Telemark Has a Future, For Now

Dick Short, owner of the Telemark Resort in Cable, WI has spent the past three days in the Cable and Hayward area, touring his nearly 1,000 acre property and meeting with various groups and individuals. Mr. Short came north to eliminate the uncertainty surrounding the future of the property. In the absence of an offer to purchase the property, Short was faced with very few options. “I could bulldoze the lodge and sell the land, in an attempt to recoup my investment but I really don’t want to do that” said Short. “After meeting many of the locals, hearing the stories of the history of the property and seeing the potential the property could hold, I came up with a concept to secure that the lodge will stay open” he said. “ I have made arrangements to assure that the Telemark Resort will be open from now through March 1st to accommodate the needs of the American Birkenbeiner Ski Race”, he concluded. Short has also met with local leaders and key organizations that rely on Telemark with a plan to assure that the lodge could stay open for the next 5 years and beyond. The American Birkenbeiner Ski Foundation, the Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival, the Telemark Interval Owners Association, the Town of Cable and Bayfield County all spoke with Mr. Short to hear a proposal to protect the property, along with its nationally recognized trail system. Those groups have all indicated willingness to work with Mr. Short and his concept. It is early in the process and Short still needs to finalize the exact details of the partnership but his intent during this visit was to determine whether these parties were open to his idea. “Without the assistance of these organizations, Telemark and its trail system could be gone forever” Short said. “If we are going to protect this property, I’m going to need all these groups to work together to get this done.” he concluded. Short indicated that, while he is committed to having the doors open through March 1st, he will know within the next 45 days what the future of the lodge is, whether good or bad.

Tags: sports, skiing, nordic, birkenbeiner