Converted Former Missile-site Home to 2008 USSA Junior Olympic Ski Championships

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA – Mar. 10, 2008– The 2008 USSA Junior Olympic Cross Country Ski Championships began today, Mar. 10, 2008, at Kincaid Park in Anchorage, Alaska. The Kincaid Park area is a former Nike-Hercules missile site that has been converted for the betterment of the Anchorage outdoor community.

History of Kincaid Park

On March 1, 1959, the 4th Missile Battalion, 43rd Artillery, became the first operational Nike-Hercules Unit in Alaska. Located on three sides of Anchorage, the sites, known as Batteries A, B and C, launched and stored Nike-Hercules missiles. Each site had one of the most advanced radar systems of the day and was maintained on a 24 hour, seven-day-a-week vigil with over 100 men on alert.

Battery A was located on Point Campbell Military Reservation, now known as Kincaid Park. The mission of these missile batteries, until their deactivation in 1979, was to provide air defense for Anchorage, Fort Richardson Army Post and Elmendorf Air Force Base.

The names Nike and Hercules were derived from the mythological winged Goddess of Victory and mythological strongest man of the world. The Nike-Hercules was a solid propellant missile with a range in excess of 15 miles and altitude of over 100,000 feet.

The Nike weighed 1300 pounds, was 16 inches in diameter and was 12 feet long. Once launched, the Nike could accelerate from 0 to 1000 mph in less than 4 seconds.

In 1971, the unit’s name was changed to 1st Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery. The unit was deactivated on March 30, 1979 and fell into the jurisdiction of Elmendorf Air Force Base. Elmendorf had plans to construct a sophisticated airborne warning and control system at the site, but their plans fell through. The Federal Land Surplus Act transferred the land to the Municipality of Anchorage on November 25, 1980.

On July 12, 1983, the land, over 1400 acres, came under management of the Parks and Recreation Department and was added to Kincaid Park where the Nordic Skiing Association of Anchorage and Anchorage Parks and Recreation were developing ski trails.

Construction began in 1985 on the Kincaid Outdoor Center (also called the Kincaid Chalet). The core of the building was one of the Nike-Hercules missile silos. Park visitors can walk through the Outdoor Center today and still see some of the features of the missile battery.

After construction, Kincaid Outdoor Center was turned over to Anchorage Parks and Recreation on Saturday April 12, 1986.

The Anchorage Convention & Visitors Bureau’s mission is to attract and serve visitors to the Municipality of Anchorage. ACVB’s marketing functions are funded by one-third of the bed tax collected by the lodging association. One-third goes to the Municipality’s general fund and one-third goes to the Anchorage Civic & Convention Center construction project. ACVB receives no state or federal funds. Explore www.Anchorage.net for more information.