A monthly roundup of the latest news about industry people and personalities.

Legendary resort leader and author John Christie died May 7. A lifelong Mainer, Christie began his ski industry career at Sugarloaf, Maine, as a ski patroller before being named general manager in 1965. He then moved to southern Vermont as VP and general manager of Mount Snow. During his time in Vermont, he was elected president of the Vermont Ski Areas Association in 1970 and then director of the National Ski Areas Association in 1971.

In 1972, Christie moved back to Maine and purchased Saddleback Mountain, which he sold in '76, and retired from the ski business. But he never really left the industry. He stayed involved as a member of the board of directors for the Ski Museum of Maine, and helped form the Maine Ski Hall of Fame. As an author, his first work was “The Story of Sugarloaf,” which won the Skade Award given by the International Skiing History Association for outstanding work on regional ski history. He co-authored “The Maine Outdoor Adventure Guide” and “Skiing Maine” with son Josh Christie; “Skiing Maine” is scheduled to release in September.

John will be remembered as a great storyteller with high-energy who was a pillar of the ski industry, especially in his home state of Maine.

Reese Brown is taking over as the executive director of the Cross Country Ski Areas Association in October, succeeding longtime association head Chris Frado. Brown is currently Nordic director for SIA and serves as an elected representative on the CCSAA board of directors. He has been working in the industry since the '80s, and this past winter even picked up a part-time job as a trail groomer at Woodstock Inn and Resort Nordic Center in Vermont.

New England Nordic Ski Association welcomes Peter Graves as interim director. A native Vermonter, Graves, 63, raced under former U.S. Olympic team coach Dolph Kuss at Fort Lewis College in Colorado. He's since been involved in the Nordic skiing industry at various levels. In 1980, Graves was the Nordic skiing color commentator for ABC Sports during the Olympic Games in Lake Placid. He was named the USSA Eastern Nordic Program Director for the field office in Brattleboro, Vt., in 1986, and was a member of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games organizing committee in Salt Lake City for two years. In addition, Graves spent six seasons as the head varsity cross-country skiing coach at Harvard University.

After five years in various positions with Ski The East in Vermont, industry veteran Alex Kaufman has a new part-time gig: a snow economy podcast in partnership with Vermont Public Radio called Wintry Mix. Before Ski The East, Kaufman worked in marketing roles at Sunday River and Mt. Bachelor.

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