BEARPEN MOUNTAIN
The Summer of 1949, Ben Lane, an avid cyclist, ascended the summit of
Copperas Mountain in New Jersey, site of Craigmeur Ski Area. On that day, his scientific nature enticed him to experience skiing. Thus, began...
"The Saga of Skiing"
Throughout the Winter of 1949/50, Ben Lane returned to Craigmeur. He took lessons, was "bitten by the skibug," and discovered a developing passion. He observed the mountain's V-shaped cleft and its ability to hold snow. He watched with curious amusement as owner, Hugo Meury, packed new snow with his skis by sidestepping up and down the slopes all alone. This became the catalyst for the realization of what working a mountain is all about.
September 1950, at age 18, Ben enters Princeton University in New Jersey. He soon meets Bill Bardsley, who will later become general manager at Mount Sunapee and creator of Gunstock at Belknap, New Hampshire. The two became great friends and looked forward to skiing together. February 1951, they drove from Princeton to Belleayre Mountain in Highmount, New York, a large mountain experience. At that time, Belleayre had a single chairlift , a platterpull and a rope tow. For the first time, Ben’s eye caught view of a mountain with heavy rime to the northwest. Read More