Peter Johnson
Sixty odd years ago when I was new in town, I met a few sportsmen who shared my love of mountains and skiing, my dentist Spenser Weersing and his friend Mike Dawson. They had bullt a whole trail system in the hills of Owassippi. They showed me how much fun Midwest skiing could be as my only ski experience had been out east. We challenged each other with steep descents and tricky turns. We would fall and bruise and get up and keep going. Spenser and Mike we’re tough men. We also savored the moments in the woods and the peace. After Spenser passed away, Mike maintained the clearing and marking the trails for at least thirty years. Parts of those trails are now the most difficult parts of the new mountain biking trails.
When I started working at the Muskegon sports complex, Mike pitched in and helped clear the ski trails as we now know them. Once he moved to the area, we could depend on finding Mike on the ski trails on every skiable day. It has always been a treat to ski with Mike because he was knowledgeable, witty, and willing to “give it a try.”
In his last ten years when the weather sent most people home, Mike was there, brought a sandwich, and skied all day. Skiing our trails next winter without Mike, will seem a little like going to church without praying. We loved his spirit.
