By Karen D. Lorentz
When you speak with skier Karl Thomas Acker, he readily admits that he got the ski bug because of his experiences with Pico. A lot of people can claim this, but Acker’s experiences were truly unique.
And there might even have been a ‘skiing gene’ in the mix with a lot of Pico history that resulted in a passion for skiing that became a way of life.
Karl T. Acker holds a photo of his father at a landmark event in Pico last fall.
Pico owners / operators Brad and Janet Mead opened Pico on Thanksgiving Day 1937 and searched Europe for someone to teach skiing. They watched Swiss rider Karl Acker win every race they saw – he majored in slalom – and convinced him to operate the Karl Acker ski school in Pico from 1938.
Acker met and married Rutlander June Thomas and in 1949 their son, Karl T., was born. In addition to teaching June and her son Karl to ski, Acker also taught Andrea Mead to run and became her trainer. (She is famous for winning the Olympic gold medal twice at the 1952 Olympic Games in Oslo.)
Acker also started the Pico Derby as part of the Pico races and helped Mead run Pico when Brad Mead died in a boating accident. Eventually, Acker and Mrs. Mead bought Pico in 1954. They lived in Pico at the top of the base Troll Top lodge, so little “Tommy” grew there until Pico was sold in 1964.
Young Acker attended Immaculate Heart of Mary School in Rutland and took the Vermont Transit Bus to Pico after school. Then he “would ski and sometimes hike and barricade on slope B after the ski lifts closed,†he recalls.
Karl T. Acker’s “front yard†growing up was at Pico Mountain. Skiing was his life.
Acker had been part of the Pico Ski Club racing program since the age of 6 when he was coached by Joe and Anne Jones.
“My dad and Joe were together in the 10th Mountain Division and Joe co-founded the Mid-Vermont program. It was a defining period and I continued to race on the USSA circuit. I went to the junior national championships one year in the Eastern team. I was competitive and I liked it, â€Acker noted.
After graduating from MSJ Academy in Rutland in 1967, Acker spent two years at Johnson and Castleton State Colleges pursuing ski and ski racing. He left school to run. He lived in Killington and worked at Southworth’s Ski Shop and raced the Pro B Tour for two years before becoming a full time coach at Killington.
After two years, he coached at Pico for one season, then at Elk Mountain (Pa), Stratton Mountain School (Vt) and Park West (now Canyons) in Utah. In 1988 he returned to Killington and coached racing until his retirement more than 20 years later.
Q&A with Karl Thomas Acker
Mountain Times: What was it like growing up in Pico with the mountain in your backyard?
Karl Acker: Pico was in my front yard – the back yard was the parking lot because my room faced the slopes.
Growing up there was great to have access to mountain skiing in the winter when it was snowing, to have access to the mountain in the summer, to hike, hang out and disturb workers when they were kids.
MT: Did you help Pico?
KA: You mean when did I go from a nuisance to a helper? My mom sold Pico when I was 15, so I never had a paid job there because I was busy schooling and running. I drove a tractor when I was 10 or 11. The Oliver tractor was used to pack snow. It had 4 foot long runners bolted to tracks to pack snow and was used to mow trails in the summer and could tow trailers. It was primitive but useful for a variety of things. I drove it in the summer. One day I got adventurous and brought it to a standstill, but couldn’t turn it on to stop it and smashed it into an elevator tower. The workers never let me forget that.
MT: How has skiing affected your life?
KA: It has become my life, that simple.
MT: As a coach, what were the duties and responsibilities of the coach?
KA: Being a coach meant helping kids maximize their skills, which included teaching them new skills to improve their technique. You used what you knew to be an athlete and runner yourself – back then you didn’t have the educational manuals, clinics, and requirements that coaches have today.
Every weekend we took the kids to races – the training encompassed a range of teaching opportunities. You could influence the lives of young people on and off the hill.
MT: From your point of view, what does learning to ski or run bring to a person?
KA: Learning the skills leads to a sport for life if you enjoy it. You don’t have to run to enjoy it. When you learn to love skiing, it can lead to an appreciation of the outdoors and the weather, and learning to deal with the weather.
MT: What did you like about the coaching?
KA: Working with athletes, enjoying the ups and downs, helping them take them to the next level if they are skilled enough and watching them grow as human beings.
MT: What do you like about skiing in general?
KA: It’s funny. New ski equipment and groomed trails on a sunny day – make it a day with reasonable visibility. It doesn’t get any better. It has been in my blood my whole life and I still appreciate it.
MT: What are the biggest changes you’ve seen in skiing? in Pico?
KA: The biggest change I have seen is the ski equipment. It has reinforced the fun factor because it makes skiing easier. Obviously, snowmaking and grooming are also big changes. Elevator service is another big issue.
The biggest change at Pico: everything. Upgrading of ski lifts, snow cover, snow groomers, the basic lodge. Each mountain has undergone the same progression of upgrades if it is still active.
MT: From your perspective, what have Pico and Killington done for the greater Rutland area?
KA: Create jobs, increase tourism and improve the local economy. The areas provide employment opportunities for those interested and attracted to the ski industry, which led to Castleton University’s Ski Area Management Program.
MT: Besides skiing, what do you like?
KA: The outdoors: fishing, target shooting, motorcycling and mountain biking, paddleboarding.
MT: As a retired coach, what do you like most about skiing today?
KA: Meet people and share the history of the region and the involvement of my parents. I’m donating a historic Pico ski tour for the Vermont Adaptive fundraising campaign. I made some good friends doing this. I will tell a story to anyone who is interested and I appreciate when they thank me for sharing it.
MT: What advice would you give to someone looking to work in a ski resort or move to Vermont?
KA: Dark. When you are young and have a passion for skiing and find a way to get involved in it, whether from a business or athletic standpoint, you can prepare for a sport for life.
MT: Advice or wisdom?
KA: My favorite quote these days is from the old country, “Too early old, too late smart.”
MT: Anything else you would like to share?
KA: Contact me ([email protected]) for questions or comments.
