The Last Ski Troopers, Volume I

About the Book

“Suddenly, the Olympic Games of 1932 were over. The excitement of realizing that the attention of the world was focused on tiny Lake Placid was no longer of importance. Instead, the attention of people was refocused on the depression and the underlining fear of the citizens of the United States about their concern for the future as it pertained to themselves. It was a major occurrence in my young life, one of the first of many readjustments for me.

Around the time period of perhaps 1937 – 1938, I began to be increasingly aware of the impact Adolf Hitler was having through out the world. I cannot imagine how anyone, with any interest in life itself, could not have been aware of some of the things that were published about this rather different appearing person.

In 1938, I was contacted about becoming a member of the newly forming National Ski Patrol. Of course I was vitally interested and did join the unit. As a result, I spent many nights in the surrounding mountains of Lake Placid searching for skiers who had decided to take a trip from their various hotels without telling anyone where they were going. Those experiences were exhausting and seldom appreciated; yet we did locate most of the “lost” adventurers.

I was a member of The Lake Placid Ski Team and participated in many tournaments throughout the east at that time. Skiing was, literally, my life. I had a chance for a scholarship; but needed additional credits in foreign languages, so took a Post Graduate course at Lake Placid. I was on the football team and the last game of the season I was seriously injured and that was the end of my hopes for a scholarship. Nineteen thirty-nine, I entered Wayne University in Detroit, Michigan. My brother, Tom, was a senior at Wayne that year, and we both worked eight-hour jobs and attended school. It was a difficult experience and yet my brother had been doing it for four years.

Living in a large industrial city like Detroit and carrying a full schedule at Wayne was a very difficult assignment. It was quite a bit different from the life of some of my former ski buddies, who were enjoying “scholarships”. All during this time I was fascinated in realizing the numbers of pro German “Bunds” which were flourishing in the City of Detroit. These groups openly displayed Nazi Swastikas and identification with German organizations. For me, it was a continuation of the life I had experienced in Lake Placid as I had listened to Hitler’s speeches in Lake Placid during the 1930’s. Between reading comments made by Lindberg and recalling the earlier radio programs of Adolf Hitler, I was really intrigued and concerned about just whom to believe.

Writing that today does not appear a possibility but thinking back and reviewing the way things were going at that time in my life, I feel comfortable in so stating that fact. My interest in skiing and mountaineering caused me to be constantly associated with my peers and their pro German feelings were ever prevalent. Once in Detroit, and seeing the activities of organizations like the Bund, did make me wonder if there was not some veracity in their beliefs.

An incident happened during that time period that perhaps might demonstrate that comment: I loved skiing; I was trapped in a large Metropolitan city far away from mountains and snow. Someone I knew at that time had read about a “Snow Train” which was scheduled to leave Detroit and travel over night to a small winter resort in northern Michigan. The price was within my small budget and I decided to take the weekend trip. I found the train and located a seat. Shortly after that a very attractive woman sat down beside me. I was around twenty years old at that time. I would say she might have been twenty-eight or thirty years old. Within a fairly short period of time we were chatting with one another and she told me that she was a professor at one of the universities in Detroit. I mentioned that I was a student and that I was also working, full t

About the Author

The Author, after many long years of war, is retained by a Corporation involved in manufacturing components for Jet Engines. Prior to the war he had spent several years helping to produce Rolls Royce Engines for the British people, as they tried to stand off the assault of the maurauding German Army. Quality was always imperative. It quickly becomes apparent that his new Employer was producing products which, were, in the main, of poor quality. All efforts were being directed towards increasing production with slight concern for meeting demanding standards. How a serious attempt was made to find proper control; is the main thrust of this fascinating book. This manner of Management seemed to be spreading throughout the American Manufacturing Community, at that time. Hence the title "The Autumn of The Wasting". Readers will be enthralled by the scope of this novel.