Introductory

Cross-country skiing has long brought women together through movement, community, and the simple joy of gliding over snow. Among those who have most profoundly shaped that story are Trina Hosmer and Mary Heller Osgood, trailblazers whose passion helped open doors for generations of female skiers and led to the founding of NENSA’s Women’s Day in 2002. From ski trails in Putney, Vermont and the first U.S. women’s international teams to the thriving women’s ski community of today, their journeys reflect both the evolution of the sport and the growing strength of women within it. In this conversation, they reflect on their beginnings, the mentors who inspired them, and the enduring power of creating a space where women of all ages and abilities can learn, connect, and celebrate skiing together.

Mackenzie Rizio (MR): Let’s start by going back to the beginning. How did you first discover cross-country skiing and what has kept you passionate about it over the years?

Mary Heller Osgood (MO): I feel really lucky to have grown up in Putney and been close with the Caldwells. As soon as kids’ cross-country skis were available, we got them. Johnny Caldwell encouraged us constantly—he organized local races, set up family events, brought over Swedish skiers for clinics (remember that, Trina?), and never let anything get in the way. I did my first Washington’s Birthday Race when I was five with my mom and sister, and it was just expected that we’d be out there.

Racing was just part of it: the Putney Relays, the Washington’s Birthday Race. There wasn’t a Bill Koch League for us back then, and I remember thinking I might never win because Timmy Caldwell was in my class. But the whole Putney Ski Club was so encouraging. We had skiers like Trina, Bob, and Martha as examples and mentors. We skied to school, we skied at school, we skied everywhere. We were lucky to have early track-setting equipment, too. Looking back, I realize how many opportunities we had. Our whole family, and so many other families, were involved. Skiing was simply what we did. It’s deeply rooted in Putney.

Trina Hosmer (TH): My path was a lot less traditional than Mary’s. I didn’t even start skiing until 1966, when I was in graduate school in math at UVM. I met Dave, my future husband, in topology class. He’d been cross-country skiing since high school and was captain of the UVM Nordic team. He said, “I’m helping out with the ski team. You want to come join us for some of the events?” So I did.

The most memorable moment – the one that hooked me – was a 50K in Putney. I was supposed to be the driver because everyone would be exhausted afterward. Our car was parked by the warm-up loop, and I kept watching skiers glide around and around in the tracks. Dave had brought extra equipment, but I told him, “Don’t bother, I won’t use it.” Of course I got fascinated (and bored just standing there), so I put on the skis. Three hours later I was still circling that loop, trying to perfect the kick-and-glide I saw them doing. Fifty-five years later, I’m still working on that kick-and-glide—and I’m still hooked.

This was just when women were starting to compete in sports, before Title IX in 1972. After that day I started tagging along to races and never really stopped.

Heidi Lange (HL): Where was your first race?

TH: I’m thinking it might have been in Lyndonville, at the Lyndonville Outing Club. The UVM men’s team was racing there, and after the men’s races they held a token women’s race. I remember Sarah Mae Berman being there, and a few others, maybe Nancy Davis. Anyway, I think it was Lyndonville. Don’t ask me how I did – I have no idea. Maybe Dave has the results.

MR: What were some of the earliest challenges you faced in establishing yourself as a competitive skier?

TH: My challenge was trying out for the first U.S. women’s international team headed to the World Championships in Czechoslovakia. I was living in Seattle then; Dave was in graduate school. I came back to try to make the team, but the coach considered me an outsider. There were five trial races, and I had essentially no support.

Luckily, I connected with the Anchorage contingent – Anne Thomas (Donaghy) and Anne’s mother, Tay Thomas (married to Lowell Thomas Jr.), came down with the team to help. Tay said, “You can ride with us to the races and share a room.” She was unbelievable. She thought I’d be a good role model for Anne. I think Anne was still in high school then, and maybe already the better skier. I had gotten into great shape by running with some of the best women runners in the world in Seattle.

So, trying to make that team with absolutely no support – and a coach who didn’t want me there – was a real challenge.

MHO: I’d just say there were so few women and girls around. One of my first races was at Putney School. I didn’t realize I was racing all the high school boys. Johnny later told me he’d entered me as “M. Heller.” Stan Dunklee – Trina, maybe you remember this – told me at his induction that seeing me in that race inspired him. I think I passed him that day. He was from Brattleboro and said people only saw “M. Heller” in the results, so they didn’t realize I was a girl. I did okay, but there were very few opportunities.

