Obituary: Ronald Jay LeMaster

August 27, 1949 – November 30, 2021

Ronald Jay LeMaster, ski writer, photographer, coach, and educator died November 30th, 2021 at Eldora Ski Area, after being struck from behind on Windmill run.
Ron was born, August 27th, 1949 in Denver, Colorado to Burt and Betty LeMaster who took him skiing for the first time when he was seven years old.
When Ron started college, his heart wasn’t into it. He wanted to ski, so he dropped out of school and headed for Aspen. Ron worked for Curt Chase at Buttermilk Ski School, but soon was coaching for the Aspen Ski Club, after being hired by Sim Thomas.
Ron spent seven wonderful years in Aspen, skiing, coaching, fishing, rafting and kayaking. He made a decision to return to CU to finish up his Mechanical Engineering degree. While there he was hired to coach the CU B team instilling his interest in ski racing and analysis. After both of them graduated, he married Dee on June 16,1979 and reported for work at IBM in Rochester, Minnesota.
Alexis Jean was born June 11, 1981. Ron coached the Ski Club in Rochester. Then, the family moved to New York and back to Boulder, Colorado.
Ron had set a goal after he was married to write a book about skiing. During the years after he returned to Colorado, he started putting it together in his mind. Working for a stint in the physics department at CU, he was better able to understand what was going on scientifically in the sport, and consequently how to apply it to teaching skiing. Combining all the skills and understanding he had accrued throughout his life in mechanics, physics, photography, and computer science, and his own skiing experiences, enabled him to write his first book, The Skier’s Edge. This book and the beautiful time-lapsed pictures of some of the best skiers in the world, brought him notice in the ski world.
He was asked to accompany the US Ski Team several times, and also traveled to many countries giving talks with power point. The next books published, The Essential Guide to Skiing and Ultimate Skiing, have become some of the best instructor’s manuals in many ski schools in this country and many others. His talks and work with PSIA have been rated by most as outstanding, and his final work with the Vail Ski and Snowboard Club entitled The Young Skier’s Guide-Fundamentals of Ski Racing is full of Ron’s pictures and diagrams.

There will be a Memorial Service at 1:00 PM on June 21, 2022 at The Concert Meadow located in back of the Gondola on Aspen Mountain, Aspen Colorado with a reception at the Sundeck immediately following. Please allow time for parking and load the Gondola by 12:15. Come prepared with your own seating as the setting is in an open space and there are limited chairs provided.
Please RSVP to Wendy Larson via call or text at 970-618-6538. If you are able to RSVP by the 16th, a complimentary gondola ticket will be provided.