Returning to your regularly scheduled Tamarack discussion...
VR is a resort operator that focuses on established first-tier ski and golf resorts that happen to have real estate opportunities. Their primary focus is on the resort experience. Their preferred destinations have reasonable access to both destination and drive-up traffic, much like Intrawest.
Stowe is a match made in heaven for a company like VR.
All very true. However I don't see VR buying Stowe. Already a bit too snooty (as in the asking price is likely too high). VR likes to take places that are 75 or 80% of the way that they can get for a reasonable price and then take them up that next step or two into more premier level places. Examples being Breck, Keystone and Heavenly. None of them exactly glamorous places when VR got them, but solid, decent, mostly built and still 'everyman' kind of places. They add in both on-hill and base developments that take the next steps and begin up-charging for it. Breck is getting up there now IMO, with Keystone still a bit behind for up-scaling. Heavenly still has some more work, but over the next decade will move in that direction significantly IMO.
Speculation central with no rhyme or reason:
The only way I could see VR getting into Tamarack is via East-West resorts (owns A-Basin, but with very close ties to VR) or another Real estate operator. Maybe find a way to split the costs and risk while getting some potentially lucrative (in the future) development rights and putting the VR 'brand' on the operations/service to boost visit #'s short term. A long shot at best. I'd guess Starwood would look as well except Mammoth is giving them a sour taste of the industry already. Talisker could, but I think bit off more than they thought with the Canyons (and overpaid). A new western 'premier destination' for Booth Creek's eastern skiers to affiliate with/to (besides grand targhee)? Boyne already has it's remote western affiliation area for it's mid-west & east skiers - Big Sky. Perhaps a Boise RE developer? They would know the potential drive up market and how to entice skiers the extra distance far better than any of the big ski industry players mentioned so far.
3 HSQ, 2 fixed Q, 2 surface lifts... How many visits at what avg price will it take to keep that going... Not to mention that you need outsized patrol costs due to the broad ski terrain for that few visitors & lifts (or do you trim terrain down temporarily too in order to keep costs down, etc...). As always, a lot of possible outcomes at this juncture. But only 27K visitors by end of Jan is tiny. I would have thought they'd be approaching 100K+ visits per year by now (maybe that was the plan and they are way off the plan, obviously).
