Growing up as the youngest of three, all I wanted was to be able to do everything the big kids were doing. From learning to ski at age one and a half, to riding a bike without training wheels by age 3, to doing cartwheels on my rollerblades.
I’ve always had a daredevil sense of adventure. I have my dad to thank for that. My dad taught all three of us how to ski before sending us off to ski school with different instructors to gain a better understanding and perspective of the sport. However, I was promptly kicked out of ski lessons for not wanting to ski in a “pizza”, I would quickly respond by saying, “but I can ski parallel, here I’ll show you!”
From hockey stops to speed demon on the slopes, my parents clearly had their hands full with me! By the time I was 5, I was skiing black diamonds with my dad at my home mountain, Middlebury College Snow Bowl.
My dad, who was a ski instructor there thought, “what am I going to do with this kid?!!” My parents enrolled all three of us in the Junior Development racing team at the mountain. Usually you had to be 7 at the minimum to be in the program, but I was allowed in at the age of 5.
My passion for skiing and joy of ripping with my family has always brought a smile to my face. Skiing has always been the biggest source of happiness for me and the best connection within our family. So to celebrate and honor the tradition, I ski as much as I can, wherever I can because it always feels like home.
To my first year in Colorado skiing over 200 days that season, to 100 days every season there after; I thank you Dad for showing us the best way to enjoy life to the fullest and turn us all into total fun-hogs!
Happy Father’s day from my family to yours!
Cheers!
Molly Cournoyer
Skirack Run and Ski / Snowboard Department
Molly's father, Jim Cournoyer is a floor lead at Skirack's partner store, Patagonia Burlington.
Read Jim's Patagonia Burlington blog post: "How to Raise a Fun Hog"
Photo captions:
Header: 1. Molly's first ski chair ride at age 3 with her father, Jim. 2. Molly and her father, Jim on the ski chair in 2018.
Second photo: Molly's father, Jim as a ski instructor at Snow Bowl in Middlebury, VT with her brother RJ (almost 5), Molly (18 months) and sister Kat (2 1/2).
Third photo: Molly racing giant slalom at Burlington High School, where she was team captian. Molly was also MVP for all 4 years of high school.