When Telluride Ski Resort opened in 1972, it came with a superhero, its own comic and open arms for ski bums.
Telluride was the area different. One way the resort company distinguished itself from Colorado’s big names — Aspen and Vail — was by distributing free comic books featuring “The Tellurider.”
The comic, distributed in racks along the unpaved main street and at national ski shows, followed the adventures of The Tellurider, a brawny miner-turned-skier modeled after local Billy Mahoney.
The Tellurider single-handedly cleared runs and installed ski lifts. He battled The Leveler, an arch-enemy intent on replacing historic buildings with franchises and high-rises.
Things have changed since 1972, when five days of skiing and lodging cost $106, and a full-day lesson was less than $10. Today, Mahoney is 82, a squat, white-haired man who looks capable of clearing trees with his bare hands, but didn’t hesitate to capitalize on Telluride’s gentrification.
The 18-acre parcel of land he bought for $500 brought Mahoney a cool $1 million when he sold it to the ski company. And the once-free comic is fetching up to $200 apiece.
But latter-day Telluriders are winning on one front against latter-day Levelers. There are almost no franchises in town, and most historic buildings are intact. But high-rise hotels and luxury homes are another matter.
“I think The Leveler might have won out,” Mahoney said.
Ben Fornell writes for the Telluride Daily Planet.
