Pleasant Mountain memories at Shawnee Peak
Column by Heather Burke Jan. 20, 2008

The scene was a little different 70 years ago, but the spirit remains the same. It was Jan. 23, 1938 when Shawnee Peak, then dubbed Pleasant Mountain, officially opened its first lift for skiing. Hearty skiers had been climbing up and skiing down the cow pastures on Pleasant Mountain long before that 1,100-foot rope tow was fired up. But over 500 skiers turned out to grab onto that rope tow and ski down the Wayshego Trail on opening day seven decades ago. And so began Maine’s longest continually operating ski area, before Sugarloaf was even a twinkle in Amos Winter’s eye.

The first Pleasant Mountain ski trail was cut in 1937 by Pres. Roosevelt’s work initiative, the Civilian Conservation Corp, with some help from nearby Bridgton Academy students eager to ski. That first trail is still ski-able today, with a few expansions and alterations. It’s now the signature Jack Spratt trail that offers skiers and riders stunning views of Moose Pond below and the White Mountains beyond.

There was a modest 16 x 32 foot shelter for skiers to gather at the bottom of the hill back in 1938 too. Now Shawnee Peak has a sprawling base lodge, the most night skiing in all of New England, and a new crop of slopeside condos on the East Slope.

In its 70 years, Shawnee Peak has claimed a slew of ski biz firsts. The first ski instruction in Maine was led by Wes Marco in 1943, the same year the Pleasant Mountain Ski Club was founded – which still operates today. Maine’s first T-bar was installed on Pleasant Mountain in 1953, and the state’s first chairlift, “Old Blue” carried skiers all the way to the Pleasant summit in 1955 (the site of today’s triple which replaced Old Blue in 1984).

What has not changed, according to Shawnee Peak’s owner Chet Homer, is the people involved at Shawnee Peak. “What continues to be special about Shawnee Peak is the people - the staff that comes back year after year, and the generations of families that return to ski here.”

Ed Rock has been Shawnee Peak’s General Manager for over 25 years; he came to Maine in 1982 after running Okemo in Vermont. Homer said other key employees have been at the mountain even longer including Mike Harmon - the Mountain Manager, Rich Jennings in the Rental Shop, and Diane Ackerly in ticket sales.

“We definitely have the “Cheers” effect here because everyone knows your name, there’s a comfort factor that everyone ends the day at the same base, and you get to know the families and their kids,” said Homer.

Pleasant Mountain has made skiers out of so many, from school buses carting hundreds of kids in for night skiing programs, to corporate “Racing with the Moon” leagues, to families from Maine and the surrounding states just learning to turn.

Pleasant Mountain turned ski heads back in the 1970’s with its fast-paced freestyle program, when ski school director Reudi Wyrsch and coach Bruce Cole brought ballet and trick skiing to Maine, and launched the careers of mogul Olympians Doug Rand and LeeLee Morrison, and soon-to-be ski film famous Greg Stump.

It was in 1988 that The Shawnee Group purchased Pleasant Mountain, after a tumultuous decade of not opening due to lack of snow in 1980 and a base lodge destroying fire in 1983. The new owners changed the ski area name to Shawnee Peak, installed lights for night skiing, but eventually defaulted in 1994. Chet Homer, a Kennebunk business man, bought the ski area in 1994 and the rest is history as they say.

Homer said, “We continue to spend money every year, whether we have made money or not. You have to keep improving your product and your snowmaking, while continuing to make skiing affordable for families.”

In the past decade under Homer, the Pine Quad was installed, new trails, terrain park features, and a half pipe have been added, and Shawnee Peak has become a charter ski area for environmental sustainability by decreasing energy usage, purchasing wind-power and using more efficient snowmaking.

“We have grown our skier visits by about 15% over the last 14-years; it’s a combination of offering a better product, and continuing to be family-oriented,” Homer said. “We’re also about giving back. Our 70th anniversary gala on Feb. 2 will raise money for Camp Sunshine, our charity of choice for the past several years.” The retreat for children with life-threatening illnesses in Casco, Maine, has received $400,000 in donations from our Shawnee Peak’s Moonlight Charity Challenge since 1994.

For this 70th anniversary season, Shawnee Peak created an additional charity, “Kids skiing for Kids”; $15 from every kids’ season pass goes to the Maine Children’s Cancer program. “These kids with cancer have a lot more challenges than we do in the ski industry. They may never experience the joy of flying down a hill on snow, so if we can do something to make their situation better – we’re all about that,” said Homer.

Back to all 07-08 Ski Columns
Lodging in Maine