Merriam Webster defines ‘community’ as “a unified body of individuals with common interests living in a particular area.” That same dictionary says that ‘sharing’ means “to partake of, use, experience, occupy or enjoy with others.” Those two words pretty much describe how folks at Crabbe Mountain live and ski and otherwise enjoy the outdoors in winter.
Crabbe Mountain, New Brunswick
East of Ordinary
Ski Hill:
Crabbe Mountain, New Brunswick
Vertical:
260 m (853 ft)
Snowfall:
3 m (9.8 ft)
Community Ski Areas: Stories from The Heartland of Canadian Skiing is an on-going series that looks at the often small and remote ski areas where most Canadians learned to ski and are now sharing their passion for the sport with their children and grandchildren. || Creative Director: Gordie Bowles | Writer: Dave Fonda
Finding Something So Good, They Simply Had To Share It
Crabbe Mountain is named for Lemuel Jenkins Crabbe who lived and earned his living here between 1799 and 1865. Many of his descendants still reside in the area. Some even work at his namesake ski hill, but under the names of Billings, Jones, Webb or Knox. All this to say that Crabbe’s roots run mighty deep in this community. In 1958, a telephone company ran an access road up Crabbe, a.k.a. the region’s highest peak. The following spring, locals Dave McIntyre, Fred Spinney and Jerome Sullivan trekked up to the summit, had lunch and then skied down through the heavenly corn snow that covered the north face. They had so much fun that that autumn they cut a ski trail there. With a wink and a nod to the local Indigenous population, they named their run ‘Tippy Canoe’.
The telephone company built a road to the top of Crabbe Mountain, the tallest peak in the region and erected a tower. In 1960, an ad appeared in the Fredericton paper announcing a planned outing on Crabbe Mountain. It also promised “fellowship, snacks in the snow and even some real spring skiing.”
Crabbe Mountain Winter Park Ltd. was incorporated on Dec. 13, 1961. The facilities consisted of a rope tow, three trails, a tarpaper warming hut and a ski school.
A Community of Skiers is Born
The outing proved so successful that other folks began volunteering for active duty. In short order, they erected a warming hut, cut two more trails, installed a rope tow and set up a ski school. In December 1961, they officially founded Crabbe Mountain Winter Park Ltd. Then they began selling shares to help offset the difference between Crabbe’s revenues of $15.50 and the $1,509.63 that they’d invested in capital and operating costs. The 1962-63 ski season saw the hill’s profits soar to $660.57. True to form, the money was invested in building a new 16 X 24-foot, plywood lodge. All was good.
“In our context here at Crabbe Mountain, a community ski area can be well defined as a ski area that primarily supports, and is supported by, its surrounding local community.”
– Jordan Cheney, General Manager, Crabbe Mountain
Givers That Just Keep On Giving
By the end of the decade, CMWP Ltd. would add a bunny slope with its own rope tow. Expand Crabbe’s domain from 25 to 100 acres. Lengthen the trails from the summit down to the new base area. Build an even bigger lodge. And employ inmates from Kingsclear Prison to cut a new, take-no-prisoners, ski racing trail. They named the treacherous run King’s Horn, after a local skier, Bill Kinghorn. Crabbe Mountain also acquired a ‘Big Red’ Bombardier to pack and otherwise ‘groom’ the trails. Meanwhile, other volunteers established a ski patrol.
In 1968, Canada’s reigning Olympic ski champion, Nancy Greene, visited Crabbe. Word immediately spread: “She likes it!” Crabbe then topped it all off by hosting the alpine events during New Brunswick’s first Winter Games.
A “Sunday skier” at the top of Crabbe in 1964.
A young family prepares for their first run of the day, circa 1960s.
More Expansion Leads To More Growth
Crabbe Mountain continued to expand and grow throughout the 1970s and 80s. New trails were cut on both the east and west-facing slopes. In keeping with tradition, the runs were often named after local ski legends. For example: Dineen’s Ravine and Norm’s Nightmare were named after Jim Dineen and Norm Hull, respectively. Never heard of them? Well now you have. The new trails called for Crabbe to add more lifts and more and larger buildings. A new lighting system meant that Crabbe Mountain also offered night skiing. By 1990, the little-hill-that-could boasted a new quad chair, glades, a vastly expanded trail network with wider and seeded trails, extensive snowmaking and a new state-of-the-art groomer that had just about everyone singing, ‘bye-bye, boilerplate, hello corduroy!’
“Crabbe has a long ski racing history. During January Speed Week, our FIS-homologated King’s Horn run is closed for super-G training and races. Upwards of 140 youngsters from Atlantic Canada, Ontario and Maine take part under the guidance of professional coaches and World Cup legends like Todd Brooker.”
– Bryan Burgess, long-time Crabbe Mountain skier
The Wilson Family Buys Crabbe
The Wilson family had earned their stripes in Nova Scotia where George Wilson had co-founded and eventually acquired Ski Wentworth. In 1991, George’s son, Dave Wilson, bought Crabbe, and CMWP Ltd. became Ski Crabbe Mountain Ltd. While his daughter, Leslie, managed Wentworth, Dave oversaw Crabbe’s continued improvement, expansion and growth. Without cutting any staff, more glades were cut. A terrain park was added. A cross-country network was laid out and, thanks to three tireless volunteers named Doug Embree, Bud Irving and Jules Picot, grew to span 26 kilometres. In 2001, after hosting its first mountain biking competition, Crabbe cut even more biking trails. The area soon became a favourite destination for outdoor adventurers throughout New Brunswick.
Dave Wilson and daughter, Leslie, during construction at Crabbe Mountain.
Crabbe Mountain is a regular host of Freestyle events. Photo by Mel Soicher.
Crabbe Mountain: The Next Generation
In 2015, when word spread that the Wilsons were looking to sell Crabbe, the local community quickly overcame its initial shock and began mobilizing. Jim Gould, Mary Jane Logan and George Peppin initiated negotiations with Leslie Wilson to purchase Crabbe. They then went to work rallying together the group of local investors that bought the entire Crabbe Mountain operation. One day, while mulling over what to do with all of Crabbe’s old and used rental skis, General Manager Jordan Cheney devised a ‘Learn the Lifestyle’ program. For $200, anyone could rent ski equipment, get three lift tickets and three ski lessons. Plus, they got to keep the skis, thus giving rise to a new generation of Crabbe skiers!
Crabbe Mountain Today and Tomorrow
Today, Jordan says that, “Crabbe is technically a For-Profit-Operation, which unfortunately disqualifies us from most grant funding opportunities. Fortunately, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) has come to the table by way of repayable, 0% interest support, which has been crucial. We were also able to receive a non-repayable accessibility grant from Employment and Social Development Canada.” As always, local citizens, businesses and shareholders provide incredible support. Says Jordan, “To this day, shareholders have re-invested 100% of all profits back into the business, and they still pay for their season passes. Their interest is in seeing Crabbe thrive and continue to serve our community for generations to come.” Despite facing an aging infrastructure and the rising costs of climate change, the community remains poised to keep their hill going and growing. No wonder they call Crabbe Mountain East of Ordinary!
Photo courtesy of Crabbe Mountain Resort.
Crabbe Mountain – Over the Years
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