On Sunday, March 19, 2006, the Plumas Ski Club hosted the 14th annual National Longboard Ski Championships at the Eureka Ski Bowl in Plumas' Eureka State Park near Johnsville, California. Longboard racing has a long history in the region dating back to the 1850s when miners would ride ore buckets up the mountain and then ski down. With speeds approaching 90 mph in the 1870s, these men were the fastest humans on the planet.

In the old days local mining communities with colorful names like Poker Flat, Whiskey Diggings and La Porte all sponsored longboard ski teams that would compete with each other for cash prizes that could reach $1,000. The sport became organized when Creed Raymond founded the Alturas Snowshoe (Ski) Club at La Porte in 1867. A close associate of his was Charley Hendel, a graduate of Zchoko Institute of Technology in Dresden, Germany, who arrived in Plumas County in 1853. Hendel, known as "Quicksilver" by the other racers, was a master at waxing his skis, or doping as it was then called. The dope consisted of ingredients like whale sperm, pine pitch, oils from trees like cedar, hemlock and sugar pine, as well as rosin and balsam. The mixture would be cooked and then allowed to cool before being hand-rubbed into the base of the skis. The various ingredients and cooking times for the dope recipes were considered trade secrets by each racer.

The nation's first downhill skiing, race course of record was laid out at Johnsville. Early courses were 100 feet wide and up to 1,800 feet long; they ran straight down the mountain. The start and finish lines were marked with American flags. Racers ran in heats of two to four racers at a time with the winners advancing to the next round in a single elimination format. Today, after a century-long hiatus, longboarding is popular again at the Eureka Peak Ski Bowl. The annual event was well-attended this year, with lots of families there to watch the races and enjoy sledding, live music, and barbecue. The old rope tows haven't operated for years, so both skiers and sledders must climb for their runs.

Although alcohol is not be sold in Plumas Eureka State Park, many silver flasks made their way around among the racers, and plenty of beer found its way to the picnic tables. The local ranger was tolerant of all the festivities, keeping in mind the motto of the Plumas Ski Club: "Skiing and Whiskeying in the Sierra Nevada since 1874."