_ .weekly .
emerald sports
Wednesday, February 25,1981
Willamette Pass slopes on
Despite little snow,
new owner plans
ski area’s future
Last year’s season-long closure of the Wil
lamette Pass Ski Area caused nary a tear for
Eugene skiers.
Despite being the ski area closest to Eugene,
Willamette Pass, with no chairlifts, shrinks in the
shadow of Mt. Bachelor with its eight chairs and
1,800 vertical feet.
Willamette Pass has two surface lifts — a
poma and a rope — serving a hill of 700 vertical
feet.
Willamette Pass also had the reputation of
being a poorly run operation. The area was
closed, it was said, because the then-owner could
not make payments. When the snow began to fall,
no one seemed interested in purchasing the area,
located just 1 'h hours southeast of Eugene.
So, while the other Oregon ski areas enjoyed
a good season, Willamette Pass lay silent.
But that was last year.
This year, the lifts once again are hauling
skiers up the hill.
New owner Richard Satagaj says the prob
lems that plagued the area should all be in the
past. But after being closed a year, opening again
took more than just redecorating.
Satagaj says he spent the first four months at
his new area just getting things in operating
condition.
"I cleared the hills of trees and that sort of
thing. Saplings that were growing for four or five
years were starting to get pretty strong.
"We had to get all the lifts running, had to get
the wells and sewage system set — they were all
screwed up — and electrical wiring.”
Satagaj also rebuilt the lifts, getting parts
where he could find them. Mt. Bachelor provided
him with some parts from their old poma lift.
But even as Satagaj began clearing the way
for a hoped-for avalanche of skiers, another
problem developed.
No snow.
This year, the entire western portion of the
United States is suffering from the worst lack of
snow since the 1976-77 season.
While some of the higher-elevation resorts
such as Mt. Bachelor and Timberline are able to
operate marginally, Willamette Pass, with a base
elevation of about 5,000 feet, has been forced to
shut down.
For the new owner, nothing could have been
more frustrating. Before he bought the area, he
had heard snow stories that painted a picture
brighter than sunlight reflecting off a mogul.
"We had a lot of people tell about the amount
of snow that happened in the Cascades and at
Willamette Pass, and, of course, when we bought
the place we did research, he says. "We saw all
Continued on Page 3B
Melting away
A slushy season for local ski shops
See Page 4B.