Things finally started to change in high school, but it’s hard to be a racer when you don’t have anyone to compete against.

HL: You enrolled at Dartmouth in 1972, the year of the passage of Title IX. What did that moment feel like on campus, and how did it shape opportunities for women’s athletics?

MHO: At one point we had a group interview. I think it was November or December 1971 when they decided to accept women, and our applications were due in January. I remember asking at my group interview, “What’s happening with women’s sports?” The interviewer basically said, “We’re accepting you—what else do you want?”

The women’s ski coach at Dartmouth, Pam Merrill (then Pam Reed) from Middlebury, wasn’t actually hired until September 1972, after school had already started. I didn’t even realize that until recently.

HL: You’re the original member of the Dartmouth Women’s Ski Team?

MHO: Freshman year there were no other women on the team. There was Katie Spivey from Alaska, but she’d had back surgery. So it was just me. I trained with the men under Jim Page, and they were very matter-of-fact about it: Why can’t you run a 440 in [X] seconds? I remember thinking, What is happening here?

TH: What I can’t remember is, did you ski in the 1970 tryouts?

MHO: 1970 – No. Jumping ahead a bit to when I met you, Trina. Do you remember the Night Tour? 

TH: Oh yes, very well. 

MHO: I was an Eastern skier. There were Junior Nationals for girls then, but I hadn’t been good enough to make the team for my first two years of high school. Then, in my junior year at the Putney School, I was invited on a promotional Night Tour with evening races around New England – places like Hartford, Connecticut, and Burlington. You were there, Trina. You flew past me and then sort of adopted me. This was 1971, my junior year of high school. I remember sitting in your hotel room just like this, and you just sort of telling me what to do.

HL: We have many photos of the two of you over the years.

MHO: Trina was also with the Putney Ski Club. At one point she was married with two little kids, and I figured if she could do it, I could probably manage to hang on.

MR: Who were the mentors or role models who shaped the way you approach skiing or coaching.

TH: I had an amazing running coach in Seattle, and I give him so much credit for getting me fit and giving me the mindset to persevere. His name was Dr. Ken Foreman. He coached the best woman distance runner in the world then, Doris Brown (Heritage) who won the international cross-country meet five years in a row. I credit him with getting me in shape.

Learning to ski was Dave—he got me going for sure. Then the rest of the team, especially the men: I’d just jump in behind them and watch what they did. Honestly, I never felt I could truly ski until after six years on the U.S. Ski Team. I knew what I had to learn, it just took a long time. Sometimes I think, If only I could’ve raced when I actually knew how to ski, I might’ve been pretty good. Those were my mentors.

MHO: I talked about Trina, but I also had Johnny from my earliest days and the other Caldwells too. Even in elementary school, Timmy and a friend took us out at recess to ski laps. I was ten and thinking, What are we doing? At Putney School, Timmy and Bill would make me ski with them.

And then there was Jennifer. She’s four years younger. When we started going to the Eastern summer training days, we’d see each other there, and Johnny suggested we “exercise while we socialize.” Jennifer and I became great training buddies. After a fall of training together, we’d sometimes tie to the second in races.

I also had Bobby Gray, always there pushing me along. Martha Rockwell was our neighbor. She rented from us and lived across the road; I’ve known her since I was born, even though she’s ten years older. I’d come home from Putney and sit in her apartment, telling her all my problems. Martha once told me, “Mary, stop focusing on winning your class and start focusing on winning the race. Raise the bar.”

When I got to Dartmouth, Pam Merrill really pushed me. She said, “I can’t coach you, but you need to take advantage of everything and make it happen for others, too.” She got Al to coach us. Between Johnny and Al as my main technique coaches, I felt like I had the best coaching in the country from the time I was tiny. I was lucky.

All of that made things easier and more helpful when other resources weren’t available. Having people who wouldn’t let me take the easy way out taught me to use whatever was available.

MR: Throughout your journey, were there specific moments when you felt you were helping to open doors for future generations of female athletes? 

TH: For me, Women’s Day brings so much joy. Seeing all these women eager to learn cross-country skiing and enjoy it. I always say it’s my favorite day of the year.

MHO: Up until Dartmouth, opportunities were set for me. Once I got there and trained with the men, it changed. I still remember, before the winter of my freshman year, Pam telling me, “Mary, if you want to race carnivals, you need a team of three—and right now you’re a team of one.” Yikes—what do I do?

