ESWA Members Collect Hirsch Honors


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Corporate Sponsors	ESWA Members Collect Hirsch Honors Six ESWA members received Harold Hirsch honors during the NASJA meeting, March 4, in Alyeska, Alaska. The Harold S. Hirsch Awards have been presented to outstanding NASJA members since 1963 to recognize excellence in media coverage of snow sports. Peggy Shinn, Gerry Pallor and Marty Basch all won Hirsch Awards in their respective categories. Honorable Mention recognition went to Lauren Traub Teton, Heather Burke and Mike Doyle Shinn of Rutland, Vt., won the top honor in feature writing – the fourth time she has won a Hirsch Award. Shinn contributes to the U.S. Olympic Committee's Web site, TeamUSA.org, Vermont Life, Stratton Magazine and other publications. For the Hirsch, Shinn submitted a story about snowboarder Louie Vito and his decision to compete on the reality TV show "Dancing With the Stars" while also trying to make the 2010 Olympic team; a profile of 21-year-old ski jumper Nick Alexander and his quest to make the 2010 Olympic team; and a story of how the U.S. Nordic Combined Team finally won a silver medal in the team event at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. “The Hirsch Award keeps us striving to do our best writing. Whenever I'm writing an article, I always ask myself, ‘Is this Hirsch worthy?' ” said Shinn. “I was sorry to miss the annual meeting in Alyeska and that I would have been there had I known beforehand that I'd won the award.” Basch, of Center Conway, N.H., is the winner of the Harold Hirsch Award in columns that appear in several newspapers across northern New England. He is author of six books and a freelance outdoor writer. His work appears regularly in the Boston Globe travel section and he is television host on White Mountains TV 16 in North Conway. Basch, an ESWA and NASJA member since 1990, has now won three Hirsch Awards, nine Honorable Mentions and a Lowell Thomas writing award. He is also on U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame's National Voting Panel. “It's an honor to receive the Hirsch award for the third time in a contest that isn't won by the first person crossing the finish line but from votes cast by judges on a panel. I also congratulate the other members of the media who won. NASJA has a history of attracting the finest pros on snow,” said Basch. Pallor won the Harold Hirsch Award in video. Pallor, of New Paltz, N.Y., produces RadXSports, a TV show covering extreme action sports throughout the year that airs on Outside Television. His video clips can be seen on Youtube/RadX sports. Some of Pallor's videos were shot at ESWA meetings at corporate members Sugarbush Resort, Waterville Valley and Lake Placid. One of the judges had this to say of our Hirsch winner: “Nice job telling a story with these pieces. The wide variety of video and audio choices really captured the excitement of the events covered. Editing was smooth and the music beds drove the pace and tone. A pleasure to watch!” Lauren Traub Teton took honorable mention in video. Teton, from Pound Ridge, N.Y., specializes in snowboard coverage bringing color and style to her reports on snowboardsecrets.com and snowboardsecrets.tv. She doesn't lay down music behind her videos because she likes her work to reflect the sights and sounds of the event she is covering. She has more than 300 videos on YouTube. Burke, of Kennebunk, Maine, received an Honorable Mention for column writing. She writes weekly for the Maine Sunday Telegram and Portland Press Herald and publishes on Facebook, Twitter and other sites. Doyle, of Stillwater, N.Y., was the Honorable Mention Hirsch recipient for his skiing guide at Skiing.about.com. He covers Alpine and Nordic skiing as well as snowshoeing for about.com. New this year is the Mitch Kaplan Award for excellence in snow sports coverage. Jim Cantore, of the Weather Channel, is the first winner of the Kaplan Award. The nominee can be, but does not have to be, a NASJA member and the nomination along with supporting information can focus on a specific assignment, or body of work. The late Kaplan was long-time ESWA member, NASJA Secretary-Treasurer and multiple Harold Hirsch and Lowell Thomas Awards winner.

Corporate Sponsors

ESWA Members Collect Hirsch Honors

Six ESWA members received Harold Hirsch honors during the NASJA meeting, March 4, in Alyeska, Alaska.

The Harold S. Hirsch Awards have been presented to outstanding NASJA members since 1963 to recognize excellence in media coverage of snow sports.

Peggy Shinn, Gerry Pallor and Marty Basch all won Hirsch Awards in their respective categories. Honorable Mention recognition went to Lauren Traub Teton, Heather Burke and Mike Doyle

Shinn of Rutland, Vt., won the top honor in feature writing – the fourth time she has won a Hirsch Award. Shinn contributes to the U.S. Olympic Committee's Web site, TeamUSA.org, Vermont Life, Stratton Magazine and other publications.

For the Hirsch, Shinn submitted a story about snowboarder Louie Vito and his decision to compete on the reality TV show "Dancing With the Stars" while also trying to make the 2010 Olympic team; a profile of 21-year-old ski jumper Nick Alexander and his quest to make the 2010 Olympic team; and a story of how the U.S. Nordic Combined Team finally won a silver medal in the team event at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

“The Hirsch Award keeps us striving to do our best writing. Whenever I'm writing an article, I always ask myself, ‘Is this Hirsch worthy?' ” said Shinn. “I was sorry to miss the annual meeting in Alyeska and that I would have been there had I known beforehand that I'd won the award.”

Basch, of Center Conway, N.H., is the winner of the Harold Hirsch Award in columns that appear in several newspapers across northern New England. He is author of six books and a freelance outdoor writer. His work appears regularly in the Boston Globe travel section and he is television host on White Mountains TV 16 in North Conway.

Basch, an ESWA and NASJA member since 1990, has now won three Hirsch Awards, nine Honorable Mentions and a Lowell Thomas writing award. He is also on U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame's National Voting Panel.

“It's an honor to receive the Hirsch award for the third time in a contest that isn't won by the first person crossing the finish line but from votes cast by judges on a panel. I also congratulate the other members of the media who won. NASJA has a history of attracting the finest pros on snow,” said Basch.

Pallor won the Harold Hirsch Award in video. Pallor, of New Paltz, N.Y., produces RadXSports, a TV show covering extreme action sports throughout the year that airs on Outside Television. His video clips can be seen on Youtube/RadX sports.

Some of Pallor's videos were shot at ESWA meetings at corporate members Sugarbush Resort, Waterville Valley and Lake Placid.

One of the judges had this to say of our Hirsch winner: “Nice job telling a story with these pieces. The wide variety of video and audio choices really captured the excitement of the events covered. Editing was smooth and the music beds drove the pace and tone. A pleasure to watch!”

Lauren Traub Teton took honorable mention in video. Teton, from Pound Ridge, N.Y., specializes in snowboard coverage bringing color and style to her reports on snowboardsecrets.com and snowboardsecrets.tv. She doesn't lay down music behind her videos because she likes her work to reflect the sights and sounds of the event she is covering. She has more than 300 videos on YouTube.

Burke, of Kennebunk, Maine, received an Honorable Mention for column writing. She writes weekly for the Maine Sunday Telegram and Portland Press Herald and publishes on Facebook, Twitter and other sites.

Doyle, of Stillwater, N.Y., was the Honorable Mention Hirsch recipient for his skiing guide at Skiing.about.com. He covers Alpine and Nordic skiing as well as snowshoeing for about.com.

New this year is the Mitch Kaplan Award for excellence in snow sports coverage. Jim Cantore, of the Weather Channel, is the first winner of the Kaplan Award.

The nominee can be, but does not have to be, a NASJA member and the nomination along with supporting information can focus on a specific assignment, or body of work. The late Kaplan was long-time ESWA member, NASJA Secretary-Treasurer and multiple Harold Hirsch and Lowell Thomas Awards winner.