Late in life, William Winter (FH 55-59) has embraced two things closely associated with the coldest season of the year, and with it, nominative determinism – the theory that people tend to gravitate to areas of work that fit their names. Carolling and skiing are two passions fit for someone by the name of Winter. But it’s only relatively recently that this has been on his radar.

“Until I was about 60 no one, absolutely no one, ever pointed out anything curious about my name. It is after all common in Hungary where my paternal grandfather came from. It was the Americans I skied with in Canada who first pointed it out.”

It wasn’t until reaching middle age that William began to pursue his lifelong enjoyment of skiing as a career.

“At the ripe age of 52 I became a ‘’rep’’ for the Ski Club of Great Britain. Early retirement at 61 allowed me to ‘rep’ for 3 months every winter and aided by my wife, we bought an apartment in Haute Nendaz, Switzerland so we could ski all winter, every winter.
I repped in Murren, Crans, Soell, Klosters, Sun Peaks (Canada - the best), Aspen and led holidays in Crans, St Anton (the most fun), Lake Louise, Fernie and Wengen. And my wife became an adept back marker, picking people up and telling me when someone was getting tired.”

William’s interest in skiing began during his childhood in Canada.

“My father went to Canada for 3 years when I was 12. I returned to school at Tonbridge when 14, a year ahead of my parents. I started skiing in Canada (Ottawa) in that period with no lessons, old fashioned lace up soft leather boots and wooden skis with no edges. Oh memories. Oh yes, and only rope tows.”

“I didn’t ski again till after school and after Cambridge (lack of funds) and like to dream that if the funds had been there I might have won a half blue but they weren’t, and I didn’t.”

He now not only skis daily, but also regularly goes on adrenaline-fuelled heli-skiing trips, accessing remote terrain by helicopter in order to ski some of the hardest to reach slopes. His next trip is due to take place in April 2018, when he will be aged 77.
William has also brought with him to Switzerland a little piece of home, each year conducting English language Christmas Carols at the resort.

“[When we arrived] we discovered that there was not a trace of traditional English Christmas available for tourists or property owners. So, 8 or 9 years ago, I started open-air unaccompanied carol singing in English – all the traditional ones but limited to what people knew, and by how long people could stand in the snow.”

“Dr Bunney would have turned in his grave at the sound, but I think he would have approved. We had 30 singers that first year, 40 the next and 150 the year after. Now we regularly have 200-300 people of all ages and nationalities, but the carols are all still firmly in English, with French translations available, and the Tourist Office have adopted it as their own and provide nibbles and vin chaud.”