The Yellowstone Club

[fiamme red]

Interesting article about the members-only ski resort that Greg LeMond belonged to:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/14/business/14yellow.html?_r=1&ref=business&pagewanted=all

Here's what Yellowstone members say galls them most: Even as the Blixseths spent heaps of money on properties around the world, they neglected the club that they had borrowed against.

They say that for a time, potholes went unrepaired and sewage backed up at the main ski lodge. The power grid was meant for 80 homes; as it strained to meet the needs of 300, the ski lifts would occasionally creak to a halt.

But no one took action until Greg LeMond began examining the Credit Suisse loan. Mr. LeMond, the renowned American cyclist, was an early Yellowstone member and a minority investor. In 2006, he sued Mr. Blixseth and his various corporate entities in a Montana district court, alleging what would eventually number 30 counts of malfeasance. The suit contended that Mr. Blixseth tried to bully his partners into selling their Yellowstone shares. Then, having failed to force that deal, the suit said, Mr. Blixseth obtained the Credit Suisse loan without consulting his investors and without sharing the loan proceeds.

Ms. Blixseth eventually agreed to pay Mr. LeMond and others a $21.5 million settlement; she’s paid only $8 million of that amount, and Mr. LeMond and others are now among her creditors.

[David Kirk]

This was, at the time, on the local news everyday. A bit of a mess.

Blixseth is not a good man and in more than one way.


Dave

[torquer]

Plenty of work for the lawyers, no doubt:

"Yellowstone Club, which has been operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection since November, recently sued LeMond and several other investors to recover the $26 million it paid them to drop their lawsuit accusing the club’s owners of fraudulent management practices."

http://blogs.wsj.com/bankruptcy/2009/05/13/lemond-yellowstone-club-square-off/

Poor Greg. Wins $21.5MM in court, gets paid $8MM, gets sued for $26MM. There was a discussion here recently about GL's apparent magnetism for lawsuits (which I joined in, I'll admit) but this time he really does sound like a victim.

[fiamme red]

It's funny that LeMond probably chose to join the Yellowstone Club rather than just ski at the nearby public resort Big Sky because of his paranoia (cf. Yester the attack dog*), then he makes another enemy, to feed his paranoia even further, in the scoundrel who founded the club.

* http://www.competitivecyclist.blogspot.com/2008/09/greg-lemond-vs-world.html

But even the Dog Whisperer rarely deals with creatures such as Yester, who is no house pet but a Level III Schutzhund, a highly trained German-bred police dog, used for security purposes only and costing upward of $20,000. "All I have to do is say 'throat!'" LeMond whispers, "and he’d kill you." Lucky it is then that Yester only understands commands in German...

Yester the dog senses the unease in the air. "He’s overkill for us," Kathy says, “but if someone tries to carjack me, he will jump through the open window at them.”

There are still a few kinks to work out. Yester recently trapped the electrician in his truck; now he slips away from Kathy, jumps up, and snaps at Taylor, nipping her in the side. He doesn’t break the skin, but the girl is terrified; weeping, she flees out the front door.

“Mom!” Simone screams. "I can’t have this! We’ve got to get rid of him!"

[dsteady]

It's funny that LeMond probably chose to join the Yellowstone Club rather than just ski at the nearby public resort Big Sky because of his paranoia (cf. Yester the attack dog*), then he makes another enemy, to feed his paranoia even further, in the scoundrel who founded the club. . . .

Hmmm. I think it might have more to do with securing some privacy for him and his family. IIRC, he was an early member at Jellystone Club.

I skied there once (don't ask how ;) ) and there is some damn nice expert terrain along the big ridge, and some good stuff in the trees as well. The rest is corduroy. But I was impressed. The snow was better over there too -- there's hardly anyone around to to ski it off. But the development is ridiculous, at the time I was there there was a $150m spec house just being finished. It had private lift service. And the minimum square footage for the other houses appeared to be about 15K square feet.

Great lunch though, and free too!

dn'l

[fiamme red]

Hmmm. I think it might have more to do with securing some privacy for him and his family.How many people who are not cyclists would even recognize Greg LeMond?

[david]

This was, at the time, on the local news everyday. A bit of a mess.

Blixseth is not a good man and in more than one way.


Dave

the article mentioned that the resort is only about twenty minutes outside bozeman.

was thinking of you when i read the article.

somehow i never connected your part of the world with that kinda scene.

limos in bozeman.

is there no escape?

[David Kirk]

the article mentioned that the resort is only about twenty minutes outside bozeman.

was thinking of you when i read the article.

somehow i never connected your part of the world with that kinda scene.

limos in bozeman.

is there no escape?

We aren't really exposed to that kind of thing. They land at the Bozeman Airport and then drive down the canyon not to be seen again until they get back to the airport.

You could always tell when LeMond was at the Club because his black Suburban wasn't parked in the long term lot at the airport.

Time for a ride.

dave

[grateful]

The club is a big client of ours. A not to be named software developer was spending 70k per month to heat his driveway.

We boarded 30 Yellowstone Club horses during the winter months. ALWAYS had an issue recieving payment.

Pretty sad but the current bk laws certainly benefit the the corporation over the little guy.

[dsteady]

. . . .
. . . .limos in bozeman.

is there no escape?

"You know the nice thing about living in Bozeman? It's only 30 minutes away from Montana!"

