Photo: Emily Tidwell/Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows
As part of its commitment to changing the name of the resort, Squaw Valley is also renaming the Squaw Creek chair before the start of the upcoming season—and it’s giving you the chance to help in the process. In August 2020, the iconic resort decided to remove the word “Squaw” from its name after extensive talks with the local Washoe community. It is now widely accepted that the word is offensive, and derogatory toward indigenous women.
But here’s where you come in: The resort is asking the community for suggestions to rename the lift. If you’ve skied Tahoe, live there or just want to pitch in your best idea, you can head to the resort’s website and submit up to three suggestions. Those clever dogs in the front office are smart, though, and they’re asking that you explain choices—so, if you want to name the chair Chairy McChairface, you better come up with a good reason why!
Now’s the time to start brainstorming, skiers only have until August 15 to submit suggestions. Simply said, you could become a part of Tahoe skiing history, and that means skiing history writ large. We can’t imagine an American freeskiing scene without the Palisades and KT-22, McConkey and GNAR. So, what will come next? The Safety Meeting Express? The Menage-A-Trois Triple? Gaffney’s Fixed Grip?
