NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com SkiNewEngland.net
John Christie Passes Away
Christie ran Sugarloaf, Mt. Snow, and Saddleback and was an award winning ski writer.
Monday, May 9, 2016, NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com

Popular ski area general manager and ski writer John Christie passed away on Saturday, while working in Camden Hills State Park.

Born in 1937, Christie grew up skiing at Camden Snow Bowl. In his writings, Christie described the awe of seeing Sugarloaf for the first time in 1954. After graduating from Camden High School, Christie studied at Bowdoin College, where he was also a member of the ski team.

Christie handled a variety of duties at Sugarloaf in the early 1960s before being named General Manager in 1965. At the time, Christie was surveying and managing the installation of the famed gondola.

In 1968, Christie moved to Mount Snow to become Walt Schoenknecht's General Manager.

In 1972, Christie returned to Maine when he purchased Saddleback. At the time, Christie nearly purchased Eaton Mountain as a feeder area.

While Christie was hoping to install a gondola and dramatically expand the area, the bad 1973-74 season, coupled with the energy crisis and a lack of access to capital, led to the end of his tenure at Saddleback circa 1975.

Around that time, Christie joined the board of directors of the Flagstaff Corporation, which was hoping to construct a world class ski area on Bigelow Mountain.

Decades later, Christie returned to skiing as a writer.

In 2005, Christie was elected President of the Ski Museum of Maine. The following year, he was inducted as a member.

In 2007, Christie published the award winning Story of Sugarloaf.

In recent years, Christie and his son Josh shared a popular ski column published in the Portland Press Herald.

Amos Winter and John Christie in 1965
Amos Winter and John Christie in 1965


Correction: An earlier version of the story reported Mr. Christie was hiking in Camden Hills. Mr. Christie died of natural causes while working in the park.



Related Stories on NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com
  • Lift Construction Kicks Off as Future Projects Go Through Permitting - April 27, 2024
  • Sugarloaf Opens West Mountain Expansion - February 18, 2024
  • Sugarloaf Announces Start of West Mountain Expansion - January 12, 2023
  • Mid-Fall Lift Construction Continues - November 6, 2022
  • Southern Vermont Lift Construction in Home Stretch - October 16, 2022
  • Andy Shepard Steps Down as Saddleback CEO - June 2, 2022
  • Sugarloaf Moving Forward with West Mountain Expansion - April 16, 2022
  • Loon, Mount Snow Name New General Managers - March 16, 2022
  • Vail Announces Four New Lifts for 2022 - September 24, 2021
  • Lift Construction Continues as August Comes to a Close - August 29, 2021


  • More Information
  • Sugarloaf Mountain Resort on NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com
  • Mount Snow News on NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com
  • Saddleback Mountain Resort News on NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com
  • Sugarloaf Mountain Resort on NewEnglandSkiHistory.com
  • Mount Snow on NewEnglandSkiHistory.com
  • Saddleback Mountain Resort on NewEnglandSkiHistory.com


  • comments powered by Disqus
    Copyright 2014- NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com, All Rights Reserved