Ascutney Said to be in Financial Turmoil

[Tin Woodsman]

It probably costs them 2-3X as much an hour to run the HSQ as it does the FGT. If the place is a ghost town (which I've observed during the week there either skiing or stopping by), it's tough to spend thousands of dollars a week of cash you don't have to run a lift that serves virtually no additional terrain for a dozen or two of your closest friends.

The problem is that this lift and trail expansion was supposed to be the big marketing splash that got them into the "big leagues" of New England skiing. Going from 1530' vert to 1800' vert is a big deal in these parts, yet the lift sits idle most of the time. Maybe they shouldn't have put that lift in at all, but now that it's installed, you look kind of silly if you don't run it. Not running that lift isn't the problem though - it's merely a symptom of the underlying financial problem.

 

[ts01]

IIRC current management bought Ascutney in the early 1990's for around $250,000. Hopefully someone can raise it from the ashes of the liquidating trust. Terrain looked great when I visited there one summer but I never made it in the winter because of conditions -- which seem to compare badly to alternatives on all but the best fresh snow days due to relatively low elevation.

 

[thetrailboss]

I hope that this is just a mere changing of the guard and that the place is not shutting down. That would be sad.

Considering how much bad press I heard about the owners, I'm surprised that they made it this long.

 

[thetrailboss]

It's certainly a long ride on that triple when you see an idle HSQ next to you.

Thanks for getting where I was coming from threecy. I can appreciate your point, i.e. the cost of doing business, but it just seems odd to install and market the HSQ and not to run it. Most clientele these days demand high speed lifts, especially if you are marketing in SNH or Northern Mass.

 

[mountainman]

I agree.

For almost three years I lived about 20 miles away and never skied there and never heard anything about the place. If anything, all I heard were bad things about the rotating door of employees and management. Apparently the owners were kind of obnoxious and did not treat folks well. I have heard many say that it had many problems. This is the first time I heard that the HSQ (not six pack...that's Ragged) would not turn on a regular basis. It's too bad because they have a lot of things going for it.

I was employed at Ascutney and was Asst. Mtn. Manager that moved on after 1 year. Was in charge of Snowmaking and Grooming and what else ever needed to be done. Put in some long hours to put down a product that Ascutney had never seen before. Put together snow guns and resurrected a few older ones that were more efficient and produce a good product and groomed on a nightly bases. We did get a leased Prinoth Bison to groom with which helped a lot. Left a lot of terrain un-groomed or groomed it when needed. Ascutney is a great mountain that can support it self with the proper owner and a hand full of good workers. The HSQ has no beginner terrain off of it, but that could change. It was hard to make snow up top cause you have to use a booster pump to get water up their ( a diesel engine with a water pump attached.) The HSQ could only run at 600 fpm, due to some issues that were not taken care of when installed. There is no electricity at the top of the lift and we had to run a generator to get the lift up and running. It took some time to even get that lift pre-op.
I did hear the bull wheel on the Fixed Grip failed last season. Spent most of the first summer I was their getting the Triple up to code and the Hall Double Chair up and running. The snowmaking system does work, but had a lot of pump issues’ which limited the snowmaking capacity. If every thing was up and running you could run about 45 to 50 guns at a time probably more if they were HKD’s
Hope Ascutney can continue with out closing this up coming season. Would love to go back and work there if the possibility’s come about.
P.S. I knew i had something was strange when i started there cause the first the letters in Ascutney were ASC. LOL

 

[riverc0il]

It probably costs them 2-3X as much an hour to run the HSQ as it does the FGT. If the place is a ghost town (which I've observed during the week there either skiing or stopping by), it's tough to spend thousands of dollars a week of cash you don't have to run a lift that serves virtually no additional terrain for a dozen or two of your closest friends.

Or... perhaps they are a ghost town because when people go there, they see a HSQ not turning and they spend more time freezing their but off on a fixed grip. Perhaps they don't come back after they see that. Chicken? Or Egg?

 

[threecy]

Or... perhaps they are a ghost town because when people go there, they see a HSQ not turning and they spend more time freezing their but off on a fixed grip. Perhaps they don't come back after they see that. Chicken? Or Egg?

