In 1957, Pete Seibert, who served in the U.S. Army’s famed 10th Mountain Division during World War II, and Earl Eaton, who served as an army engineer during the war, climbed to the top of Vail Mountain and saw what would become one of the most celebrated resorts in the world.

They said the founding of Vail Mountain was driven by a strong desire to live their passion and share that passion and access to the mountains with others.

In an interview with Sports Illustrated in the late ‘80s, Seibert said, “Everybody else thought we were crazy, but we thought we could do any [darned] thing we decided to do.”