News From ISHA (July-August 2020)

Pandemic Cancels Skiing History Week 2020

The 28th Annual ISHA Awards banquet, which was to be held December 10 at the Sun Valley Lodge, has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the International Skiing History Association (ISHA) will honor its 2019 ISHA Award winners with an online celebration this fall.

“Acknowledging the deep concerns over travel and the pandemic, ISHA will not host live Skiing History Week events in Sun Valley, Idaho in December,” ISHA president Seth Masia announced on July 22. “We will focus on planning our 2021 events at Snowmass, Colorado, from April 7 to 11. Sun Valley Resort has been a great partner through these uncertain times. We are looking forward to hosting our events there in March or April 2022.”

Originally scheduled for March 2020, Skiing History Week was delayed to December in the course of the pandemic’s first wave. Skiing history enthusiasts who had planned to travel to Sun Valley may apply for lodging deposit refunds by contacting Sun Valley Resort Reservations at (208) 786-8259. If you would like a refund for ISHA banquet tickets purchased early this year, please phone the ISHA office at (802) 362-1667 or email kathe@skiinghistory.org. If you do not request a refund, your tickets will be honored at the ISHA Awards banquet in Snowmass on April 8, 2021.

In addition to lectures, historic film screenings and ski and social gatherings, the highlight event of ISHA’s Skiing History Week each year is the ISHA Awards banquet. Award winners from around the globe are honored for ski history books, films and videos, broadcasts, websites and other media published during the preceding calendar year. ISHA also presents an award for lifetime achievement in ski history research, journalism, broadcasting or museum curation. The 2019 ISHA Awards honor 14 such works plus a lifetime achievement award. For details visit tinyurl.com/ISHAhonors2019. Video salutes will be posted this fall on the ISHA website (skiinghistory.org), the world’s most extensive ski history archival online source.

ISHA’s partner in staging Skiing History Week, the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame, has also opted to host its 2020 events online. Both organizations are now developing a full 2021 schedule of events to take place in Snowmass next April. HOF will also host a virtual induction ceremony in December honoring its Class of 2020 inductees. Details will be posted as they are finalized this fall at skihall.com and skiinghistory.org.

Photo top of page: The Swiss Academic Ski Club (SAS) receives ISHA’s prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019
for more than 90 years of promoting and preserving the history of the sport. Its wide-ranging mission includes publishing Der Schneehase, a highly regarded ski-history compendium.

Late thanks to Nick Paumgarten

It sometimes happens that letters to ISHA are sent to a previous address. That’s why, when long-time ISHA supporter Nick Paumgarten sent in his generous year-end donation in December 2019, the check went far astray. After a long delay caused by COVID-19, ISHA finally received Nick’s gift in June 2020. ISHA gratefully acknowledges Nick’s Super Giver donation ($2,000 to $4,999 category) as a contribution to the 2019 fundraising campaign.