Proposal for Nordic Ski Museum
Why Have a Nordic Ski Museum and why at Canmore Nordic Centre?
- No other formal Nordic skiing museum in Canada
- Canadian Ski Museum (Ottawa) is now closed; it was primarily alpine oriented and somewhat local in nature
- Need to further celebrate the ’88 Olympic Winter Games (OWG) nordic site
- Need to preserve the cultural aspect of nordic skiing in Canada and its strong western influence
- Need to combat the lack of awareness of nordic ski history on national level. The historical perspective exists at some club and local levels, but there is no integrated national perspective
- Need to stem the loss of artifacts – with the closure of the Canadian Ski Museum there is no repository for historical items such as equipment, clothing, etc.; there is a need to collect and preserve these assets
- A museum will encourage people to come to Canmore and the Canmore Nordic Centre (CNC)
- A museum will be a great addition to the (CNC), the centre of excellence for nordic skiing
- A museum at the CNC is a good fit as it was the site of ’88 Olympic Games and is definitely a visitor destination
- Such a museum will be very accessible situated at the CNC near Canmore on the Trans Canada Highway.
What – Concepts, Character and Scope
The scope of a Nordic Ski Museum will be determined in part by what is meant by the term “Nordic”. It is often linked to cross-country skiing alone although in fact at the Nordic World Championships the term includes the ski disciplines of Jumping and Nordic Combined. Also the sport of Biathlon is linked closely with cross-country skiing as it is practiced on similar skis with similar technique. Thus a decision must be made as to what disciplines will be included in the museum’s purview. The possibilities are:
- Cross country skiing only
- Cross country skiing and biathlon
- Cross country skiing, biathlon and jumping
In view of the fact that the cross-country and biathlon events were held at CNC in ’88, the second possibility might be a proper choice?
A Physical Museum?
The physical museum would be set up in the traditional way having collections and displays of Nordic skiing artifacts which would be catalogued and labelled for viewing in dedicated locations. Such artifacts would include skiing equipment, clothing, waxes, and other assorted paraphernalia – arranged to portray the evolution of these items over the years.
A collection has already been started and other donations are anticipated. More donations could be garnered if a museum was up and running with its own dedicated space. Certainly a central theme of such a museum would be a display centred around artifacts from the ’88 Olympic Nordic Ski Events held at the CNC.
In addition to the artifacts an archive of the evolution of Nordic skiing in Canada could be built. This archive would feature the history of the evolution of Nordic skiing in Canada and its regions as well as the history of the organization of Nordic skiing – i.e. the formation of the National Sport Organizations governing the sports featured by the museum (cross-country skiing and biathlon?). As well it could house results of major competitions and biographies of major players in the evolution of the sports over the years. In its raw form the archive could be in a file drawer format but later it could be in electronic form. A great deal of the material for such an archive (cross country skiing) already exists and only needs to be organized.
An Olympic Legacy Trail?
One of the original ’88 competition trails could be rejuvenated for use and signed as being one of the original trails with an invitation to hike, bike or ski “an original 1988 competition trail” ( the “Women’s 10 km” for example).
A Virtual Museum?
In addition to the physical museum a virtual museum component could be developed which could be installed within CNC space and be in-house or public accessible. Such a virtual component could include:
- A website with selected pictures of physical artifacts with sub-titles – themes could be created such as the evolution of skis or poles or wax and so on.
- DVDs could be made of exhibits and the themes mentioned above. These could be displayed as looped presentations on a monitor in the CNC and/or in a museum setting
- Archival material mentioned above could be organized electronically into a potentially searchable database of topics such as national results, biographies of personalities and other items of historical importance in the evolution of Canadian nordic skiing
Travelling Exhibits?
Such exhibits could occur as an outgrowth of physical and virtual aspects above. This aspect would be definitely a “down-the-road” possibility when certain collections and themes could be taken to smaller ski communities.
Cross Country Ski Hall of Fame?
Presently there is a Hall of Fame attached to the Canadian Ski Museum which accepts nominations from all ski and snow board disciplines. However there is a need to recognize more people from the Nordic side of skiing – people who are deserving but may not have a national profile across all of skiing to be recognized in the Hall of Fame above. The Hall of Fame could recognize Nordic skiing personalities, sport builders, athletes, coaches, major and long-term funders, etc.
