RCR Buys Kicking Horse????

I am getting confirmation from a number of people (reliable) that the deal will be annouced tomorrow.  There were rumors of RCR getting a tour a few months back.

It could be a really good thing for Golden and the Resort.  I know that RCR likes to take the fun out of everything, but they would have to close half the mountain in order to do that.

My main concern is that RCR will probably get rid of the local deal.  I am not certain, but I don't think that Fernie locals get a local's pass (please correct me if I am wrong).  It will also be tough on locals who can barely afford the locals pass because I cannot imagine RCR keeping the rates as low as they are (hopefully I am wrong).  On the other hand, if RCR injects some money into Kicking Horse and increases the skier days it could bring some more jobs and businesses into town.

All in all, it's good for people outside of Golden (and possibly the Town of Golde if done right), but it will most likely piss off the majority of hardcore skiers

Here is an article...

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ballast-nedam-negotiates-sale-of-recreation-resort-in-canada-2011-12-16

.5

I don't know if I'm too into this one.  Ballast Needham may have been a poor choice to start up and run a new ski hill, but things are pretty good at the Horse (from my point of view) and I may be wrong, but I can only see RCR make it worse.  Maybe Ballast Needham think it's unsustainable financially and just want to get out before it dies?

RCR will just keep pushing and building real estate without new skier facilities or lifts (Remember Fernie, huge lineups, overflowing toilets at the base, 1HR to get a lift ticket, that was only 6 or 7 years ago), local parking will overflow while the lot next to the hotel will be the VIP lot "brought to you by Hummer H2." (this is a guarantee). Is that what those people still drive?   Lift tickets will jack up over 90 bucks once the price of natural gas gets back up to 7 bucks and Alberta is booming again.

"...is one of the only ski resorts in Canada that has had continuous growth in recent years."  Growth in what? Weekend lineups? Condo's? Leaky condos? People that can't even sell their condos? Skiers giving up on hills and buying sleds?  I used to ski Super Bowl every day so I don't consider that new terrain.  I'd like to compare the new 40 year plan with the original 10 year plan.  I'm pretty sure there were supposed to be lifts to Repeater Ridge and maybe T2 by now if I'm not mistaken (and often am).  On the new master plan they probably have 2 lifts BELOW the gondola planned to new real estate long before putting a quad up into Reudi's with a mid-station.

Maybe they'll have some killer "local blogs" that have 1 paragraph on hill conditions, and 4 paragraphs of PR mumbo jumbo (on another note, are they building Jumbo or not)? 

Hopefully any money RCR makes at the Horse gets put back into the hill, skier facilities, and terrain opening. Hopefully they make me look like a tool and make the hill way better.  Hopefully they don't just suck money out of the real estate and ski-hill, without making improvements and let it get run down (FORTRESS) 

Best case scenario: Another lift or 2 to the top (different ridge and bowl) with a mid station or something, more terrain opening, thin out some more trees, make it snow more, get a ski train going from calgary friday night and return sunday, make it snow more, cheaper beer at Eagle Eye, make it snow more

And the biggest change for the good would be NO TRAVERSING BELOW LINES AND CHUTES.  If you can't ski the line to get to the power, find powder someplace else

looks like I spelled Ballast Nedam wrong.