for his adventuresome spirit, was not deterred. He insisted he would participate in the race. On March 8, 1936, Franklin Edson III started down the Ghost Trail hoping to help his team and club have a good showing. He did not finish the race.
The newspaper clipping reported that “While racing down the steep and slippery Ghost Trail, Mr. Edson lost his balance and hit a tree.” The impact broke his right arm and also fractured four ribs and punctured his lung. One day later, Franklin Edson III would die of his injuries at the Sisters of Mercy Hospital in Pittsfield.
Injuries while skiing were well known. Participants in the sport were viewed by non-skiers as daredevils and risk-takers. However, death related to skiing was unknown. Edson’s untimely death, caused while participating in their beloved sport, was so cataclysmic that it spurred the club to examine their sport and more specifically, ski safety.
The President of the ASCNY asked Dole, as Edson’s best friend, to chair a committee to study ski safety. Dole agreed. The first task of the committee would be to find out about ski accidents of all types. A questionnaire was compiled and sent out to all of the ski clubs requesting information on the types of injuries that were happening to club members and how those accidents were dealt with.
Dole later recalls that the responses were “less than satisfactory.” Many were not returned. And of those that were returned, many did not support the idea of skiing safety and accused the committee of being “sissies, spoilsports, and frighteners of mothers.”
Dole persevered. Much of the anti-safe skiing sentiment was centered in the Boston area clubs so Dole traveled to meet with them. He was able to convince them to participate and assist the ASCNY Safety Committee. The committee eventually published its findings related to ski safety.
They found that the cause of most accidents was the result of one of three main factors:
- The skier was skiing on terrain beyond their ability,
- The skier was skiing too fast for the conditions, or
- The skier was skiing when fatigued.
Most patrollers will recognize these same factors almost 100 years later. Another finding from the committee was that there should be improvement in trail design and offered several suggestions on ways to make trails safer.
One of the final ideas of ideas recommended by the committee was the formation of ski patrols. Clubs were encouraged to create groups within their clubs and trained in first aid to assist injured skiers. Clubs in Burlington, Vermont, and Pittsfield, Massachusetts were the first to do so.
Dole continued the study of ski safety and wrote articles for newspapers, club papers, and ski almanacs. He would later say that he believed that these articles were responsible for linking his name with the topic of ski safety. Within a year of Edson’s death, the first blocks of the foundation for a national ski patrol were being laid.
Rick Hamlin, NSP Historian
To Be Continued
Rick Hamlin is the NSP National Historian and he plans to contribute regularly to Trail Sweep. Please watch for our next chapter in future issues of Trail Sweep.
_____________________________________
If you would like to learn more about the history of the National Ski Patrol and its founders and the early days of skiing, the following are excellent resources:
“Roland Palmedo, A Life of Adventure and Enterprise,” by Philip F. Palmedo, (2018), published by Peter E. Randall
“Adventures in Skiing,” by Minot (Minnie) Dole. (1965), published by J. Lowell Pratt and Company, Inc.
“The National Ski Patrol, Samaritans of the Snow”, by Gretchen R. Besser (1983), published by The Countryman Press.
“Skiing in the Americas”, by John Jay (1947), published by The MacMillan Company.
“Ski Sentinels, The story of the National Ski Patrol” (Video), A Rick Moulton Film produced by the New England Ski Museum.
by Rick Hamlin | Dec 1, 2023 | National News
Charles and Jane Dole<<< In our last chapter, alpine skiing gains a toehold in North America, and the Amateur Ski Club of New York is formed.
While sidelined from skiing due to an injury in 1931, Roland Palmedo, president of the Amateur Ski Club of New York (ASCNY), wrote a letter to the Postmaster in Stowe, Vermont. He had been to Stowe in the summer and knew that Mount Mansfield was a significant landmark, but was there life in Stowe in the winter? Did the town have the facilities to host the ASCNY if they arrived in the winter to ski? The reply came not from the Postmaster but from the Secretary of the Stowe Civic Club, and the response was very positive. Stowe and Mount Mansfield became regular destinations for the club. The response from the town would also eventually lead to the biplane flight in 1939. Our story, the story of the creation of the National Ski Patrol, falls in the intervening years between those two events.
The ski conditions on Mount Mansfield in the first few days of 1936 were far from ideal. It had rained, and the snow was soft, sticky, and very dense. The rain and poor conditions did not deter the four members of the ASCNY, who were determined not to let the long drive from Connecticut go to waste. The intrepid party was made up of Franklin Edson III, his wife, Jean Edson, Jane Dole, and her husband, Charles Minot Dole, who was known to his friends as “Minnie.” Minnie had fallen the previous day and was still nursing a twisted ankle but was undeterred.
After a climb up the Toll Road and a short rest, they started their descent. One hundred yards down the trail, Dole initiated a stem christie. His weakened ankle does not cooperate, and his ski fails to edge properly. He would later describe his fall as an “egg beater.” His ankle now points in an unnatural direction, and it is clear that he has broken his leg. It was clear that he would not be skiing or hiking off the mountain.
Jean and Jane went down the mountain to seek assistance. There was a rudimentary ski patrol at that time serving the trail network on Mount Mansfield, but they did not “patrol” the slopes in a regular manner. Franklin stayed with Dole, who was getting chilled and starting to feel the onset of shock.
