Joseph Peter Wilson

Wilson had developed a reputation in his late teens for his knowledge of the woods, his logging abilities, road building capabilities, and knowledge of heavy equipment. He eagerly took to the job. He spent two months tramping, judging, and recording his notes. His only concern at the time was if there would be adequate elevation change to comply with international rules. Subsequent land purchases solved that problem. As a result of the efforts required to hold the 1980 Olympics it became next to Holmenkollen, the premier cross country ski center in the world.

Wilson was the venue manager for the bobsled and Luge events at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics. He directed a staff of 4,000 employees and volunteers.

Wilson was named coach of the US Biathlon team. Wilson was recommended for the job based on his racing career and his extensive coaching experience. His resume included his highly successful book plus his guidance in producing the PSIA instructors manual. His knowledge of Kentucky windage and his extensive training in rifle marksmanship by the famous M.Sgt Marvin Fitzpatrick of the U.S. army rifle team also helped. In 1978-79, the US Biathlon Team had significant success at the World Championships held in Lake Placid prior to the 1980 Olympics. Among other things, he was given a signed poster for his efforts, with the inscription 'Your incomparable enthusiasm continues'.

In 1971 & 1972 Wilson conducted an extensive Nordic summer ski camp here. With support from the well known ski sports writer John Hitchcock, Cooke City proved to be an ideal location. The mountains in this area provide one exciting view after another. The skiing occurred at 11,000" to 13,000". The days were divided between short, scenic tours with substantial instruction and distance tours to the famous Grasshopper Glacier, where on hot summer days the glacier relaxed its hold on thousands of grasshoppers. Initially, millions had eaten the ground bare in the mid-west but had been driven off the plains in a violent windstorm, then caught in a freak Fall snowstorm here in the bitterroots. With endless sunny days and snow everywhere the days offered up rare experiences.

Co-authored "Complete Cross-Country Skiing and Ski Touring" with William J. Lederer. Many believe this book is responsible for starting the boom in cross-country skiing in the United States in the 1970s. To this day, Wilson does not know what initially brought Lederer to Burke. However, through a fairy tale series of events, a lasting friendship and a great book were the outcome. Many say this was typical of Wilson's career.

During the formative years of Alpine skiing and the major growth of Big Alpine ski areas across the U.S., Vermont was the recognized leader in ski area development. Numerous innovations to ski area development, and the sport itself were pioneered in Vermont. It was in this environment that Wilson found himself from 1966 to 1969 as general manager of Burke Mountain, in East Burke, Vermont, just north of St. Johnsbury. Getting to know these people was fun, exciting, and highly educational, especially in the area of ski operation and management. Being elected treasurer of the ski areas association and controlling all that money wasn't bad either, but the opposite swing of the pendulum for Wilson.

During the 1966 to 1969 period "Burke" was a small ski area in East Burke, Vermont. Under Wilson's management the facility was expanded, including the trails and base Lodge, where a bar and dining room were added. Several farmhouses were completely remodeled. Several condos, townhouses, and a vacation home were built. A complete sewage system was designed and built. Wilson staffed it with many young, enthusiastic people with skiing backgrounds, typical of the day. As a result of his real estate background, Wilson realized the future sales value of the land surrounding this Monadnock type mountain and the views it offered. Wilson also knew that along with ownership came the right to control the design and atmosphere of whatever was done in the future. Wilson put together a 4,000 acre land package on the north facing side, which also controlled lands on the east and west sides of the mountain.

At one point he was the brakeman for the U.S. two man team and the #1 four man team in Europe. He somehow missed the 1964 Olympic Bobsled Team, where his former two ski team pals were competing in Insbruck, Austria, for the U.S. Ski Team. A fact he says that popped into his head from time to time that he regrets! Had fate played a different role Wilson could have been on three Olympic teams in three different sports. His national rankings in Polo and Auto Racing added to the mystique.

In 1961 and 1962, Wilson was on the U.S. Team racing in Europe, including Scandinavia, in cross-country and in biathlon. In 1962 he finished tenth in Falun, Sweden: in their National Championships among 900 competitors, a significant placing for an American at that time. Still impressive even today. This would be the equivalent to what is referred to today as a World Cup. His two teammates also had impressive performances. These placings remain the highest ever posted by a U.S. Skier to this day.

Wilson was a member of the U.S. Nordic Ski Team Competing in Squaw Valley, California in 1960. He skied the 30K. Finishing 43rd, the reverse of the number on his racing bib. He later commented he somehow ended up with the wrong bib! Based on his results in the pre-Olympics, on the same courses in 1959, he should have placed much higher.

From 1959 to 1963, Wilson was a lieutenant in the United States Army. He was assigned to the U.S. Biathlon Team Training at Fort Richardson, in Anchorage, Alaska. He spent his entire four-year service career competing in cross-country and in Biathlon for the U.S. in Europe and with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Team.

In 1959 Wilson placed first in the Olympic pre-trials in the 15k, also known as the North American Nordic championships-Squaw Valley. This placing set Joe Pete up as a major U.S. skier due to the number of U.S. and foreign competitors in the race. International Olympic Committee Rules require that a major International Competition be held in all events prior to an Olympic Competition, usually scheduled one year prior as a trial run to test the complex systems involved.

Born in Lake Placid, New York to Gordon H. Wilson and Anna L. Wilson, Joe Pete spent his summers on his family farm in Keene, New York. In 1953 he graduated from Lake Placid High School where he was a Ski Meister Skier for four years. In 1954 he attended Vermont Academy under Warren Chivers. In 1958 he graduated from St. Lawrence University where he competed in cross country, Nordic combined, and Ski Meister under Otto Scheibs. He was used for team Alpine scoring only when necessary. He was elected Captain of the team for two years. As skiing started to grow in popularity in the U.S. in the 1940s and 1950s, colleges began including ski racing in their athletic programs. Since the sport was so new, college coaches had to use the four best skiers they had in order to qualify as a team. Each of the four did the best he could in his specialty of either cross country, jumping, downhill or slalom. A four event skier was the rare athlete that could place high in all four disciplines. Thus was born the Ski Meister Skier.

Joseph Peter "Joe Pete" Wilson (May 22, 1935 – September 13, 2019) was an American Olympic cross-country skier, who skied for the U.S. in cross-country at the 1960 Winter Olympics and later became a well-known skiing administrator in the United States. Wilson also in collaboration authored several books on cross-country skiing, all co-written by William J. Lederer. Wilson set up the cross-country ski area at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont – the lodge established by the Trapp family of The Sound of Music fame. In 1973, Wilson organized a meeting of 25 ski areas and established the National Ski Touring Operators' Association. Wilson was named as its first President from 1973-1977. After several name changes it is now called the Cross Country Ski Areas Association (CCSAA). CCSAA is an international association of U.S. and Canadian cross-country ski areas. Wilson is also known for having set up an inn in Keene, New York, the Bark Eater Inn, and developing the ski trails around the inn.

Having just recently left the U.S. Ski Team, Wilson was ready for a little testing. The North American Snowshoe Championships sponsored by the Saranac Lake Chamber of Commerce as part of their famous Winter Carnival, which was first introduced in 1897, seemed to be the perfect place to test the water – in its fluffy form. Wilson was new to the sport, but not to competition. After the race he remarked that it certainly had been a pleasant day.