Photographer: Ray Atkeson
Location: Mt. Hood, Ore., 1939
Backstory: Before chairlifts, patrol sweeps and trail crews, the ski day lasted as long as the daylight. Racing nightfall, five skiers—silhouetted at dusk—squeezed every last turn from the slopes below Timberline Lodge. Some things never change:
Photographer: Fred Lindholm
Location: Alta, Utah, 1959
Backstory: Even at 50, longtime Alta ski-school director Alf Engen was a kid at heart, always goofing around when he was on snow. Credited with inventing powder-skiing technique, Engen could turn any slope into his personal playground:
Photographer: Fred Lindholm
Location: Alta, Utah, 1961
Backstory: Jim McConkey (left) puts on an air show with Gordon West. McConkey, once described as "the best all-around skier in the world," passed on his vision and passion to his son, the late Shane McConkey, who continued his family's legacy of irrepressibly advancing the sport:
Photographer: Tom Plofchan
Location: Alta, Utah, 1964
Backstory: As soon as Hellgate Road was cleared of avalanche debris, one-man Alta Air Force Alf Engen shot the gap, with a buddy’s 1964 Corvair parked on the blacktop for perspective. The slide made a perfect kicker for the always opportunistic Engen: