|
|
Hi Guys,
Just thought I'd jump in here since I see there's a lot of new posts on the subject. First, there is definitely a local category of membership. That local category is 1/10 the initiation fee and 1/4 the dues of a nonlocal member. The goal in creating a local category was to give locals a way to get involved at a pricepoint that was significantly lower than full membership. Hickory certainly recognizes that it's still real money. Of course, if you compare anything to skiing for free, it's going to be expensive. Hickory will survive only if those who ski there are willing to get involved in supporting it financially. However, it's important to note that for many families, it will be less expensive to ski Hickory as a member of the HAC than as a non-member. The discounts on season passes (which will be reintroduced after snowmaking is installed) are big: 50% of kids, 20% off adults. The goal is building and growing the community.
The local vibe at Hickory is amazing. It's what makes our ski area so wonderful. I love Megan's idea of reaching out to the local community for discounts on any number of things from rentals to ski lessons. All of those things are possible when Hickory can assure consistent operations because of snowmaking. The issue is how to get that snowmaking system installed. The are 2 key hurdles: (1) raising capital to install the system; (2) having enough income on a yearly basis to operate the system and service the debt incurred for installation. Raising the capital is the easier of the two challenges. What Hickory needs a dependable, reliable source of income on a yearly basis and that's the idea behind the Hickory Alpine Club - to create a unique club that provides a set of benefits to members in exchange for their commitment to Hickory on an annual basis.
Some of you may be involved over at MRG, but the local component of the Hickory Alpine Club is designed very much to emulate MRG. New York law doesn't allow for co-ops in this context, but every MRG co-op member gets assessed on a yearly basis (an amount well in excess of what the local dues are for the HAC) and then has a minimum they have to spend through MRG on tickets, season passes, etc. The HAC will provide benefits to its members that MRG does not (most notably a physical clubhouse, discounts on passes, etc.). Mad River Glen has survived because there are enough people out there who care about the hill to pay to be a part of it.
Given the response we've gotten so far, the Hickory board of directors is confident there are enough people out there who want to be part of the Hickory story as well. The HAC is very much an ongoing project and the sign ups so far have been very encouraging. We also had a great info session on Saturday with about 25 people in attendance. We'll do at least one more in March. We also have some great incentives available for the earliest adopters in each category that I'd be happy to share privately if anyone is curious.
DBC
PS - Megan, I just saw your e-mail as I was finishing up this reply so I'll reach out to you backchannel as well. Thanks for all your passion and great ideas!
|
Locked
