<\/figure>\n\n\n\nLargest ski jump in the United States was at Milwaukee Ski Bowl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nSkiboggan lift with Milwaukee Lodge in background.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nSkiboggan<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nFor a brief time during World War II, Hyak was closed. After the war, the area re-opened. Now it had the famous \u201cTally-ho Skiboggan\u201d (also known as the \u201cSkigram\u201d). This was the first high-capacity ski lift on Snoqualmie Pass. The Skiboggan\/Skigram was a huge double sled carrying as many as 32 standing skiers up the mountain. A new rope tow was also available to those who wanted to go even higher. While in college at the UW, my mother was one of those frequent ski train riders. She remembered the dancing, singing and the fun times she had with her friends. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nMy mom had very long wooden pointed tip skis with bear trap bindings; these were my first skis when I started skiing at age 14. The following year in 1959, Web Moffett gave me my first job\u2014cashiering at the Thunderbird Lodge on the top of Snoqualmie Pass Ski Area. After work, many times patrollers would bring me, other employees and various supplies down the mountain in their toboggans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nCars made after World War II were more comfortable and made<\/p>\n\n\n\n
getting to the mountains more enjoyable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Hyak Era<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nIn 1959<\/strong>, a group of Seattle banking investors known as the Hyak Ski Corporation purchased land just north of where the old Milwaukee Ski Bowl had been located and opened the ski area which they named Hyak. John Hight, a patroller at Snoqualmie Pass who had joined the NSPS in 1938, was asked to come to Hyak and be the first patrol director. Before coming to Hyak, John received his National Appointment; it was during World War II and was presented to him by his commanding officer aboard a Navy ship while in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. John was tasked with recruiting a crew of experienced patrollers. Some of those early Hyak patrollers had been members of the 10th<\/sup> Mountain Division. Using some of their army know-how, the soldiers hauled two small, old railroad service\/office buildings to the present site. Originally these buildings were used as a ski rental shop and a ski school building; first aid was done at the rear of the lodge. Eventually, a central wood stove was installed; gradually a men\u2019s dorm was added, then a women\u2019s dorm and a bathroom. The current first aid room also served as a dorm at night. <\/p>\n\n\n\nIn the early 1960\u2019s<\/strong>, my husband Gary Cummings and I joined the patrol along with Bill Brockway; all 3 of us are still senior alpine patrollers at Hyak today. In those days, patrol requirements<\/strong> were to pass the \u201cski & toboggan test\u201d, and to complete the American Red Cross Standard (8 hour) First Aid Course and the Advanced (20 hours) Course).<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nPatrol candidate Gary Cummings in front of the First Aid Building as it was in the 60\u2019s. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the 60\u2019s, CPR was not known but Artificial Respiration skills were required; three methods were taught: a) Silvester (front-pressure arm lift); b) Schaefer (back-pressure arm lift straddling the patient prone) and Holger-Nielson (a back-pressure arm lift conducted from above the patient\u2019s head). All of them looked like a form of \u201cleapfrog\u201d. Oxygen was rarely used in those days. In the 1960s the Hyak roster numbered some 70 patrollers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nHolgier-Nielson Method Artificial Respiration\u2026push on back lift up on arms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the 1960\u2019s, <\/strong>some skiers still used the wooden pointed tip skis<\/strong>; many had the new-style wood skis they would paint with base wax, and \u201ciron on\u201d daily wax depending on the conditions. Many of these same skiers would re-paint the edge-stripes on their wooden skis so that their mistakes of crossing tips or skiing over edges was less noticeable. Those who wanted to spend about $100 purchased the black (Head) or blue (Hart) elitist metal skis. There were fewer brands, so all skis were recognized by name. Most common ski lengths were 200-220 cm. The bindings<\/strong> were a mixed bag\u2014to name a few: bear claw, Tyrolia, Marker, Besser Spademan (no locking heel where the foot kind of floated on the skis). When the \u201cleather long-thong\u201d release straps became popular, we all thought it was a great invention\u2026no more run-away skis breaking legs or causing internal injuries, just broken ankles now. The boots<\/strong> during that era all started out as the lace-up type. After that, they progressed to leather boots with buckles. Next came the \u201cdouble boot\u201d and finally the \u201cplastic boots\u201d which all of us have today.