Boyne Resorts
Encyclopedia
Boyne Resorts is the third largest owner and operator of ski
and golf resort
s in the United States and is the longest running management team at nearly 60 years. The company employs over 7,000 fulltime and seasonal staff. It operates 13 resort properties - 10 ski resorts and 11 golf courses. The company, based in Boyne Falls, MI, owns and/or operates properties in the U.S. state
s of Michigan
, Montana
, Washington, Maine
, New Hampshire
, Tennessee
, and Utah
, and the Canadian province
of British Columbia
.
used from Sun Valley
as the Northern Michigan resort's first lift. This chairlift was the first chairlift ever built. It is still in service today but has been upgraded several times over its lifetime. In 1954, Boyne built and opened the Gatlinburg Skylift in Tennessee as a summer tourist attraction. In 1963, Boyne Highlands in Northern Michigan was added and by 1967, Boyne Mountain expanded to include additional lifts and a golf course. Robert Trent Jones designed the first resort course in the region at Boyne Highlands in 1966.Chet Huntley
's Big Sky Resort
was purchased in 1976, only a few years after its opening in December 1973. In 1986, Boyne purchased Brighton
outside of Salt Lake City
, Utah
. In the 1990s, Boyne USA purchased golf courses in Michigan
and Florida
. 1997 brought along the company's fifth ski resort, Crystal Mountain, Washington.
In 2001, Boyne added its first Canadian resort, Cypress Mountain
outside Vancouver
, British Columbia
. Cypress Mountain was the host to all the Freestyle and Snowboard events for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. In 2002, the company's founder and visionary, Everett Kircher died however his legacy of staying as a privately held family company lives on under the leadership of his 4 children. Kircher had transferred ownership of the company to his 4 children in 1976. All had worked in the company for many years overseeing most of the operational aspects for almost a decade before his passing. John Kircher oversees the Western Division of Boyne which includes the Utah, Washington State and British Columbia operations. Stephen Kircher oversees the Eastern Division including Montana, Michigan, Tennessee, New Hampshire and Maine operations. Amy Kircher is the Chairperson of the family board and sister Kathryn oversees Boyne Design, which handles much of the interior refurbishment and real estate development product interiors.
In 2007, Boyne Resorts entered into a sale and leaseback arrangement with CNL Income Properties on the Gatlinburg Skilift, Brighton and Cypress Mountain. The leases run for at least 40 years to Boyne for operations and all have buy back provisions to Boyne Resorts. Later in 2007, Boyne purchased Sunday River and Sugarloaf
in Maine
from The American Skiing Company and entered into a sale and leaseback arrangement with CNL Income Properties with similar 40 year leases. This gave Boyne ski areas in each of the major North American markets.
On September 19, 2007, Boyne announced their purchase of CNL Income Properties leases for The Summit at Snoqualmie
, Washington, and Loon Mountain
, New Hampshire
, from Booth Creek Resorts. Both resorts continue to be owned by CNL Income Properties. This purchase made Boyne the largest ski resort operator in North America in terms of number of resorts, and third in number of skier visits at almost 3.8 million visitors.
Boyne Resorts also holds or held numerous patents on snowmaking technologies and has unveiled its latest technology in the Boyne Low E Fan Gun throughout its eastern resorts.
Ski resort
A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing and other winter sports. In Europe a ski resort is a town or village in a ski area - a mountainous area, where there are ski trails and supporting services such as hotels and other accommodation, restaurants, equipment rental and a ski lift system...
and golf resort
Golf resort
Golf resorts are resorts that cater specifically to the sport of golf, and include access to one or more golf course and or clubhouse. Golf resorts typically provide golf packages that provide visitors with all greens and cart fees, range balls, luxury accommodations and...
s in the United States and is the longest running management team at nearly 60 years. The company employs over 7,000 fulltime and seasonal staff. It operates 13 resort properties - 10 ski resorts and 11 golf courses. The company, based in Boyne Falls, MI, owns and/or operates properties in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
s of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
, Washington, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, and Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, and the Canadian province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
.
