From February 15 to February 18, 1936, Gorky (modern Nizhny Novgorod) hosted the V Regional Congress of collective farmers-strikers. All the delegates — more than 3,000 people — arrived there on skis.
The Mari Autonomous Oblast, which was then part of the Gorky Region, also sent a delegation of about 500 collective farmers (men and women). On October 27, 1935, the bureau of the Mari regional committee of the AUCP (b) and The Presidium of the Mari regional executive committee adopted a resolution “On conducting a ski trip along the Yoshkar-Ola — Gorky route”. A special organizing committee worked on the preparation for it. It was headed by the chairman of the Mari regional executive committee Ivan Petrov and the secretary of the Mari regional committee of the AUCP (b) Cheslav Vrublevsky.
Collective farmers were selected to participate in the congress among the strike workers who not only proved themselves as good workers but were also healthy, physically developed, and successfully passed the standards for the badge “Ready for Work and Defense”.
Special attention was paid to the clothes and shoes of the skiers. They needed spacious suits that did not restrict movement and protected them from frostbite. The recommendations for equipment stated: “The best suit will be flannel or fustian trousers with an elastic band in the waist and without slits, and a blouse with a blind collar, also with an elastic band at the bottom and sleeves… When walking, the toes should be wrapped with gauze with a thin layer of cotton wool, then a paper sock is put on and a woolen one is on top.”
The skiers started from the capital of Mari El — Yoshkar-Ola. The first group, headed by the deputy chairman of the Mari regional executive committee, Ivan Busygin, left there on February 2, 1936. The second group, led by Cheslav Vrublevsky, started the next day. Each collective farmer had a duffel bag with soap, tooth powder, other necessary things, and an “emergency ration”, which consisted of canned food and a kilogram of cookies or crackers.
On February 12, the skiers arrived in Gorky. They were placed in hotels and factory dormitories there. When the V Regional Congress ended, the Mari delegates returned home by train.
The Mari Autonomous Oblast, which was then part of the Gorky Region, also sent a delegation of about 500 collective farmers (men and women). On October 27, 1935, the bureau of the Mari regional committee of the AUCP (b) and The Presidium of the Mari regional executive committee adopted a resolution “On conducting a ski trip along the Yoshkar-Ola — Gorky route”. A special organizing committee worked on the preparation for it. It was headed by the chairman of the Mari regional executive committee Ivan Petrov and the secretary of the Mari regional committee of the AUCP (b) Cheslav Vrublevsky.
Collective farmers were selected to participate in the congress among the strike workers who not only proved themselves as good workers but were also healthy, physically developed, and successfully passed the standards for the badge “Ready for Work and Defense”.
Special attention was paid to the clothes and shoes of the skiers. They needed spacious suits that did not restrict movement and protected them from frostbite. The recommendations for equipment stated: “The best suit will be flannel or fustian trousers with an elastic band in the waist and without slits, and a blouse with a blind collar, also with an elastic band at the bottom and sleeves… When walking, the toes should be wrapped with gauze with a thin layer of cotton wool, then a paper sock is put on and a woolen one is on top.”
The skiers started from the capital of Mari El — Yoshkar-Ola. The first group, headed by the deputy chairman of the Mari regional executive committee, Ivan Busygin, left there on February 2, 1936. The second group, led by Cheslav Vrublevsky, started the next day. Each collective farmer had a duffel bag with soap, tooth powder, other necessary things, and an “emergency ration”, which consisted of canned food and a kilogram of cookies or crackers.
On February 12, the skiers arrived in Gorky. They were placed in hotels and factory dormitories there. When the V Regional Congress ended, the Mari delegates returned home by train.
