SKIING

This wasn't supposed to be a rebuilding year for Dartmouth's ski team but the tantalizing challenge of international competition has made it that for coach Al Merrill's forces. Three of Merrill's top skiers — Co-Captain Chuck Bent and Sheldon Perry, both top Alpine performers, and standout jumper Scott Berry — have chosen to train with the American squad that is in Europe this winter to prepare for the 1972 Olympics.

With Bent, Perry and Berry gone, Merrill's team will be built around cross-country star Teyck Weed, the other co-captain; Dan Gibson, the Alpine racer who has succeeded Bent, and Dick Trafton, another Nordic performer. Jason Densmore, Steve Shirey, and Eric Evans are other Nordic standouts in Merrill's plans, while in the Alpine events, Gibson will be aided by Sumner Erbe and Dave Hazelett.