The Winter Olympics in Beijing are underway, with Vernonites Kevin Hill and Emma Lunder having competed in their respective sports (Elena Gaskell was also nominated, but was sadly forced to withdraw after sustaining a knee injury). In addition to Hill, Lunder, and Gaskell, Vernon has been home to several accomplished athletes over the years, including Rob Boyd.
The highlight of Rob’s successful skiing career came on February 25, 1989, when he soared down Whistler Mountain to become the first male Canadian to win a gold medal in a World Cup downhill race in his home country. 
Rob started skiing in Vernon when he was only three years old, using a homemade tow rope his father, Sandy Boyd, had built. By his mid-teens, Rob decided to pursue a career in skiing; the fact that his parents owned their own ski hill (the New Winterside Ski Hill and Recreation Area in Tillicum Valley, which operated in the 1970s) was likely a great help in sharpening the young athlete’s skills. He also competed with the Silver Star Ski Club.
Rob qualified for the provincial ski team at the age of sixteen and moved to Whistler with his parents. Two years later he made it to the national downhill team. In 1985, he won his first downhill at Val Gardena in Italy’s Dolomites; it is this Italian mountain that saw Rob place in the top-ten six times during his career, including two of three World Cup victories.
Rob was following in the footsteps of “Crazy Canucks” Jim Hunter, Dave Irwin, Dave Murray, Steve Podborski, and Ken Read, a group of Canadian athletes who earned a reputation for impossibly fast downhill skiing and consistently challenged European athletes on the World Cup circuit in the 1970s and ‘80s. Besides the three World Cup victories, Rob finished on the podium six times and captured 28 top-fifteen results in his twelve years on the national team. He also qualified for six world championships and three Olympics before retiring in 1997.
Rob Boyd was inducted into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.
If you are interested in learning about other celebrated local athletes, the Museum and Archives of Vernon is hosting a Winter Sports Display featuring vanguards Larry Kwong, Josh Dueck, and Sonja Gaudet. Check is out during the museum’s open hours.
Gwyneth Evans, Research and Communications Coordinator