THEY CAME, THEY SKIED ... THEY STAYED
NEVER HEARD TALES OF LONG TIME LOCALS
By Joan Christensen / Photos Courtesy of Bob Singley, Karen Gadberry, Greg Gallavan, & Katie Soles

BACK SCRATCHER: Bob Singley came to Fraser Valley in 1959, an era he describes as “BC, meaning before chairlifts, condos, cops, computers, cell phones and Constant Contact.” Photo courtesy of Bob Singley.

It is fondly recalled as the era of babes, bars and bands. The standard claim was that the ratio of men to women in the Fraser Valley was something like 5:1 so the local lament after a breakup was, “You didn’t lose your girl, you lost your turn.” The epicenter of social life revolved around the notorious bars. In Old Town Winter Park (Hideaway Park), it was Adolph’s and The Slope, while down the valley, Deno’s Swiss House in Winter Park and the Crooked Creek in Fraser got their share of the nearly constant conga line of good timers.

A few Fraser Valley old-timers, who are anything but old, still revel in memories about life ‘back in the day’ 30+ years ago.

Bob Singley
With more than 50 seasons under his skis, Fraser Valley resident Bob Singley has many colorful stories. Arriving in 1959, an era he describes as “BC, meaning before chairlifts, condominiums, cops, computers, cell phones and Constant Contact,” he was determined to ski as much as possible.

Singley started as a waiter and bartender at the Hochlandhof (now Winter Park Mountain Lodge). After seven years, he joined the ski patrol for the next seven seasons. In addition to patrol duties, he piloted the Bradley Packer, the first grooming machine ever used to groom moguls – an invention of then ski area president Steve Bradley.

“The community was much smaller then, and everyone who lived here was involved in trying to entertain and include the guests with our spontaneous ideas to amuse or amaze them,” reminisces Singley.

Singley gained local notoriety for his work in two films – first in the James Bond film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, appearing as a gun-toting patroller on the Swiss slopes where he was chosen as an extra while visiting friends. A few weeks later, he was tapped to be a stunt double in the iconic Robert Redford ski film, Downhill Racer, performing spectacular falls. The lingering consequences from those youthful exploits have made him appreciative of the enhanced medical care now available in the valley. 

Singley has seen lots of changes in 50-plus years. The options on the mountain and recreational opportunities have grown considerably, but the community has spread out because of the increased population, wider range of economic status and varying values, he observed. But those of us that have lived here during those early years are very fortunate to have experienced life in a special place, surrounded by spectacular beauty and special people.

Karen Gadberry has been working for Winter Park Resort since 1981, and is the current Human Resources Director.

Karen Gadberry
A Kansas City native, Karen Gadberry was attending college in Greeley when her parents, who owned a condo in Meadow Ridge, called her from Deno’s Swiss House. Her folks told her how much fun they were having and suggested she move to the mountains and get a job.

“I think they meant after I graduated from college, but I couldn’t wait,” laughs Gadberry.

She got a job as Facilities Team Leader at Winter Park Ski Area in 1981 supervising a crew of five who cleaned restrooms, bussed tables and vacuumed the recently opened, (and enormous), West Portal Station. For the “off-season,” she snagged a coveted summer job watering flowers, mowing lawns and assisting with special events.

“That summer was one of the first for the then American Music Festival, and Ray Charles was the headliner,” she reminisces. “It was so great.”

The lifestyle was pretty busy and most residents divided their days and nights between skiing, softball, partying, hot tubs, working and commuting. “The housing rental market was a lot tighter then, and we had a hard time finding affordable rentals, so we were a lot more spread out. I lived in Grand Lake – and didn’t even think twice about the commute,” she insists.

“Almost everyone was single and things were pretty freewheeling,” she claims. “There weren’t a lot of little kids around then, so we skied in the winter and played softball in the summer and life wasn’t as complicated,” she claims. “Our summer softball leagues were huge and that’s what practically everyone did. After the games, we hung out at Deno’s and the Crooked Creek.”

Gadberry is now the resort’s Human Resources Director overseeing more than 1,700 employees in peak season. And, after more than three decades at the resort, Gadberry has an insider’s perspective of the resort and Fraser Valley.

“Yeah, things change, but James and Parry Peaks are still there; the stunning views haven’t changed, and when you see them, you know you are in Winter Park. It’s the same place we fell in love with and why we want to stay here.”

