Founding father of Vail dies at age 93

VAIL • In the days when Vail was little more than a dirt path, Dick Hauserman would walk along Bridge Street. If he saw someone he didn’t know, he’d walk up, stick out his hand and say, “I’m Dick Hauserman. I live here. Can I show you around?”

Hauserman, the man who designed Vail’s logo and who helped pursuade investors to buy into in a fledgling mountain playground, died Wednesday at Cornell Hospital in New York City. He was 93.

After hearing Pete Seibert’s pitch for a new ski resort in Colorado, Hauserman bought in, lured by the audacity of the plan and photos of Vail’s Back Bowls. He shared his enthusiasm with just about anyone who would listen.

Rod Slifer, who remembers having his first home-cooked meal in Vail at Hauserman’s home in May 1962, called Hauserman “sort of the ultimate chamber of commerce then.”

“Dick loved people,” original Vail investor Harley Higbie said. “He really helped move Vail along in the world.”

Hauserman’s enthusiasm for Vail grew over the years. He was quick to recognize the allure of the new resort built just west of Vail nearly two decades later.

Brad Tjossem was one of the founders of the Beaver Creek Club. Hauserman was an early VIP member.

“He was such a visionary,” Tjossem said. He remembered that Hauserman brought a group of potential investors to Beaver Creek from upstate New York.

“On his word they invested,” Tjossem said. “They set up second homes here, and now they’re raising their grandkids here. He influenced so many people.”

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