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(2009) Event Wrap Up Release Print E-mail

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                   
February 15, 2009
 
 
85TH ANNUAL HARRIS SKI JUMP AND THE REBIRTH OF A VERMONT TRADITION A HUGE SUCCESS
Record Breaking Crowds, Perfect Weather and World-Class Jumping
over Valentine’s Day Weekend in Brattleboro
 
Brattleboro, Vt. – After a four year hiatus to fundraise then rebuild the Harris Hill Ski Jump back to FIS (International Skiing Federation) standards, the 85th annual ski jumping competition came back with a bang. With record crowds, a renewed enthusiasm and two days of blue sky mid-30s weather, jumpers and fans alike were delighted with the new jump and the enhanced festivities surrounding the weekend. Some highlights and random facts:
 
In two years, the Harris Hill committee raised $575,000 in order to rebuild the jump. “It took a “can-do” attitude and several designs to get the right design for the new jump,” said Pat Howell, co chair of the organizing committee that runs the competition.
 
The engineer that made the new construction work is Ron Bell of Bell Engineering of Spofford, NH. Bell notes, “We were asking a lot of this design and certainly there were no off-the-shelf models to go by.”
 
In just 152 days, Jason Evans of J. Evans Construction in Dummerston, Vt. and his crews totally reconstructed Harris Hill Ski Jump, which is now the newest 90-meter jump in the country and the only 90-meter jump in New England.
 
There are 7,000 screws securing the decking of the new ski jump.
 
There were two United States Ski Association (USSA) competitions over the weekend. On Saturday it was the Pepsi Challenge. On Sunday, it was the Fred Harris Memorial Tournament.
 
A total of 28 athletes competed at the 85th Harris Hill Ski Jumping Competition, with representatives of three countries (Austria, Slovenia and the US) and seven states (Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont and Wisconsin).
 
Vermont jumpers included Spencer Knickerbocker of Brattleboro, Willy Graves of Putney and Tara Geraghty-Moats of West Fairlee.
 
Christian Reiter, age 17, of Austria jumped the longest jump of the weekend and a new record for Harris Hill, 100.5 meters (331.65 feet), on his first competitive jump on Saturday.
 
Oldest jumper: Jon Farnham, 51, of Hanover, NH in the Masters class.
 
Youngest jumper: A.J. Brown, 13, of Fox River Grove, Ill. in the Juniors class.
 
Crowd count total for the weekend: 8,300.
 
“This is a history making event not only for Brattleboro, not only for Vermont, not just for the Eastern ski jumping community, because this tradition is reborn,” said Peter Graves, former US Ski Team Coach and eight-time Olympic commentator. “This is such an outstanding iconic venue that is known all over the world.”
 
Continued Graves, “It was really good jumping today. It was exciting to see the women and the juniors out here. It’s really making headway with the sport. I’m absolutely in awe with what the committee the contributors and everyone have done to make this happen. It ensures that the magic will continue.”
 
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Contacts:
Lynn Barrett, cell (323) 627-4625, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Melissa Gullotti, cell (802) 236-9349, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
 
 

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