Peter Hale © courtesy of Peter Graves

November 19, 2013 – A long-time Nordic skiing figure in the United States – and around the world – passed away on Sunday at his Bozeman, Montana home following a courageous battle with cancer.

Peter Hale, an industry fixture as the NW rep and US Race Manager for Madshus, lived to see an extraordinary outpouring of affection for him on Facebook, during the last weeks of his life, and died knowing how many people loved him, appreciated him, and cared for him. He was an extraordinary man and it was not surprising to see the many amazing stories and cherished memories shared, along with heartfelt wishes from those who loved him.

I met Peter Hale in the mid- 1970s, when we both worked for the Norwegian Nordic ski equipment distributor, NorTur. Humble, self effacing, generious and kind were but a few of his amazing human qualities. And Peter didn’t have to work at it like some, his demeanor came naturally. He was laugh-out-loud funny and many shared countless experiences of laughter and joy with him that form a lasting memory.

Peter Graves (l) Peter Hale © courtesy of Peter Graves

I will remember the simple, funny moments – any time I was with him at a restaurant, he would ask, “Excuse me, do you serve food here…” or his greeting when we got together, “…of all the places we’ve been, this is gotta be one of them.” His delivery was flawless and he was the master of subtle understatement.

Two years ago at the US XC Ski Nationals in Rumford, we spent a lot of time together talking about his illness. He never once acted like he’d been dealt bad cards. He was concerned but cheerful and optimistic.

Our NorTur booth once got flooded by an overhanging water pipe at the Seattle Merchandise Mart – we were both in our sport coats and ties – and we got drenched to the bone, the only exhibitors to suffer this fate. Our hair was soaked, and we built a tiny bridge to our booth with Epoke 900’s, that folks just walked over to get to our booth. We laughed like hell as we thought it was a viable demonstration of just how strong the skis were!

Two weeks ago we talked on the phone one last time. It was a beautiful talk between friends and about his illness he said, “This is so darn inconvenient.” Never once did he complain, never once did he feel sorry for himself. We talked about the old days, the SIA shows in Vegas where at one time our booth uniforms made us all look like the Temptations, the old days at the Birkie with the black and yellow bumblebee suits, some wonderful times at clinics we did together at Lone Mountain Ranch, and the sand skiing race our company did years ago at Redondo Beach, the Epoke Beach Classic.

We laughed and laughed. It was special and it was good. And there he was near the end of his life still giving us lessons.

Peter was the teacher in all this, and we were his students. His legacy lives on in all of us, and all whom he touched during his full and wonderful life. We will always remember his lessons of all that is good in the human spirit and be especially aware of the precious nature of the passing of time, blue sky, perfect ski tracks, a well timed pun – the joy of snow falling silently or the patience and gratitude of doing one’s life’s work as graciously and effortlessly as Peter did.

Peter, thanks for all you gave each of us, you were one of a kind and we will never forget you.