These boots were purchased in at "Sports House" in Salzberg, Austria by the donor, Gordon Smith. They were used in Austria and then at Falls Creek, Victoria. Mr Smith used the boots until he joined the Ski Patrol for the SEC when he was provided with new boots. These boots are significant because they are representative of skiing footwear in the early years of skiing at Falls Creek.A pair of leather ski boots from the 1950s. The boots have been resoled by the owner. There are metal hooks to secure the laces which are yellow.ski boots 1950s, ski clothing, gordon smith

This jacket and cap were designed by Rosalie 'Rosa' Kiessling about 1967. They formed part of the Fashion Group Inc's Walkabout Tour of the USA in 1967 which aimed to promote Australian fashion design in America. German by birth Rosalie, grew up skiing and ice skating, studied fashion design in Munich and worked designing women’s ski wear and lingerie before migrating to Australia via New Zealand in 1939 with her husband. As skiing increased in popularity following the end of WWII, Rosalie’s business grew reaching its peak during the 1960s. Though it was never large; at most she employed three staff. Her designs featured in the pages of Australian Vogue, Flair and the Women’s Weekly throughout the 1960s and received coverage from newspapers in Australia, New Zealand the United States. Rosalie was closely involved with the Swiss Club of Victoria, the Australian Wool Board and the Fur Traders Association, participating in numerous fashion shows and awards run by these groups. In the late 1960s she became involved with the Melbourne Branch of the Fashion Group Inc, a worldwide non-commercial association of women involved in the fashion industry. Rosalie continued to design and manufacture fashionable but functional ski wear until the late 1970s, although increasing imports from large overseas manufactures and constant new innovations in fabric technology made it difficult for her to compete in a relatively small industry. This ski jacket and cap illustrate Rosalie Kiessling's emphasis on practical glamour. She was the first Australian ski wear manufacturer to bring high fashion to ski wear design; which though common in the boutiques of St Mortiz, Chamonix and St Anton was new to Australia. The use of an Australian wildflower motif and of these pieces in the Fashion Group's Walkabout Tour also speak to her involvement in and promotion of the Australian fashion industry during the 1960s.Ski jacket and matching cap appliqued with Australian wildflowers.Noneskiing, ski clothing, fashion design, australian fashion, australian flora

Reversible ski jacket made by Rosalie Kiessling, 1970s. Used by Rosalie's son and daughter-in-law, from the 1970s through to the 1990s. The Kiessling family skied at Mt Buller and are members of Omega Ski Lodge. German by birth Rosalie, grew up skiing and ice skating, studied fashion design in Munich and worked designing women’s ski wear and lingerie before migrating to Australia via New Zealand in 1939 with her husband. As skiing increased in popularity following the end of WWII, Rosalie’s business grew reaching its peak during the 1960s. Though it was never large; at most she employed three staff. Rosalie continued to design and manufacture fashionable but functional ski wear until the late 1970s, although increasing imports from large overseas manufactures and constant new innovations in fabric technology made it difficult for her to compete in a relatively small industry. Reversible ski jacket with side zip pockets and full zip front. One side of the jacket is black fabric, while the other is black checked with a yellow and red weave. Rosalie Kiessling sportswear Melbourne / All cottonskiing, ski clothing, fashion design

Ingrid purchased these rabbit fur ski pants on her honeymoon in St. Moritz, Switzerland in 1965. She immigrated to Australia in February 1968 with her husband, although she skied in Australia she never wore the pants here.Rabbit fur ski pants printed in tiger skin pattern. Side zip and slits at ankles.skiing, ski clothing

