Sallie McNabb Loved Children

Sallie and her husband, Bill, loved skiing. They brought that love, and their eight children, to CRYSTAL MOUNTAIN the year that Crystal opened. Every Friday night during the ski season they would pack everything up: the dogs, the children, the gear...and head for the cabin. Just imagine: eight children, plus Mom and Dad: that's 10 pairs of skis, poles and boots. Then imagine ski socks, mittens, hats, gloves and goggles. Add to that lunches packed, tickets purchased etc etc etc. 

Every Saturday, every Sunday... every weekend. Seven of their eight children raced for Crystal Mountain in the CMAC program. So, Sallie decided that simply getting her children TO the mountain, every weekend, wasn't enough. Sallie needed to be involved.

Her children were racing... so Sallie volunteered to help.

She gate-kept. She worked the check-in desk. She handed out racing bibs. She collected racing bibs. She travelled to many of the "away" races during the season, volunteering wherever she went. If it needed to be done....Sallie learned how to do it.

Eventually she became involved in the technical side of ski racing. She learned about timing the racers and the math involved with that. Bear in mind...this was before computers, before electric timing and way before hand warmers. Sallie would stand at the finish line, stop watch in hand, regardless of the weather and time the children as they passed through the finish gate. Eventually, Sallie earned the title "Chief of Timing and Calculations."

But what she was really doing....was loving the children...their smiles, their enthusiasm, their passions, their Spirit.

The smiles that those children brought to Sallie McNabb's face....
THAT is what we remember and honor her for at this race!