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe very early toboggans<\/strong> for transporting patients were sleds which patrollers straddled. These evolved into the dog sled which had the upgrade of a rear braking system. Next came the Akia, a boat-like contraption with handles at each end. Those Akjas were the sleds a few of our older patrollers trained on. Akias were wooden slat platforms with an attached rescue basket and handles fore and aft. The Sun Valley sled came next. When the Cascade style toboggans (invented by Northwesterner Vic Bradley) arrived on scene, they were hailed for their fins and for the improved control. These new Cascade sleds had front handles that carried a chain which could be dropped as a slowing mechanism as well as a tail rope for a rear patroller so that the weight of the transport could be shared. Today many ski areas use the 4 handle Crystal Sled which was built by the Clark Boat Company and commissioned by Crystal patroller Paul Talbot. At Hyak, we use both types of sleds. In the past, we had some specific toboggan challenges. Because skiing was done on BOTH sides of the mountain, if someone was injured on the \u201cback side, aka Hidden Valley\u201d, that necessitated a system for securing the patient in an elevated toboggan onto the chairlift. A patroller would then sit in the chairlift next to the elevated toboggan and ride the chair up the back side of the mountain and down the front side. The ride up the hill was not so bad but going down was a bit scary. Today, toboggans are hauled up the back side by snowmobile and then brought down the front side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nToboggan used in other parts of the country before the new Hyak opened in 1959.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nSun Valley Sleds were used when Hyak began and during the 1960\u2019s. The base was made of wooden slats with a metal stokes liter secured to the base. Add front handles, a rear tail rope and you\u2019re ready to roll. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nHyak currently uses four handle sleds (the Crystal or the boat)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
and Cascades which have a flatter bottom and a tailrope. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shirley Cummings front handles, Jay Magruder rear handles, Jon Sullivan riding.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nIn 1960s<\/strong>, patrollers from Hyak were asked to transfer and form patrols<\/strong> for the new ski resorts at Crystal Mountain (1962) and Alpental (1965). To maintain the necessary numbers of patrollers at Hyak, a major recruiting campaign was begun to replace the patrollers who had left. The ski area was especially appreciative of patrol efforts during this time\u2014family season lift tickets and\/or guest comp passes were given to patrollers along with discounted lodge food. The area also often provided free Saturday night dinner for both patrollers and families.<\/p>\n\n\n\nHyak had 2 rope tows <\/strong>then, \u201cThe Bunny\u201d and \u201cSpaghetti\u201d ropes, and a Poma Lift. Children who rode the Poma (like current patroller Sally Bankson and my kids) would be lifted up off the ground and ride the ski track in the air for the first 50-100 feet. Communications<\/strong> were a real challenge then too. No individual patrol radios were used as we have today. We used our whistles to signal for a toboggan (3 shorts, toboggan needed at my whistle), 1 short whistle when the toboggan arrived\u2026and a bunch of short bursts as we skied downhill with the toboggan\u2026to let folks know they needed to make a path because a toboggan was coming through. Next came CB radios and finally FM radios. Finally, in 2019, our communication problems on the Hidden Valley side of the mountain and Nordic Trails seem to be solved. The ski area has recently re-installed a repeater which provides better long-range reception and transmission for the back side of the mountain.<\/p>\n\n\n\nIn those early days, we did not have \u201csnowpackers<\/strong>\u201d, the Thiokols and Bombardiers did not arrive till much later. Part of patrol opening hill duties then were to \u201cpack the hill\u201d. Hill grooming began each morning by having the ski patrol and some ski instructors hike up and slide-slip down in several parallel lines to create a \u201cgroomed run\u201d. To make the rope or poma lift an easier ride, patrollers would ride sideways up the lift to provide a smoothed-out track. Toboggans were lap-carried up to the top and communications consisted of a crank telephone at top and bottom of the lift. <\/p>\n\n\n\nIn 1967<\/strong>, Joyce Hill (past Hyak patroller who had transferred to Crystal Mountain) and I (Shirley Cummings, Hyak Patroller) organized \u201cSkiers Too\/S-2\u201d,<\/strong> which would become the first ski program <\/strong>in the United States for special-needs students<\/strong>. It took a lot of planning and several years for everything to \u201cclick\u201d. With the help of the generous owners of the Hyak Ski Area and patrollers from several northwest ski patrols, <\/strong>\u201cSkiers Too\u201d <\/strong>was born. Lots and lots of writing was involved over several years in submitting ideas to the ski area, the National Guard, ski rental shops, the Seattle School District, to parents of the special needs students and to participating patrols and patrollers. Eventually, the concept was