So I started recruiting. I looked for runners and even hauled a few athletes off the Alpine team. At our first training camp in Hanover, I taught them how to ski. I was desperate to race, so that’s what I did. The fun part is I still see some of those women today – those who switched from Alpine to cross-country – and they’re very happy.

I wasn’t trying to be a program builder; honestly, I was being a little selfish. I wanted to ski, and the only way was to make a team.

Then my sophomore year Annie Thomas arrived and we thought, Yes—now we can go. I remember racing at the Williams Carnival. She was so competitive. She even brushed a painful (and very expensive, back then) contact lens out of her eye mid-race because she wanted to win. I remember thinking, If I kill myself, I could win – or I can let Annie win, I’ll come in second, and we still go 1–2. Obviously, we went 1–2. We were roommates, too.

HL: Going through the archives, I found a 1974 New York Times piece on the Dartmouth Carnival. Anne won and you were second, just like you described. It’s striking how quickly that opened the door for so many women who followed. Considering where things stood then and where the Dartmouth women’s ski team is today not too many years later, it’s really quite remarkable.

TH: So Mary, you had a team, but who did you compete against?

MHO: Middlebury had a team, UVM had a team, and they had Carnivals that first year. We also raced at Plymouth State and several other colleges. I don’t think that Dartmouth held a women’s Carnival until my sophomore year, and the Williams women’s team did the same.

Back then, things were really different. There wasn’t the open system there is now between collegiate and non-collegiate skiing. At Dartmouth, the best skiers went to the carnivals: Middlebury, Dartmouth, and UVM. The next tier went to others. I sometimes went to the carnivals with a few others, but mostly we were supposed to focus on the Eastern races so we’d have a chance of making the national team. It’s so much better now that college skiing and the rest aren’t separated. They really were then. It’s much, much better now.

I remember a UVM skier, Libby Tuthill. And Katie Toby from Middlebury. The night before the Middlebury Carnival, we met and said, “One of us is going to win tomorrow.” That’s how it was. We knew how each other skied. There wasn’t a lot of vying for position on a team. It was new days for women’s cross-country skiing, that’s for sure. Even in my four years at Dartmouth, it got so much better, with more people coming in.

MR: What inspired you to start Women’s Day and what did you hope it would achieve when you first imagined back in 2002?

TH: Well, my friendship with Anne Donaghy and Tay Thomas continued, even though I went, let’s call it AWOL, for about ten years while our kids were Alpine racing. I’d only pop into a race or two a year, like the Putney Relays or Washington’s Birthday. Mostly, we were carting kids around.

After they were through college and off on their own, things shifted. Around 2000–2001 in Anchorage, there was this women’s ski event. It was technically a race, but really a costume race, almost a carnival. Anne, who had lived in Anchorage and knew all about it, said, “Wouldn’t it be fun to try something like that here?” We kept talking, and I was adamant: I didn’t want it to be a race. After years of skiing and spending winters in Norway, I felt we had to educate people in the U.S. about what cross-country really is. It’s not just “walking on the skis.” So I pushed for clinics first. We did add a small, fun race at the end – a two-person relay just for laughs.

Then we called in our contacts – Mary and others – to rally the troops. We had no idea if anyone would come. Fred Griffin at NENSA said, “Okay, we’ll try it”. Later he called saying, “This is going to work. My phone is ringing off the hook.” Day-of, with no preregistration or online anything, women were just pouring out of cars. 

HL: We spoke with Fred this summer, and he shared that same memory with us.

TH: I have the list of instructors from our first Women’s Day. We didn’t have nearly enough, so everyone worked their contacts. Mary had been racing for years. Ann had, I had – and we had Cami (Thompson) and Jennifer (Caldwell), too. Because we all had racing backgrounds, our networks were full of racers and strong skiers. From the beginning, women got incredible instruction and had fun! 

I always say the reason this day works is not just that it’s a gathering of women, which was very popular then; it’s that they had the best instructors you could have. And we still do. It’s really so special.

MHO:  We kept looking for ways to involve women who’d stopped racing – or just keep people interested – and hit a lot of dead ends. You and I were on the same Women’s Committee, and I remember sitting with you and Anne talking about the Alaska event. You said, “Let’s try that,” and it felt like a watershed moment after all those ideas that hadn’t gone anywhere previously. I don’t even remember half of what we’d tried – just that it wasn’t effective. Then, all of a sudden, we got rolling. In those early meetings when the idea took shape, we knew we had a lot of work to do.

