Christmas memories.

Everyone has them.

That first bicycle, the one you never expected to receive; the plastic razor with which you will pretend to be a grown-up; the Barbie doll you saw in the display that prompted you to write the letter to Santa Claus.

Several sports personalities were asked to recall their most memorable Christmas.

Ken Lindlof, Waterville High School boys basketball coach: “They’ve all been special. I’ll always remember the first year my family moved to Maine. It was 1961. It was the first Christmas we weren’t expecting to see our grandparents [John and Joanne King]. But what we [kids] didn’t know was it had been prearranged that they were going to drive up to Orono from New York. It was the nicest Christmas.”

Carrie Goodhue, Lee Academy basketball coach: “We always have a big family get-together in Sydney with the grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. We always have plenty to eat. I enjoy seeing everyone.”

Earl Anderson, Nokomis High School girls basketball coach: “My most memorable Christmas that was actually a bad Christmas. My father [Deane] had been in a car accident and was recuperating in St. Joseph Hospital [Bangor]. We went to see him on Christmas day. He was in pretty bad shape. He had a lot of cuts on his face and stitches, the whole nine yards. He also broke his hip.

“He is a big Christmas guy. He was the one who decided when we could get up to go downstairs [to open presents]. He would go downstairs first to see if Santa had come. He was in charge. After I stopped believing in Santa, he kept trying to convince me there was a Santa until I was 20, I think. But this particular year, we wound up bringing Christmas to him. The best thing was he lived through it and he’s fine. It made us appreciate the next Christmas even more.”

Julie Bradstreet, Central Aroostook High School girls basketball coach: “I wrapped this huge present for my little brother Lance. He was all excited about opening it. He couldn’t wait. It was going to be the first gift he opened. But what I had done is taken either a potato or a cabbage and wrapped it up in newspaper and put it in the box. You should have seen his face. He was so disappointed. It was great. The next year, he gave me a tiny little sock with two pieces of coal in it.”

Kissy Walker, Husson College women’s basketball coach: “My dad [Jim] was overseas in the Navy. My mother [Elly] had worked two jobs because she wanted to make Christmas special for my sister [Wendy] and me. But none of us is very good at home improvement things. We bought this big Christmas tree but we couldn’t get it in the house. It wouldn’t fit. And we didn’t know how to cut the stump off the bottom. We had to get a neighbor to cut off the bottom of it and prune it. The next day, the entire living room was so full of presents we couldn’t walk.

“Another year, we were stationed in California and I hated having Christmas there because there was no snow. It didn’t seem like Christmas. I was riding this motorcyle thing in my bare feet.”

Ralph Nason, Unity stock car driver and racetrack owner: “This coming Christmas because I just bought my wife [Nancy] two Chinese Shar-Pei puppies. I also have a new grandson, Nicholas Ferreira. I also remember the Christmas when I received my first bicycle. I was 5, 6 or 7. I’m too old to remember [exactly] when.”

Paul Culina, University of Maine athletic trainer: “This one will be because my wife [Krista] and I get to celebrate it with our brand new daughter [Madison]. When you’re a kid, Christmas is all about you. When you’re a parent, it’s all about your kids. Madison is our best Christmas present ever.”

Mike Carter, former Bucksport High School wrestling coach: “It would be the first Christmas my wife [Mickey] and I spent with both of our children [Jessica and Josh]. It was 1983. Any chance you get to spend time together as a family is special.

“I’ll also always remember the Christmas I spent overseas in the Marines [1973]. We were on a Navy ship near Lebanon. We painted a Christmas tree on carbon paper. What was important was that we created the spirit of Christmas. It was a pretty neat time. The common bond was we were all far away from our families. It’s difficult. Every year, I think about our men and women overseas who are away from their families.”

Ricky Craven, Winston Cup driver from Newburgh: “Off the cuff, I’d say last Christmas. Every Christmas is so special. I love having the opportunity to spend a full day with no one but family. They’ve obviously become more important lately. Our first Christmas in our cabin in Greenville was 1997. We had three feet of snow that year. We had a fire in the fireplace. And we had a little girl [Riley] and a little boy [Richard] trying to tear into presents at 5 a.m. Christmas allows me to reflect on the past. It has always been a very special family day.”

A.J. Begg, University of Maine senior hockey defenseman and co-captain: “It would be any Christmas when the lake near our house in Vancouver froze over. Some guys from the neighborhood and I would go down there and play hockey. But it didn’t freeze over that often because it isn’t very cold in Vancouver.”

Joan Benoit Samuelson, former Olympic marathon gold medalist: “Every Christmas is more special because we have more friends in our lives.”

Marty Kariya, University of Maine sophomore hockey center: “It would have been the year we watched Paul [brother Paul Kariya] and Team Canada win the World Junior championships.”