Olympic nordic skiing trails on Lake Tahoe's West Shore, dormant since the 1960 Winter Games, will be restored and recognized during the upcoming Olympic Heritage Celebration in January.

The world is familiar with the 1960 Winter Olympics held primarily at Palisades Tahoe USA, yet far too few are aware that the Olympic Nordic events took place just a few miles south in Tahoma, on Lake Tahoe’s West Shore.

Since the 1960 Winter Games ended, the Olympic nordic trails, which run from what is now Homewood, south to into today's Sugar Pine Point State Park, have been more or less forgotten. Over the years, Mother Nature took over and the facility faded into oblivion amongst the trees and surrounding series of developments. The trails were barely mentioned until a few years ago, when the vision to restore the trails was conceived by a local resident and historian, David Antonucci.

In 1999, after uncovering a portion of the trails in his Tahoma, California backyard, Antonucci, an environmental engineer, author and 35-year Tahoe-Truckee resident, began spearheading the effort to restore the Olympic trails and create a year-round public recreation facility in the area. His efforts, along with the help of many other dedicated supporters, have resulted in a triumphant restoration of this historic location. Today, a total of 15 kilometers (approximately 25 percent) of the 1960 Olympic Nordic Trails have been recovered and restored for hiking and biking in the summer, and this winter, for recreational nordic skiing and a series of special events surrounding the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 1960 Winter Games.

The 1960 Olympic Nordic Trails consist today of rolling, single lane parallel Nordic paths located on both private and public land. They are considered to be original elements of the first cross-country ski area in the United States. The trails were designed by former U.S. Olympian Wendall "Chummy" Broomhall and Dartmouth ski team coach Allison Merrill. Here, in 1960, the first-ever biathlon competition was held on a 20-kilometer ski and shoot racecourse looping through the terrain of Tahoma and Homewood along the shores of Lake Tahoe.

The trails are accessible to the public from Sugar Pine Point State Park, Quail Creek Meadow and McKinney Rubicon Road. Approximately five of the original fifteen kilometers are skiable today. At Sugar Pine Point State Park, there are three kilometers of Olympic trail out of a total of 6.9 kilometers of groomed trails. The other two kilometers of Olympic trail is near Homewood Mountain Resort and is not groomed.

To help reinvigorate the community's interest in the trails and to celebrate the area’s 50-year anniversary of hosting the 1960 Winter Olympics, Antonucci has teamed up with the producers of the Olympic Heritage Celebration, scheduled for January 8-17, 2010, to showcase the West Shore trails.

A number events will specifically be held at the 1960 Olympic Nordic Trails at Sugar Pine Point State Park, including the Biathlon Re-enactment on January 9, a Cross Country Ski Expo and Demo on January 10, the Scholastic Nordic Race (the first sanctioned race held in this venue since the Olympic Winter Games) on January 15, and the Biathlon “Citizens Against the Clock” event on January 16. In addition, several interpretive programs will be held throughout the week.

The Olympic Heritage Celebration events kick off on January 8th with a Commemorative Torch Relay from Sugar Pine Point State Park to Palisades Tahoe USA, culminating in an opening ceremonies-styled celebration complete with live music, fireworks and a special reception for 1960 Olympians.

The story of the Nordic ski venue and much more about the Winter Olympics is told in detail in Antonucci’s new book: <i>A Snowball’s Chance – The Story of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games, Palisades Tahoe and Lake Tahoe</i>.

For more details about the Olympic Heritage Celebration and a complete schedule, visit SquawValley1960Celebration.com.