RUMFORD — Hundreds of enthusiastic skiers attended Black Mountain’s Winter Carnival on Saturday celebrating the 100th year of the Chisholm Ski Club, but one very special skier stood out.
Olympic skier and veteran of the 10th Mountain Division in World War II Wendall “Chummy” Broomhall sat in the Maine Ski Museum exhibit in the Black Mountain lodge, looking out the window over the slopes. Occasionally someone would come up to him and ask him to sign something, or just want to chat. Broomhall was happy to oblige.
“Time don’t mean anything to me any more,” Broomhall said. “I just wanted to come to the mountain one last time.”
Broomhall’s presence in the lodge brought a historical aspect to the Winter Carnival, not only because he is the oldest living member of the Chisholm Ski Club at 97 years of age, but also because he helped create Black Mountain. Along with his donation of 300 acres of land to the Chisholm Ski Club, he also helped design the cross-country ski trails that snake through the resort. He’s proud of what the mountain has become.
“The best thing they ever did put the novice lift in,” Broomhall said. “Kids can ride that all day and learn while their parents go off and ski, too.”
The John Roderick Marathon Cross-Country Race kicked off the day at 9 a.m., and skiers could participate in distances of 50K, 25K or 15K. Teams from various school including the University of Maine at Farmington and Bates college competed, as well as a few solo skiers who just wanted to see how fast they could make it.
L.L.Bean joined the fun, with Black Mountain being the seventh stop on its Mountain Tour of New England with the famous Bootmobile. In the next couple of weeks, the giant boot will roll into Sunday River, Shawnee Peak and Saddleback Mountain.
At Bootmobile stops, attendees can play games like the boot toss, where participants try to throw a boot through a hole to win a prize. At Black Mountain on Saturday, the prize was a $300 gift card to L.L.Bean, and those on the mountain could enter in the drawing. The winner will be announced by L.L.Bean at a later time.
emarquis@sunmediagroup.net
JOHN RODERICK MARATHON RESULTS
50K Women’s Freestyle
1. Alison Chase, Solo, 2:51:35.8
50K Men’s Freestyle
1. Peter Mamrol, Dartmouth Ski Team, 2:10:26.1
2. Cameron Cogburn, Bikeway Source, 2:27:33.7
3. August Posch, Team Fuzzy SCARPH, 2:35:17.0
25K Women’s Freestyle
1. Elena Kontorovich, Solo, 22:47.4
2. Laurel Smith, Solo, 4:17.8
25K Men’s Freestyle
1. Jason Donahue, Solo, 17:38.5
2. Ian Tovell, Vermont Academy, 17:54.2
3. Arthur Mathisen, Solo, 20:23.7
15K Women’s Freestyle
1. Alisha Labbe, UMF, 20:17.3
2. Sophie Gerry, Bates, 20:57.7
3. Emma Marchetti, Bates, 1:05.8
15K Men’s Freestyle
1. Chris Koziel, Bates, 5:28.3
2. Jordan Fried, UMF, 16:03.0
3. Thomas Wing, UMF, 6:17.2
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