Winter Park's Nearly 80 Year Old Ski Club Won't Return This Year

[ski otter 2]

This morning, thursday, there was a detailed article about the Eskimo Ski Club closing, on the front page. The club was forced out of its small W.P. frontside club office/gear stash/child comfort space, and in the end didn't feel it could continue with lesser alternatives offered, according to the article, and Anne Buckley.
I called someone at Winter Park, got a nice fellow involved in the negotiations, who tried to explain Winter Park's point of view. He pretty much said what appears in the Post article below, including, if I'm not mistaken, that the annual value of that space to Winter Park was about $50,000 (per season? or per month?), whereas the club was paying $3,000, I believe (per season?), for the same.

https://theknow.denverpost.com/2018/08/08/winter-park-eskimo-ski-club-closes/191729/

(I hope the article is accessible.)

 

[cantunamunch]

Got through to the article fine. I expect 'annual' means once per year/season?

 

[fatbob]

Feels like there is more to the story than just a debate over location - surely you don't just give up on a generation of kids without some other factors being at play

 

[pete]

sad for the kids ... wow, over 300. Wonder long term affect. Given they're bused maybe some other resort with space can accommodate em.

 

[RickyG]

Both of my kids (now adults) we're taught skiing and life skill through the Eskimo Ski Club, great organization, great ski shop. After years of skiing at WP/MJ I'm becoming disappointed in the areas management trying to become a "resort" instead of embracing what made the area what it is the Denver day skier. As long as my wife's lifetime season pass (she worked with the disabled program for 21 years) is still being honored we'll stay, but if her well earned benefit is also thrown under the bus with the Eskimo Ski Club we'll be looking for another ski area to call home. Heck we got married at the top of the WP side 20 years ago.

 

[SkiNurse]

"We started running the Eskimo Ski Club in 1959, which was the year we got married Our vows were to love, honor and teach Eskimos for as long as we both shall live".
https://www.9news.com/video/news/lo...s-its-shutting-down-after-79-years/73-8212060

 

[ski otter 2]

I, my brother, and sister, and friends, learned skiing in the Eskimos, starting in 1953/54, probably. I had colored patches on my arm below the shoulder, each for a skill learned: green (beginning skills), yellow (snowplow), blue (stem turn), half-red, red (stem-christy), half-maroon, maroon (beginning parallel), white (some skill at parallel turns), lower black (parallel proficiency, usually), upper black (for racing wins, usually), then the rainbows: quarter, half, full (for racing, usually). I can remember what the patches looked like. And I can remember the Buckleys, the instructors, the other racers, the other kids. What a great time, on both the train and slopes. One of the great experiences of my life, for half a dozen or more years.

 

[Chris Walker]

To be honest, being a WP regular the last 5 years I had no idea it was still going on. Everyone I know who grew up in Denver seems like they were a part of it.

 

[ski otter 2]

Frank Buckley Jr. and his sister, Anne (son and daughter of the founders), still run the Eskimo Ski Shop down in Centennial. It's a great place. People are very nice and knowledgeable, markups are low. They are child and all mountain skier/family focused, not racer oriented so much, although they will research, explain and order race gear at low markups for you, if you ask them to. They have been very patient with me that way.

(Way back when, the Shop used to be located near Capital Hill, up on East Eighth Ave. or thereabouts.)