To all of us, Jean-Pierre or JP as we liked to call him, was what I'd call a “ski coach extraordinaire”, because of his unique way of looking at people and circumstances, and of his incredibly diverse experience, as well as his unorthodox approach to anything skiing.
Originaly from Megève, France, JP had coached with the Spanish, French, Swedish, American, Japanese teams, and was also a private coach for some South American kids as well as for Megève’s “Club des Sports”.
Since he preferred 250 days of sunshine over 250 days of precipitation per year, he made his home in Colorado. Most importantly, he was also a very good and special friend of mine. He passed away on September 22, after a long fight against cancer at his Chimney Rock home, near Pagosa Springs, Colorado.
We taught skiing together in Australia in the early 70s and have remained friends ever since. We we were together like two peas in a pod. In a way he was my other brother, better yet, a newly found twin, much younger than my older brother, and together we could relate fully.
Fearless and iconoclast, he got me out of my shell and took me into his world of "anything is possible", filled with wild adventures, innovative ideas and creative solutions. We began in Genoa, Italy, where we first met, and circumnavigated half of the world on an Italian liner, the Galileo Galilei.
We both were insanely crazy to begin with, and found ways to further synergize our respective behaviors. They took us into a whirlwind of events and experiences. Sure, we also had our moments and our disagreements.
We both were hard-headed "Hauts Savoyards". I remember the time we had JP and Brigitte, his wife, stay with us in Park City, in our brand new home, before a ski trip to Chile. My wife kindly asked Jean-Pierre to please take off his trademark cowboy boots, as we had a delicate, clear maple hardwood floor. He stubbornly refused saying: “My boots are too hard to get out of and back in...”
The next morning our nice floor was black-marked by the rubber from his damned boots. My wife never forgave him for that. Since we were like brothers, we always made up though.
He was also the one who helped get me out of the ski instruction business and secure a full time job in the ski industry. I’ll never thank him enough for it.
We’ll miss him dearly. Godspeed, Jean Pierre!
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