Rick and Doug were work colleagues at the Sugarbush Ski School in the early aughts. I joined them on a chairlift ride one day back then and Doug introduced us. When I mentioned that I had grown up in Berlin, NH, Rick’s eyes lit up. He had been a competitive Nordic skier (cross country and ski jumping) and had competed at the legendary and historic Nansen Ski Jump in Berlin. I thought I was riding the lift with royalty…
A quick aside for a history lesson: Built in 1936, the Nansen Ski Jump was North America’s tallest ski jump for about 50 years, hosting international and Olympic Trial competitions and known ’round the world in Nordic circles. It closed in 1988 and fell into disrepair. Both Rick and I cringed at the thought of weeds growing around the jump and trees growing through the broken boards on this iconic structure. (I never jumped, I just thought it was one of the coolest things in Berlin.) Starting in 2016, funds were raised to repair and rebuild the jump for a celebratory jump by Sarah Hendrickson, the winner of the first World Cup for women’s ski jumping in 2011/12. Efforts are now underway to bring the Big Nansen (as it’s known) back to competitive standards.
Back to our chairlift ride… Rick also mentioned he had a family camp on Rangeley Lake, in Rangeley, Maine, about 70 miles northeast of Berlin. I had fond memories of a trip to Rangeley as a kid – I recalled a gorgeous lake and delightful scenery along the way. We agreed that we should meet up in Rangeley ‘sometime.’ The 10-minute lift ride was over, and the conversation has continued and repeated over the ensuing 20 years – though never consummated.
Rick mentioned to us in the spring that he would be spending the month of July in Rangeley. This didn’t mesh with our recent trip to Maine during June, though we already had plans to head to Toronto in July – so we made plans to stop in Rangeley on our way to Toronto, which makes sense since we’re heading up north to Canada anyway… oh wait, Toronto is southwest of us, isn’t it… Well, not everything we do has to make sense. We’re going!
The drive was just as beautiful as I’d remembered! We arrived and started right off with Rick’s great stories about growing up, weekends and summers on the lake, and return visits over the past 50 years. All of his stories carried warmth and passion as can only be developed from a lifetime of making memories.
Although we’d been talking about Nordic skiing and Rangeley for the past 20 years, we only somewhat recently learned that Rick plays guitar. Of course, the visit quickly morphed into a series of 2-guitar jam sessions. Doug and Rick are clearly attracted to the same genres and decades of music and know a lot of the same songs. Songs, ideas, tips and more than a few stories were exchanged this time.
Rick is also an RV owner. He’s recently downsized from a Winnebago similar to ours to a slip-on truck-bed camper that he’s outfitting for winter ski trips. It fits the bed of his 4X4 pickup truck. The roof extends to allow standing room and folds to enable easy aerodynamic travel. There’s room for everything! Except the skis. He’s working on that. We know Rick – he’ll figure it out. We’re looking forward to hearing about his epic trips!
We also learned only recently that Rick is a lifelong cribbage player, enthusiastic and competitive. Doug played (a lot) while he was in college. I typically re-learn the scoring rules and strategies each time I play. Apparently, there is a Vermont three-player mode of play that Rick showed us. Doug and I played together against Rick, and although he won the first game handily, we played reasonably well considering our experience. We were gaining confidence as we pulled ahead of Rick in the second game, which we ultimately won by a mere two points – and that was only because Rick pointed out an error in our pegging (too low), which he graciously allowed us to correct (thanks Rick!). Then he kicked our butts in the 3rd game. Trounced us. (The scoring in this VT 3-player game is a little different, but I’m pretty sure we were double-skunked.)
Rick kindly offered an aquatic tour of Rangeley Lake in his boat. His place is sort of across the lake from the town of Rangeley. That is at the opposite end of the lake from the Village of Oquossoc, which is where we tied up at a municipal dock for a quick tour of the village and some lunch. Of course the stories continued…
As we headed out of town the following day, Rick took us on a walking tour of Rangeley. The town of Rangeley is a bustling, small, north country community with a comfortable and friendly mix of locals, second home owners and tourists. The historic downtown section is beautiful, with a nice mix of interesting shops, lodging and restaurants, a theater, a beautifully restored and expanded library, and a classic bank that now houses the Historical Society. Once again, Rick narrated our visit with stories from his past – where he worked his first job as a dishwasher, his route as a truck driver, first kiss (we’re sworn to secrecy on that one)… He also found a killer cribbage hand on a car license plate (hey, I didn’t say there were no other distractions).
It took 20 years to make this visit happen – so glad we all persisted. Thanks, Rick!
For anyone who’s interested, more Rangeley pix…