These were the good old days of pioneer skiing in Iran. Many years later, we had the occasion to see the Shah ski at Dizin near Gatch Sar or Gajereh, both up-to-date, brand new ski stations high in the Alborz mountains north of Tehran. Towards the end of his reign times, obviously things had changed and the Shah, an accomplished skier, landed at the command of a shiny blue helicopter instead of driving his car. Later on, during our weekends, we never saw him again schussing down the marvelous slopes of Iran. Some said, he took a sudden fancy to St. Moritz in the Swiss Alps, probably for security reasons, others reported that he was skiing at Gajereh alone during the week, a solitary figure, burdened down by the heavy weight of state affairs.
Anyhow by the mid-seventies, our country had formidable ski stations of
Olympic stature which had nothing to envy from the best in the world.
Sunshine was guaranteed and the stations attracted many eager skiers from
Europe and even further. At Gajereh, Dizin or Shemshak or Club Noor, bronzed
Iranian ski instructors in flaming tri-colored jackets congregated outside
ski schools, in wait for their many enthusiastic pupils, including many
pretty Persian snow bunnies.
They taught beginners how to schuss, (keep ski together and run straight downhill); how to snowplow (put ski together in front, splay them wide in the back, and slow down or stop by pushing hard on the inner edges); they even taught how to avoid accidents and fall down graciously. When students passed all tests, they received a certificate and were allowed to venture on more arduous slopes.
We had a fast-growing number of ski resorts with excellent four-star hotels, motels, and all the amenities imaginable. We had an Iranian Ski Federation with thousands of adept all over the country. We also were blessed with a multitude of fantastic long runs, ranging from the almost easy to the very difficult. You could even ski in mid-summer at the 4500-meter-high "Towchal," accessible via an aerial cable-car from the northern foothills of Tehran itself! Even, Jean-Claude Killy, the Olympic ski champion and the winner of numerous gold medals, spent time skiing in Iran. He personally told me that "He would love to see future Ski Olympics take place in Iran. The scenery is splendid and conditions are ideal."
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