By Steve Hubrecht
Stepping into the Fairmont Ski Shop is like stepping into a shrine. The wooden walls and rafters are decorated with relics of bygone days: ancient skis, superannuated ski boots, a decades-old snowboard (from back when snowboarding was a newfangled sport). There are old-fashioned ski vacation posters and cards, and drawings from kids around the front desk. And, as with any good shrine, there’s a Buddha statue.
The eye-catching statue in the ski shop is about a foot and a half high and made of wood. This particular wooden Buddha has a huge grin, skis and snowboard strapped to his back, and his bulging, bare belly is worn smooth. That’s because for decades skiers having been rubbing that stomach, a ritual that local lore says will help make it snow. Younger skiers show particular enthusiasm for this task, polishing the tummy with ardent vigour.
The rental shop can be quiet on some days, but often it’s a hive of activity. Quite a hive. There’s 1,000 pairs of skis and snowboards; 1,200 ski boots; 400 helmets; and too many ski poles to count. Those new to the sport gape around with wide-eyed bafflement; kids bubble with excitement; and parents try unsuccessfully to wrestle their charges into all the gear.
In the middle of this chaos stands a woman with a serene smile and a patient demeanour, calmly directing the swirling bustle, moving renters from boots to skis, to helmets to poles, and then out the door onto the slopes. This is ski shop owner Lone Harding and she is in her element.
Watching her orchestrate the ski shop when it’s busy is like watching a conductor leading a symphony – it’s equal parts precision, organization, energy, and magic.
If you haven’t yet seen Lone in action, unfortunately you won’t any time soon. She retired earlier this month after 46 winters of working at the Fairmont Hot Springs Ski Area. Lone and her husband Peter moved to the Columbia Valley not long after finishing high school in 1982. She started out as a volunteer ski patroller, but has also worked in Desperados Lounge, been a ‘liftie’, and a ski instructor. In 1987 she began working at the ski shop, and eventually took it over from previous owner Pat Bavin in 1992. Peter also stayed at the ski hill in various roles and is now its general manager.
It’s the Snow Buddha!
PHOTO STEVE HUBRECHT
After four and a half decades Lone more than deserves a break, but she conceded that retirement comes with mixed emotions.
“There’s nothing like it (the ski shop). I am going to miss it so much,” she told the Pioneer, admitting to shedding tears a few times as her final ski season at Fairmont wound down. “It’s very different from most businesses. The people are so much fun, the staff are so much fun … it may be a small ski hill but it’s grassroots. It’s about community. That’s why it’s a gem.”
The ski industry has changed, then changed again (and again) since Lone and Peter started working at Fairmont. Straight skis more than two metres long gave way to ‘sidecuts’ and ‘parabolic’ skis, to the modern short and fat skis of today. There were rear-entry ski boots and ultra-stiff racing ski boots. The advent of snowboarding. The snow blade craze. And those bright neon, late 1980s early 1990s ski jackets and ski pants.
Through all that and more “we really tried to keep the focus on having a good experience, on helping beginners, on getting people skiing, and trying to keep things as affordable as possible, especially for new skiers and young families,” explained Lone.
Peter and Lone’s son Jeremy quite literally grew up at the ski hill. Some days Lone and Peter would bring Jeremy along to work, and the ski hill staff would take the youngster out for runs. These days Jeremy’s own sons Caleb and Bryce rip the slopes with similar verve.
“There’s so many memories,” said Lone. Weightless turns on powder days; tearing downhill under the lights during night skiing; the Christmas torch light parades; fun ski races; casino-themed nights; and Western-themed night (complete with would-be cowboys trying to ride ‘Rusty’ the barrel).
Some 5,500 skiers and snowboarders a year go through the Fairmont ski shop. Some quick math indicated this means that since 1987, Lone has helped more than 209,000 skiers get set with equipment. How did she keep her cool, let alone remain so cheerful through that many renters? Peter said it comes partly from Lone’s parents and siblings (“they all really do like to look after people,” he said) and partly from Lone’s passion for getting kids hooked on skiing.
“She really liked to watch parents getting a young kid out on skis for the very first time. Maybe they only come out once that first winter. Maybe only a few times. But the next winter they’re back and they ski a bit more,” said Peter. “A few winters later their sibling starts to ski too, the kids get better, and they start riding the chairlift on their own. Before you know it, those kids have grown into adults and they start bringing their own kids to the hill … there’s nothing more satisfying than watching a family go through that progression.
Lone loved that, loved how skiing is a sport that families participate in together.
For a long while, Lone was nicknamed the ‘Boot Queen’, recalled Peter. She was adamant that no young skier would leave her shop without boots that were exactly the right fit.
And there was the pink pole too, he explained. On powder days, after the initial wave of renters had passed through the shop, Lone let her staff head out to ski the fresh snow. But if the shop got hectic again, she’d stick a pink pole in the snow outside the shop, letting any staff skiing by know they’d better get their butts back inside.
Longtime ski shop employee Corey Price described Lone as a motherly figure.
“She and Peter have been instrumental in integrating people into ski culture, introducing young families to the sport, and helping keep it affordable,” said Price. “She goes the extra mile to make sure kids get the right gear, and has always been welcoming of everyone.”
Price added Lone treated shop employees like family, and that many of those employees learned valuable life lessons “just because of how incredibly patient she is.”
For her part Lone feels she was incredibly lucky to have the employees she did, who would often drop other responsibilities on short notice to help out at the shop.
“I would’ve been screwed without them,” said Lone.
After the last chairlift ride, a crowd of friends, family, staff, and other valley residents gathered for a barbecue to toast Lone’s retirement.
As per last ski day tradition, the Snow Buddha was placed on the snow. His smile was as broad as Lone’s, and why not? He too is retiring and this was his last run.
