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Show Tr 7 LL @ > Bogey CS The more things change, the more they “We ie nance ee Violinist, sweeter like sound Arturo al s Delmoni. ' ‘ n the notes eee The . ‘ of a violin penetrating a warm summer evening in the mountains, > PAGE 2 *» AUGUST 1997 > Bogey When if comes to racial stereotypes was While Otto built the first Park City and political incorrectness, lily-white ski resort with Bob Park City seems to be even more behind the times than the rest of Utah - and that’s going some. Recently, Park City’s local radio station KPCW was promoting its summer fund-raiser with a spot from a fictional character called Rickshaw Rick. With an accent that apparently was aimed at mocking Asian Americans, Rickshaw Rick exchanged his “Rs” for “Ls” and vice versa, something like New York Sen. Alfonse D’Amato making fun of Judge Lance lio on the Don Imus Show. D’Amato was criticized roundly and made a public apology to all Asian Americans. As for KPCW, which otherwise has a good reputation, all we can say is, it’s really a shame there is no sensitivity in Park City to ethnic ited with planning the layout for Alta. More than that, Alf discovered deep powder skiing there. And although skis were used to travel between Alta and Park City back in the old mining days, Alf and Otto pioneered Utah recreational skiing. My friends and I, who grew up skiing at Alta in the “60s and ‘70s loved stereotyping. Alf. Among Burns, Alf was cred- other things, we loved him because Alf was a great powder skier. While some of our contemporaries, like Jon Engen and Brad Langston, wanted to emulate downhill racers Jean Claude Killy and Franz Klammer, my little group - most notably Kevin Handy, Jay Olsen and Dick Jensen - wanted to burry ourselves in the lore of the powderhound. And if Utah skiing lore was lacking, it grew in the ‘60s and ‘70s: I Christopher Smart recall the story of how Alf skied over an open mine shaft, although he didn’t strength in his arms, he gave a mighty shove and flew over the wide opening, escaping death. When my friend Tom Carter taught me how to ski powder, he took pains to show me the way Alf did it. The secret to this magic dance was smoothness and grace, not force and muscle. One of the great things about Alf was that he was always around Alta. It was there that he ran his Alf Engen Ski School. Alf was actually out skiing and instructing almost every day. He was accessible, too. You could ski up to him and say, “Hi, Alf.” And he would always give you the time of day. what’s more, he was always pictures o! Alf,” we woulc fast buck off the sport he loved. Alf Engen wanted to ski and to teach oth- see it until he was right on top of the deep, dark hole. Then with great And got g to each other enthusiastically. It was fame by association. How could we not be folk-heroes ourselves, being caught together on the same film with the great Alf Engen? Alf was first and last a skier. He wasn't an entreprenuer out to make a Se really know Alf, although | 2 high school with his son, Jon. vertheless, to me and a bunch of my id skiing buddies, Alf was the best. Alf and his brother and some Park City boys, like Otte Carpenter, popularized skiing and ski jumping in these parts before World War II. Otto Carpenter, another local hero, also died recently. kind enough to take time out to pose for pictures with members of our group. And | suppose anyone else who asked. ers the joy of skiing, whether it was a snowplow down Main Street or bomb- ing down High through deep powder from Nowhere. * He wasn’t a name plate for a lodge or a line of clothing. Although, at one point, he did manufacture ski wax. That’s the kind of guy Alf was - he was a purest, born to ski and live that life to the fullest. There won't be another Alf Engen, just as there won't be another Otto Carpenter. Those days, apparently, are gone. But for me and my generation and group of friends who grew up in the Wasatch Mountains believing that life began and ended among the pines and the powder, Alf was a man worth emulating. We won't ever forget him. And we have the pictures to prove that we knew a legend, and somehow that makes us greater. @ |