Although you may be familiar with the 1960 Winter Olympics held at Squaw Valley USA, you may not know that the 1960 Olympic Nordic events took place 15 miles away on Lake Tahoe’s West Shore, which will be one of the sites for the Olympic Heritage Celebration in January.
After the 1960 Winter Games, the Olympic Nordic Trails were more or less forgotten. Mother Nature took over and the facility and it faded into oblivion until a few years ago when the vision to restore the trails was conceived. In 1999, after uncovering a portion of the trails in his Tahoma, California backyard, environmental engineer, historian, author and 35-year Tahoe-Truckee resident David Antonucci began spearheading the effort to restore the Olympic trials by creating a year-round public recreation facility in the area. His efforts, along with the help of others, have been successful.
Today, a total of 15 kilometers, approximately 25%, of the 1960 Olympic Nordic Trails have survived and been restored for hiking and biking. The 1960 Olympic Nordic Trails are rolling, single lane parallel Nordic paths located on both private and public land, and are considered to be the first cross-country ski area in the United States. The trails were designed by former U.S. Olympian Wendall “Chummy” Broomhall and Dartmouth ski team coach Allison Merrill. Here the first-ever biathlon competition, a 20-kilometer ski and shoot racecourse looping through the terrain of Tahoma and Homewood, California, was held. The story of the Nordic ski venue and much more about the Winter Olympics is told through Antonucci’s new book, Snowball’s Chance – The Story of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games, Squaw Valley and Lake Tahoe.
The trails are accessible to the public from Sugar Pine Point State Park, Quail Creek Meadow and McKinney Rubicon Road. Out of the 15 kilometers, five kilometers are skiable. At Sugar Pine Point State Park, there are three kilometers of Olympic trail out of a total of 6.9 kilometers of groomed trails. The other two kilometers of Olympic trail is near Homewood Mountain Resort and is not groomed.
To help reinvigorate the community’s interest in the trails and to celebrate the area’s 50-year anniversary of hosting the 1960 Winter Olympics, Antonucci teamed up with the producers of the Olympic Heritage Celebration.
There will also be a number events that will specifically be held at the 1960 Olympic Nordic Trails at Sugar Pine Point State Park, including the Biathlon Re-enactment January 9, Cross Country Expo and Demo January 10, the Scholastic Nordic Race (the first sanctioned race held in this venue since the Olympic Winter Games) January 15 and the Biathlon “Citizens Against the Clock” January 16, along with interpretive programs which will be going on throughout the week, scheduled for January 8-17, 2010, to showcase the region. The events kick off with the Commemorative Relay from Sugar Pine Point State Park to Squaw Valley USA and the Opening Celebration complete with live music, fireworks and the 1960 Olympians’ Reception January 8, 2010.
Visit the Olympic Heritage Celebration’s website for more information.
Biathlon Shooter photo credit: Bill Briner/ Snowballs Chance The Story of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games, Squaw Valley and Lake Tahoe, amazon.com
Olympic Cross Country Team photo credit: Bill Briner/ Snowballs Chance The Story of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games, Squaw Valley and Lake Tahoe, amazon.com