WEST PORTAL STATION CREW: Roger Dione, Dave Ferry, Gale Delphia, Greg DeArmond, Tim Delphia, Rich Shoum, and Greg Gallavan shared many laughs in the day. Circa mid-80s.

Greg Gallavan
“The best snow and the best weather” were the reasons cited by Greg Gallavan for moving to the Fraser Valley from Denver in 1974. His first job was flipping burgers at Snoasis for the food contractor Leisure Services – a company that employed people with allegedly sketchy backgrounds. Then, after a two-year stint as Plant Services Supervisor, another opportunity emerged.

The then-ski -area-president, Jerry Groswold offered Gallavan a position as the resort’s new Food & Beverage Director. Since Leisure Foods had abruptly left Winter Park in 1979, he was in a position to accept, announcing “I can do that,” at a company retreat.

When word got out about his new job, co-workers were incredulous and envious. “They couldn’t believe it because I got a brand new truck and credit cards,” he chuckles. Laughs aside, Gallavan had to get the new food and beverage department operating in time for ski season in less than two months, “and we did it,” he marvels.

His off-slope recollections are equally fond. “We did lots of crazy things like chain races at Adolph’s, when guys would climb the chains that suspended the big chimney in the center of the room,” he recalls, “and The Slope used to get a lot of great bands.”

After leaving the resort in the late 90s, Gallavan launched a construction company, and further developed what has become a national explosion of human mazes beginning with the first one – Amaze ‘n Burger in Fraser – in 1988. Amaze ‘n Mazes are now in 46 locations across the US, as well as Spain, Jamaica and Canada.

Even with a global business to manage, Gallavan still marvels at the personal connections that hold the Fraser Valley together.

“The cool thing is that all these people are still around, and even though some have moved away, there are still lots of long-term relationships.”

WINTER PARK SKI HOSTS: Posing between runs: (l to rt) Brenda (Niskanen) Simmons, Nancy Dakan, Ellen Dobberstein, Katie (Karamanos) Soles, Sandy Larson, Sue Neumann, Marsha Forte, Sarah Peltier, and Mary (Wakefield) Woolwine, 1979-80. Photo courtesy of Marsha Forte, WPRA photo.

Katie Soles
In a word … carefree. That’s how Katie Soles, who visited the Fraser Valley for the first time in April, 1975 with her college roommate, and promptly fell in love with the Valley, describes her first years here. Echoing a familiar mantra from long-timers, it was the joie-de-vivre era. Soles launched her local career as a lift operator on the beginner Galloping Goose lift the year Mary Jane opened.

“We had a lot of fun without a lot of the worries and constraints of today,” she remembers. “Softball was big – including the women’s league. And there was a rugby team – the Fraser Valley Hooligans – and their field was next to the ladies’ softball fields. We were occasionally entertained by a streaking rugby player.”

For the past 26 years, Soles has worked with the Winter Park Ski Patrol. Nowadays, her position includes risk management, CPR training, skier education, first aid and patient support. Summers mean part-time work with the bike patrol and enough free time to pursue her volunteer passions. She is a founder of the Middle Park Land Trust, which preserves open lands and views, and most recently, her efforts have focused on building the Broome Hut for public use on Second Creek.

“Grand County remains a very beautiful place with a solid sense of community, and it is a gift to live here,” Soles declares. “Winter Park Resort continues to be a place of joy and beauty for the folks that visit, recreate and work here. I love that our county is 85 percent public lands. I am still a Fraser Valley girl, and I’m grateful.”

Old-time Winter Park memories you probably haven’t heard ...

Bob: “It would be hard to pick one memory, as we tend to remember eras, like the ‘clothes optional’ era, backgammon era and disco era, but I guarantee that anyone who lived here in those early times has a lifetime of great memories.”



Karen: “Certain unnamed people at the resort decided on an after-hours Alpine Slide ride one evening. They commandeered a shop truck, and after a few beers, those same unnamed people took a wild ride down the slide. No one got hurt, no one got in trouble, and it was good clean fun. That probably couldn’t happen today.”



Greg: “During a Rocky Mountain Wine & Food Festival, Joe Cisneros (West Portal Station Manager) and I won the world record champagne cork shoot at 151.3 feet, and made it into The Guinness Book of World Records.”





Katie: “Streaking Rugby players, silliness on the fireplace chains in Adolph’s, and shooting a cannon with gun powder and newspaper at Adolph’s ...”

READ MORE STORIES FROM THIS ISSUE:
• Winter 2011 Articles