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Donner Ski Ranch Sales To New Owners Norm Sayler used to bristle at the thought of changing anything about Donner Ski Ranch. "I'm like the guy who continues to drive his old car forever. I don't need a new car. I like mine just the way it is," he'd say. For Sayler, the car has finally run out of gas. After 40 years of owning one of Tahoe's little gems, Sayler has sold his ski area to a Las Vegas development company that hopes to develop the area into an alpine-style village. "The major thing driving me is a disappearance of what skiing used to be all about.Today's ski world is too glitz and glitter. The value of the property is good, so maybe now's the time to let it go," explains Sayler. The purchase price for the 460 acre, 6 chair lift resort reportedly neared $10 million. The development company, Arizona Acreage LLC, has submitted plans that include a central village consisting of various shops with surrounding homesites. "I've had to personally finance Donner Ski Ranch," says Sayler." The last influx for the place was 10 years ago. I think it's important to have someone come in and do what the place deserves and make it acceptable in today's marketplace." Situated atop Donner Summit, ninety minutes from the greater Sacramento area, the historic resort, a snowball's toss from Highway 40, first opened for skiing in 1937 with the area's first rope tow. It wasn't until 1961 that the original rope tow was replaced by a platter pull. Today, the area offers 45 runs that descend 360 degrees from the top of Signal Hill with terrain that features a balanced variety of steeps to rolling shoulders. From the summit of its highest rise atop Signal Hill (7,851 feet) dramatic views descend toward Donner Lake, past the railroad snowsheds and the "Chinese Wall," a right-of-way foundation built by coolies in the latter 1800s for the trans-Sierra railroad. Its most modern chair is a fixed grip triple chair. The modest, slopeside lodge is no architectural marvel. And although undoubtedly the last of its kind, its simplicity, convenience, and affordable costs continued to to beckon visitors. It's not unusual on a weekend day for the Ranch to host 2800 skiers and boarders. During the mid-1990s, at the height of snowboarding, Donner Ski Ranch seasonally welcomed over 148,000 visitors. Despite the high technology that has transformed snowsport into one simply of bottom-line profits, Sayler and staff offer a kind of product that hearkens back to a former era birthed by exuberant outdoorsmen. There are no video games to be found in the lodge, nor any other off-slope attractions. The resort remains more of a rarefied mountain outpost where people, bound by a collective independent spirit, happily rub shoulders and revel in the seductive vistas and beautiful wonders of nature. The once remote high alpine resort still prides itself on being all things to all people. The mountain is less a place to see and more a place to ski. "I've been called a dinosaur of the industry," confesses Sayler. "But my philosophy is simple. I don't show people how to how fun. I let people have fun. That's what skiing is all about." Skiing and fun have been synonymous with Sayler since he first began visiting the Sierra Nevada as a child on day trips from his home in Sacramento. The McClatchy high school grad moved permanently to Donner Summit in 1954 where he became a Class A racer. After a stint in the Army, assigned to the mountain troops, Sayler returned to the Sierra Nevada, married, and accepted the position of general manager at Donner Ski Ranch. "I wanted to raise a family. They offered me $300 a month plus a place to stay. I thought it was a good deal," he says. By 1961 Sayler began purchasing stock in the ski resort and within a few years became the majority stockholder. Like all ski resort operators Sayler combated the thaws, blizzards, and drought that plague the wallet intensive ski business. When Interstate 80 was completed in 1965, the old Donner Summit Highway ( U.S 40) and Donner Ski Ranch were bypassed by travelers choosing the fastest route into the Tahoe Basin. The lively business district between Soda Springs and Donner Lake with hotels, restaurants, and bars slowly faded, leaving the area to 400 year round residents. In 1987, Donner Ski Ranch completed a slopeside 92 room condominium hotel. The surrounding Donner Summit region, however, offers little else in lodging. Most guests travel twenty minutes to the nearby historic town of Truckee and its array of restaurants, accommodations, and shopping. Drought years added to economic woes. "One year it didn't snow until March. we grossed $17,000 for the entire season," recalls Sayler. However, to Sayler, who considers the mountain his best friend, it's all part of the game. Sayler counts many firsts in skiing that derived from his pursuit of fun. "We were the first to offer night skiing," he says. Back in 1958 I strung 100-watt lights on the rope tow. It might not have been too sophisticated, but people were out having a ball." When telemarkers were not allowed at other resorts, they found a home at Donner Ski Ranch, and Sayler was the first to allow disabled skiers an opportunity to play on the slopes. He says he was the first to run programs for women and for youths, busing children from Sacramento to Donner Ski Ranch on the weekends. "It got so popular it got too big for us," he remembers. "I finally handed the program over to a bigger resort." When snowboarding arrived, Sayler immediately embraced the discipline, accepting boarders without hesitation. "Some resorts didn't allow them. They looked like they were enjoying the snow to me. They bought a ticket. Why not let them on the slopes." Sayler recounts the time Dick Barrymore contacted him. The legendary filmmaker was having trouble finding a location to film a dangerous stunt. No resort would give him permission on their mountain because of the liability. "Frankie Bear was going to do some triple twisting inverted somersault. I told Dick, "Lets do it!" A week later this comical guy shows up in a Lincoln wearing a bearskin coat. He and I built a jump. He pulls off the stunt on the first attempt, gets back in his Lincoln and leaves. Years later he called me and said, "Norm, you were crazy to let me do that." "I didn't think it was crazy. I thought it was pretty neat." Sayler doesn't know if the lifts will remain when the new developments may take place, but he plans to operate the ski area for the rest of the season. According to Doug Daggs, the broker with Chase International who sold the property, the deal won't close for approximately one year. When land use proposals change, such as the possibility for additional improvements, a general plan change is required. "As with most developments not zoned for specific intended use proposed purchase must go through approval steps," says Daggs. "The area is zoned now as "forest recreational." Final sale is actually contingent on certain approvals for planned development." Sayler plans on having a final bash in the spring to celebrate his four decades at the Ranch. "I've been getting phone calls from friends as far away as Vermont saying they're coming out because of its last year," Sayler says. "A lot of people have called the Ranch home through the years. I've made many friendships." Until season's end, Sayler will offer a series of Anniversary Weeks in which the resort rolls back prices to those of the early 1970s. Tickets will sale for $10. The first Anniversary Week begins January 29. "I hope this place will be here 100 years from now, but it's reached a point where I have to let it go. Skiing is a great life. If you're able to choose your lifestyle why not make it enjoyable? I never thought much about money. I never expected to make any, but what a choice to live this sort of life. I've never had anything but a great feeling making Donner Ski Ranch my home." Donner Ski Ranch Information
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