Tom Mitchell’s Skis After his retirement in 1976 as the local Member for Benambra, people asked Tom Mitchell about his greatest achievements in politics. Tom replied speaking about his support for the establishment and development of the Ski resort at Falls Creek. Tom’s passion for Falls Creek grew, not only from his own 1930s ski career, but also from his work as a prisoner of war in the Changi Ski Club. His 5 February 1943 diary entry reads: ‘In the evening had a very successful ski meeting of 19 and decided to go ahead with a scheme to approach the Government re-selling Diggers blocks of land in the snow country.’ After the 2020 Bushfires, my brother asked if I would find appropriate homes for some of my father’s old skis that had survived the fires. As Tom’s historic ski collection is in Corryong’s Man from Snowy River Museum, it seems appropriate that a remaining pair should go to The Falls Creek Ski Museum. I chose wooden edged skis as they reminded me of my first skis. As a five-year-old in 1958 at Dead Horse Gap, I soon discovered that wooden edges were no good in icy conditions. By the end of my first day on skis, I had fallen so many times that my homemade ski clothing was wet and cold. I was unhappy when Dad said that wooden edges would teach me to use my ‘edges’. At the end of our first day, Mum and Dad loaded us all into the back of the Land Rover together with our ski gear and drove us home. They had had a marvellous day, but I didn’t think much of the adventure. From the outset I knew my parents had steel-edged skis! Dad told me I’d have to ‘earn edges’. Trouble brewed when I said I hated skiing. I discovered I had to learn to like it! Eventually I graduated to steel-edged skis. By then Thredbo had built its first chairlift and it also had a rope tow. Meanwhile Tom had taught us to learn to ski the hard way and with steel edges, ski lifts and better ski clothing, I began to enjoy the sport. If there was any chance of finding the provenance of the skis, it probably burnt in the 2020 conflagration. All I can offer you is my story of my father teaching me to ski the hard way. The skis are a kind of memorial to the Tom Mitchell ski school and its enduring memories. Honor Auchinleck (Daughter of Tom and Elyne Mitchell)These skis are significant because they belonged to Tom Mitchell, a pioneer of skiing and ski resorts in Australia.A pair of vintage hickory wood skis, featuring a 7-foot length and rustic metal bindings. Hickory wood was preferred for its strength and flexibility. They feature early metal cable or "bear trap" style bindings, crucial for securing leather boots before the advent of modern plastic bindings. The skis feature a high, square-shaped tip referred tp as a sukkerbit (sugar cube).Beside Bindings- H9S HICKORY 7Fttom mitchell, ski equipment, australian skiing pioneers

These seal skin straps and webbing were introduced into the Victorian Alps by European engineers, conducting survey work for the SEC Hydro scheme in the late 1930s. This period in time produced many immigrants from a war torn Europe with highly developed technical skills. Many of these immigrants provided articles that were well suited to the alpine regions of Australia, ones they used in their homelands. These were times when the home grown cultures of the Anglo Saxon heritage of the earlier settlers within the Kiewa Valley became interwoven with the various European cultures and this formed, what in later years became the beginning of the Australian multi-cultural society. The Kiewa Valley and its surrounding regions where the major rural areas which did not progress in a so typical Aussie "dinky-di", "she'll be right" fashion. The European influence was however not too strong, so as to obliterate the flavour of the home grown rural society.The major populated sections of the upper Kiewa Valley and the Alpine regions were accelerated by the SEC Hydro Development which brought into the slow growing rural regions a quasi multi ethnic society, however this was only noticeable up to the time when the final Power Station was commissioned in the 1960s. The slight variations to the typical Australian rural settlements of the time were in some food preparations, winter apparel such as these seal skin straps and soles and "langlauf" (cross-country skis). The sealskins were sewn so that their grain ran from front to back thereby allowing the skins to grip going up hill and glide going downhill.The gardens and varieties of flowering shrubs and trees where also more in line with traditional European "outdoor" settings. Seal skin sewn onto one side of a strap of webbing. There is a webbing loop on the front that slips over a small point at the front of the ski. There is a webbing strap attached to the back of the seal skin sole coming over the back of ski that clips metal fasteners onto a loop of webbing behind the ski boot. alpine sports, snow skis, winter clothing, mount bogong recreational activities, snow sports

The jumper was owned by John Court, a previous employee of Orbost Shire Council.A blue cotton/polyester long-sleeved jumper. It is fleecy lined. On the front is painted a picture of a fox on skis holding ski poles. at the top is a gumleaf with ERRINUNDRA inside. Below the fox is a gumleaf with SKI CLUB inside the leaf. This is in white. On the label is Size 110cm.clothing jumper court-john errinundra-ski-club recreation

