Skiing-Bethel, Maine

1958 - 1960

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Sunday River by Mike Thurston continued. At this point it we realized that it had been fun dreaming for us but we had no money. Henry Hastings drew up the incorporation papers at no charge. We set the value of the stock at $10. We figured could get in business for $90,000. Our stock was not considered a real hot investment item so we devised a plan whereby 90% of all money raised went into escrow until we reached the $90,000 mark leaving us 10% for promotion We* applied to the Small Business Administration for a $40,000 loan. Fund raising involved selling lifetime passes for $1000 and five year passes for $500. We reached $80,000 which seemed to be the end. Gould Academy bought $10,000 which put us over the top but they drove a hard bargain. They insisted on free skiing (in perpetuity for all students, faculty And Trustees.) they relented on this and settled for reduced rates for students which we probably would have given them anyway. Our loan application was approved. We then went out to bid on ski lift components. Victor Hall of Watertown, Mass., received the contract. Eventually the lift components arrived in the parking lot. Johnny Rolfe, who had cleared the trails, figured out how to get the pieces up the mountain and erect them. We opened on Dec. 19, 1959 with one 3,000 T-bar reaching two thirds of the way to the top. Two years later we put in another T-bar to the summit and after another two years put in the Mixing Bowl Lift. In the early * The loan application was actually submitted by the Bethel Area Development Corporation (BADC). At first ski area directors wore three hats – chamber of commerce, BADC and Sunday River.

Seventies we decided to put in a Chair lift. The Pullman-Berry Company evidently decided to branch out and build chairlifts. For awhile we wished they had stayed in the railroad business but it eventually worked out. We struggled along for a few years with the directors doing much of the work and even the wives took turns sleeping at the lodge since the furnace was not completely dependable. (Click here to see the special offering and other financial details contained within it issued June 24,1960.) I believe it was in the early seventies that the Killington Ski Area in Vermont made us an offer which we accepted. They sent over as manager a young trainee named Les Otten. After A year or so they decided we didn't have much future but Les did see the possibilities and bought the entire area from them personally. There was a story at that time that Killington loaned him the money to buy it. As for seeing the future I remember being in his office shortly after he bought it and one whole wall had a sketch of the mountain with several chair lifts drawn on the sketch. Most of them are now In place. I'm not sure of these figures but I think I have heard that there have been days that there have been as many as 12,000 skiers on the mountain and up to as many as 1,000 employees including cooks, chambermaids, parking lots attendants etc. Anyway it has made a tremendous employment engine to say nothing of the increased value of houses, land etc. Notes: Murray (Mike) Thurston wrote this paper in 2005 and the above is his original text as of September 20, 2005