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Whitefish Mountain Resort

Coordinates: 48°30′N 114°20′W / 48.50°N 114.34°W / 48.50; -114.34
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Whitefish Mountain Resort
Aerial view in February 2008
Whitefish is located in the United States
Whitefish
Whitefish
Location in the United States
Whitefish is located in Montana
Whitefish
Whitefish
Location in Montana
LocationThe Big Mountain
Flathead National Forest
Flathead County, Montana, U.S.
Nearest major cityWhitefish - 4 miles (6 km)
Columbia Falls - 16 mi (26 km)
Kalispell - 21 miles (34 km)
Missoula - 140 miles (230 km)
Spokane - 260 miles (420 km)
Coordinates48°30′N 114°20′W / 48.50°N 114.34°W / 48.50; -114.34
Vertical2,353 ft (717 m)
Top elevation6,817 ft (2,078 m)
Base elevation4,464 ft (1,361 m)
Skiable area3,020 acres (12.2 km2)
Trails93
- 15% beginner
- 35% intermediate
- 40% advanced
- 10% expert
Longest run2.52 miles (4.06 km) - Hell Fire
Lift system12 chairs
- 3 high-speed quad
- 1 high speed detachable six-pack)
- 8 fixed-grip (2 quad, 6 triple)
3 surface tows
Terrain parks1
Snowfall300 inches (25 ft; 760 cm)
Snowmakingyes
Night skiingFri & Sat - lower lifts
Websiteskiwhitefish.com

Whitefish Mountain Resort is a ski resort on Big Mountain in northwestern Montana. It is west of Glacier National Park in the Flathead National Forest, four miles (6 km) from the town of Whitefish, sixteen miles (26 km) west of Columbia Falls,[1] and 21 miles (34 km) north of Kalispell.

History

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Winter Sports, Inc. (WSI) formed 77 years ago in 1947 as a public company of community shareholders, opened Big Mountain that December 14.[2] It hosted the U.S. Alpine Championships in early March 1949,[3][4] where future Olympic champion Andrea Mead of Vermont won all three women's titles at age sixteen.[5][6] The mountain originally had a single T-bar, which was replaced by chairlifts installed in 1960,[7][8][9] and 1968.

Olympic champion Tommy Moe (b.1970) learned to ski and race at the mountain, where his father was on the ski patrol.[10] Moe won the gold medal in the downhill[11] and the silver in the super-G[12] at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.

The mountain again hosted the U.S. Alpine Championships in 2001.[4] That event is remembered for the failed comeback attempt, and life-altering crash, of 1984 Olympic downhill champion Bill Johnson.

In May 2004, WSI conducted a 150-for-one reverse stock split. Its stated purpose was to lower expense by reducing the number of shareholders to below the threshold that imposed public reporting requirements. At the time the transaction was proposed, 664 shareholders, or 72% of investors in the company, each separately held less than 150 shares. In total, these investors held a 2.5% equity (and voting) stake. The board expressed concern that the transaction might be viewed as coercive, but after review and outside consultation, decided the transaction was fair to the affected shareholders.[13][14]

In December 2006, WSI conducted a 15-for-one reverse stock split, further reducing to about 50 remaining shareholders in order to provide a tax advantage as a Subchapter S corporation. Again, all shareholders without enough shares to exchange for a post-split share were required to cash-out their stock.[15] WSI's handling of the reverse split was criticized and resulted in animosity within the local community, where there were objections to the timing of the related announcements and the loss of a community connection to the resort by the local residents.[16][17]

After sixty years, Big Mountain was renamed "Whitefish Mountain Resort" in June 2007,[18][19] after billionaire Bill Foley became the majority shareholder of Winter Sports, Inc.[20]

In early 2008, an avalanche occurred in the Flathead National Forest, within hiking distance of the backside of Big Mountain and killed two skiers on January 13.[21] Later that year, the resort discontinued summer lift access for winter season pass holders,[22] granting several free lift tickets instead.[23][24] In September of that same year, the resort reversed the decision and announced that 2008–09 winter season passes would again convey unlimited foot-passenger lift access for summer 2009.[25]

Lifts and runs

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The mountain is separated into three faces. The front side is primarily serviced by the Big Mountain Express high-speed quad out of the Village base area and the Snow Ghost Express high speed six pack from the Base Lodge, and has the most skiable terrain. A second high-speed quad, the Swift Creek Express (formerly the Glacier Chaser), services beginner and intermediate terrain. The front side has seven of the mountain's eleven chairlifts.

The backside of the mountain is serviced by the Big Creek Express, also a high-speed quad. The backside has more tree skiing terrain, and additional terrain can be accessed by the Bigfoot T-Bar on weekends and during select holiday periods, as well as Flower Point (a used triple chairlift acquired from Kimberley Alpine Resort), and East Rim (a triple chairlift relocated from the Glacier View alignment), which services the eastern front side and East Rim.

