Willie Erickson — December 31, 2025
HALEY & WILLIE ERICKSONIron Mountain, MIherickson@usaskijumping.com Of all the ways people know my grandpa, most start with his name and a list of accomplishments. Olympian. World…
Thank You for Joining USA Ski Jumping for Our 14th Annual Story Project
Story Project is a chance to remember, share, and celebrate the people and moments that make Ski Jumping great. Stories are from young and old, from across the country, and from yesterday to long ago. We love stories from weekend warriors, parents, and officials just as much as stories from Olympians. These are stories that bring us together and bring us back. Our hope is that you read the stories, it brings a smile to your face, and if you are able or willing, you give back to the sport either through a donation or your time. When we all do this, we ensure the future is even brighter than the past.
We have bold goals!
Story Project is a special time for all of us to come together and celebrate the rich history and bright future of Ski Jumping. Help USA Ski Jumping send our best athletes to the 2026 games in Milan and continue to grow opportunities for youth skiers as well as promote the historic tournaments that take place across our country! Add your name to the list!
2025 Story Project Donors
Be one of the first to add your name to the list and help us reach our goal of $75,000 in donations!
James Vilk
Jerry Martin
Darryll Landstrom
Suzanne Couture
Don & Doreen Cutter
Ted Chivers
Ron Steele
Davin Chor & Mary-Ann Tan
Jeff Hastings
Joel Kruse
Brendan Doran
Tom & Kirsten Bickner
Sandy Graves
Greg & Mary Windsperger
Paul & Gloria Whiting
Charles Supercynski
Sting Hallingbye
Beaver & Butter Verrette
Stephen McNeil
Michael Holland
Karl & Jennifer Hassrick
Todd Lee
Jay Martin
John & Heidi Ruth
Shawn & Kim Arneson
Ryan Cutter
Eldridge French
Scott Halvorson
James H Balfanz
Buff McLaughry
Conroy Widmer
Mark Emery
Drew Richards
Billy Sheil
Nini Meyer
Tara McGovern
Alan Johnson
Ron Steele
Dana Zelenakas
Cathy and Allen Belshaw
Gregg Cerveny
Vic Method
Kirsten Millar
Michael Behee
Meg & Guy Larson
Avery Roberts
Art & Martina Lussi
Jeff Sell
Jason & Kiki Densmore
Matthew & Eleanor Petri
Bradley Hastings
Tricia Asaro & Steve Kroll
David Robinson
John Fulton
Scott Clayton
Susy & Dick Ziegler
Jim Thielen
Mark and Alice Udvari-Solner
Mark Levasseur
Annika Roell
Corky Colby
Tom & Cristina Calcagni
Larry Stone
Dave Lantz
Mark Donavan
Kenneth Ripp
Billy Demong
Benny and Becky Yih
Eric Camerota
Gary Moe
Robin Outwater
John Upton
Rick & Deirdre Mewborn
Dennis McGrane
Susan Kavanagh
Hans Copeland
Rex Bell
Edward Wilder
Carl Soderberg
Ben Walker & Berta Strigel
Georgia Jones
Chris Erkkila
Leon & Peggy Sharyon
Scott Mcguire
Tony Goodwin
Thomas Dodds
Teyck Weed
David C Rikert
Craig Ward
Dan & Lisa Mattoon
Sandra Chivers
Jon Denney
Bill McCrillis
David Norby
Jay Rand
Stephanie & Ira Wacholder & Mendleson
Walt Cherry
Mark Konopacke
Jay Martin
Bill Cantlin
Janet Bliss
Tim Tetreault
Chris Hastings
Scott & Jean Colby
Peter and Melissa Copenhaver
Dave Norby
Alissa Johnson
Kris Severson
James Barnes
Cristina Breen
Caroline Burroughs
Michael Lange
Ed Finnerty
Michelle Urlaub
Pat Gleason
Robbin Price
Craig Savonen
Tim Denisson
Jim Holland
Dr. Bart Szczech
John and Cindy Hassrick
William Thomas
Michael Lange
Greg Poirier
Susan Morgan
Eric & Betsy Peterson
Jeff Soderberg
Katherine Volmrich
Kathi Meyer
Jim & Nancy Spillane
Stuart Johnstone
Robert Stewart
Marv Cofer
Stacey Border
Darlene Kalleland
Molly Gerrity
Bart Szczech
Shirley K Doyle
Kevin Bickner
Jeff Hastings
Story Project 2025
Dale Severson — December 30, 2025
DALE SEVERSONFlying Eagles Ski Clubsfseverson@gmail.com It’s hard to believe that it’s 71 years since I jumped at Soldiers Field scaffold, waving in the Chicago wind…
Eric Camerota — December 29, 2025
ERIC CAMEROTACFO, USA Ski Jumpingecamerota@usaskijumping.com I’m Eric Camerota, CFO of USA Ski Jumping, and I grew up as a nordic combined skier in Park City, Utah. For…
Anders Johnson — December 26, 2025
ANDERS JOHNSONSport Director, USA Ski Jumpinganders.johnson@usskiandsnowboard.org 33 Years, a Lifetime of Stories It’s hard to believe that this is the fourteenth year of USA Ski…
Art Devlin — December 25, 2025
Arthur “Art” Donovan Devlin (September 7, 1922 – April 22, 2004) was an American ski jumper who competed during the 1950s. A native of Lake…
JimVilk — December 24, 2025
JIM VILKAkron, OHjimvilk@gmail.com Many of you reading this have experienced the thrill of ski jumping personally, or you’re a relative or friend of someone who has….
