Skiers Enter Nationals; Denver Team Favorite

The 1964 NCAA Ski Championships open today at Dartmouth, and, for the first time in history, a Harvard team will be competing. The Crimson qualified for one of the ten position last weekend by finishing fifth in the Easterns at Williams.

Coach Charlie Gibson's boys were happy, though somewhat pessimistic, yesterday as they prepared to leave for Hanover. Their qualifying for the nationals is quite an achievement.

Harvard's "Amateurs"

First Harvard is the only team in the meet that doesn't have a practice hill adjacent to its campus. Second, the skiers do not receive any financial support from the University; the team's expenses are currently being paid by Gibson, who hopes to be reimbursed eventually by interested alumni. Gibson likes to refer to his squad as the only "amateur" team in the Nationals.

Harvard's chances this weekend are admittedly not very good. In addition to strong Eastern teams from Middle bury and Dartmouth, the Crimson cannot realistically expect to best such Western powers as Wyoming. Washington, Western State College, and Denver, the defending champion.

Easterners Tough, Too

An exceptionally strong performance will be required to outscore even Williams and Vermont, the other Eastern teams, and Michigan state, the mid-Western entry.

In the face of such awesome opposition, Gibson's strategy calls for all-out individual skiing, even at the expense of a high team score. He is asking members of his alpine squad to ski at top speed on both runs of the slalom and downhill, risking a fall in hopes of an exceptionally low time. He will also conserve the strength of his cross-country specialists by not entering them in the jump, possibly jeopardizing the team score in that event.

Two Crimson skiers are almost certain to do well: Kim Chaffee in the downhill and slalom, and his cousin, Jon, in cross country, Kim was tenth in the downhill and Jon took a third at the Easterns last weekend.

Denver Favored

Most likely, the Nationals will be dominated by skiers from Denver University. Aarne Valkama and Harald Bjerke, a Norwegian, are strong favorites in the Nordic events. Myke Baar is a definite threat in the alpine events.

The weather has been just about as warm in Hanover as in Cambridge recently, and the snow has begun to melt on the courses. Dartmouth has hauled snow in by truck from the surrounding countryside, however, and the tracks should be covered, if somewhat wet, for the races.