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Yellowstone Club facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

The Yellowstone Club is a special private club in Madison County, Montana. It's a place where people can live, ski, and play golf. It's located near Big Sky, Montana, a well-known ski area.

The Story of the Yellowstone Club

The Yellowstone Club started when a real estate developer named Tim Blixseth bought a lot of land. He got about 100,000 acres (400 square kilometers) of forest land. He even traded some land with the U.S. Forest Service to get the right pieces of land. This allowed him to create a large area next to the Big Sky Resort in Montana.

Mr. Blixseth developed the Yellowstone Club as a private ski and golf community. At its busiest times, the club employs almost 650 people. The club was even featured on a TV show called High Net Worth on CNBC.

Changes and New Owners

In 2008, the Yellowstone Club faced some financial difficulties. It went through a process called Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. This means it got help to reorganize its finances.

In 2009, the club was sold to a new owner, CrossHarbor Capital Partners. This company is led by Sam Byrne, who was already a member of the Yellowstone Club. He invested more money to improve the club and help pay off its debts.

After these changes, the Yellowstone Club became very successful. By late 2014, it had no more debt from the bankruptcy. Its membership also doubled to over 500 families. CrossHarbor Capital Partners also teamed up with Boyne Resorts, which owns the nearby Big Sky Resort. Together, they bought other land and ski areas, like Spanish Peaks and Moonlight Basin, to make the ski terrain even bigger.

Skiing and Outdoor Fun

The Yellowstone Club is famous for its amazing ski mountain. Most of the ski runs are on Pioneer Mountain.

Pioneer Mountain: A Skiing Paradise

Pioneer Mountain reaches a height of 9,859 feet (3,005 meters). The Yellowstone Club has its own ski lifts and runs that connect directly to the Big Sky Resort's ski system. The two ski areas share a five-mile border. They are surrounded by a huge area of the Gallatin National Forest, which is about 250,000 acres.

The area gets about 300 inches (762 centimeters) of snow each year. The snow is usually light and consistent. The club's motto is "Private Powder" because of the frequent snow and fewer skiers, which means more fresh snow for members!

The ski terrain is large and offers many different types of runs. Pioneer Ridge has challenging "double black" runs and steep chutes for expert skiers. The west side of Pioneer Mountain has a huge forest perfect for tree skiing. The lower parts of Pioneer Mountain and Andesite Mountain have fast chairlifts and mostly intermediate ski runs. The mountain has 2,200 acres (890 hectares) available for skiing.

More Activities to Enjoy

Besides downhill skiing, the club offers many other fun activities. You can go cross-country skiing or ice skating. There are also many indoor activities.

In the summer, there are even more things to do! Members can play golf, go climbing, mountain biking, kayaking, and fly fishing.

Famous People Who Are Members

Many well-known people are members of the Yellowstone Club. Here are some of them:

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