Not necessarily.
Wintergreen, a four-season recreation and second-home development in its fourth year of operation in the Blue Ridge Mountains, is content for the time being to let demand overtake supply. In fact, the management has taken the unusual step of including a warning in its brochure that visitors may not get in on peak days.
“Our immediate goal,” says manager Uel Gardner, “is to provide a quality skiing experience for those who do get in: For our present property owners and their guests/renters, who have automatic access. And for the day visitors, who are potential property owners. This means reasonably good slope cover, uncrowded runs and short lift lines.”
The area was open for business 100 consecutive days last season, despite a top elevation of 3,500 feet and only 35 inches of natural snow. Its artificial plant, rated 21,000 CFM for 55 acres of sliding surface, is one of the largest in the Southeast.
“That’s more power than it would appear we need,” Gardner points out, “but we stockpile snow whenever the weather permits. Then, the two mid-engine Snowcats and Bombardier Skidozer can be used to move it around for patching and filling during the inevitable thaws.”
Ticket sales are cut off when delays exceed 10 minutes on the double and two triple chairlifts, uphill capacity 4,600 riders per hour. This usually happens when the active skiers on the hill exceed the 2,000 figure. There were 132,623 paid admissions last year. “And that does not include the 900 property owners who had season passes,” Gardner asserts, “nor ‘comps’.” Total patronage the first year was about 29,000 and the second about 92,000.
The six runs are a quarter to a half mile in length with a 530-foot vertical drop. Except for widening of the beginner and ski school slopes, few improvements have been made since the opening. However, the main lodge, situated at the 3,400-foot-level, has had to be redesigned inside to provide more restaurant and bar space. Rental stocks have been expanded and procedures streamlined; and an additional rental outlet was added at the bottom of the eight-mile entrance road to handle special bus groups.
Wintergreen has exclusive contracts with four charter companies in Roanoke, Richmond, Virginia Beach and Washington, D.C., and gives a slight reduction on the 400 weekend daily admissions they are guaranteed. All other groups and individuals pay the full price—upped from $12 to $15 this season. There are reductions on the weekday rate (upped a dollar to $9) for large groups when rentals and lessons are included, for anyone when in-house lodging is included and for students with an ID card. “Special day” bargains are not offered. “We are doing fine without them,” Gardner says.
The ski retail shop is franchised to Par 3 of Richmond, and Clif Taylor Enterprises handles ski school promotions. Jim Woodward is ski school director and Taylor is listed as the resident professional.
The projected $100 million Wintergreen development was launched by Cabot, Cabot & Forbes, a national real estate investment firm in Boston. Bankers Trust of New York, the country’s eighth largest commercial banking entity, acquired 97 percent of the ownership in a debt settlement before the end of the first year. Some $35 million, including $3 million in the ski plant, have already been invested.
Skiing was included in the development plans, not because of its profit potential, but primarily to help sell real estate, according to L.F. Payne Jr., president of the Wintergreen management company. “Because of highly favorable weather and excellent patronage the past two seasons, it has indeed been a money-maker,” he says, “but we will want to look at a longer track record before we start expanding. The list of ski area failures in this region is rather long, and management over-enthusiasm and fickle weather are usually blamed.”
He adds: “We have a balanced ski operation now. If we add any runs or lifts, we will simultaneously have to increase parking, cafeteria, day lodge and rental facilities to avoid chaos.” More water and pressure for the snowmaking system would also be needed. An enticing additional 400 feet of vertical is available on an adjoining mountain overlooking the present ski layout.
Three other ski enterprises in Virginia and one in West Virginia take some of the overflow from Wintergreen, although they are an additional 50 to 150 driving miles from the coastal population centers. Massanutten near Harrisonburg and Bryce Mt. in Basye have also had problems with overcrowding on weekends. Additional lifts and slopes are on the drawing boards at both, as well as at The Homestead in Hot Springs, but no expansion action is imminent. Snowshoe in Slatyfork, W. Va., has been plagued its first four seasons by bankruptcy proceedings and shortages of nearby lodging.
Payne estimates that nearly 85 percent of the 1,200 families and individuals who have bought lots and condominiums at Wintergreen were attracted by the availability of skiing. There are also facilities for golf, tennis, and water and equestrian sports, and some eight miles of the famous Appalachian Trail pass through the western edge of the 13,000-acre tract. In all, more than 3,000 home sites and 2,000 condo units are to be marketed.
“Long before they are all sold, though, we will probably be forced to expand the ski area just to take care of the owners,” Gardner admits.
From the Wintergreen ski area brochure….
“In order to insure resort guests and day skiers alike of ideal conditions on the slopes, day visitor traffic will be limited on peak days, such as weekends and holidays. Skiers who are not staying overnight at Wintergreen should note that the entry gate will open at 6:00 a.m. for day skiers, 5:00 p.m. for night skiers and closes daily at 11:00 p.m.”
Ski Area Management Vital Statistics: Wintergreen, Virginia
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Vertical Rise | 525 FT. |
| Top Elevation | 3,500 FT. |
| Lift Type | Number |
|---|---|
| Tram (Capacity) | |
| Gondola (Capacity) | |
| T-Bar | |
| Poma | |
| J-Bar | |
| Single Chair | |
| Double Chair | 1 |
| Triple Chair | 2 |
| Quadruple Chair | |
| Rope | |
| Other |
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Area Capacity (vertical transport feet per hour) | 4,600 SKIERS PER HR. |
| Snow Making Capacity (no. cubic feet of air or no. guns and feet of air) | 21,000 CFM, 100% COVERAGE |
| Grooming Fleet | 2 MID ENGINE SNOWCATS, 1 BOMBADIER SKI DOZER |
| Amount of Terrain (acres or miles of trails) | 55 ACRES |
| Lift Ticket Prices: Weekend Adult | $15 |
| Lift Ticket Prices: Weekend Junior | $ 8 |
| Lift Ticket Prices: Weekday Adult | $ 9 |
| Lift Ticket Prices: Weekday Junior | $ 6 |
| Season Pass Price (standard individual) | |
| Number Full Time Employees | 204 |
| Number Seasonal Employees (not including ski school) | 175 |
| Number Full Time Instructors | 30 |
| Number Instructors, Part Time | 30 |
| Miles of Track-Set Cross Country Trails |
| Facility | Area Owned | Concession |
|---|---|---|
| Ski School | X | |
| Ski Shop | X | |
| Rental Shop | X | |
| Restaurant | X | |
| Bar | X | |
| Nursery | X |
