Bogus Basin
Encyclopedia
Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area is a ski area located in southwest
Southwestern Idaho
Southwestern Idaho is a geographical term for the area along the state of Idaho's borders with Oregon and Nevada. It includes the populous areas of the Boise metropolitan area, Treasure Valley and Magic Valley.-Counties:Ada |Adams |Boise |Canyon |...

 Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....

 in Boise County
Boise County, Idaho
Boise County is a rural mountain county in the U.S. state of Idaho. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census; it was estimated at 7,571 in 2007...

, 16 miles (26 km) north-northeast of the city of Boise
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...

.

Bogus is operated by the Bogus Basin Recreation Association, a non-profit organization, on private and leased land in the Boise National Forest
Boise National Forest
The Boise National Forest is a US national forest located north and east of the city of Boise, Idaho. It is about 2,612,000 acres in size, ranging in elevation from 2,600 to 9,800 feet . The mountainous landscape developed through uplifting, faulting, and stream cutting...

. Ski season generally runs from Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...

 weekend until the weekend preceding April 15, depending on snow conditions. The area also has cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...

 on 23 miles (37 km) of Nordic
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...

 trails.

Ski area

Alf Engen
Alf Engen
Alf Engen was a Norwegian-American skier and skiing school owner/teacher. Alf Engen set several ski jumping world records during the 1930s.-Background:...

, the father of the American powder technique, selected the site for the ski area at Bogus Basin in 1939. Bogus opened to the public in December 1942 with a 500 foot (150 m) rope tow
Ski tow
thumb|right|A rope tow or ski tow.A ski tow, also called rope tow or handle tow, is a mechanised system for pulling skiers and snowboarders uphill....

.

The first 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 Bogus was installed in 1959 at Deer Point and night skiing debuted in December 1964. The resort currently operates 7 chairlifts and one Magic Carpet
Magic carpet (ski lift)
A magic carpet is a type of surface lift installed at ski areas to transport skiers and snowboarders up the hill...

. Three of the chairlifts are high-speed quads
Detachable chairlift
A detachable chairlift or high-speed chairlift is a type of passenger aerial lift, which, like a fixed-grip chairlift, consists of numerous chairs attached to a constantly moving wire rope that is strung between two terminals over intermediate towers. They are now commonplace at all but the...

 (#1 Deer Point, and #6 Pine Creek) were installed in 1996 and 1999, and the newest on #3 "Superior" in Summer 2011.

Bogus Basin has 2600 acres (10.5 km²) of mixed runs, bowls, and glades, with 900 acres (3.6 km²) groomed. The lift-served vertical drop is 1790 feet (546 m) on the east-facing "back side," with a summit elevation
Elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....

 of 7582 feet (2311 m) above sea level at the top of Shafer Butte, the highest point of the Boise Ridge mountains. This back side of Shafer Butte was opened in January 1977, following the installation of chair #6 (Pine Creek) the previous summer. A fixed-grip double for 23 seasons, it became a high-speed quad in the summer of 1999.

On the front side, Bogus Basin's southern lift-served summit is at "Doe Point," adjacent to Deer Point, which is slightly higher and covered with communications towers at an elevation of 7070 feet (2155 m). Both vantage points overlook Boise
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...

 and the entire Treasure Valley
Treasure Valley
The Treasure Valley is the area of the Western United States where the Payette, Boise, Weiser, Malheur, Owyhee, and Burnt rivers drain into the Snake River. Treasure Valley includes all the lowland areas from Vale, Oregon on the west to Boise, Idaho on the east. Formerly, the valley had been known...

, over 4000 vertical feet (1219 m) below. Bogus' base area and main day lodge (J. R. Simplot
J. R. Simplot
John Richard Simplot was the founder of the J. R. Simplot Company, an agricultural supplier specializing in potato products, based in Boise, Idaho. In 2007 he was estimated to be the 89th-richest person in America, at $3.6 billion...

