Whaleback-mountain

New Hampshire’s bankrupted ski area, Whaleback Mountain, is going to the auction block. The 154-acre ski area has been assessed at $950,000, and a reserve price has been set at $848,000.

“Numerous people have expressed interest in Whaleback,” Michael Hanley, a White River Junction attorney representing the bank, wrote. “Some because they wish to operate it as a community ski area, some for other reasons.”

The date of the auction has not been set but will be held sometime after August 1. The winning bidders would have to come to the 11 a.m. auction with 2 percent in cash or a certified check, with an additional 8 percent due in five days. The buyer must than pay the full amount  within 45 days.

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More on this story from Valley News

Whaleback was founded as Snowcrest in 1955 before being sold in 1968, when it took on its current name. Another ownership group took over in 1984 and installed snowmaking and lights, expanding the facility’s season from about 30 days to roughly 100. The ski area was closed from 1990-92 and again from 2001-05 before a group headed by two-time Olympic skier and Tunbridge native Evan Dybvig reopened it.

After eight seasons and weighed down by more than $1 million in debt, Dybvig and partners Frank Sparrow and Dylan Goodspeed announced another Whaleback closure in March in advance of Randolph National Bank foreclosing on the property. The trio was on shaky financial footing from the start, Dybvig said, after several potential investors dropped out and a loan from the government-run U.S. Small Business Administration didn’t materialize.

“We fell on our face pretty hard right out of the gate,’’ said Dybvig, who’s now working for a barn building company and enjoying reduced hours and stress from his eight years with Whaleback. “We intended to run a year-round action sports and community center, but we were never properly capitalized from the start. When it was time to give up the fight, there was a sense of relief.

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Whaleback Mountain: 

  • Location: Enfield, NH
  • Acres: 154
  • Vertical: 700 Feet
  • Average Snowfall: 110″
  • Lifts: 3

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