NENSA was supportive, but it was all us. We went out and rounded up prizes and raffle items. Trina did the mugs early on. I remember sitting at the table addressing those little blue postcards to everyone we could think of. In those early days, we brought everything: I brought skis from The Grammar School where I taught; my seventh graders made all the clinic signs; I made the spreadsheets. Getting ready for Women’s Day meant packing half our lives into the car. We didn’t have a program director. We just did it.

That first year at Holderness, I rounded up a group of Putney women – I think we even rented a house – and said, “You’re coming.” In those early days we really focused on growing the event. It didn’t fill quickly like it does now. The idea was: how many people can you bring from your community? I remember inviting the women from my biking group: “You’re coming to Women’s Day.”

HL: An early even recap described a group competition. If I remember correctly, the Bancroft family team – the Dairy Heirs – won that day. What stands out, looking back, is how multi-generational it was. There were mother–daughter teams.

TH: We offered daycare then and ended the day with a fun relay – teams couldn’t include two instructors. I remember a mother–daughter pair with a three-year-old; some participants felt it was too young for the relay. We kept the relay for a few more years, but we discontinued daycare. Youth programs like the Bill Koch League were becoming better suited to serve the littlest skiers.

MHO: My favorite relay memory was when a friend from Putney teamed up with Joan Benoit Samuelson, Olympic medalist, for the day – and they won. She was so excited because winning (or even entering) a race was something she’d never considered! It showed that fitness carries you a long way. There were plenty of good reasons to retire the relay, but moments like that were real highlights.

MR: Why do you feel programs like Women’s Day are so important in the ski community?

TH: They’re low-key, non-threatening, and affordable. Cross-country is a lifetime sport: lower risk, far less expensive than alpine, and a great way to stay healthy while enjoying winter.

MHO: I think the real power is making women feel empowered. From the very first Women’s Days, Dave (Hosmer) and Chris (Osgood) have done so much from meeting with the track setters to handling logistics. At Holderness, Chris finally slipped out around two in the afternoon to ski the 5K, and a group of women told him, “You’re not allowed out here. This is our day. No men.” He laughed later and said it was the first time, as a white male, he’d ever felt discriminated against – and he was pleased. The fact that they felt ownership and could say, “This is ours,” was huge.

I still feel that every year: this is our day, we’re capable, we can do it. 

MR: You mentioned the health and lifestyle benefits of cross country skiing. Are there other things that you hope that participants, no matter their skill level, take away from from Women’s Day?

TH: They might meet other women and see that you don’t have to be highly skilled to enjoy this sport and get outside. We truly have the full gamut of abilities, and that matters. At a place like Craftsbury, it can feel like everyone can really ski, which is intimidating. On Women’s Day, the full range is visible and I think that gives people confidence.

MHO: Confidence – at any age – and the belief they can improve. I always start with falling and getting up. When everyone stands and thinks, I can do this, everything changes. Most have fish-scale skis, which can slide on ice, so I say, “You’re in charge; you’re the boss of your skis.” You can watch it click.

Those small breakthroughs, inside a supportive group, are powerful. You can’t quite get that alone, and even a one-on-one lesson doesn’t create that same feeling. In mixed lessons at touring centers, some women feel more hesitant; here, the environment is designed for them.

MR: Leading up to the 25th anniversary of Women’s Day, is there one memorable moment or success story that stands out from the last 24 years?

MHO: I couldn’t pick just one, but I have two small stories.

Early on at Jackson, before the event started filling instantly, I watched a woman walk into the touring center, skis all akimbo. I asked, “Are you here for Women’s Day?” She said, “What’s Women’s Day?” I told her: “A day for women to learn to ski – clinics, lunch, the whole package.” She said, “Well, my husband will be surprised how I’m spending my day.” She ended up having a fantastic time and felt genuinely privileged to be there.

The second was at Bolton – a pretty cold one. I had the beginners, and we spent time just going up and down the snowbank. At the end of every clinic I offer my skis to try. One woman had said at the start, “My boyfriend – he’s a racer – gave me these for Christmas. He said they’d be great for me.” She tried my skis and said, “Wait…this is what my boyfriend uses, and he gave me those?” Suddenly it clicked: Oh, this is how it’s supposed to feel.

