Champion of Children
12/09/2024 01:43PM ● By Deb Olsen
Photo courtesy of the Barrows family.
After taking off from the private airfield on his beloved JASDIP ranch, (Just Another Shitty Day in Paradise), Jim “Moose” Barrows loved to execute a series of stalls, loops and rolls, then wave at his neighbors, while flying upside down.
Whether in the sky, on the golf course, or on the ski hill, Moose had his own style. “He was a great American original,” says his neighbor, Lon Allen.
His drive to be the best was especially evident on the ski hill, where Moose took an all-or-nothing approach. “For Moose, life was a metaphor for excellence in execution,” says air show pilot Sean Tucker.
Moose grew up on skis, having lived in Steamboat from second grade on. He won national awards as a high school four-way skier (jumping, cross-country, downhill and slalom). While attending the University of Colorado, he became an NCAA champion, then went on to the U.S. Ski Team, where he won a World Cup downhill race. He made the U.S. Olympic Team and competed in Grenoble, where he was neck-and-neck with the legendary Jean Claude Killy when Moose apparently decided to push his skis to the limit. The result was a fall so spectacular that it became an integral part of CBS’s "Wide World of Sports." The famous intro proclaimed, “The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat.” (Moose’s fall, of course, represented agony.)
For most people, global embarrassment might have been cause for counseling, but Moose took it as a life lesson, which he then went on to share with others. At the end of his illustrious career, Moose turned to coaching.
“In typical Moose fashion, he would be out there with 40 or 50 young kids who were standing around, jumping up and down, saying ‘Moose, can I do this?’ He was out there making things happen for those kids,” recalls Bill Marolt, who raced with Moose and who went on to become the president and CEO of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association, a position he held for 18 years.
A classic example occurred at the Lake Placid Olympics in 1980. The U.S. athletes trained in Killington, Vermont, which was three hours away from Lake Placid. "Give me an hour or so,” Bill recalls Moose saying. At the time, Steamboat Ski Area was owned by LTV, one subsidiary of which was Bell Helicopters. Moose called the LTV chairman and told him the kids needed rides. "We looked up about a week later and in comes a beautiful helicopter painted red, white and blue with stars. Everybody enjoyed the helicopter as much as they enjoyed being at the Olympic Games,” Bill recalls.
Moose attributed his drive, self-discipline, loyalty and devotion to family to Gordy Wren, who was his Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club coach. “Gordy used to develop those kinds of instincts in all of the racers. He did a lot to develop that instinct in the people of Steamboat. Every time we did anything, whether it was on the ski hill or in school or whatever, it was to win. It was the way people in Steamboat grew up,” Moose has said. It was Moose’s goal to keep that tradition alive.
As Moose’s neighbor, Lon, explained, by instilling each generation with that philosophy, “Moose Barrows will continue to be a big part of our community.”
MICKEY'S FUND 2024
In 1983, Moose Barrows’ son, Mickey, died at the age of 2 ½ from a heart defect so severe that even the Children’s Hospital’s medical team could not save him. To honor his memory, Moose spearheaded Mickey’s Fund, an annual toy drive. With the help of Steamboat Sotheby’s International Realty, Moose setup toy collection points throughout the Steamboat Springs area. For many years, he drove the donations to Children’s Hospital Colorado himself. Just before Christmas, Children’s Hospital invites financially challenged families to choose gifts for their children who are spending the holiday at the hospital, as well as for the patients’ siblings. This year’s drive will be held locally from Sunday, Dec. 1 through Sunday, Dec. 15. The dropoff location for donations is Sotheby’s main office at 610 Marketplace Plaza. The event at the Children’s Hospital, now known as Snow Pile, will take place Thursday-Saturday, Dec. 19-21.
After taking off from the private airfield on his beloved JASDIP ranch, (Just Another Shitty Day in Paradise), Jim “Moose” Barrows loved to execute a series of stalls, loops and rolls, then wave at his neighbors, while flying upside down.
Whether in the sky, on the golf course, or on the ski hill, Moose had his own style. “He was a great American original,” says his neighbor, Lon Allen.
His drive to be the best was especially evident on the ski hill, where Moose took an all-or-nothing approach. “For Moose, life was a metaphor for excellence in execution,” says air show pilot Sean Tucker.
Moose grew up on skis, having lived in Steamboat from second grade on. He won national awards as a high school four-way skier (jumping, cross-country, downhill and slalom). While attending the University of Colorado, he became an NCAA champion, then went on to the U.S. Ski Team, where he won a World Cup downhill race. He made the U.S. Olympic Team and competed in Grenoble, where he was neck-and-neck with the legendary Jean Claude Killy when Moose apparently decided to push his skis to the limit. The result was a fall so spectacular that it became an integral part of CBS’s "Wide World of Sports." The famous intro proclaimed, “The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat.” (Moose’s fall, of course, represented agony.)
For most people, global embarrassment might have been cause for counseling, but Moose took it as a life lesson, which he then went on to share with others. At the end of his illustrious career, Moose turned to coaching.
“In typical Moose fashion, he would be out there with 40 or 50 young kids who were standing around, jumping up and down, saying ‘Moose, can I do this?’ He was out there making things happen for those kids,” recalls Bill Marolt, who raced with Moose and who went on to become the president and CEO of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association, a position he held for 18 years.
A classic example occurred at the Lake Placid Olympics in 1980. The U.S. athletes trained in Killington, Vermont, which was three hours away from Lake Placid. "Give me an hour or so,” Bill recalls Moose saying. At the time, Steamboat Ski Area was owned by LTV, one subsidiary of which was Bell Helicopters. Moose called the LTV chairman and told him the kids needed rides. "We looked up about a week later and in comes a beautiful helicopter painted red, white and blue with stars. Everybody enjoyed the helicopter as much as they enjoyed being at the Olympic Games,” Bill recalls.
Moose attributed his drive, self-discipline, loyalty and devotion to family to Gordy Wren, who was his Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club coach. “Gordy used to develop those kinds of instincts in all of the racers. He did a lot to develop that instinct in the people of Steamboat. Every time we did anything, whether it was on the ski hill or in school or whatever, it was to win. It was the way people in Steamboat grew up,” Moose has said. It was Moose’s goal to keep that tradition alive.
As Moose’s neighbor, Lon, explained, by instilling each generation with that philosophy, “Moose Barrows will continue to be a big part of our community.”
MICKEY'S FUND 2024
In 1983, Moose Barrows’ son, Mickey, died at the age of 2 ½ from a heart defect so severe that even the Children’s Hospital’s medical team could not save him. To honor his memory, Moose spearheaded Mickey’s Fund, an annual toy drive. With the help of Steamboat Sotheby’s International Realty, Moose setup toy collection points throughout the Steamboat Springs area. For many years, he drove the donations to Children’s Hospital Colorado himself. Just before Christmas, Children’s Hospital invites financially challenged families to choose gifts for their children who are spending the holiday at the hospital, as well as for the patients’ siblings. This year’s drive will be held locally from Sunday, Dec. 1 through Sunday, Dec. 15. The dropoff location for donations is Sotheby’s main office at 610 Marketplace Plaza. The event at the Children’s Hospital, now known as Snow Pile, will take place Thursday-Saturday, Dec. 19-21.