Estella Hassrick — December 23, 2025
ESTELLA HASSRICKMadison, WIemhassrick@gmail.comhttps://teamestella.com/ I’ve been ski jumping for over a decade now, and have been part of a team every step of the way. From starting…
Peter Copenhaver — December 22, 2025
PETER COPENHAVERVice President, Ishpeming Ski ClubIshpeming, MIvp@ishskiclub.com Suicide Hill at 100: A Century Carved in Ice and Iron “Kids built their own hills. That’s about…
Kevin Bickner — December 19, 2025
KEVIN BICKNERNorge Ski ClubUS distance record-holder @ 244.5M In the early days of being a ski jumper, when I learned about what YouTube was, I…
Ron Steele & Scott Clayton — December 18, 2025
RON STEELE & SCOTT CLAYTONLeavenworth, WA and Winter Park, COU of Utah and (with Kip Sungaard) 1975 NCAA championsron.e.steele@gmail.com & gscottclayton@gmail.com Two Test Jumps That Cancelled a Competition Westby,…
Jim Thielen — December 17, 2025
JIM THIELENMinneapolis Ski ClubEau Claire, WIjp_thielen@yahoo.com Want to Make a Swap? An Exchange with Bjorn Wirkola, Norway The date was March 3, 1968. The hill was Hendrickson…
Doug Lantz — December 16, 2025
Curator’s note: When Scott Halvorson’s Big Nansen story mentioned Doug Lantz having a ski jumping song that a) got sung in outruns across the East and b)…
Team Maki — December 15, 2025
DOUG MAKIJIM MAKIColeraine, MNdougmaki55@gmail.comjmaki99@gmail,com The Itasca Ski & Outing Club in Coleraine, MN, acquired a ski jumping museum in 2025. There are several Minnesota Ski Jumping…
Karin Bauer — December 12, 2025
KARIN BAUERSt Paul Ski Clubkarinnbauer@gmail.com Quite a bit has happened since I last wrote for Story Project (a link to Karin’s 2022 story is here)! As my kids…
Scott McGuire — December 11, 2025
SCOTT McGUIREIron Mountain, Michigansmcguire@usaskijumping.com Circa January of 1972, Monday, 6:00 p.m. “Timmy, Timmy, Timmy…the lights are on at the Miron.” I yell to my little…
Mike Holland — December 10, 2025
The Remarkable Rise of Caroline Chor – and What Her Story Means for Growing Ski Jumping in the USA From her earliest days on the…
Meg Larson — December 9, 2025
MEG LARSONNorge Ski Club, ILmeg.larson23946@gmail.com For almost twenty years, ski jumping wasn’t just a sport in our family—it was another family member. It shaped our weekends,…
Steven Gaskill — December 8, 2025
STEVEN GASKILLMissoula, MTSteven.Gaskill@mso.umt.edu An Atypical Coaches Meeting It was 1981, springtime in northern Finland, just south of the Arctic Circle. The Nordic Combined team was in…
Scott Halvorson — December 5, 2025
SCOTT HALVORSONBerlin, NHshalvor22@gmail.com Everybody Loves the Big Nansen Everybody loves the Big Nansen. Except, maybe, those that jumped off it?Growing up in Berlin and going…
Andrew Urlaub — December 4, 2025
ANDREW URLAUBFlying Eagles Ski ClubEau Claire, WI “Flipping” or “tipping in” is common slang in ski jumping for the moment a jumper loses control of a…
Charlie Supercynski — December 3, 2025
Charlie SupersynskiCopper Peak, Inc.supercynski@gmail.com The Golden Era of Ski Jumping The decade preceding WWII could be defined as the Golden era of ski jumping in…
Katarzyna “Kasia” Eron — December 2, 2025
Ski jumping is pretty Euro-centric, and it’s hard for an American to imagine how big and ardent its fan base is, especially in powerhouse countries…
Tom Bickner — December 1, 2025
TOM BICKNERCEO, USA Ski JumpingNorge Ski ClubPark City, UT As we kick off the 14th Annual Story Project, I would first like to share my ski…
