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Soldier Mountain Giveaway

post #1 of 13
4/8/12 at 7:42am
Thread Starter 

I saw a recent Firsttracksonline article [ http://www.firsttracksonline.com/2012/04/05/actor-bruce-willis-to-give-away-idahos-soldier-mountain-ski-area-for-free/ ] that Bruce Willis is looking to donate his Soldier Mtn, ID (1,400' vertical) ski area to the local county to be run as a non profit ski operation.  That's pretty neat if it comes off.  Never been there or heard much about it.  Is it the kind of mountain for Die Hards or more in The Expendables category?wink.gif

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post #2 of 13
4/9/12 at 1:05pm

That's pretty cool.  I wonder if Willis is losing interest in skiing. 

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post #3 of 13
10/11/12 at 12:20am

he did it:

 

http://www.etonline.com/news/125796_Bruce_Willis_Donates_Ski_Resort_to_Non_Profit/index.html
 

 

http://www.soldiermountain.com/

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post #4 of 13
10/11/12 at 7:01am

Hey, they've got a great new lodge.  They burnt the old one down a day after the season ended a few years ago for the insurance money (hmmmmm - wink wink, nudge nudge, electrical problem, say no more!?!?!).

 

It's sorta in the middle - not Diehard or Expendable.  There's some good stuff off the upper chair after a long traverse, and Braveheart is a decent black diamond that's mostly in the shade so it keeps fresh.  They used to have truely heinous bathrooms, but that might have changed with the new lodge.  I've had some great powder days there (first time I ever ditched the wife for a whole day on a ski hill).  They don't have the population nearby to make it a money-maker, and I think Willis bought it when Sun Valley and him got sideways somehow as some kind of pissoff gesture.  They had a side country cat-ski operation for a short while, but I never got a chance to sample the goodies.

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post #5 of 13
10/11/12 at 7:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Trekchick View Post

That's pretty cool.  I wonder if Willis is losing interest in skiing. 

 

Or gaining interest in doing good things for others.

 

If I remember right, he worked very hard to get to where he is (bartender route to make ends meet). 

 

Love it when folks that make it, give back.

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post #6 of 13
10/11/12 at 7:36am

My comment wasn't a cut on Bruce Willis, just a curiosity question as his kids grow and life changes. 

 I'm pretty aware of his charitable heart. 

I think this is a pretty cool thing he's doing.  

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post #7 of 13
10/11/12 at 8:48am

Here's a clip from Soldier that we did a couple of years ago.  The lodge is a HUGE improvement over what was there.  It's a fun community hill that can offer some solid backcountry options, if you choose to hike or take advantage of their cat operation.  And yes, the bathrooms are significantly nicer than the old lodge offered.  It's great for the locals to be able to have this available to them as the only other semi-close hill is Sun Valley and most of them likely can't afford to ski there regularly.  Congratulations to the non-profit and kudos to Willis for his donation to the people there.

 

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post #8 of 13
10/11/12 at 12:34pm

icon14.gif

 

Not like I needed another reason to like Bruce Willis.. Decent musician, great actor, awesome sense of humor, philanthropist and SKIER!  I didn't know he was a skier at all.  Must be cause he had his own damn mountain!yahoo.gif

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post #9 of 13
10/11/12 at 1:43pm

I think he's losing his interest in Idaho. His Hailey home and downtown block (including the Mint Bar) are up for sale. That's what the Boise paper said in announcing the creation of the NFP that was taking over the ski area.

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post #10 of 13
10/11/12 at 1:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by lifer View Post

I think he's losing his interest in Idaho. His Hailey home and downtown block (including the Mint Bar) are up for sale. That's what the Boise paper said in announcing the creation of the NFP that was taking over the ski area.

Kids grow up, interests change and life changes with it.....

It seems that he's doing good things with what he can. 

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post #11 of 13
10/11/12 at 7:24pm

Not to denigrate Mr. WIllis' charitable efforts, but do you think he might be giving Soldier away since he can't find a buyer?

 

I would expect the non-profit to putz along for a couple of years, then maybe a bank with some loans sunk in the place will try to run it for a couple more, hoping that an operating ski resort is more attractive to buyers than a closed one.  Then the place will be open only to those with their own uphill transit system.

 

I've seen this played out here in Wyoming with White Pine and Snowy Range.  One is closed and one is tetering.  It's probably only a few years off with Snow King too.

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post #12 of 13
10/11/12 at 7:41pm

The skiing at Soldier doesn't interest me too much, but the backcountry above it has great potential.  The top elevation at 7,200 feet is where the "real skiing" gets started.  There are a half a dozen peaks above the resort in the 9,000 - 10,000 foot range.  I know that there is a decent number of people from the Boise area that have done backcountry treks up there.  I just haven't had the chance yet.  I did a reconnaissance trip in there this spring.  We didn't get very much vertical because the snow was getting too soft.  I am excited to go back in 2013 and get some great skiing in.  If anyone is interested in joining me, just drop me an email.

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post #13 of 13
10/12/12 at 6:04am

Bruce did nothing to the area. Let it run down to less then 7000 skier days from more then 25000 with the previous owners. The new group wants to get back to what use to be.

 

They also are talking about cat trips to peak 1 and one ride for 10 bucks to the bowl to the south of the ski area on Saturdays. They have been sprucing up the whole area again. Can you say POWDER.

 

The new group use to own the area.

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