The Kangaroo Hoppet is Australia’s premier long distance cross country ski race, and a member of the Worldloppet series of international cross country ski events. The first race at Falls Creek was held in 1979 under the name of “Australian Birkebeiner”. It was a 21km race with about 80 participants organised by the Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Club of Mount Beauty. The course started and finished at Falls Creek Alpine Resort and took participants out into the Bogong High Plains. After running the event for 10 years, it was decided they should become part of the Worldloppet series of marathon ski races. Representatives from the Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Club and the Australian Ski Federation attended the Worldloppet Annual Meeting in Finland in June 1990 to put the case for the acceptance of an Australian event into the Worldloppet series. Before being admitted, they had to demonstrate that the Birkebeiner Club could run a world class event, so three months later in August 1990 a 42km event named the Australian International Ski Marathon was held at Falls Creek together with a 21km Birkebeiner race and a 7km event called the Birkebeiner Lite. The event was approved by delegates from USA, Norway and Austria, in 1991 Australia became the 12th member of Worldloppet, with the condition that there had to be a name change. After some late night discussion allegedly involving red wine from North East Victoria the main event became the 42km Kangaroo Hoppet, with the minor events being the 21km Australian Birkebeiner, and 7km Joey Hoppet. In the winter of 1991, the first Kangaroo Hoppet was held. It was a great success and has been a regular fixture on the international ski calendar ever since. It features the main 42km event as well as a 21km event and a 7km event. The Hoppet brings the Australian snowfields to an international audience. In 2013 the Men's Winner was Alexander Legkov from Russia in a time of 1:27:32. The winner of the Women's event was Marina Chernousova of Russia in a time of 1:46:03. This poster is significant because it documents an event which brings international attention to Falls Creek and the surrounding region.A poster featuring a skier dressed in tan, white and blue clothing with mountains and sky in the background. A sprig of wattle is in the upper left corner. Logos of AGL, Falls Creek All Season Alpine Resort, Alpine Shire, Tourism Victoria, Parks Victoria and the Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Club are across the bottom of the poster.Towards top: Kangaroo Hoppet 23 To the left of the skier: 24 August 2013 / FALLS CREEK VICTORIA AUSTRALIA / 42KM 21KM 7KM Below the skier: www.hoppet.com.au kangaroo hoppet, worldloppet events, falls creek, mt. beauty

Britteny (Britt) Cox was born in Wodonga, Victoria in 1994. She grew up skiing alpine and mogul events on the slopes of Falls Creek. In 2004 she competed in her first International Ski Federation (FIS) event at Mt. Buller. At Vancouver 2010, 15-year-old Britt made history as the youngest Australian to compete at a Winter Olympic Games. She went on to compete at Sochi 2014, PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing 2022, despite breaking six ribs and a collarbone in a crash in 2019. In 2012, she was awarded an Australia Sport Hall of Fame scholarship. Her major breakthrough came in 2016/17 season when she took seven victories and two third place finishes to win the moguls as well as the overall freestyle World Cup titles, thus becoming the first Australian woman to win the Crystal Globe in moguls. She finished off a highly successful campaign by winning the World Championship title in Sierra Nevada. After 12 years of competing on the highest level at the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup tour, Britteny announced her retirement from competitive skiing in July 2022.This blazer is significant because it was worn by Falls Creek Skier Britteny Cox at the Winter Olympics Sochi 2014.Opening Ceremony blazer for the Winter Olympics Sochi, 2014. It is a bottle green blazer lined with the names of the 198 Australian winter Olympians.britteny cox, australian winter olympians, mogul skier, sochi olympics 2014

This pattern book was produced by the Villawood Textile Company, Sydney and contains a knitting pattern for a jumper and cap.Four page booklet with black and white printed text and graphics. The front cover features a colour image of a man and a woman both wearing knitted jumpers in yellow and black with matching knitted hats. The man is also wearing ski googles and the woman is holding ski poles.Front: [printed] L 361 / Villawool / KNITTED / in 12 and 8 PLY / SIZES 90 to 110 cm / 36 to 44 in.knitting handicrafts - history, villawood textile company, knitting, handicrafts - history, skiing, clothing, design, winter, fashion

This outfit was donated by Hayley Martin. It was worn by two generations of the family, Hayley's mother and later by Hayley herself. Throughout the 1960s and early 1970s the six members of the Martin Family generally spent at least a week each year at Falls Creek, staying at Spargo's Lodge. The Martins then bought a share in Diana Lodge and stayed there frequently until the late 1970s. The sweater (HEAD brand) was purchased at Molony's at Falls Creek.This item is significant as it is indicative of the apparel worn by skiers at Falls Creek in the 1960s and 1970s.Black woollen stretch pants with white line pattern. A woollen cap completes the outfit.women's ski attire, molony ski shop, cuming's ski hire