History
Boyne Resorts was founded by Everett Kircher in 1947, when a hill in Northern Michigan that was too steep and wooded to farm was sold to Kircher for $1 by former State Senator Pierson. Then Everett Kircher bought a single chairliftChairlift
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...
used from Sun Valley
Sun Valley, Idaho
Sun Valley is a resort city in Blaine County in the central part of the U.S. state of Idaho, adjacent to the city of Ketchum, lying within the greater Wood River valley. Tourists from around the world enjoy its skiing, hiking, ice skating, trail riding, tennis, and cycling. The population was 1,427...
as the Northern Michigan resort's first lift. This chairlift was the first chairlift ever built. It is still in service today but has been upgraded several times over its lifetime. In 1954, Boyne built and opened the Gatlinburg Skylift in Tennessee as a summer tourist attraction. In 1963, Boyne Highlands in Northern Michigan was added and by 1967, Boyne Mountain expanded to include additional lifts and a golf course. Robert Trent Jones designed the first resort course in the region at Boyne Highlands in 1966.Chet Huntley
Chet Huntley
Chester Robert "Chet" Huntley was an American television newscaster, best known for co-anchoring NBC's evening news program, The Huntley-Brinkley Report, for 14 years beginning in 1956.-Early life:...
's Big Sky Resort
Big Sky Resort
Big Sky Resort is a ski resort located in southwestern Montana in Madison County, an hour south of Bozeman via U.S. Highway 191 in Big Sky.Opened in late 1973, Big Sky has grown over the last 35 years. Trademarked as the "Biggest Skiing in America" through the Biggest Skiing in America Pass,...
was purchased in 1976, only a few years after its opening in December 1973. In 1986, Boyne purchased Brighton
Brighton Ski Resort
Brighton Ski Resort is a ski area located in Big Cottonwood Canyon, from downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. Brighton Ski Resort was the first ski resort in Utah, and one of the first in the United States. Brighton was started in 1936 when members of the Alpine Ski Club built a rope tow from wire and...
outside of Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. In the 1990s, Boyne USA purchased golf courses in Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
and Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. 1997 brought along the company's fifth ski resort, Crystal Mountain, Washington.
In 2001, Boyne added its first Canadian resort, Cypress Mountain
Cypress Mountain
- External links :* *...
outside Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. Cypress Mountain was the host to all the Freestyle and Snowboard events for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. In 2002, the company's founder and visionary, Everett Kircher died however his legacy of staying as a privately held family company lives on under the leadership of his 4 children. Kircher had transferred ownership of the company to his 4 children in 1976. All had worked in the company for many years overseeing most of the operational aspects for almost a decade before his passing. John Kircher oversees the Western Division of Boyne which includes the Utah, Washington State and British Columbia operations. Stephen Kircher oversees the Eastern Division including Montana, Michigan, Tennessee, New Hampshire and Maine operations. Amy Kircher is the Chairperson of the family board and sister Kathryn oversees Boyne Design, which handles much of the interior refurbishment and real estate development product interiors.
In 2007, Boyne Resorts entered into a sale and leaseback arrangement with CNL Income Properties on the Gatlinburg Skilift, Brighton and Cypress Mountain. The leases run for at least 40 years to Boyne for operations and all have buy back provisions to Boyne Resorts. Later in 2007, Boyne purchased Sunday River and Sugarloaf
Sugarloaf
A sugarloaf was the traditional form in which refined sugar was produced and sold until the late 19th century when granulated and cube sugars were introduced. A tall cone with a rounded top was the end product of a process that saw the dark molasses-rich raw sugar, which had been imported from...
in Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
from The American Skiing Company and entered into a sale and leaseback arrangement with CNL Income Properties with similar 40 year leases. This gave Boyne ski areas in each of the major North American markets.
