PARK CITY (AP)—It is nigh impossible to over-hype the annual (and sometimes semi-annual) showdown between Park City and Zermatt—two teams whose hatred for each other is deeper than the Swiss Alp snow pack, whose relations are bumpier than the Sundance slalom course, and whose intensity is hotter than a steaming cup of raspberry hot chocolate—but as always, we'll do our best.
The 2008 Ski-Town Skirmish, aka the battle for the Oaken Skis of Yore...Wait, what's that? Never heard of the Ski-Town Skirmish? Never glanced upon the impeccable craftsmanship of the Oaken Skis of Yore? Gather 'round children, and you shall hear a tale that makes even the most somber of men shout a hearty "huzzah!"
In the year of our Lord, nineteen hundred and twenty five, representatives from both the Zermatt Abominables (at the time the Zermatt Fightin' Yetis) and the Park City Sundancers (Park City Tommy Guns), met to discuss the possibility of undertaking worthy joint enterprises in behalf of the two franchises, wherein the idea was raised of awarding a trophy to the winner of the annual match between the two ski-resort towns.
During said convocation, Zermatt philanthropist Benjamin Barnhill and Park City financier David Bartholomew were appointed to propose a suitable trophy. After many considerations (including a giant skiing rabbit carved out of solid chocolate), Barnhill and Bartholomew eventually agreed that a pair of criss-crossing old-timey skis would make a worthy prize (though they were actually considered new-timey back then). Thereafter, the following resolution was drafted:
“The oaken skis of yore, with one ski fashioned in the Swiss Alps, and the other likewise in the Rocky Mountains, shall be hereby shown wherein the team winning the traditional basketball match each year shall have possession of the "Oaken Skis of Yore" until the next game and shall retain ownership of said skis until relinquishment due to a loss in the ensuing match.”
Following the agreement, a sentimental poem was then written by an unsuccessful printer and publisher and was performed at the first ever match that following year. It begins:
"How dear to this heart are the scenes of my childhood,
When fond recollection presents them to view!
The snowfall, the mountaintops, the deep-tangled wild-wood,
And every loved spot which my infancy knew!
...And e'en the rude skis that hung on the wall—
Those oaken of yore, the heaven-sent skis,
The snow-covered skis which hung on the wall."
The poem exemplifies the sentiment felt by the people of both Zermatt and Park City towards their two very different ski-towns. The poem was set to music in 1926 and memorized or sung by generations of both Swiss and American schoolchildren; the annual match was thereby dubbed "The Ski-Town Skirmish", and the rest, as they say, is history.
Fortunately for the fans, that history continues today, as the Abominables set out to recapture the Oaken Skis of Yore Trophy that Park City so coldly took from them last season (winning the cumulative season series 11-7). Unlike in previous seasons, the two long-time rivals face each other but once this year. And making this year's match even more meaningful, the teams are currently tied in the all-time series 729-729-18. No doubt, both clubs will summon all the fighting spirit they can to claim "the heaven-sent skis; The snow-covered skis which hung on the wall."
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