Who Will Buy Mt. Bachelor? No One, as POWDR Commits to Keeping Oregon Ski Area "Indefinitely"
Bachelor commits to upgrading antiquated power supply, free season passes for kids 12 and under; Eldora, Silver Star remain for sale
It was shocking, right? The bomb, last August, that POWDR, one of the big five U.S. ski area operators, assembler of iconic Ikons, would sell rough and rowdy Killington, the biggest and busiest ski area in the East, to a group of rich-guy locals. In an instant, the headline reset and upset the narrative of an industry that seemed to be freefalling toward consolidation and mega-passification. To underscore the point, this: POWDR would also seek buyers for Mount Bachelor, America’s seventh-largest ski area; Copper Mountain little bro Eldora, Colorado; and Silver Star, British Columbia, a mountain the size of Winter Park that the company had purchased just five years before.
That’s pretty much what I did last August – chase and break down this remarkable development. In December, I flew to Bend at the invitation of a local civic organization, to speak as an industry expert (“Vale” lol) alongside representatives from a group seeking to buy Bachelor. Check out this clip, which has amassed more than a dozen views on YouTube:
Who would end up with this volcano-shaped (because it’s a freaking volcano) prize? I laid out cases for Alterra, Vail, Boyne, California Mountain Resorts Company, Mountain Capital Partners, and Midwest Family Ski Resorts. “There doesn’t appear to be any established North American multimountain operator who isn’t interested in Mount Bachelor,” I wrote at the time, after conversations with industry folks all over the country.
But then, well, suitors slowly dropped off. Vail seemed preoccupied with Europe. Alterra reportedly backed off. In March, the local group ended their Bachelor Quest, saying that they had run out of time to submit a bid. Did this surrender foreshadow a sales announcement? An okay-we’ve-been-beaten turn after some #RealTalk with POWDR?
No, it turns out. POWDR will hold onto Mt. Bachelor “indefinitely,” the company announced on Friday.
“There are numerous factors involved in evaluating a sale,” read a company statement provided to The Storm. “After considering all facts and circumstances, POWDR has decided to retain ownership of Mt Bachelor, indefinitely. We’re excited to continue our stewardship of the resort and serve the Central Oregon community with truly one-of-a-kind skiing.”
POWDR, which also owns Copper, Snowbird, and a handful of small Woodward-branded ski areas, will continue seeking buyers for Silver Star and Eldora. The company did not provide an update on the sales process for either mountain (though a Friday press release announcing Eldora General Manager Brent Tregaskis’ retirement noted that POWDR CFO Brian Dobias would act as Eldora’s interim general manager “to ensure continuity and strategic oversight during the final stages of the previously announced sale” of the mountain. Emphasis mine. POWDR officials declined to clarify whether we ought to interpret that sentence as “we are actively in the final stages of a sale”).
Perhaps hoping to mute already-circling rumors that local Bend investors would view the Bachelor announcement as an opportunity to collect themselves and assemble an offer for the ski area, POWDR announced three substantial investments in the Oregon resort and its skier community.
First, company officials committed to a massive power upgrade, a long-time failure point that often disrupts the resort’s large chairlift network.
Second, the ski area will complete an advanced wood energy facility that processes deadfall and other timbered trees from the Forest Service into heat for Bachelor’s buildings.
Finally, Bachelor will begin offering free season passes for any dependent child 12 and under with the purchase of an adult unlimited or Outplay season pass. The program echoes those long in place at other POWDR mountains – Copper offers free season passes for kids 15 and under, and Snowbird extends that to age 18. (Willamette Pass, a smaller ski area a bit over an hour west of Bend, began offering free season passes to any child 12 or younger, no adult purchase required, after Mountain Capital Partners purchased the ski area in 2022.)
From disappointment to relief: locals weigh in
Local reaction to POWDR’s we’re-keeping-it announcement was mixed on Friday.