accepted: the Hyak Ski Area provided free lift tickets on Wednesdays for our special-needs students (mental age 5-15 years, chronological age 12-25 years). With help from Hyak patroller Earl Papac, the National Guard was contacted, and they provided free bus transportation for the special-needs students. Free equipment was also provided (most of it donated by patrollers). Each student was paired with a patroller for free one-on-one instruction; all instructor\/patrollers were from NW Region patrols\u2014regulars were from Hyak, Snoqualmie Pass, Ski Acres, Crystal Mountain and White Pass. Patrollers from the Northwest Region are proud to have cooperated in this endeavor \u2026 proud to have started the first ski school in the USA for special-needs students\u201d. <\/em><\/strong>We are very grateful to the Hyak Ski Area for making it possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\nIn the 60\u2019s, there were two levels of patrollers\u2014locals and seniors<\/strong>. Locals stayed mostly on the lower half of the mountain or they had to ski with a senior patroller. A patroller who passed senior certification got a rocker patch for their parka and was able to ski anywhere on the mountain; they were also welcome to patrol as a visitor at any other patrol in the region and usually in the division. Senior certification was and still is a prerequisite to receiving a national appointment designation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/strong>Auxiliaries, <\/strong>now known as patrollers, worked only in the First Aid Room. At one time Hyak had 12 auxiliaries, many of them were RNs and the aid room was super-efficient. There were more patients than beds in those days, so patients were evaluated, treated and moved to the lodge to make way for the next patients. For incidents, there was a lot less paperwork<\/strong> involved. Patients were asked to sign their names to a running list of minor incidents with no other paperwork. Today we have a 3-page form with multiple additional pages depending on the need for patroller comments and the severity of the incident. At that time, numerous physicians (12-14) were also on patrol; they regularly provided sutures and reduced dislocations in the aid room when needed. Currently, the area is working to convert all paperwork to computer.<\/p>\n\n\n\nIn the 1970\u2019s and 80\u2019s<\/strong>, Hyak Ski Area changed hands several times. Competition <\/strong>between ski resorts was huge. Hyak offered several weekends of \u201c24-hour lift tickets\u201d, \u201c$2 all day\/all lifts\u201d tickets and \u201cnoon to midnight\u201d tickets<\/strong>. The hardest part about being a patroller in those days was staying awake during the really long night shifts in the wee hours of the morning. We would count the number of skiers on the lift and station someone to be at the bottom to count the number who returned to the bottom; that way, especially between 2-6 AM we did not have to keep skiing. In those days the Hyak Patrol was at its height—numbering 148 patrollers\/MDs on the roster; we had 7 duty shift options a weekend. Those were the days when all the Hyak parking lots were full of ski school buses, and we had 5 ski schools. Aid room patients numbered so many that they were treated and taken to the lodge to make way for new patients.<\/p>\n\n\n\nGradually Hyak added chairlifts<\/strong>; by now there was a double \u201cHidden Valley Chair\u201d (aka \u201cDinosaur\u201d) which served both sides of the mountain and another double \u201cLittle Chair\u201d. The Poma Lift was replaced by a new double \u201cKeechelus Chair\u201d which went almost to mountain top. The \u201cSpaghetti Rope\u201d and the \u201cBunny Ropes\u201d were removed to make way for Nordic <\/strong>access and for what would eventually become 55 miles of Nordic trails<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nHyak has long had a patrol hut<\/strong> at mountain top to store toboggans, signs, ropes, etc.; the hut has also undergone changes over the years. At one time, food and hot drinks were sold out of a big window. The Hut is one of our patrol treasures. Over the years it has been upgraded with a donated clothes dryer, microwave, coffee pot, benches, glass windows and best of all, a wood stove. It was where many of us spent time during those \u201c24-hour ski ticket day-nights\u201d and where we discussed and solved world problems. The Patrol Hut was recently dedicated as a memorial to patroller\/patrol director Walt Langkait who died in 2017. The inside of the hut is now called Langkait\u2019s Lair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nDedication Day for the Walt Langkait hut. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Walt\u2019s widow, Kathie Buffington, and his children Cliff & Sherry are in in the front row center. