STEVE MULLEN, 1949-2024
Ski racing in Canada has a deep and rich culture, and at its core is the spirit of volunteerism. The true heart of the sport is its people, the volunteers who do their jobs in both winter and summer. They see a need that matches their skills. They give freely of their time, the most precious resource of all. They inspire the team, they mentor newcomers, they sling net and pull wire in all the weather our mountains can produce.
One of the most dedicated but least known of that army of volunteers passed away in Calgary on October 27. Steve Mullen used the knowledge and experience gathered over a thirty-year career as a telephone lineman to establish a simple, reliable wiring system for race timing. He spent literally years of his retirement as a volunteer, traveling to ski clubs across Canada to help them install wiring systems that will provide stable, consistent service for many decades.
Steve’s legacy is buried under ski runs from British Columbia to Nova Scotia, and racers from kids at the Nancy Greene level all the way up to World Cup speed athletes receive results transmitted over the wiring he placed and terminated. He procured and maintained an extensive inventory of obscure components, saving clubs the effort of sourcing them individually. Just as importantly, Steve shared his skills, teaching many people the fundamentals and enabling them to maintain or expand their system independently.
