Rod Hebron - Olympian, eight-time Canadian national champion

Roderick ‘Yogi’ Hebron, passed away on April 16, 2023. He was 80.

Born and raised on Grouse Mountain in Vancouver, Canada, Hebron started skiing as soon as he could walk. He first qualified for the national team at age 17 as a three-event skier—slalom, giant slalom, downhill.

He found success on the circuit, including two top-five World Cup finishes. He competed in three World Championship events—1962, 1966 and 1970—and was an eight-time Canadian champion on home snow (14 national championship medals overall) and claimed the Quebec Kandahar title three times. He competed in the 1964 and 1968 Olympics.

Hebron was one of the first racers to compete on Lange boots, Look Nevada 2 bindings and Dynamic VR7 skis, a revolutionary kit at that time. He also helped to design, and debuted, the 4-way stretch racing suit on the World Cup stage at Wengen, Switzerland, to sensational reviews.

After retiring from FIS ski racing, Hebron joined the World Pro Tour from 1971 to ‘73. He settled in Colorado, where he met his wife, Kim. He made Summit County his home for more than 50 years, owning several restaurants, a bar, and his ski shop, Virgin Islands Ski Rentals, paying homage to his foray of running a tourist catamaran in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. Hebron was inducted into the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame in 2022.