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nPatrol uniforms<\/strong> have changed over the years. Originally, we all wore navy blue stretch pants and rust parkas<\/strong> (with special parka prices for Northwest patrollers given by Sportcaster, a Seattle manufacturer with owner Gary Burke (patrol director\/region director\/division director owner). Embroidered patches were added to the jacket sleeves and front to acknowledge the certifications a patroller had received\u2014patroller, senior, national, Circle A, Circle M, Avalanche Patch, Mountaineering Patch, Alpine or Nordic, as well individual name badges, a ski area patch and\/or pin of the ski area. Most of the patrols also designed their own individual patrol sweaters. Hyak\u2019s sweaters were V-neck pullovers in an avalanche orange color. Helmets for skiing were not used yet so individuality was expressed through a variety of hats, patches and pins. <\/strong>Today, the uniform for most patrollers consists of red and black parkas (many colors of red and combos with black) and many jacket fabric types; there is no specification on color or fabric of pants. Helmets today \u2014any color\u2014are required to patrol. Fanny packs are still used by some; others use first aid back packs or vests with lots and lots of pockets for first aid supplies.<\/p>\n\n\n\nMaintaining and purchasing toboggans and first aid supplies was and continues to be a huge expense. In those decades, patrols owned their own toboggans and radios, and they purchased all first aid supplies from an in-home warehouse maintained for the ski patrol\u2019s Northwest Region by Crystal patroller, Bob Bauermeister. Expenses were huge and that necessitated off-season and on-season fund-raising<\/strong> efforts. To name a few, the Hyak Patrol fund-raising efforts have included delivering phone books door to door in Seattle, selling Entertainment Books, holding garage sales and car washes, sponsoring ski swaps, selling food and beverages at mountain top and selling hundreds of T-shirts, sweatshirts, golf shirts and patches which were produced for us at cost by Hyak patroller, Erik Lindstrom<\/strong>. We received many donations, many were the result of our sending a follow-up postcard to every patient asking how they were doing. In addition, we received an annual corporate donation for years via long-time patroller Gary Erikson, whose employer, Scott Paper\/Kimberly Clark gave annually to support the patrol. We no longer purchase the toboggans or the first aid supplies so our need for funds is much less, but we continue to sell some things especially to ourselves. And in recent years several local businesses (Boeing, Microsoft, BlackRock, etc.) donate to the patrol for the hours their employees volunteer.<\/p>\n\n\n\nOver the years Hyak has been sold<\/strong> again and again and at times the ski area name has changed. Some of these name changes have been Snoqualmie Ski Bowl, Milwaukee Ski Bowl, Ski Bowl, Hyak, Mt Hyak, back to Hyak, Pacific West, back to Hyak again, and the current area name, Summit East. With sample Hyak Patrol roster numbers as a marker, the Hyak Patrol has gone from 30 to 60 to 80 to 148 to 70 to 26. The low number of 26 members was our lowest number to date when new area owners announced that the size of the patrol needed to be drastically reduced. Skiing and tobogganing tests were held. Patrollers chosen had to have a good record of meeting their duty day assignments (1 day per week-end that the ski area was open); they also had to pass a steep slope ski & toboggan test. Some of the patrollers who had to leave left huge voids in our training and operations staff. After \u201cthe cut\u201d, Hyak had 26 patrollers<\/strong> (19 Alpine and 7 Nordic). The adjustment was very hard, but we all learned to work harder and to appreciate the skills of every single one of our 26. Currently, the area has allowed the patrol to grow and our roster now numbers 42. Throughout our history we have proudly carried the patrol registration number P008<\/strong>\u2014we were the 8th<\/sup> patrol registered in the Pacific Northwest Division National Ski Patrol System when they began assigning official registration numbers many years after 1938 when the first patrols were formed. The area name has changed many, many times throughout the years, buildings and chairlifts have been added and removed but the Hyak Ski Patrol has remained a constant.<\/p>\n\n\n\nIn 1972<\/strong>, an unfortunate ski lift accident would eventually lead to bankruptcy in 1977 for the old Hyak Ski Corporation. In those days, it was possible for the lift operator to push a button and the chairlift would run \u201cforward fast\u201d, push another button and the lift could run \u201creverse fast\u201d (never advised!). On that ill-fated day, a failure of the diesel brake occurred; a lift operator pushed the reverse button and the chair ran backwards in fast mode throwing skiers off at the bull wheel. Some skiers jumped and were hurt, some were tossed and were hurt. What made the accident sensational was a that a local TV station was on scene and broadcasted the entire episode. Partly because of the bad publicity and the lawsuits, the area declared bankruptcy in 1977.