 Lodge, formerly Bogus Creek) are at 6150 feet (1875 m), at the base of the north-facing slopes served by the #1 (Deer Point) quad chairlift, installed in the summer of 1996. The original double chairlift on #1 was installed in 1959 and upgraded in 1981. The #4 (Showcase) double chair, which replaced a surface poma lift
Poma
Poma, also known as Pomagalski S.A. is a French company, specialising in construction of cable-driven lift systems, including fixed and detachable chairlifts, gondola lifts, funiculars, aerial tramways, people movers, and surface lifts. Poma has installed more than 7800 devices on five continents,...

 in 1972, is east of and parallel with the #1 chair. The #7 double chair (Coach) has served the beginner area since 1996; it is the relocated and shortened #1 chairlift of 1981. It honors Bill "Coach" Everts, an early area manager and longtime director.

At mid-mountain, a second day lodge (Pioneer Lodge - 1973) sits at 6800 feet (2072 m) with a sizable parking lot, a cluster of condominiums (1975), and the Jason Harper Training Center. From this Pioneer area, there is direct access to the gentle south-facing slopes served by the #2 (Morning Star - 1965) chairlift and the north-facing slopes of the #5 (Bitterroot - 1973) double chair (vertical: 525' - 160 m), which runs only on weekends and holidays. In addition, there is connecting trail access to the base of the #3 (Superior) chairlift. With its 1500 foot (460 m) vertical rise, chair #3 serves the advanced & expert terrain on the northern face of Shafer Butte, unloading at 7480 feet (2280 m). The original fixed-grip double chair was used for nearly a half century and was a 9 minute ride. It was replaced by a high-speed quad in the summer of 2011, which will cut the ride time in half. Night skiing
Night skiing
Night skiing is the sport of skiing or snowboarding after sundown, offered at many ski resorts and mountains. There are usually electric lights along the piste which allow for better visibility...

 was added to chair #3 with the installation of lights in the summer of 1986, and chair #2 was changed from a double to a triple in the late 1990s.

Bogus Basin's average annual snowfall is 200-250 inches (508–635 cm). Due to limited water resources
Water resources
Water resources are sources of water that are useful or potentially useful. Uses of water include agricultural, industrial, household, recreational and environmental activities. Virtually all of these human uses require fresh water....

, there is no significant snow making, only small portable units for patching. Night skiing
Night skiing
Night skiing is the sport of skiing or snowboarding after sundown, offered at many ski resorts and mountains. There are usually electric lights along the piste which allow for better visibility...

 is available on 165 acres (0.67 km²), on runs served by five of the chairlifts (none on #5 or #6). Three terrain park
Terrain park
A terrain park is an outdoor area that contains terrain that allows skiers and snowboarders to perform tricks. Terrain parks have their roots in skateparks and many of the features are common to both. One of the first in-bounds terrain parks was the "Snowboard Park" built in 1990 at the Vail...

s are also available; two on the Deer Point mountain, one for advanced, the other for beginner to intermediate skill level. The Sunshine Park is located on the Morning Star side of the mountain.

The main day lodge at Bogus Creek was built in 1962; its ground floor contains the ticket office and ski lockers. In 2002, it was named for agribusiness magnate J. R. Simplot
J. R. Simplot
John Richard Simplot was the founder of the J. R. Simplot Company, an agricultural supplier specializing in potato products, based in Boise, Idaho. In 2007 he was estimated to be the 89th-richest person in America, at $3.6 billion...

, because without him, there might not be a Bogus Basin. When the fledgling ski area was struggling to pay its debts in 1953, Simplot bought its ski lifts and other mountain improvements from the Kingcliffe Co. and sold them back to the Bogus Basin Recreational Association for just one dollar. His intervention averted almost certain financial demise and won the everlasting gratitude of a generation of skiers. Simplot was also the driving force behind Brundage Mountain
Brundage Mountain
Brundage Mountain Resort is an alpine ski area in west central Idaho, in the Payette National Forest. Brundage first opened in November 1961 and is 8 miles northwest of McCall, a twenty minute drive in average winter conditions....

 northwest of McCall
McCall, Idaho
McCall is a resort town on the western edge of Valley County, Idaho, United States. Named after its founder, Tom McCall, it is situated on the southern shore of Payette Lake, near the center of the Payette National Forest...

, which opened in November 1961.

