Class of 2014

2014 Hall of Fame Program

Dave Carter was an outstanding cross country competitor in high school and college, but his biggest contribution came in developing cross country ski centers in Oxford and Bethel, where he led countless young athletes into the sport. By introducing so many to the sport, Carter has enhanced the cross country experience for skiers throughout Western Maine.

Brud Folger was a successful competitive skier in high school and college who made his mark in coaching. He coached the UMO ski team for 28 years competing in NCAA Division I against the top teams in the country. During his tenure he had many skiers qualify in all four events and his teams won the Maine State Ski Championships four times in a row.

Nikki Pilavakis-Davoren won her titles in boarder cross before it was an Olympic event which is why her victories are unknown to many. She started on a newly formed European tour and won enough prize money to focus on SBX full time. In 1999 Nikki won the title of Women’s World Champion. In four short years she had become the best female SBX competitor in the world.

Bill Briggs was born in Augusta without a hip socket on his right side and had to have surgeries as a child simply to make it possible for him to walk. While his doctors believed he would eventually spend hi life in a wheel chair he proved to be a natural athlete who taught himself to ski. He was certified as a ski instructor and became associated with Snow King Mountain in Wyoming. It was on much bigger mountains where he became a legend in skiing. After completing a series of climbs and descents of major mountains including Mt. Rainier, he had his hip permanently fused and in June, 1971 he skied the 13,770 foot Grand Teton after hiking to the top. His feats led to his induction into the US National Ski Hall of Fame.

Carl Burnett was paralyzed below the waist in a car crash at the age of five and took up disabled skiing at age 12. Three years later he swept all four junior national titles. Named to the US Disabled Tem in 1998 he went on to compete for nine years in Nor-Am World Cup and Olympics as a sit skiers. He skied in the Paralympics in Salt Lake City in 2002 and in Torino, Italy in 2006 where he finished 5^th in the Downhill.

Tom Gyger is one of those ski patrolmen who has done a lot more than just show up and patrol weekends. Rather than settle for simply meeting the standards of a Senior Patroller, Tom got involved as a first aid instructor and served on the first aid staff of the Eastern Division’s junior Seminar and went on to serve on the National Junior Seminar’s Medical Staff. When NSP transitioned from Red Cross First Aid to its own Winter Emergency Care program, Tom was in the middle of the work to make sure everything went smoothly. For his work and devotion he was awarded the NSP Gold Merit Star.

Rob and Anna Parisien are joining their sister Julie in the Maine Ski Hall of Fame the first family to have three siblings so honored. While Julie is better known, Rob and Anna had outstanding ski racing careers leading to the Olympics in 1992 for Rob and in 1994 for Anna. After attending Burke Mountain Academy, where both had impressive junior results, it was on to USSA competition. Anna dominated J-II and J-I competition earning a place on the US Ski Team in 1991. She retired from ski racing after the 1994 season at age 21. Rob earned his spot on the US Ski Team in 1987 and was the top American finisher in GS in the 1991 World Championships and in the Albertville Olympics in 1992. Like his sister he retired early to attend college graduating from the University of Colorado in 1995 and Dartmouth Medical School in 1999.