How to House the Museum?
There is a decision point here – i.e. start small and build to a larger scenario as it becomes increasingly successful or take on the ultimate vision right from the outset – a decision to be made possibly after a sound evaluation of all options. For starters there could be three housing options – one – the dispersed option, two – an attached physical space option and three – a stand alone building option.
Option One – Dispersed Format
This option would entail stand-alone displays dispersed throughout the CNC daylodge in available “nooks and crannies” – a piecemeal museum where artifacts might be cycled though the displays to ensure all of them would be on view at some point. This format could also employ DVDs of artifacts and historical materials such as old photos in the way mentioned above in the “Virtual Museum” discussion. Aspects of the dispersed setup are :
- Use of glass enclosed display cases in CNC
- Possible rotation of artifacts
- Managed by volunteers
- Need for storage space of artifacts not in display mode of rotation
- Security is guaranteed for enclosed displays in CNC space – passive security.
A website would still be possible. It could be stand-alone or part of an existing website (e.g. Cross Country Canada (CCC) or CNC):
- Website would require the creation of a digital record of the artifacts and archival material
- Little space requirement for this function
- No security problems
- Would likely require a professional webmaster
Electronic archives would also be possible – a small dedicated space with a dedicated computer could allow access on site at the CNC to the public for research of historical data but this function would require the scanning of the paper archives and would take some time.
- Archive access could be by index or search function
- Access either by dedicated computer in physical museum space or from website
- Passive security
DVDs on CNC screen(s) could supplement the dispersed displays:
- Could create DVDs of several historical themes, e.g. equipment, clothing, technique etc.
- Use voice-over or sub-titles
- No management required once DVD has been created
- No security required
Option Two – Addition to an Existing Building
This option entails an addition to an existing building, i.e. Daylodge or Trail Sports (approximately 800 – 1000 square feet ?). Open displays will be possible. As well there could be an archive and a DVD function. Some aspects of this option are:
- There would be a considerable construction cost
- Fixed or rotating open displays
- Virtual displays (DVDs) – interactive?
- Accessible electronic archive in a dedicated computer
- Minimal maintenance costs – extra heating and lighting
- A dedicated space would lend credibility to a move to a “national museum”
- Passive security – entry would be through existing building
- Management by volunteers
Option Three – Stand-alone Building
This option entails the construction of a stand alone building on the CNC site and essentially offers all of the amenities of the addition option above except for more space. Some aspects of this option are:
- Considerable construction costs
- Fixed or rotating displays
- Virtual displays – interactive?
- Interactive electronic archive in a dedicated computer
- Physical archive (i.e. filing cabinets)
- A stand-alone building would definitely lend credibility to the term “national museum”
- Active security required
- Professional staff required, with volunteer assistance
- Storage of additional and/or rotational artifacts possible
- Higher operational costs (utilities, staff, maintenance etc.)
Governance and Support
A volunteer group will be formed to get started:
- It could be part of existing CNC Advisory Group, or subset thereof, or a stand-alone group
- The group would be populated with stakeholders and interested or expert people
- The group could eventually become the museum management group (Board of Directors)
- When and if large funding is required a registered society could be formed to generate funds
- Early on it will be necessary to engage community support (e.g. Tourism Canmore Kananaskis; Hotel and Lodging Association; Bow Valley Developers Association (BOWDA), Canmore Economic Development Authority (CEDA), Town of Canmore etc.)
Potential Funding
Each of the options above will require different levels of funding and potential sources are:
Public
- Alberta cultural grants
- Alberta Community Initiatives Grants
- Community Facility Grants
- Canada Culture Grants
- Alberta Tourism Parks and Recreation
- Winsport Canada
- Town of Canmore
Private
- Industry (could dedicate exhibits or museum to major donors)
- Fundraising
Next Steps
- Form an advisory or working group
- Establish an action/timeline matrix for researching options and planning
- Research each potential and establish viabilities
- Establish a priority listing of options
- Create a strategic plan (mission, goals, SWOT, etc) for chosen option(s)
- Create a business plan (funding, operations, administration, timelines, etc.) for chosen option(s)