Charlie Akers

Charlie Akers started skiing as soon as he started walking, first in his younger years with his brothers, Leon and Mel in the small Western Maine town of Andover where they grew up. His first serious competitive skiing came as a sophomore at Andover High School, a school that was one of the first to compete in four event skiing in the forties.

That year Charlie took first in the state cross country championships. He continued his domination of interscholastic competition by repeating that victory in his junior and senior years and added a New England title as well. His outstanding high school career only got him thirsty for more.

After entering college at the University of Maine in the fall of 1957 he asked to work out with the cross country running team to get in shape for skiing. He wound up joining the team, making the varsity squad three straight years. The strategy worked and Akers quickly made his mark with the UMaine ski team, immediately becoming a consistent high finisher and winner innumerous collge competitions. In 1959 he won the NCAA Cross Country Championship and repeated the performance in 1961.

His success in 1959 qualified the Maine skier for the Olympic trials. A strong performance in the trails secured his place as a member of the USA Cross Country Ski Team for the 1960 Olympics, and he took a semester off from UMaine to represent his country in the games at Squaw Valley in California.

Just before graduating from college in 1961, Akers received a letter from the commanding officer of the Army Biathlon Training Center encouraging him to join the group. He accepted the challenge and reported to Basic Training at Fort Dix, New Jersey, as all recruits are required to do. About the fifth week at Fort Dix he was ordered to report to the company commander who very blunlty asked him what he was doing there. Akers explained his intentions of joining the Biathlon Unit in Alaska and proceeded to tell the commander more about the unit. The commander then relaxed and told the Andover native he had never seen orders cut by the Pentagon rather than the Department of the Army.

On completion of Basic Training Akers was sent to Anchorage, Alaska to start skiing and shooting with the Biathlon Unit at Fort Richardson. The next three winters were spent traveling and competing throughout Europe where he established himself as one of the Army’s top competitors. At the Olympic Trials he placed first for the U.S. Biathlon Team and represented the USA in that event at Innsbruck, Austria in 1964, where his 16th place was the top American finish in Biathlon.

Following his discharge in 1964 Akers moved to Palmer, Alaska where he continued his skiing as a member of the National Ski Patrol, achieving the highest level as a certified patrolman. He then pursued a career in education as a teacher and principal, retirng in 1986, when he became a bush pilot operating Alaskan Mountain Air. Now retired, Akers credits his rigorous training in skiing as the foundation for all of achievements in life and he thanked the people in Maine who gave him the encouragement and support. Charlie Akers’ achievements in skiing have earned him a place in the Maine Ski Hall of Fame.