He is considered the “Father of Freestyle.” Park Smalley of Steamboat Springs was the first head coach of the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team. He has been named to the Class of 2024 U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team Hall of Fame.
Here’s what the announcement said:
Park Smalley — Steamboat Springs, CO
Legendary freestyle coach, Park Smalley, considered by many as the “Father of Freestyle,” played a pivotal role in the sport’s early growth. The first head coach of the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team, his athletes won, seven Nation’s Cups, 114 World Cup victories, and 332 podiums. He was an early competitor in the sports ‘hot dog’ days, founder of a summer freestyle camp, helped initiate the International Freestyle Skiers Association, and was a CBS Olympic freestyle commentator. In his 25 years as coach, Park worked with more than 3,000 athletes, including many Hall of Famers.
Over 300 in the ski and snowboard industry voted to determine the Class of 2024. Seventy were nominated. Here’s who else is in the Class of 2024.
Sarah Billmeier — Yarmouth, ME
One of the most accomplished Paralympic skiers of all time, Sarah Billmeier earned 13 Olympic medals – seven gold, five silver, and one bronze – from 1992 to 2002. Billmeier also holds six World Championship titles. Losing a leg to cancer at age five, she learned to ski at eight, was racing by ten, and at 14 was the youngest member of the U.S. Disabled Alpine Ski Team. In 2001, she graduated cum laude from Dartmouth, and in 2002 she retired from ski racing to pursue her medical career at Harvard Medical School. She is now a surgeon out of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.
Barrett Christy Cummins — Vail, CO
Barrett Christy Cummins’ distinguished snowboarding career included 11 X Games medals (1997-2002) and historic victories in halfpipe, big air, and slopestyle. She remains the only female to win gold at the same X Games in two disciplines. She made history with the Barrett Roll, the first trick named after a female snowboarder. As a 1998 inaugural Team USA snowboard halfpipe Olympic team member and two-time TransWorld SNOWboarding Female Rider of the Year, her influence extended beyond competition. Her 25+ year Gnu pro model is the longest-running women’s snowboard. She has graced magazine covers, inspired action figures, and mentored future athletes.
Denny & Chris Hanson — Midland, MI
Denny and Chris Hanson started skiing as young racers in Michigan in the 1950s and ’60s. The brothers founded Hanson Ski Boots in 1970 and introduced the first commercially viable rear-entry ski boot. Together, the Hanson brothers set out to provide a comfortable performance ski boot for all skiers. This innovation spurred most major ski boot companies to introduce rear-entry designs in the late seventies and eighties. In 2006, Denny founded Apex Ski Boots, combining a snowboard-style inner boot with an open rigid chassis, a style once believed impossible. The unique product is still available today.
Hannah Kearney — Norwich, VT
Mogul skier Hannah Kearney is one of her sport’s most accomplished international athletes. In 2010, she took Olympic gold, backing it up with bronze four years later in Sochi. Her perseverance earned her a women’s record-matching 46 World Cup moguls’ victories, equaling the best-ever total of a personal hero, Hall of Famer Donna Weinbrecht. In addition to her two Olympic medals, Kearney earned eight World Championship medals: three gold, two silver, and three bronze, four World Cup overall titles, and six World Cup moguls’ titles. Kearney retired in 2015 but remained an ardent mentor and cheerleader for her sport.
Greg Lewis — Denver/Aspen, CO
A preeminent voice of ski racing, Greg Lewis made his mark in a career spanning half a century. In 1972, he joined Bob Beattie’s Worldwide Ski Corporation as Head of Communications for World Pro Skiing, quickly becoming the voice of World Pro Skiing, and overseeing NASTAR public relations. Lewis covered winter and summer Olympic sports for NBC, CBS, ESPN, HBO, Turner, and GGP for nearly 30 years. He also wrote and narrated ski films for Jalbert Productions. He is a two-time EMMY honoree and wrote feature profiles for Skiing Magazine. In 2015, ISHA honored him with a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Jimbo Morgan — Truckee, CA
Freeskiing pioneer Jimbo Morgan helped to coin the term “freeski,” was the first photographed while grabbing his skis in the air, and was a pioneer of the skicross discipline. Morgan was on the U.S. Speed Skiing Team, competed in the speed skiing demonstration event at the 1992 Olympics, and participated simultaneously in multiple disciplines. His early embrace of snowboarding made an indelible impact on both sports. Morgan logged numerous big mountain descents in Europe and North America, starred in multiple ski films, and was on the first legitimate freeski team founded by K2 in 1997.
Chuck & Jann Perkins — Burlington, VT
Chuck and Jann Perkins’ humble beginnings started with their Alpine Shop. They became preeminent philanthropic and personal advocates for the preservation of snowsport history, demonstrated by their lifelong support for the legacy of the 10th Mountain Division, the International Federation of Mountain Soldiers, and the International Skiing History Association. Their decades of event hosting, time commitment, and generous donations to regional snowsport museums and the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame, highlighted their commitment to preserving the history of snowsports globally. The Perkins have supported ski films, ski manufacturers and apparel companies, expeditions, museum displays, memorial statues, youth/collegiate ski and educational programs, and more.
The National Voting Panel is comprised of the board members from:
-US Ski and Snowboard
-Cross Country Ski Areas Association (CSSAA)
-The US Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame
-United States Olympics (USOC)
-Sports Specialists Ltd. (SSL)
-Regional Museum and Ski Area Associations
-The International Skiing History Association (ISHA)
-The National Ski Patrol (NSP)
-Professional Ski Instructors of America (PSIA-AASI)
-Snowsport Industries America (SIA)
-Living Honored Members of the Hall of Fame
-National Ski Area Association (NSAA)
-North American Snowsports Journalists Assoc.
-X-Games
-National Brotherhood of Skiers (NBS)
-Members of US Ski and Snowboard Awards committee
-Snowsports Merchandising Associations (SMC)
-Other appointed industry individuals appointed by the USSSHoF board Chairman