The western aspect of the mountain contains the Hellroaring basin. Serviced by Hellroaring (a triple chairlift), Hellroaring basin is the most advanced skiing on the mountain with cliffs, vertical chutes, and tight tree skiing. The intermediate Hell Fire trail is the longest on the mountain; it runs 2.52 miles (4.06 km) from the summit to the base of Chair 8. On some days the clouds at Whitefish Mountain Resort are low enough that skiers can literally ski above the clouds.[26][27]

Lifts

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  • Whitefish currently has 14 operating lifts.[28]
Number Name Type Manufacturer Built Vertical
(feet)		 Length
(feet)		 Notes
Chair 4 Snow Ghost Express High speed six pack Leitner-Poma 2022 2224 7211
Chair 7 Big Creek Express High Speed Quad Doppelmayr USA 1997 1211 5743
Chair 1 Big Mountain Express 2007 2087 7322 Main lift out of Village base area.
Chair 2 Swift Creek Express 2007 1110 - 1 of 3 lifts open for night skiing. Originally Glacier Chaser Express prior to 2007.
Chair 6 Base Lodge Quad CTEC 1992 240 1535
Chair 9 Easy Rider Quad Garaventa CTEC 2006 269 -
Chair 3 Tenderfoot Triple Thiokol 1975 443 2452 Oldest lift on the mountain, and also open for night skiing.
Chair 12 Elk Highlands Hall 2007 375 - Has 2 way directional loading, and has a mid-station. Relocated from Easy Rider.
Chair 10 Bad Rock Thiokol 2011 461 -
Chair 11 Flower Point Yan 2014 970 - Relocated from Kimberley Alpine Resort
Chair 5 East Rim CTEC 2017 805 2388 Relocated from Glacier View
Chair 8 Hellroaring CTEC 2021 1082 - Originally opened in 1985 as Big Creek, relocated to a lower alignment in Hellroaring Basin in 1997, relocated to current alignment in 2021.
T-Bar 1 Heritage T-Bar Doppelmayr 1982 568 1964 Open on weekends. [29]
T-Bar 2 Bigfoot T-Bar Doppelmayr 2000 400 -

The vertical drop of the ski area is 2,353 feet (717 m), with a summit elevation of 6,817 ft (2,078 m) and a base of 4,464 ft (1,361 m). The average annual snowfall is 300 inches (760 cm).[30]

The ski area is about nineteen miles (31 km) north of Glacier Park International Airport and 35 miles (56 km) south of the Canada–US border.

References

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  1. ^ "Community Profile". City of Columbia Falls Montana. Retrieved 2021-01-07.
  2. ^ "Big Mountain ski area near Whitefish is region's newest resort". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). (photos). December 16, 1947. p. 22.
  3. ^ "Wins ski title". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 6, 1949. p. 8.
  4. ^ a b "About Whitefish Mountain Resort". Whitefish Mountain Resort. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  5. ^ "M'Comber tops in ski nationals". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. March 8, 1949. p. 14.
  6. ^ "Massachusetts amateur wins national ski title". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 8, 1949. p. 8.
  7. ^ Williams, Dick (December 10, 1959). "Big Mountain slopes tops; winter carnival is planned". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 23.
  8. ^ Williams, Dick (December 18, 1960). "Whitefish really big time". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 5, sports.
  9. ^ Williams, Dick (December 31, 1961). "New slopes at Big Mountain". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 4, sports.
  10. ^ Quigley, Michelle. "It's Time for Moe". MountainZone.com. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  11. ^ "OL: Downhill Men Sunday (Official List), The 1994 Winter Olympics". Oslonett. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  12. ^ "OL-Alpine: Super-G Men (Official list), The 1994 Winter Olympics". Oslonett. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  13. ^ Winter Sports, Inc. (2004-02-27). "Background, Purpose, Structure and Effect of the Reverse Split". Schedule 14A. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
  14. ^ "Montana's Cash Cowboy". He bought Big Mountain, the Whitefish ski hill, and is busy turning it into a more elaborate entity called Whitefish Mountain Resort. He's transforming the 90,000-acre Rock Creek Cattle Company into a gated, luxury vacation community with 240 home sites.
  15. ^ Hintze, Lynette (2006-11-29). "Small investors in resort get some wiggle room". Daily Inter Lake.com. Retrieved 2009-02-28.
  16. ^ Jamison, Michael (2006-12-17). "Locals dismayed at Big Mountain ski area stock plan". Missoulian. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  17. ^ "Small investors explain why they want a piece of Big Mountain". Jan 4, 2007. Retrieved 29 May 2010. Winter Sports CEO Fred Jones said the board was trying to avoid what happened with the last reverse split when an unknown investor divided his shares into numerous holdings with 149 shares apiece -- one share less than the minimum.
  18. ^ "Big Mountain becomes Whitefish Mountain". Missoulian. (Montana). June 13, 2007. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
  19. ^ "Ski resort makes big name change". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). June 14, 2007. p. A10.
  20. ^ Tabish, Dillon. "Whitefish's Mountain Mogul". FlatheadBeacon.com. Retrieved 2024-12-28.
  21. ^ "Trail at fatal Flathead avalanche site to reopen". Montana Television Network. 2008-01-27. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  22. ^ Lomax, Becky (2008-05-28). "Whitefish Mountain Resort Changes Summer Lift Policies". flatheadbeacon.com. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  23. ^ "Lift policy change notification letter". Whitefish Mountain Resort. 2008-06-13. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  24. ^ "Follow-up notification letter". Whitefish Mountain Resort. 2008-06-17. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
  25. ^ Clapp, Donnie (2008-09-25). "Whitefish Mountain Resort Newsletter: Winter Passes will Include Summer Lift Rides, Donnie is Sore, and Just What are Ski School Programs?". Whitefish Mountain Resort. Retrieved 2008-10-01.
  26. ^ Reece, Myers. "Montana Ski Resorts Don't Get As Much Love As They Should". Condé Nast Traveler. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  27. ^ "Skiing above the clouds on Big Mtn - Picture of Hellroaring Saloon & Eatery, Whitefish - TripAdvisor". www.tripadvisor.com. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  28. ^ "Whitefish, MT". 5 April 2016.
  29. ^ "Night Skiing". 5 May 2015.
  30. ^ "Whitefish Mountain Resort Statistics". Whitefish Mountain Resort. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
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