In 1982 they raised $600,000 by mortgaging their home and draining their savings to purchase a controlling stake in the ski area. And the early years were extremely rough. Uncooperative weather, dilapidated equipment, and demanding customers were a few of the problems they dealt with.
It's tough to make money in the ski industry. Ski areas are capital intensive and dependent on the weather. Even many large corporate operators with deep pockets have gone bankrupt trying to run a ski resort. When the mueller purchased okemo, not only did they have to cope with these realities,they had two additional challenges to overcome