Chairlifts

Lift Name Vertical
Drop
Length Type Ride
Time
Hourly
Capacity
Gradient Year
# 1 - Deer Point 880' - (268 m) 3905' - (1190 m) High Speed Quad
Detachable chairlift
A detachable chairlift or high-speed chairlift is a type of passenger aerial lift, which, like a fixed-grip chairlift, consists of numerous chairs attached to a constantly moving wire rope that is strung between two terminals over intermediate towers. They are now commonplace at all but the...

4 min 23.1% - (13.0 deg.) 1996 (1981, 1959)
# 2 - Morning Star 625' - (190 m) 3108' - (947 m) Triple (1999) 7 min 20.5% - (11.6 deg.) 1965
# 3 - Superior 1500' - (457 m) 4480' - (1365 m) High Speed Quad
Detachable chairlift
A detachable chairlift or high-speed chairlift is a type of passenger aerial lift, which, like a fixed-grip chairlift, consists of numerous chairs attached to a constantly moving wire rope that is strung between two terminals over intermediate towers. They are now commonplace at all but the...

4.5 min 35.5% - (19.6 deg.) 2011 (1965)
# 4 - Showcase 640' - (195 m) 3520' - (1073 m) Double 7 min 18.5% - (10.5 deg.) 1972
# 5 - Bitterroot 525' - (160 m) 2566' - (782 m) Double 6 min 20.9% - (11.8 deg.) 1973
# 6 - Pine Creek 1780' - (542 m) 5800' - (1768 m) High Speed Quad
Detachable chairlift
A detachable chairlift or high-speed chairlift is a type of passenger aerial lift, which, like a fixed-grip chairlift, consists of numerous chairs attached to a constantly moving wire rope that is strung between two terminals over intermediate towers. They are now commonplace at all but the...

6 min 32.3% - (17.9 deg.) 1999 (1976)
# 7 - Coach Double 1996


The Name "Bogus Basin"

How Bogus Basin actually earned its name is a matter of debate. One version dates to the 1880s, when two prospectors loaded a shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...

  with a few dollars' worth of gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

 dust and blasted it into the walls of a worthless cave near Shafer Butte. They galloped down to Boise
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...

 where they slammed their "find" on a local bar and sold shares in the "mine" to gullible patrons. By the time the new owners realized that they had been fleeced, the swindlers had disappeared.

Another version is a two-paged story of a hard-to-find drainage and an 1863 mining claim. Captain Tom Morgan and a group of no-accounts, filed a claim in the area of the current base facilities, near Shafer Butte. Later they returned to Boise with the fruits of their labor, reportedly as much as $50,000 worth of gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

. After a legendary spending spree, it was discovered to be Fool's Gold (iron pyrite
Pyrite
The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its resemblance to gold...

) that had been chemically tuned up. The group was neither caught nor ever seen again.

Other activities

The GoldRush Tubing Hill opened in the fall of 2003, constructed just west of the main parking lot for about $100,000. Annual revenues from the hill were expected to be four to five times that figure; revenues for its fourth season (2006–07) were just under $140,000.

Some summer activities are available at Bogus, including hiking
Hiking
Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...

, mountain biking
Mountain biking
Mountain biking is a sport which consists of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, using specially adapted mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain.Mountain biking can...

 (no lift service), and a disc golf
Disc golf
Disc golf is a disc game in which individual players throw a flying disc into a basket or at a target. According to the Professional Disc Golf Association, "The object of the game is to traverse a course from beginning to end in the fewest number of throws of the disc." Of the more than 3000...

 course. The disc golf course opened in July 2005, centered at the mid-mountain Pioneer Lodge; the upper area of chair 5 (Bitterroot) hosts the north nine, and the south nine is on the upper area of chair 2 (Morning Star).

Bogus Basin Road

Bogus is accessed by Bogus Basin Road (an extension of Harrison Boulevard), which twists 16 miles (26 km) from the Boise
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...

 city limits to the resort, only 10 miles (16 km) NNE as the crow flies
As the crow flies
"As the crow flies" or beelining is an idiom for the shortest route between two points; the geodesic distance.An example is the great-circle distance between Key West and Pensacola, at either end of the U.S...

.