*my cousin's material, he lives there.

[Birddog]

"You know the nice thing about living in Bozeman? It's only 30 minutes away from Montana!"

Good one. Some Montanans I know refer to it as Bozangeles.

On the Yellowstone Club front; has anybody heard/seen Warren Miller's take on it? He was an early owner/resident and sometime promoter.

Birddog

[Karin Kirk]

"You know the nice thing about living in Bozeman? It's only 30 minutes away from Montana!"

*my cousin's material, he lives there.

Ya know, there is only one tiny thing that I don't like about Bozeman, and it's the whiners who complain about this place! Folks who compare Bozeman to California have clearly never been to California. Perhaps they should move there to see for themselves.

On the Yellowstone Club, it's high drama for sure. The Blixeths are in the news regularly, with the bankruptcy, the auctioning off of the club, the divorce, and so on. Before all of this came crumbling apart they were frequently in the news for environmental violations (building more houses than was permitted, bulldozing over a stream) and other scuffles. They are not loved in this community.

On the other hand, the Yellowstone Club with its huge (and unsustainable) budget has provided a living wage for folks like ski instructors, guides and other typically low-income jobs. So that is a good thing. I feel for the folks losing their jobs over this, but I don't have any sympathy for the people battling this out in the courts and on the news.

[dsteady]

Ya know, there is only one tiny thing that I don't like about Bozeman, and it's the whiners who complain about this place! Folks who compare Bozeman to California have clearly never been to California. Perhaps they should move there to see for themselves. . . .

Karin, I'm not complaining about Bozeman at all, just poking fun at a place I have come to love and would possibly live in if I could have persuaded my wife to move there. I get out there whenever I can to see my cousin who has lived there since the mid 80's, went to MSU, and now lives one drive down from Bridger Bowl -- for obvious, spiritual reasons. He has a hilarious sense of humor that I thought I would share with people on this thread.

The irony is that he actually ended a relationship with his long time girlfriend because she wanted him to spend more time in California than Montana. Deal-breaker.

Re: Yellowstone Club, I have a friend who works there and will likely become a casualty of the Club's demise. The problem with unsustainable development is that it becomes unsustainable for everyone involved, not just those who can afford to move on.

Next time I'm out I'd love to come visit you and Dave at the shop. Hope I didn't offend.

daniel

[sc53]

I absolutely loved the town of Bozeman when I spent the day there a couple of summers ago while visiting my niece and her husband in Big Sky (her husband worked at the Club, one of those young local people that the resort employed). I went to the dinosaur museum, had a great lunch in a cute cafe, had coffee in a real coffee shop (not a Starbucks), bought some LPs at a cool used record shop, and found some good deals on outdoor gear at one of the many shops lining main street. I took some great photos of the place and thought it was a great place to live! Really nice residential neighborhoods just off of downtown, lots of trees and grass in the yards, with lots of bungalows and cottages. I wish I could move there!

[jlwdm]

[Re: Yellowstone Club, I have a friend who works there and will likely become a casualty of the Club's demise. ]

The club is still hanging in there and will probably not die.

Jeff

[Karin Kirk]

Daniel,

Thanks for your reply and no, you didn't offend me at all. It's not you I have a gripe with, it's the folks that live here and have seemingly endless complaints about how great Bozeman used to be and how all is ruined now. I know you didn't mean anything by it, and it is funny at first blush, but the underlying sentiment is tiresome.

It would be fun to meet you, so do let us know when you are in town and we can go for a ride or ski. Your cousin lives in an enviable spot there right next to Bridger Bowl. I bet he can use the avalanche bombs as an alarm clock!

As for YC, yes, that is exactly what I mean about employees losing out. Funny, I once pursued a job at the YC. They called me seeking a geology/naturalist guide and they said I could name my price for pay. That seemed like a good deal so I scheduled an interview with them. But the more I thought about it, the queasier I got, so I canceled the interview. I've heard some strange stories about working there. Of course, I've heard good stories too, so I guess it all balances out.

[dsteady]

Daniel,

Thanks for your reply and no, you didn't offend me at all. It's not you I have a gripe with, it's the folks that live here and have seemingly endless complaints about how great Bozeman used to be and how all is ruined now. . . .

I don't know why, but it is the same thing in every mountain town I've ever been to: the previous generation of transplants lording it over the latest generation of transplants. I agree it is very tiresome.

. . . It would be fun to meet you, so do let us know when you are in town and we can go for a ride or ski.

I'd love that. I wrote Dave re: a visit the last time I drove through in March but the morning I got to town there was 14" of fresh in Schlassman's, and well, you know....

. . . .Your cousin lives in an enviable spot there right next to Bridger Bowl. I bet he can use the avalanche bombs as an alarm clock!

Those avy bombs are how he knows if he should even get out of bed :D

dn'l

[fiamme red]

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9DHLTT00.htm

http://blogs.wsj.com/bankruptcy/2010/02/01/greg-lemond-weighs-bid-for-blixseth-compound/

[merlinmurph]

Coincidentally, I'm headed out to Big Sky on Thurs 2/4 for The Boys Annual Super Bowl Ski Trip. Someone in our group (definitely not me...) got us into YC for a day. We'll see how it goes, and I'll look for Greg.

@ Kirks: I'll send you a PM, would like to ski with you, if possible

Murph