A bound publication of 122 pages featuring text, images and a bibliography. The cover features a skier in blue and red clothing. 2nd Edition is written at the top right hand corner. At the bottom left is the emblem of the Australian Ski Federation National Coach and Instructor Scheme. The manual contains extensive information on teaching concepts and styles, skiing techniques and equipment as well as many information sheets.The 2nd edition of this manual was released in 1996 and was designed for instructors and skiers alike. For many years it was the official manual used by Ski Australia's National Coach and Instructor Scheme (NCIS) which later became APSI Nordic. The Australian Professional Snowsport Instructors Inc. (APSI) is a not-for-profit membership association and Australia’s industry leaders for providing training and assessment to Snowsport instructors which was formally recognised in 1975. apsi ski instructors, nordic ski training

The Australian Secondary Schools Snowsports Team Championship (ASSSTC) began in 1967 and has run every year since. The Championship originated from an idea instigated by Tom Mitchell, an Australian Winter Olympian, Member of the Victorian Parliament and pioneer of Australian skiing. The competition gives participants a unique opportunity to perform in a team environment where skills in the various disciplines of alpine, cross country and snowboard are required. This championship is unique as there are no individual winners, but each participant contributes points to the team result. The maximum size of any team is 16, made up of alpine skiers, cross country skiers and snowboarders. To score the most points, the majority of team members need to compete in at least two disciplines, with only a handful being able to specialise in any one discipline. The disciplines include Grand Slalom, Ski-X, Snowboard-X and Cross-Country Classic technique and the Freestyle Relay events. Students needing to compete in their non-preferred discipline means that the pressure is off competitors to enter only if they are highly talented. The event is usually a four day carnival that welcomes Professional Race Training with Falls Creek Ski School Trainers on the Tuesday, Skier Cross and Boarder Cross events on Wednesday, Giant Slalom Events for Skiers and Snowboarders on the Thursday and Cross Country events held on the Friday. The carnival concludes on the Friday, with a luncheon and presentations.This vest is significant because it represents an important School Skiing Competition which fosters and supports the development of skiing and snowboarding in Australia.A sleeveless navy blue vest with silk textile lining. The vest has two zip pockets and a front zip closure. Cloth badges representing A.S.S.S.S.T.C championships have been hand-stitched on to the front of the vest in a vertical row. A badge representing the maker is at the lower left hem.A.S.S.S.S.T.C badges for 1979, 1980 and 1981.australian secondary schools snowsports team championship, school skiing competitions

Helmut Fendt was a ski instructor at Falls Creek in 1966. Many of the earliest instructors at Falls Creek came from Austria at that time. The Austrian-made sweater was made by Carlo Gruber. These sweaters became part of the uniform for the Falls Creek Ski School. Carlo Gruber was an Austrian designer who specialised in winter wool ski wear. He was a ski instructor and later teamed up with Adidas to develop a wide range of clothing items and snow boots. Many of his designs were reissued by Adidas in 2005.This item is significant because it was part of the Falls Creek Ski School uniform in the 1960s.A pale blue wool knit sweater manufactured by Carlo Gruber of Austria. It has an embroidered logo on the upper left sleeve. The cuffs and hemline have a two-toned blue striped edge.helmut fendt, falls creek ski school, snow apparel

Caps were a popular form of memorabilia for Falls Creek. The badges represents various Ski Clubs and Ski Schools. The badges on this cap include three Kids Ski Club Australia - Qantas Badges, two Falls Creek Ski Club Junior Racer badges and one Love Skiing Badge with the word love represented by a heart,. There are also seven other Falls Creek badges of various designs.This cap is representative of a range of memorabilia used to promote Falls Creek,Peak cap purple textile with geometric ribbon Falls Creek Australia in light blue 13 souvineer badgesFalls Creek AUSTRALIAfalls creek, ski school, qantas, badges, skiing

