Over the past few decades, we have become accustomed to hearing results of ski races and other on-snow competitions with the winners coming almost entirely from ski academies.

Here in Maine, we know how Bode Miller, Seth Wescott and Kirsten Clark got their starts at Carrabassett Valley Academy. Indeed, since its founding in 1983, CVA has produced a multitude of successful competitors in various disciplines — alpine racing, snowboarding and freestyle. Equally important but perhaps not as well-known is the list of colleges and universities CVA grads have attended and excelled at. This model of athletic success combined with academic excellence is not exclusive to CVA, either. There are now dozens of such schools around the U.S. and they have produced similar results.

But where did the model come from?

The idea came from a 13-year-old girl whose goal was making the U.S. Ski Team. After spending her early years in North Conway where she learned to ski at age 2 and began racing at age 8, Martha Coughlin’s parents moved to the Boston area. She knew the only way to hone her skills to make the U.S. Team would be to ski every day.

“Living in North Conway with mother living in Boston wasn’t going to cut it,” she figured.

She had to find a place where she could follow her studies and ski every day. This called not only for a place to live, but to find a coach who could also tutor her.

Warren Witherell had been hired to coach the St. Johnsbury skiers and Martha asked him if he would coach and tutor her if she could find a place to stay. Witherell agreed and she found a place by cooking, cleaning and babysitting for room and board with Burke Mountain area manager Joe Pete Wilson, and convinced her school principal to arrange her courses and assignments so she could pursue them at Burke.

With this arrangement in place, Martha completed her chores in the morning, skied in the afternoon, and studied late afternoon and evenings. Shortly into the process, she put a sign on her door, “Burke Mountain Academy, Warren Witherell, Janitor/Coach.” At the end of the season,Martha went home and got the highest grades she’d ever had.

On very rare occasions, someone has an idea and they take it to the one person who is waiting for such an idea to come along. This is what happened when Martha Coughlin.

Warren Witherell had a private school teaching background, and after ten years at Holderness and Northwood, had definite ideas about education. As he told me years ago when I was writing a story about ski academies, “I did not sit down one day say I’m going to start a school. This was Martha’s idea. Burke is the only school in America founded by children unhappy with the choices given them by adults.”

That summer, the family moved out and Warren moved in. Four more kids joined the program, and in 1971 they went to Witherell and said, “We want you to make Burke a full-time school.”

Coughlin followed her racing goals by training and competing. She raised money by sewing gaiters and selling them to fellow racers. She was invited to the U.S. “B” team in 1971, and skied with the team through 1973, the first of a long line of alpine ski racers from Burke to make the U.S. Ski team. Among the early graduates was Gail Backburn in 1973. All four Parisiens are also graduates of Burke.

As ski racers, the Burke kids earned their way onto the U.S. team with their results. U.S. Team coaches couldn’t ignore these kids who were winning races all over the East, and against team members in Nor-Am races. It wasn’t long before graduates were among the very best racers on the team.

With colleges, it was different. Many were skeptical of Burke’s non-grading policies, but Witherell was persistent and BMA graduates were soon attending some of the best colleges and universities in the country.

Witherell, who described himself as a lifetime student-athlete, summed up the academies: “These schools are there because the kids want to be there, not because their parents sent them”.

He explained how Burke has a very strong honor code, that there are no leaders, no class officers and no team captains, “We expect everyone to be a leader. Freshmen have the same rights as seniors.”

An example of how everyone is equal at Burke was Diann Roffe’s return to school after winning the World Championship Giant Slalom. Three days after winning that gold medal, Diann was washing dishes at the school. At graduation, no mention was made of her victory.

Witherell described Burke as a school for self-motivated students and skiers. While he put his ideas to work at the school he always credited a 13 year old girl with the idea for the academy. Martha Coughlin now lives in Conway and coaches at Mount Cranmore.

Her idea and Witherell’s educational philosophies can be found at ski academies across the country. Not all are exactly the same, but all operate on the basic concept. Students maintain an exhausting schedule of studies, physical conditioning and training. Only the highly motivated can succeed, and they all develop self discipline, a key to success in any endeavor, college, business or the U.S. Ski Team. That’s how ski academies — including CVA — got started, all because a 13-year-old girl asked the right person to tutor her so she could make the U.S. Ski Team.

See you on the slopes.

Copy the Story Link