Man uses business savvy to keep water park afloat

It was a simple college internship that led Roger Elliott to his life’s work.

In 1983, Elliott took a job at the newly opened Big Sky Waterpark just east of Columbia Falls. The University of Montana student expected low-key summer work that involved sitting outside, getting a tan and playing in the water.

After working other summers in the oilfields near Sidney on Montana’s eastern edge, all the Columbia Falls native wanted was to be a lifeguard and hang out with old friends on his days off.

Instead, he was placed in the office doing administrative work because of his business management major. 

The internship went well and he actually enjoyed the office work. The owners at the time were Canadian and didn’t have work visas. They needed someone they could trust to run the place, and when Elliott finished his degree they offered him the position, turning his summer internship into a lifelong career.

Elliott is now the operating manager of the park, overseeing all departments and keeping a close eye on tourism and the economy. He has earned certification as a pool operator, aquatic facility operator, lifeguard, and AED/CPR instructor.

When he first joined Big Sky Waterpark, there were only a few other water parks in the Northwest — one in Spokane, another in Coeur d’Alene and one in Big Timber.

Twenty-seven years later, things are a little different. There are now about 10 water parks within a 200-mile radius — and all built within the last 10 years. The competition keeps him on his toes, he said, and that’s part of why he has stayed with the company for so long.

With his business degree, he could have taken a job in a less competitive industry, but at Big Sky Waterpark he gets to work in marketing, public relations, accounting and chemistry every day. Plus, it’s fun to work with vacationers who have just one goal while they’re in town — to have fun.

“Everybody that comes to the park is in a good mood,” Elliott said. “It’s a good atmosphere.” 

He has only had about 10 days off during the summer over the past 27 years, but with nearly seven months off in the winter to ski and fish, that’s just fine with him.

Elliott grew up in Columbia Falls. His father, Roger Sr., was a certified public accountant and served as a state senator from 1981 to 1985.

He remembers going to the Columbia Falls city pool nearly every day in the summers from the age 6 until he was 14.

“I’m an Aquarius, so I guess I was born under the sign of water,” he said.

He could have moved to California or Florida, worked for bigger water parks and made more money, but then he wouldn’t be able to take advantage of the other things in the area.

“I work 150 days a year, fish and hunt another 100 and ski the next 100. I really only get two weeks of vacation,” he said with a laugh.

He and his wife, Rose, a water utility supervisor for the city of Whitefish, have made a comfortable life. Their daughter, Melissa, is finishing up a psychology degree in Missoula. And although the water park technically isn’t a family business, father and daughter have spent several seasons working there together.

The park operates from about Memorial Day to Labor Day. That gives Elliott little more than three months to create enough business to keep the place in operation.

Last year was an off year. The economy was to blame for some of it, but the weather was almost worse, he said.

For safety purposes, he can’t run the slides in inclement weather. He can issue rain checks to his patrons, but for those traveling from far distances “it’s Walley World all over again,” he said, referring to the Griswold family’s infamous letdown in the 1983 movie “Vacation.”

“Every five to seven years you have to expect a bad weather year,” Elliott said.

The park was sold two years ago to new owners. Because of last year’s slim margins, those new owners have been hesitant to invest in new attractions to bring people in.

The budget this year calls for upkeep of existing rides and games, such as the mini-golf course and carousel, as well as safety investments. But there likely will be belt-tightening for landscaping and the staff.

Elliott is using his experience to lead the way. There will be some cuts to the payroll and some positions may be combined to reduce positions, but he’ll do what it takes to keep the place up and running.

Three months of operation is pretty much par for the course for most tourist-driven businesses in Northwest Montana. What worries Elliott is what will happen if the minimum wage goes up.

If that happens, he probably will have to scale back to about two and a half months of operation, a small amount of time to cover costs for all that rushing water.

The deregulation of electricity, higher insurance costs and rising costs in general all have taxed the company, but Elliott is thinking positive and is ready to take on 2010 with full force.

“We’re in a rebound mode this year,” he said.

He hopes to bring in more of the community this year with coupons. He also hopes to see more second-generation sliders.

“That’s one thing about the water-park industry — there’s always that influx of young people who are new to it,” he said. “It’s a matter of keeping the excitement there [for the others].”

Reporter Erika Hoefer may be reached at 758-4439 or by e-mail at ehoefer@dailyinterlake.com.