The Recco system was developed in response to an avalanche tragedy in Are, Sweden in December 1973. The inventor and founder of RECCO, Magnus Granheed assisted in the rescue work. He was frustrated by the primitive methods for locating buried victims that existed at that time, by “probing” with ski poles and digging at random. Unfortunately two people were found deceased. created a passive reflector that could be carried by a skier at all times. After careful research and consultation with professional rescuers, the first prototype was finalised in the beginning of the 80s. In 1983, the company called RECCO was founded. Today the system consists of two parts: a reflector integrated into clothing, boots, helmets and body protection worn by skiers and riders and a detector used by organised rescue teams. These avalanche reflectors were given to participants at the 1987 Interski International Ski Institute Instructors' conference held in Banff, Canada.The invention of these reflectors was critical to increased safety for participants in outdoor activities including skiing at Falls Creek,Two Recco Reflectors which are worn on a skier's equipment or clothing. These strips contain a passive reflector which can be detected by searchers in an emergency situation.From left to right: INTERSKI Banff 1987 / RECCO Avalanche Radar Reflector / INTERSKI ARE 1991recco reflectors, recco system, avalanche rescue, magnus granheed

This suit was owned by Steve Lee, a three time Australian Olympian who competed at Sarajevo 1984, Calgary 1988 and Albertville 1992. He also achieved 1st in the Furano World Cup Super G in 1985. Steve Lee grew up in Falls Creek and had skis on his feet when he was just two years old. He later became a member of the Falls Creek Race Club and at the age of 14 won State and National Junior titles. After repeated success, Steve was selected to race overseas in the Australian Junior team. He won the Australian Open Championship at the age of 17. For 10 years, Steve never missed a race in the World Cup Circuit. Overall, He claimed 20 top 15 finishes in Downhill, Super-G and combined events. Towards the end of his career Lee swapped the World Cup circuit for the World Pro Tour in the USA, winning the Pro Downhill Tour ‘King of the Mountain’ title. He was also running a photography business in Falls Creek and was also involved in sports commentating on Australian television. This included commentating Alpine Freestyle events at four Winter Olympics and several World Championships. Steve co-founded Chill Factor Ski magazine and spent a decade as a National Selector and President of Falls Creek Race Club. He also became involved in movies, working with Roger Moore and Jackie Chan as a stuntman. As well as these activities Steve started guiding in the mid-90s and established Back Country Tours at his home area in Falls Creek Australia and also in Hakuba, Japan in 2011.This item is significant because it was worn and donated by an Australian Triple Winter Olympian who began his skiing career with Falls Creek Race Club.A green and gold Spyder brand ski suit worn for downhill skiing Olympic events by Steve Lee.Spyder brandsteve lee, winter olympics, australian triple winter olympian, falls creek race club

Team Red were the original free riders from Falls Creek who focused on freestyle skiing rather than more traditional downhill skiing. They trained to compete in the tough freestyle circuit. Over the years members have included: Eric Hymans, twice Australian Mogul Champion: Lyn Gross, Australian Aerial Champion and World Cup finalist; Kate Stevens twice Australian Mogul Champion; Kent Dowding. Australian Mogul Champion: Steven Lee, Australian Champion and Olympian; and Mark Stevens, Australian Mogul Champion Three-time World Cup competitor and coach to the Australian World Cup team along with many others who took on the challenge of freestyle skiing.This jacket is significant because it is representative of all those who took on the challenge of freestyle skiing at Falls Creek and on the World Circuit.A red ski jacket with a floral design across the middle and black lining.On back and front EST 1980. TEAM RED FALLS CREEKfalls creek ski school, falls creek race club, race club

The Falls Creek Race Club was started in the late 60's by Rodney Moss assisted by Bob Howe from Albury Ski Club and Geoff Henke from Moloney's. The club ran races on the summit every weekend and later started the training squad. Its aim is to promote all the skills of skiing and snowboarding and to improve the safety and enjoyment of the sport for all age groups. As an athlete's skills Improve so they can begin to train and race at Children's level races and move on to Junior and Senior levels, possibly aspiring to the Masters Circuit or State and National Teams. Hundreds of children have been involved over the past four decades and the program has produced a number of skiers who have been successful at national and international levels. Falls Creek has produced Olympians Ross and Malcolm Mine, Joanne Henke, Jenny Altermatt, Steven Lee in Alpine skiing. Dick Walpole and Chris Heberle in Cross Country, Britteny Cox, Paul and Adrian Costa in Freestyle Moguls. Many others have represented in National Teams at World Championship events.This item is significant because it represents the Falls Creek Race Club which has nurtured many skiers, some of whom progressed to become representatives in international sporting events.A waterproof jacket with padded sections in the arms. The Falls Creek Race Club logo is embroidered in white on the left top chest area.Falls Creek Race Club logofalls creek race club, race club clothing