Domino effect would probably be the better theory...I don't think there were that many people around to see the HSQ not running during the week. Now, with it there sitting idle, it probably only adds to it.

The HSQ could only run at 600 fpm, due to some issues that were not taken care of when installed.

What year was that? In March of 2005 it appeared to be running faster than 600 FPM.

Thanks for getting where I was coming from threecy. I can appreciate your point, i.e. the cost of doing business, but it just seems odd to install and market the HSQ and not to run it. Most clientele these days demand high speed lifts, especially if you are marketing in SNH or Northern Mass.

They had run it during the week, but it certainly didn't bring in enough business to justify it. I would imagine they compared revenue vs. costs and found it made more sense for them bite the bullet and run the triple instead.


Something that hasn't been mentioned enough in this thread - Sunapee. Sunapee is a very reasonable drive from the Claremont area (the closest town of size near Ascutney). Prior to the late 1990s, Sunapee was an aging, government-run ski area with only fixed grip triple chairlifts (Ascutney's largest lifts were triples as well).

Something happened just before Ascutney put through this HSQ expansion - the Muellers took over Sunapee and made it a huge success, installing three quad chairs (including an HSQ) in two years. This certainly had an effect on Ascutney, their decisions, and subsequent results.

 

[thetrailboss]

The latest:

http://www.wcax.com/global/story.asp?s=12950884

 

[bobbutts]

another thing I notice.. Ascutney has practically no marketing

 

[Black Phantom]

I believe that Ascutney is located in the beloved little hamlet of Brownsville.

 

[catskillman]

Based on this comment posted earlier

""LLC set up on 7/23/10 - Ascutney Mt Resort LIQUIDATION Trust"

It's over - key work Liquidation.

sounds like Chapter 7

 

[billski]

Based on this comment posted earlier

""LLC set up on 7/23/10 - Ascutney Mt Resort LIQUIDATION Trust"

It's over - key work Liquidation.

sounds like Chapter 7

That's exactly how I read it. The stage has been set.

Unless of course, there is a "hail mary pass" savior, which seems highly unlikely.

 

[ski_resort_observer]

It was reported a couple of days ago that ecoli was found in the AMR water system and water has to be boiled. This goes along with a Hepititis outbreak at the resort about 10 years ago. These problems remind me of the problems at the Cortina Inn.

 

[deadheadskier]

That's exactly how I read it. The stage has been set.

Unless of course, there is a "hail mary pass" savior, which seems highly unlikely.

Maybe Les Otten is looking for something to do these days outside of his wood pellet business.

 

[thetrailboss]

Here's the video version of the story for anyone who wants to watch it:

http://www.wcax.com/global/video.asp?clipId=5015042&topVideoCatNo=63459&autoStart=true

 

[billski]

Maybe Les Otten is looking for something to do these days outside of his wood pellet business.

He's too busy running for governor of Maine this fall.

 

[thetrailboss]

He's too busy running for governor of Maine this fall.

He is not anymore! He lost the primary in June.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Otten#2010_Maine_Gubernatorial_Republican_Primary

 

[billski]

He is not anymore! He lost the primary in June.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Otten#2010_Maine_Gubernatorial_Republican_Primary

gee, I wonder why???? :roll:

 

[rocojerry]

I love Ascutney.

But I only go after it dumps, sometimes several days after and still find pow. Its lack of grooming makes the terrain more real mountain-like, stump jumping, rock hopping, random bumps and dips....

I'll be back there, with or without lifts running....

A trip out a few years back solo was a great one for me....

 

[UVSHTSTRM]

I know the enivronmentalist out there won't like this statement, but in a fantasty world, rich dude or dudette buys the joint and is allowed to expand all the way to the top (if terrain allows), this would create a vertical that is as big as most NE resorts. Also expand trails to the bowls to right looking up. Increase snowmaking and upgrade lifts. Also if super rich, I would just flatten the village area and start from scratch. From what I have heard, they have some of the best top to bottom terrain (potential terrain). It's a nice area and has great access. It also has a population pool of Windsor and Claremont to draw from that would provide some skiers, but also to work.

Back to reality...........