My good friend Loulou Kneubuhler from Spokane passed away on March 31, 2022. Born in France on July 25, 1943, he was 78 years old. He was one of those adventurous Frenchmen who, in the sixties, traveled around the world proselytizing his home country’s ski technique on the heels of the French ski team unstoppable success.
From his young stomping grounds in St Jean de Maurienne, Savoie (a part of the Alps that isn't really France), where he raced with Jean-Claude Killy as a school boy, Loulou first landed in 1966 at Spout Springs, a tiny Oregon ski area prior to coaching at White Pass near Yakima, and before stopping for good in Spokane during the winter of 1968-69.
In between, he found time to explore Australia and “sell” a few more turns at Mt. Buffalo in Victoria. Back in Spokane, he eventually opened up a ski repair shop in 1973 that became “Loulou’s of Spokane Ltd”, a trendsetting store featuring the best brands in fashion.
Obviously, Loulou was also one of my retailers when I was selling ski gear and I'll never forget his inventiveness, wheeling his paperwork and catalogs in carrying box around the Las Vegas ski show, long before luggage on wheels was invented.
After selling his shop a few years ago, Loulou still had the stamina to open up a ski museum at his original ski chalet in Spokane. Around 2014, he would be diagnosed with Parkinson disease that marked the beginning of a long and sad decline. I hope there’s plenty of “pow” waiting for you in Heaven, Loulou!
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