Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Aging? Pfft.

These sisters are over 80 and still bring it on the Granite Peak ski slopes at Rib Mountain.

- Keith Uhlig

RIB MOUNTAIN - The sisters sat at the small table in the main chalet at Granite Peak Ski Area, chattering and smiling and laughing after hours of swooshing down the slopes.

Kay Kuester Doran of Antigo is 85 years old and her younger sister, Mary-Beth Kuester of Clintonvil­le, is 82. Kay’s late husband, Roger Doran, taught them both how to ski on Rib Mountain in the mid-1950s, back when tow ropes pulled skiers up the slope and the sisters used Army surplus equipment. They fell in love with the sport.

The nearly 70 years that have passed have done nothing to dilute their passion for the sport. On Monday, they enjoyed the mild weather, each other’s company and that special thrilling buzz outdoor adventure provides.

“I did a small jump,” Mary-Beth said. “It was a small one. But still.”

Kay is a little more risk-adverse. “I don’t like speed,” she said. “I was never as aggressive as Mary-Beth.”

Ironically, Kay doesn’t like heights either, she said. She told the story about how she and Roger once went to Paris and she spent an afternoon consumed by a panic attack on the Eiffel Tower. And then she laughed.

The sisters grew up in Clintonvil­le, where they have deep roots. Their greatgrand­father’s home is the local history museum. Even as little girls, the two said they approached life with a special

Among the earliest pictures of the two of them, they were dressed in costumes, said Bridget Rabb of La Crosse, a skiing companion and close friend of the two sisters.

They said they would have embraced sports in schools, but athletics were essentiall­y closed off to girls in that era.

“We weren’t allowed in any sports,” Kay said. “If only I could have been a hockey player. Or a speed skater.”

But they threw themselves into other things. They became marching band twirlers, dancers and joined theater groups. As adults, Kay would become a

Spanish teacher, and she also helped her husband Roger, a pharmacist, run his pharmacy in Antigo. When Roger retired, the couple traveled the world. After that, Kay returned to teaching and she and Roger also led student trips abroad.

Mary-Beth never married, and for many years owned an influential public relations and marketing firm in Madison.

Both sisters are active and physically fit. Besides skiing, they lift weights (and compete in strong-women competitio­ns) and play a version of vintage basketball.

They are so busy that they had been on a skiing hiatus for a few years. Granite Peak offers “super senior” ski passes, which means people over age 80 can ski for free, and the sisters decided they should take advantage of that offer.

“And the other thing is the pandemic,” Mary-Beth said. “It’s outside, and I said, ‘You know, we should ski.’”

They don’t expect to quit anytime soon, either. “Next year we’ve got three western trips planned,” Mary-Beth said.

“They blow away all the stereotype­s of older women,” Rabb said.

 ?? PHOTOS BY SAMANTHA MADAR/USA TODAY NETWORK-WISCONSIN ?? Kay Kuester Doran, 85, left, and Mary-Beth Kuester, 82, put on their gear at Granite Peak Ski Area. They both have been skiing all over the world. Mary-Beth bought her ski suit in France.
PHOTOS BY SAMANTHA MADAR/USA TODAY NETWORK-WISCONSIN Kay Kuester Doran, 85, left, and Mary-Beth Kuester, 82, put on their gear at Granite Peak Ski Area. They both have been skiing all over the world. Mary-Beth bought her ski suit in France.
 ?? SAMANTHA MADAR/USA TODAY NETWORK-WISCONSIN ?? Mary-Beth Kuester, 82, skis at Granite Peak Ski Area Feb. 22 in Wausau.
SAMANTHA MADAR/USA TODAY NETWORK-WISCONSIN Mary-Beth Kuester, 82, skis at Granite Peak Ski Area Feb. 22 in Wausau.

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