Skiers at Tuckerman Ravine for the third of the legendary American Inferno races, April 16, 1939, photographed by Winston H. Pote (1899–1989), showing an unidentified racer on the headwall.
Skiers at Tuckerman Ravine for the third of the legendary American Inferno races, April 16, 1939, photographed by Winston H. Pote (1899–1989), showing an unidentified racer on the headwall. Credit: New England Ski Museum

On April 16, 1939, ski instructor Toni Matt won the American Inferno race by being the first person to schuss the headwall at Tuckerman’s Ravine, a glacial cirque on Mount Washington.

The Inferno race was the last of three such events held at the ravine during the 1930s, just as downhill skiing was becoming popular in the United States. The race rules did not require skiers to turn at designated spots, so Matt decided to run it straight through – to schuss the headwall.

To the amazement of the assembled crowd, Matt completed the race in 6 minutes, 29.2 seconds – less than half the winning times in previous Inferno races. At times he reached an estimated 85 miles per hour.

Since Matt’s feat, few other skiers have dared to tempt fate by schussing the headwall, and his accomplishment still stands alone in skiing lore.

N.H. Historical Society