A Surge of Women in Ski Patrols, Once Nearly All Men

“There are high expectations for ski patrol, whether that’s physical or mental toughness, emotional intelligence or problem solving on-the-spot,” said Addy McCord, the ski patrol director at Beaver Creek Resort in Colorado. “When there are women on a team like this, it lends an important voice and perspective to the job. I can say that having women on patrol keeps everyone connected. Men muscle their way through the job and women do it with finesse.”

McCord, 64, one of the longest-standing professional patrollers in the industry, has been with the Beaver Creek Patrol for 40 years. When she started in 1981, there were only two other women. Now, women make up nearly one-third of her team of more than 60 patrollers.

“There is no doubt that I see this trend continuing,” McCord said. “It’s important for women to see themselves represented on patrol and in leadership roles on the mountain. Having not only women, but diversity in perspectives, has elevated this entire team.”

In 1985, when Julie Rust began patrolling at the nearby Vail Ski Resort, there was a similar dearth of women on the squad. When she became patrol director in 2001, she and McCord struck an immediate bond and forged ahead together as trailblazers.

“The fact that there were two of us in the room, we had each other to lean on,” Rust said, recalling her early days at regional director meetings.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/11/sports/skiing/ski-patrol-women-increase.html