For me the win isn’t that they use my skis; it’s the exposure to what’s possible – waxable bases, good equipment, a real glide. We talk about it all the time: there’s life beyond fish scales. Recently, another instructor handed over her skis and we had a chorus of, “Oh my gosh!” That sense of discovery – there’s more fun out there, I can keep learning – that’s what I love. There’s a lot to this sport, but you can keep working at it, feel your body getting stronger, and set new goals. That’s the success.

MR: How has the landscape for women in skiing changed since you began?

TH: They’re strong, they know how to ski, and they have confidence. Back when Martha and I raced, we had very little of that. Now women are respected across the ski community. I give a lot of credit to Matt Whitcomb for building a supportive team culture and a strong women’s program. It shows that women need support and confidence – and often benefit from being coached differently than men.

MHO: There are more women, more opportunities, even equal distances now. The role-model factor is huge. Our neighbors in the local Bill Koch League idolize Jessie Diggins. She responds to them, signs ski boots, and makes it all feel possible. Programs are out there and they’re growing.

MR: Are there barriers you still see today that you hope the next generation will overcome?

MHO: Two barriers stand out. First, access to reliable snow and quality skiing. Local snowmaking really helps programs. Second, confidence at entry. A friend’s daughter hesitated to join the Bill Koch League because she assumed everyone else would be far better and that race days would expose her. I’ve seen similar dynamics in the Putney League: some kids get overwhelmed by comparison and step back – not due to any failure of the programs, which work hard to be inclusive, but because peer comparison is powerful. I hope we keep finding ways to make the “all levels welcome” message land with the kids themselves, so they feel safe stepping in and growing at their own pace.

HL: There is a very competitive youth sport landscape around us today and the Bill Koch League continues to offer a welcoming, healthy environment for children to engage with a 

lifelong sport at any level they wish.

MHO: Exactly. Across all sports, kids are specializing so early, and there’s pressure to have the “best” equipment. I don’t like where that’s going. When you narrow the pipeline, you end up with fewer skiers and less overall quality – you might have just one standout. We’re stronger with a broad base. At the World Cup level, both our men’s and women’s teams now have genuine depth – there’s far more than Jessie Diggins to cheer for. It’s so much about perception and getting the message across: just because you have a few super-competitive kids or high-school skiers, that’s not the whole story. The Bill Koch Festival is reinforcing this message.

HL: Exactly – and it’s why it’s critically important to keep telling these stories. We need to preserve the ideals of core programs at NENSA such as Women’s Day and the Bill Koch League. It truly matters.

MR: What excites you most about the direction women’s skiing is heading right now?

TH: How well they’re doing – and the enthusiasm. And it’s not just Jessie; Kikkan helped get it going, and the depth keeps growing. Honestly, I feel really good about where the women’s program is – and the men’s, too.

MR: I remember finding you and the whole crew of U.S. women Olympians at the top of the course when Gus Schumacher won gold in Minneapolis. I took a photo of your group as he was realizing his victory in the stadium below.

TH: So unbelievable. 

MHO: I agree! When people know they can do it – whether it’s Women’s Day and learning to stand up, or discovering they can glide instead of restarting every stride, or even realizing they can make an Olympic team and win a medal – it changes everything. Having those models, seeing that ability in yourself, is so different from where we were 40–50 years ago. Back then, the state of things wasn’t great – for lots of reasons. Now the progress is huge.

MR: What advice would you give to young women just discovering skiing?

TH: Love it. Have fun. Don’t worry about results – if you’re having fun, you’ll stick with it, and the rest will come.

MHO: And the better your technique, the more fun you’ll have. You’ll go farther with less effort—and you’ll bring friends with you. It’s a great sport. As Trina says, there’s a big difference between skiing and just going for a walk in the woods. Skiing is really, really fun.

MR: Both of you remain our fearless leaders for Women’s Day. When you come to Women’s Day today, what’s your favorite part of the day – watching newcomers, reconnecting with old friends, or just seeing all the action?

TH: Seeing all these enthusiastic women trying. I love that moment when the clinics disperse and everyone heads out smiling. They’re all out there having a good time.

MHO: My favorite part is seeing excitement turn into confidence. Choosing the next step after “beginner-beginner” can be tricky, so there’s always a group that asks, “Can we stay with you this afternoon?” They come back saying, “Okay – we’re doing everything.” That sense of we learned it, we’re still learning, we’re supporting each other is wonderful. It’s just so much fun.