On September 19, 2007, Boyne announced their purchase of CNL Income Properties leases for The Summit at Snoqualmie
The Summit at Snoqualmie
The Summit at Snoqualmie, located on Snoqualmie Pass, Washington, is a winter resort providing alpine skiing and snowboarding, Nordic skiing, and winter tubing owned by CNL Investment Properties, Inc. and managed by Boyne Resorts....
, Washington, and Loon Mountain
Loon Mountain
Loon Mountain is a mountain in Lincoln, New Hampshire, in Grafton County. It is in the White Mountain National Forest.The mountain is known for Loon Mountain Ski Resort, which, like most New England mountain resorts, has expanded into an all-season recreation area.-External links:* - Official site*...
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, from Booth Creek Resorts. Both resorts continue to be owned by CNL Income Properties. This purchase made Boyne the largest ski resort operator in North America in terms of number of resorts, and third in number of skier visits at almost 3.8 million visitors.
Boyne Resorts also holds or held numerous patents on snowmaking technologies and has unveiled its latest technology in the Boyne Low E Fan Gun throughout its eastern resorts.
Properties
- Big SkyBig Sky ResortBig Sky Resort is a ski resort located in southwestern Montana in Madison County, an hour south of Bozeman via U.S. Highway 191 in Big Sky.Opened in late 1973, Big Sky has grown over the last 35 years. Trademarked as the "Biggest Skiing in America" through the Biggest Skiing in America Pass,...
, Montana - Boyne MountainBoyne MountainBoyne Mountain Resort is a ski resort with a collection of accommodations in Northern Michigan located near Boyne City. The center piece is an upscale resort called The Mountain Grand Lodge and Spa. The Boyne Mountain Resort was originally developed by Everett Kircher, and is now owned and operated...
, Michigan - Boyne HighlandsBoyne HighlandsBoyne Highlands is a ski resort in Northern Michigan located near Harbor Springs, Michigan. It is now owned and operated by Boyne Resorts. It is the sister resort of Boyne Mountain...
, Michigan - The Inn at Bay Harbor, Michigan
- BrightonBrighton Ski ResortBrighton Ski Resort is a ski area located in Big Cottonwood Canyon, from downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. Brighton Ski Resort was the first ski resort in Utah, and one of the first in the United States. Brighton was started in 1936 when members of the Alpine Ski Club built a rope tow from wire and...
, Utah - Crooked Tree Golf Club, Michigan
- Crystal Mountain, Washington
- Cypress MountainCypress Mountain- External links :* *...
, British Columbia - Gatlinburg Skylift, Tennessee
- Loon MountainLoon MountainLoon Mountain is a mountain in Lincoln, New Hampshire, in Grafton County. It is in the White Mountain National Forest.The mountain is known for Loon Mountain Ski Resort, which, like most New England mountain resorts, has expanded into an all-season recreation area.-External links:* - Official site*...
, New Hampshire - The Mountain Grand Lodge and Spa at Boyne MountainBoyne MountainBoyne Mountain Resort is a ski resort with a collection of accommodations in Northern Michigan located near Boyne City. The center piece is an upscale resort called The Mountain Grand Lodge and Spa. The Boyne Mountain Resort was originally developed by Everett Kircher, and is now owned and operated...
Resort, Boyne Falls, MichiganBoyne Falls, MichiganBoyne Falls is a village in Charlevoix County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 370 at the 2000 census. The Boyne Falls post office first opened September 5, 1874.... - SugarloafSugarloaf/USASugarloaf is a ski area and resort located on Sugarloaf Mountain in Carrabassett Valley, western Maine. It is the largest ski resort in the State of Maine, in terms of number of trails , skiable acreage , and snowmaking percentage ; its continuous vertical drop of is the second longest in New...
, Maine - Sunday River, Maine
- The Summit at SnoqualmieThe Summit at SnoqualmieThe Summit at Snoqualmie, located on Snoqualmie Pass, Washington, is a winter resort providing alpine skiing and snowboarding, Nordic skiing, and winter tubing owned by CNL Investment Properties, Inc. and managed by Boyne Resorts....
, Washington