Big Thunder National Training Center
Big Thunder National Training Center is a Nordic skiing complex located in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. It was opened in 1963, and closed in 1995. The centerpiece was the Big Thunder Ski Jumping Center, which had K-90 and K-120 hills. The center hosted the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1995.
This is a stub article adapted from the intro of the corresponding Wikipedia article, whose full text covers the subject in greater detail. Content is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license.
Big Thunder Frozen in Time
Any articles like the below would be most helpful, especially around the opening/Nordics/closing of the Big Thunder etc.
1. The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1995 took place 9–19 March 1995 in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. This marked the second time the separate championships (not part of Winter Olympics) were held outside Europe (the first was in the US towns of Lake Placid, New York, and Rumford, Maine, in 1950). The Nordic combined team event was changed from a 3 × 10 km relay to a 4 × 5 km relay for these championships.
2. Big Thunder National Training Center is a Nordic skiing complex located in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. It was opened in 1963, and closed in 1995. The centerpiece was the Big Thunder Ski Jumping Center, which had K-90 and K-120 hills.
3. A scan of "Superior Outdoors: 26–30" with article "Big Thunder Frozen in Time", 2011, by Jean-Paul Marion
4. Early ski news articles in Port Arthur News-Chronicle: (some ideas, don't need to check all of these...)
Port Arthur Ski Club NEWS n/a 8 Nov 1929 p.18 Plan ski jump Port Arthur Ski Club NEWS 03-Dec-39 4 Dec 1939 p.1 Clubhouse destroyed by fire/pic p.3 Port Arthur Ski Club NEWS n/a 5 Dec 1938 p.10 pics Clubhouse at Strathcona completed Port Arthur Ski Club NEWS n/a 17 Oct 1938 p.10 pic New clubhouse Port Arthur Ski Club NEWS n/a 23 Jan 1937 p.5 pics 3 pics of clubhouse & skiers Port Arthur Ski Club NEWS n/a 8 Jan 1940 p.9 pic New clubhouse (#2)
Ruttan, Susan NEWS n/a 23 Feb 1939 p.1 In Dominion Ski Championship
Bachinski, Marian Lorraine(age 19) BIO n/a 5 Nov 1965 p.1 pic Lakehead Ski Queen Candy Mountain NEWS n/a 10 Apr 1970 p.16 pic Proposed ski resort site Centennial Park NEWS 20 Feb 1966 21 Feb 1966 p.1 Ski hill officially opened McCormack, Catherine PIC n/a 8 Feb 1963 p.10 Ski fashions Moose Mountain Ski Resort NEWS 14 Jan 1962 10 Jan 1962 p.15 pic Officially opens in Beardmore Trowbridge Falls Park PIC n/a 12 Dec 1964 p.2 Future site of ski jump Crooks, Andrew BIO n/a 22 May 1971 p.3 pic Skier since he was four Hansen, Knute BIO n/a 1 Apr 1966 p.2 Skiing accident Harja, Henry (age 15) PIC n/a 2 Feb 1963 p.1 Winter Carnival skiing event Young, Judy (Miss)(d/o Gavin) BIO n/a 8 Sep 1964 p.8 pic Combines skiing & schooling
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/big-thunder-bay-olympic-ski-jumping-1.4546036
The Big Thunder National Training Centre (including the Big Thunder Ski Jumping Center) in Thunder Bay closed permanently in 1996 due to severe federal and provincial government funding cuts following the 1995 FIS World Nordic Ski Championships. [1] The 1995 World Championships: The venue hosted the prestigious world-class event in 1995, which required massive infrastructure investments and upgrades. [1, 2] Funding Withdrawal: Shortly after the games concluded, both federal and provincial governments pulled ongoing financial support, making the expensive facility unsustainable to maintain. [1, 2] Political Shift: Following the 1995 Ontario provincial election, the new government viewed the facility as a heavy financial drain, and the site was officially shut down and locked up in 1996. [1, 2, 3] If you'd like, I can share more details on community efforts to redevelop the site or the history of the 1995 World Nordic Ski Championships.