Chris Brigham Named Alpine Men's Head Speed Coach

12:00AM / Tuesday, May 09, 2006Print Story | Email Story

PARK CITY, Utah - Chris Brigham, a member of the U.S. Ski Team alpine coaching staff since the mid-Nineties, has been promoted to men's downhill and super G head coach, Men's Head Coach Phil McNichol announced. Brigham replaces John McBride, who retired after 10 years with the U.S. staff, including the last four as downhill/SG head coach. Pete Bosinger also retired at season's end, creating a second opening on the World Cup staff. Brigham grew up in Sheffield, Mass., in the southern Berkshires, and was a racer until graduating from UMass-Amherst in 1989. He coached at Waterville Valley Academy (NH) and the New York Ski Education Foundation for five years, joined the U.S. staff with the '95 season for a year, spent '96 with the Canadian downhillers and returned to the U.S. Ski Team staff for good after the 1996 season. With Brigham moving up, McNichol said Europa Cup Coach Rewk Patten, formerly with Colorado's Crested Butte Academy before joining the U.S. coaching staff before last season, was being promoted to the World Cup squad and former Australian speed coach Michael Branch has been added to the staff, too. "Even with 'Johno' and 'Pedro' leaving, it's all coming together pretty well for the new staff," McNichol said. "Chris is an outstanding coach and he's got the respect of the athletes, which is so important, but he also brings the continuity that we look for in maintaining stability in the staff and on the team. He's been with us for about a dozen seasons and he's seen it all... "And we've worked closely in recent years with the Aussies on the World Cup, helping each other back and forth, so our guys all know 'Mick' and this was another easy decision. He's worked with us for three years, so there's almost no learning curve to go through because he knows us and how we like to do things. He's a quick, easy fit. Rewk performed well last season with the Europa Cup and he's already fit in, too," McNichol said. Brigham pointed to the talent on the team and said he looked for younger skiers to keep moving up. Following the retirement of former world champion Daron Rahlves (Sugar Bowl, CA), the veterans include reigning world DH and SG champion Bode Miller (Bretton Woods, NH) and two-time Olympians Scott Macartney (Redmond, WA) and Marco Sullivan (Squaw Valley, CA) plus 2006 Olympian Steve Nyman (Orem, UT) with Bryon Friedman (Park City, UT) returning from injury. â€œIâ€™m pretty excited. Having been with the Ski Team [more than a decade], itâ€™s good to have the continuity...and Mickâ€™s practically been part of our staff these last two or three seasons, so thatâ€™s all to the good,â€ Brigham said. â€œWeâ€™ll miss Daron, of course, but weâ€™ve got some athletes proving themselves on the World Cup...and it should be a fun season.â€ In other coaching moves, Forest Carey - Middlebury College alpine head coach and a former U.S. Ski Team athlete - has been added to the men's slalom and GS staff. Carey replaces Tom Sell, who takes over as men's development coach with Andrew Cesati assuming additional duties as conditioning coach, while Manuel Gamper, who was a seasonal coach last winter with the men's tech team, replaces Patten on the Europa Cup staff. U.S. Alpine Director Jesse Hunt said, â€œPhilâ€™s done a tremendous job filling key positions in a post-Olympic period when thereâ€™s been turnover in veteran staff. The goal of keeping consistency and continuity is being achieved in the menâ€™s program, and it reflects our ongoing philosophy to fill important positions, where possible, from within the organization. Iâ€™m proud weâ€™re in a position to charge our own coaches with leadership roles.â€

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BVNA Nurses Raise Funds for Berkshire Bounty

06:38AM / Wednesday, December 24, 2025

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Massachusetts Nursing Association members of the Berkshire Visiting Nurses Association raised $650 to help with food insecurity in Berkshire County.

The nurses and health-care professionals of BVNA have given back to the community every holiday season for the last three years. The first year, they adopted a large family, raised money, bought, wrapped and delivered the gifts for the family. Last year, they sold raffle tickets and the money raised went to the charitable cause of the winner.

This year, with food insecurity as a rising issue, they chose to give to Berkshire Bounty in Great Barrington.

They sold raffle tickets for a drawing to win one of two items: A lottery ticket tree or a gift certificate tree, each worth $100. They will be giving the organization the donation this month.

Berkshire Bounty seeks to improve food security in the county through food donations from retailers and local farms; supplemental purchases of healthy foods; distribution to food sites and home deliveries; and collaborating with partners to address emergencies and improve the food system.

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