<\/p>\n\n\n\nMajor changes came to the pass when Ski Lifts Inc. (who had originally owned only Snoqualmie Pass) purchased the adjoining areas; first, Ski Acres was purchased, then Alpental and finally in 1992 –Hyak. (The most recent name change for the ski area at Hyak came in 1997 when Ski Lifts Inc. sold all four of the Snoqualmie Pass ski areas to Booth Creek; the new owners decided to change the name again. The conglomerate name of the four ski areas became Summit at Snoqualmie which is comprised of Summit West, Summit Central, Summit East, and Alpental (no one knows why they are not Summit North). As of this writing in 2019, the Summit at Snoqualmie is owned by Boyne Resorts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On January 7, <\/strong>2009<\/strong> Hyak was struck with what was originally termed an in-area on-hill Avalanche Disaster<\/strong>. The fast-moving flood of snow mass came charging down the hill mid-week when the Hyak was closed; the slide took out 3 lift towers on the Keechelus Chair and damaged other towers. It continued down the mountain and moved a large local mountain home several feet off its foundation; our past patrol director, Norm Craven, was inside that home at the time and was able to crawl out a window. Fortunately, the avalanche happened mid-week on a Tuesday; had it happened three or four days earlier, many may have lost their lives. The chunks of snow were as big as cars and huge old tree stumps (which had been used as \u201cfill with dirt cover in a depression when the area was built\u201d) littered the hill. Rivers of mud covered the hill and a layer of mud covered the lodge floor. It was surmised that the tree stumps and fill became saturated with water and initiated a mudslide. So, what was originally termed an avalanche is now thought to have been a landslide\/mudslide. The ski area eventually decided to remove the damaged double Keechelus Chairlift and the double Small Chairlift, and they regraded the slide zone. They also removed the double Dinosaur Chairlift and replaced it with a triple chair, the East Peak Chair. So now there are 2 chairlifts, East Peak and Hidden Valley, one on each side of the mountain. More recently, the new Rampart Ridge quad chair was installed to access trails to the North and to serve skiers coming over on the Cross Over trail from Summit Central. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nA huge mudslide (originally termed an avalanche, closed the ski area for the rest of the \u201909 season. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nThe slide also moved the home of our former patrol director Norm Craven off its foundation.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/em>The destroyed Keechelus Chairlift, lift towers and mud slide are in the background. <\/p>\n\n\n\nSoon the ski area bounced back and so did the ski patrol. The Keechelus chair and small chair were replaced with the triple East Peak chair which goes all the way to mountain top. The quad Rampart chair was added and carries riders to the top of Blowdown. The Hidden Valley chair has been upgraded to handle higher capacity. The ski patrol now has more ski runs and more terrain to patrol; every year we add candidates who become members of the Hyak Family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\nTODAY<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nOnce open regularly until mid-night, the ski area is now open only weekends and during Christmas week, and on holidays. We no longer have night-skiing lights. However, now our building has an enlarged kitchen (instead of a door we could open into the snowbank to make shelves to keep things cold), 3 picnic tables, 2 dorms, 2 bathrooms and a shower! And along with our First Aid Room, the building is a palace compared to the early years. Our building is still not much to look at with its numerous patches, sagging ceiling and peeling paint, but we love the Hyak patrol building for its ability to support the work we all love and to bring friends and families together. Today patrol enthusiasm is very high. We have recently been named the Outstanding Ski Patrol in both the Northwest Region and the Pacific Northwest Division. The Hyak Patrol has seen lots of changes throughout the years and many patrollers have come and gone. Most consider volunteering with the ski patrol to be a calling and fondly recall their friends and patrol experiences. And most important, we all agree that even though the weather and the snow might be bad, skiing and patrolling at Hyak is always good! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hope You\u2019ll Come Join Us!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nPhoto credit is given to The Museum of History & Industry, to Early Skiing on Snoqualmie Pass <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\npublished internet photos <\/em>and to Milwaukee Road Historical Association.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As told to or remembered by Shirley Cummings The Hyak Ski Patrol is a non-profit organization dedicated to rescue, emergency care and public safety for<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hyakskipatrol.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/45"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hyakskipatrol.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hyakskipatrol.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hyakskipatrol.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hyakskipatrol.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/hyakskipatrol.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/45\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":179,"href":"https:\/\/hyakskipatrol.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/45\/revisions\/179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hyakskipatrol.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}