Eventually, Jane and Jean returned with Bob Cheesewright and Howard Black and a piece of roofing tin. Dole was placed on the short piece of metal sheet and he was dragged a quarter of a mile off the mountain. X-rays at the hospital in Morrisville confirmed a severely broken ankle. Dole was placed in a temporary splint and sent back to New York City via train to have the ankle reset.
His doctor believed that the damage was so significant that it would be unlikely for Dole to walk correctly again, let alone ski. This depressing news did not deter Dole and his rehabilitation efforts. He would later say that an accident like this might have started him thinking about ski safety, but it didn’t. Breaking your leg was just a hazard of the sport. It would take a much greater tragedy for Dole to focus on ski safety.
Rick Hamlin, NSP Historian
To Be Continued
Rick Hamlin is the NSP National Historian, and he plans to contribute regularly to Trail Sweep. Please watch for our next chapter in a future issue of Trail Sweep.
_____________________________________
If you would like to learn more about the history of the National Ski Patrol, its founders, and the early days of skiing, the following are excellent resources:
“Roland Palmedo, A Life of Adventure and Enterprise,” by Philip F. Palmedo, (2018), published by Peter E. Randall
“Adventures in Skiing,” by Minot (Minnie) Dole. (1965), published by J. Lowell Pratt and Company, Inc.
“The National Ski Patrol, Samaritans of the Snow”, by Gretchen R. Besser (1983), published by The Countryman Press.
“Skiing in the Americas”, by John Jay (1947), published by The MacMillan Company.
“Ski Sentinels, The story of the National Ski Patrol” (Video), A Rick Moulton Film produced by the New England Ski Museum.
by Rick Hamlin | Oct 2, 2023 | National News
Roland PalmedoThe sound of the biplane echoed off the valley walls as the powerful seven-cylinder radial engine drove the propeller through the air currents coming off the mountain. Those on the ground paid little attention. They had seen this biplane before. If they had looked up, they would have noticed that the second seat, which was usually empty, was occupied today, and the skis that were usually tied to the struts were missing. It was 1939, and things at the head of the west branch of the Little River near Stowe, Vermont, were about to change, and those changes would shape the course of NSP history.
For the very few paying attention, the change could have been predicted. Ten years before the first ski school had been created in New Hampshire. Three years later, the 1932 Winter Olympics took place in Lake Placid, and although there were no Alpine ski events, it brought the important understanding that winter could mean more than four to five months of hibernation. Two years later, in a farmer’s sloping field near Woodstock, Vermont, skiers tired of the long climb uphill for a brief downhill run were introduced to the rope tow, the first in the nation. The idea, imported from Quebec, was soon to be duplicated throughout the northeast. It created a new skiing experience, waiting in line for the ski lift. Alpine skiing was gaining a toehold in the attention of a larger segment of the population. Among those early ski enthusiasts were the members of the Amateur Ski Club of New York.
The NY Ski Club patchStarting with 71 members in 1931, the ASCNY had made regular pilgrimages to the mountains north of their home base of New York City. A well-coordinated organization led by Club President Roland Palmedo, it produced a regular newsletter for its members. The editor was known by the nom de plume “The Baron Dunski.” His friends knew him as “The Baron” or “Minnie.” We know him as Charles Minot Dole, National Appointment #3, and the founder of the National Ski Patrol.
The club may have had the word “amateur” in its title, but the skiers in the club were very serious about their skiing, and several of the members were world-class skiers in their own right. The club organized regular trips to the mountains of the northeast, always searching for the best snow and terrain. Friday evening saw them leaving the city. Driving into the night on roads that were mostly packed snow on gravel, their arrival was often in the early hours of Saturday morning. This did not deter them from a first-light ascent, climbing to the peak of the selected hill or mountain. After a full day of climbing and skiing on Saturday and Sunday, they would eat and sleep in farmhouses turned guest homes or hotels when they were available. Sunday night found them back in their cars, with heated bricks under the passengers’ feet to keep them warm for at least a part of the long drive home. Arrival in the city came in the early hours of Monday morning. It was, and still is, a very close-knit organization with camaraderie and the joy of skiing forming the key elements of its foundation.
Rick Hamlin, NSP Historian
The ASCNY was a ski club that was very social, not a social club that had an interest in skiing. It promoted the sport through their travel and competition. Palmedo was a staunch believer in the amateur athlete, especially when it came to skiing. Many of the club members were racers and were well respected for their skills. Club racing and the competitive spirit that it fostered would result in a tragedy, which in turn would shape the trajectory of ski and world history.
To Be Continued
Rick Hamlin is the NSP National Historian, and he plans to contribute regularly to Trail Sweep. Please watch for our next chapter in a future issue of Trail Sweep.
If you would like to learn more about the history of the National Ski Patrol, its founders, and the early days of skiing, the following are excellent resources:
“Roland Palmedo, A Life of Adventure and Enterprise,“ by Palmedo, Philip F. (2018), published by Peter E. Randall
“Adventures in Skiing,” by Dole, Minot (Minnie). (1965), J. Lowell Pratt and Company, Inc.
“The National Ski Patrol, Samaritans of the Snow,” by Besser, Gretchen R. (1983), The Countryman Press.
“Skiing in the Americas,” by Jay, John. (1947), The MacMillan Company.
“Ski Sentinels, The Story of the National Ski Patrol,” video-based film documentary, a Rick Moulton Film produced by the New England Ski Museum.
