GREEK PEAK---SOLD---to YOU!!!!

Noah John wrote

We're down to snowgun porn.  Stick a fork in it boyz - it's over.

Haha, hilarious and entirely true.

Rj1972 wrote

I still have to think that something is going on with the Kryger's behind the scenes. I'm flabbergasted that they would let the place go for only $7.5M.

They didn't let it go.  They had no say in it.

Regardless of who held the deed, the FDIC essentially owned it, forced it to sale, and probably asked the bankruptcy judge to approve the bid so they could get that whale off their books and move on. The Krygers have been standing by with their hands on their ***** for a while.  They were too unsophisticated to understand their own market and basic finance and economics.

As for upgrades - snowmaking, and then put in some trails that do something besides do straight down the mountain. And then marketing -- give people incentive to be there and to spend some money while they are - i.e. - make day pass pricing  more attractive to the age group that will actually come and spend money on (decent) food, drinks, lessons, tubing, coaster rides.  Half the battle is getting a person to be there...once they're there, make it irresitible for them to spend that next $10, and the next, and the next.  Make them want to come back, and package the activities to they can.

What I meant is that I wonder why the Kryger's didn't bid on the place, themselves.  I know they had a different strategy a few weeks before the bidding process started,  but once the bidding began, I was really quite shocked that they didn't enter it.  Al knew exactly who was bidding on the place, so he knew his competition before the initial bids were opened, and bidders could alter their bids.  Having spent time with the Kryger's, I have to say that folks don't give them nearly enough credit.  Say what you will about their neglect of the ski area, but Al is no backwoods hillbilly.  

Rj1972 wrote

Say what you will about their neglect of the ski area, but Al is no backwoods hillbilly.

A backwoods hillbilly would have understood the math of $56M of debt not being supportable by what is basically a small local ski mountain with a couple add-on attractions that aren't large or unique enough to be draws on their own.

Rj - as far as the Krygers not bidding on it - my guess is there were discussions behind the scenes that prevented that from occurring. If they had managed to submit the winning bid, I bet it would have been rejected. And I bet they knew that.

billybummer your nearsighted view of greek as nothing more than a little podunk ski hill is clear. i'm glad the krygers and others have passion and vision to sustain the place!

Rj1972 wrote

   Having spent time with the Kryger's, I have to say that folks don't give them nearly enough credit.  Say what you will about their neglect of the ski area, but Al is no backwoods hillbilly.

Your not kidding there---Al has lined his pockets for years----he'll be just fine

gorgonzola wrote

billybummer your nearsighted view of greek as nothing more than a little podunk ski hill is clear. i'm glad the krygers and others have passion and vision to sustain the place!

billyymc wrote

 
As for upgrades - snowmaking, and then put in some trails that do something besides do straight down the mountain.  

I hate to be the one to break this to ya Billy, but GP is a hill not a mountain. When your skiing a hill all you can do go straight down the hill. No room for long winding trails on 900 vert.

gorgonzola wrote

billybummer your nearsighted view of greek as nothing more than a little podunk ski hill is clear. i'm glad the krygers and others have passion and vision to sustain the place!

Gorg - seriously?  The Krygers "vision" drove the place into bankruptcy, and right to the brink of liquidation and permanent closure.

My hope is that the new owners understand how to grow the place into a profitable sustainable business that can be intelligently improved and expanded.  Being out from under $56M in debt is a big leap toward that possibility.

I doubt that a vision that included $56M in debt could EVER have been successful, even if the Krygers had understood how to 1) increase skier visits, and 2) increase spend per skier visit.  They misunderstood their current customer base, and had no clue how to attract a new customer base.

They Krygers vision was a hallucination. Like the proposed terrain on the trail map for the last 10 years. Someone convinced them GP could support a crazy debt load.  It can't. Not as is, and probably not ever to the extent they got into it.

Why do you think none of the other bidders were other ski resorts Gorg?  I'm not being a bummer, I'm being a realist.  Phantom trail expansion and a "build it and they will come" mentality is NOT vision.  The waterpark isn't a big enough attraction on it's own to draw a lot of customers who aren't coming first to ski. Same for the Adventure Center.  Neither of those will pull in year-round crowds of people who will FILL A ROOM in the lodge.

You ever see the Simpsons "monorail" episode?

campgottagopee wrote

billyymc wrote

 
As for upgrades - snowmaking, and then put in some trails that do something besides do straight down the mountain.  

I hate to be the one to break this to ya Billy, but GP is a hill not a mountain. When your skiing a hill all you can do go straight down the hill. No room for long winding trails on 900 vert.

Where's your vision Camp?   I get your point, but it's not impossible to make the current setup more interesting.  

billyymc wrote

 

Where's your vision Camp?    


I see boobies---boobies everywhere

campgottagopee wrote

billyymc wrote

 
As for upgrades - snowmaking, and then put in some trails that do something besides do straight down the mountain.  

I hate to be the one to break this to ya Billy, but GP is a hill not a mountain. When your skiing a hill all you can do go straight down the hill. No room for long winding trails on 900 vert.

 being from pa i ski alot of "hills" and think that greek ranks near the top as far as variation of trails and terrain. that's one of things that brought me there in the first place. you boys need to get out more

campgottagopee wrote

billyymc wrote

 

Where's your vision Camp?    

I see boobies---boobies everywhere

gorgonzola wrote

campgottagopee wrote

billyymc wrote

 
As for upgrades - snowmaking, and then put in some trails that do something besides do straight down the mountain.  

I hate to be the one to break this to ya Billy, but GP is a hill not a mountain. When your skiing a hill all you can do go straight down the hill. No room for long winding trails on 900 vert.

 being from pa i ski alot of "hills" and think that greek ranks near the top as far as variation of trails and terrain. that's one of things that brought me there in the first place. you boys need to get out more

Agree on both points. For a "hill" GP has some good and interesting terrain, hell, it's a blast skiing there.

We rarely leave Cortland County

Yeah, I can't argue with that one.  They do currently have 51% of the timeshares sold.  Where they really fell short was their target of 74% after the second year.  The "build it, and they will come" mentality did not pan out, nor did the occupancy at the lodge off season.  The place doesn't have the following as it did back in the 70's and 80's due to their stagnation.  Heck, we drove back and forth to New England just about every weekend for more than two decades before we got tired of the drive and crowds.  This is what returned us to GP.