Aspen Skiing Company
Encyclopedia
The Aspen Skiing Company, known locally as "Ski Co", is a commercial enterprise based in Aspen, Colorado
in the United States
.
, it operates the Aspen/Snowmass
resort complex, comprising four ski areas
near the town of Aspen. The history of the company has in many ways paralleled, reflected, refracted entertained and tormented the inhabitants of the former silver town hamlet. Born out of the imagination of a cadre of World War II veterans, they hoped to create a skiing wonderland nestled deep in the middle of nowhere Colorado. In fact the company never paid dividends until its sale to Twentieth Century Fox. That is when the ticket prices began to soar. In the Seventies, ticket prices were just over 10 dollars a day. Now they are just over 100 dollars a day. Season passes are nearly 2000.
Paepcke, a successful Chicago
industrialist, founded the company as part of larger effort at turning Aspen, a somewhat forgotten silver
mining
town, into an idyllic center for the advancement of the body, mind, and Spirit. As part of the larger effort, Paepcke also founded other cultural institutions such as the Aspen Institute
and the Aspen Music Festival. The company established the Aspen Mountain
ski resort on mountain of the same name
above the town of Aspen. The first chair lift, Lift-1, opened on December 14, 1946 and was the world's longest chairlift
at the time. In 1950, the company hosted the FIS World Alpine Championships, the first international skiing competition in the United States
. In the following decades, the company opened Buttermilk
in 1958 and the Snowmass
(originally the Snowmass-at-Aspen Ski Area) in 1967. In 1993 the company assumed ownership and operation of Aspen Highlands
, which was founded in 1958 by Colorado Ski Hall of Famer: Whip Jones
. The Aspen Skiing Company is currently owned by the Crown family of Chicago, who are also among the most influential stockholders and board members of defense contractor General Dynamics
.
As of November 2006, the President and CEO of the company is Mike Kaplan, who succeeded Pat O'Donnell.
Aspen, Colorado
The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 5,804 in 2005...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
History
Founded in 1946 by Walter PaepckeWalter Paepcke
Walter Paepcke was a U.S. industrialist and philanthropist prominent in the middle-20th century.-Biography:A longtime executive of the Chicago-based Container Corporation of America, Paepcke is best noted for his founding of the Aspen Institute and the Aspen Skiing Company in the early 1950s, both...
, it operates the Aspen/Snowmass
Aspen/Snowmass
Aspen/Snowmass is an expansive winter resort complex located in Pitkin County in western Colorado in the United States. Owned and operated by the Aspen Skiing Company it comprises four skiing/snowboarding areas on four adjacent mountains in the vicinity of the towns of Aspen and Snowmass Village...
resort complex, comprising four ski areas
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
near the town of Aspen. The history of the company has in many ways paralleled, reflected, refracted entertained and tormented the inhabitants of the former silver town hamlet. Born out of the imagination of a cadre of World War II veterans, they hoped to create a skiing wonderland nestled deep in the middle of nowhere Colorado. In fact the company never paid dividends until its sale to Twentieth Century Fox. That is when the ticket prices began to soar. In the Seventies, ticket prices were just over 10 dollars a day. Now they are just over 100 dollars a day. Season passes are nearly 2000.
Paepcke, a successful Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
industrialist, founded the company as part of larger effort at turning Aspen, a somewhat forgotten silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
town, into an idyllic center for the advancement of the body, mind, and Spirit. As part of the larger effort, Paepcke also founded other cultural institutions such as the Aspen Institute
Aspen Institute
The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
and the Aspen Music Festival. The company established the Aspen Mountain
Aspen Mountain (ski area)
Aspen Mountain is a ski area located in Pitkin County, Colorado, just outside and above the city of Aspen. It is situated on the north flank of Aspen Mountain and the higher Bell Mountain at an elevation of 11,212 ft just to the south of Aspen Mountain...
ski resort on mountain of the same name
Aspen Mountain (Colorado)
Aspen Mountain is a mountain in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado in the United States. One of the foothills of the Elk Mountains, it is located just south of the town of Aspen, which is situated at the foot of the mountain at the southeast end of the valley of the Roaring Fork River in Pitkin County...
above the town of Aspen. The first chair lift, Lift-1, opened on December 14, 1946 and was the world's longest chairlift
Chairlift
An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel cable loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs...
at the time. In 1950, the company hosted the FIS World Alpine Championships, the first international skiing competition in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. In the following decades, the company opened Buttermilk
Buttermilk (ski area)
Buttermilk Ski Area is frequently considered the easiest skiing mountain in Aspen, Colorado. Buttermilk has also been the host to the ESPN Winter X-games multiple times. It is also home to one of the best ski schools and children's programs in the United States. It contains three ski...
in 1958 and the Snowmass
Snowmass (ski area)
Snowmass is a part of the Aspen/Snowmass ski resort complex located in western Colorado near the town of Aspen, Colorado. It is owned and operated by the Aspen Skiing Company. Snowmass is the largest of the four Aspen/Snowmass mountains, comprising . The mountain is most notable for its wide...
(originally the Snowmass-at-Aspen Ski Area) in 1967. In 1993 the company assumed ownership and operation of Aspen Highlands
Aspen Highlands
Aspen Highlands is a skiing mountain in Aspen, Colorado. It is famous for the Highland Bowl, which provides some of the most intense skiing in the state. The lift system has recently been redone and provides quick transport around the mountain.-History:...
, which was founded in 1958 by Colorado Ski Hall of Famer: Whip Jones
Whip Jones
Whipple Van Ness "Whip" Jones was a ski industry pioneer, founder, developer and the original operator for 35 years, of the Aspen Highlands ski area in Aspen, Colorado. Whip Jones and the company he founded, Aspen Highlands, won a US Supreme Court case against his rival, the Aspen Skiing Company...
. The Aspen Skiing Company is currently owned by the Crown family of Chicago, who are also among the most influential stockholders and board members of defense contractor General Dynamics
General Dynamics
General Dynamics Corporation is a U.S. defense conglomerate formed by mergers and divestitures, and as of 2008 it is the fifth largest defense contractor in the world. Its headquarters are in West Falls Church , unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, in the Falls Church area.The company has...
.
As of November 2006, the President and CEO of the company is Mike Kaplan, who succeeded Pat O'Donnell.