Whaleback (ski area)

The ski area dates to 1956, when a small slope called Snow Crest Ski Area was developed by Lebanon Outing Club ski jumping champion Ernest Dion.[2] It had a 1,500-foot (460 m) T-bar and a 600-foot (180 m) rope tow for novices.

Snow Crest closed in 1968 and reopened in 1970 as Whaleback Ski Area. It operated continuously until 2001 when then-owner Timothy Herbert closed it.[3] On 8 December 2004, Herbert sold Whaleback to Evan Dybvig, a former freestyle skier for the US Ski Team.[3] In preparation for its reopening, $1 million was spent in renovating the area, which opened for the 2005-2006 ski season.[4][5] Dybvig intended for the ski area to diversify its offerings into the freestyle sports market, including constructing an indoor sports facility.[3] However, after several investors dropped out of the project, and a planned loan from the Small Business Administration failed to materialize, these plans were dropped.[6] During the area's first two seasons, poor weather hurt it financially, leading to a program announced in August 2006 where individuals could pay to either place a plaque on or paint one of the chairs on Whaleback's chairlift.[5][7] As of 2010, the ski area employed between five and nine employees, and had a revenue of between $500,000 and $1 million per year.[8]

On 14 March 2013, Whaleback announced that high debt had led the mountain to close after the 2012-2013 season.[6] According to Dybvig, Whaleback owed its creditors more than $1 million, and was unable to raise additional funding, leading it to liquidate before it was forced into foreclosure.[6]

During the summer of 2013, a local non-profit organization, the Upper Valley Snow Sports Foundation (UVSSF), was established to operate and eventually purchase the mountain.[9] An initial round of fundraising raised about $200,000, enough to reopen Whaleback for the 2013-2014 season.[9] The UVSSF signed an agreement with the owner of the property, Randolph National Bank, to operate the ski area for a year, and purchased it in 2013 for $650,000.[9] It is seeking to raise money to purchase a second parcel adjoining the ski area. [10]

Whaleback has 30 trails on 85 acres (34 ha) of skiable terrain.[11] 28% of the trails are rated as easy, 39% are intermediate and the remainder are advanced.[11] The longest trail is 1 mi (1.6 km) long.[11] There is one terrain park, and 60% of the terrain has snowmaking installed on it.[11][12] There are four lifts: a double chair, a T-Bar, a magic carpet and a handle tow.[12] The mountain's base elevation is at 1,100 ft (340 m), and the summit is at 1,800 ft (550 m), for a vertical drop of 700 ft (210 m).[11] Whaleback has an average annual snowfall of 110 inches (280 cm).[11]