The two-lane road turns 172 times and gains 3400 feet (1036 m) in elevation as the terrain
Terrain
Terrain, or land relief, is the vertical and horizontal dimension of land surface. When relief is described underwater, the term bathymetry is used...

 changes from dry sagebrush
Sagebrush
Sagebrush is a common name of a number of shrubby plant species in the genus Artemisia native to western North America;Or, the sagebrush steppe ecoregion, having one or more kinds of sagebrush, bunchgrasses and others;...

 foothills to snow-laden mountain forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...

. Originally a gravel road
Gravel road
A gravel road is a type of unpaved road surfaced with gravel that has been brought to the site from a quarry or stream bed. They are common in less-developed nations, and also in the rural areas of developed nations such as Canada and the United States. In New Zealand, they are known as 'metal roads'...

 constructed by CCC
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25. A part of the New Deal of President Franklin D...

 crews (funded by the WPA
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...

) from 1938–42, Bogus Basin Road was first paved in 1962 and improved in 1998.

Season Passes

In March 1998, Bogus' general manager Mike Shirley initiated a ski industry revolution, slashing the cost of an adult season pass from $500 to $199, lowering the break-even
Break-even
Break-even is a point where any difference between plus or minus or equivalent changes side.-In economics:A technique for which identifying the point where the total revenue is just sufficient to cover the total cost...

 point to just seven visits (& kids' season passes fell to just $29). Bogus Basin sold nearly nine times as many passes for 1998-99 season versus the previous year, halting the pass sales at 25,000 (2,854 for the 1997-98 season).

The new pricing strategy generated almost four times as much revenue (nearly $3.6 million) from season pass sales, all before June, six months before the season would begin. Total skier visits went from under 192,000 to over 303,000 (up 58%). Although the sales of day-tickets ($31 each) expectedly fell (almost 50%), Bogus' total revenue increased by $2.6 million (up 55%) to $7.3 million for the 1998-99 ski season.

Shirley's deep-discount strategy made waves, & sent ski executives scrambling as resorts from coast-to-coast lowered their prices for multi-day, multi-area, and season passes. Locally, ski equipment sales increased significantly, as dormant skiers upgraded their gear.

United States Ski Team

Members of the U.S. Ski Team
United States Ski Team
The United States Ski Team, operated under the auspices of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association , develops and supports men's and women's athletes in the sports of alpine skiing, adaptive alpine, freestyle skiing, cross country, adaptive cross country, ski jumping, and nordic combined....

 from Bogus Basin include:
  • Jeret "Speedy" Peterson
    Jeret Peterson
    Jeret "Speedy" Peterson was an American World Cup aerial skier from Boise, Idaho, skiing out of Bogus Basin. A three-time Olympian, he won the silver medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Peterson was found dead in Lambs Canyon, Utah on July 25, 2011...

     - freestyle aerials
    Freestyle skiing
    Freestyle skiing is form of skiing which used to encompass two disciplines: aerials, and moguls. Except the two disciplines mentioned earlier Freestyle Skiing now consists of Skicross, Half Pipe and Slope Style...


    - 2005 World Cup champion
    - 2010 Olympic silver medalist
    Freestyle skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Men's aerials
    The men's aerials event in freestyle skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada took place on 22 February for the qualification round. The final was held on 25 February...

  • Dane Spencer
    Dane Spencer
    Dane Spencer is an alpine ski racer with the U.S. Ski Team. He grew up skiing and racing at Bogus Basin, and made the U.S. Ski Team at age 16...

     - giant slalom
    Giant Slalom skiing
    Giant slalom is an alpine skiing discipline. It involves skiing between sets of poles spaced at a greater distance to each other than in slalom but less than in super G....

  • Erik Fisher
    Erik Fisher
    Erik Fisher is an alpine ski racer with the U.S. Ski Team, from Middleton, Idaho.Fisher learned to ski and race at Bogus Basin near Boise, Idaho, beginning at age 3. While growing up, his family moved to different locations in the western U.S.; he also raced in northern Arizona and Utah before...

     - downhill
    Downhill
    Downhill is an alpine skiing discipline. The rules for the Downhill were originally developed by Sir Arnold Lunn for the 1921 British National Ski Championships....


External links

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