Black Mountain owner on a mission to make skiing more accessible

Erik Mogensen is a consequential influence not only within the New Hampshire skiing community but nationally as well.

He pulled Black Mountain in Jackson from the edge of extinction by purchasing what was a family-held ski area in 2024 with the help of shareholders from within the skiing community. He announced March 12 his 100% purchase of Black, the oldest ski hill in New Hampshire, having bought out his shareholders.

Erik Mogensen, general manager and now full owner of Black Mountain, on the lift at the Jackson, N.H., ski area, which he saved from extinction, not wanting it to fall to the same fate as his boyhood Ski Tamarack in western New York. (Photo from Black Mountain Facebook page)

Ski Magazine in December named Mogensen, 38, as among the “10 Skiers Inspiring Positive Change on the Slopes in 2025,” recognizing his efforts as general manager and now owner of Black Mountain, as director of the Indy Pass collection of small to mid-size mountains, and as CEO of Entabeni Systems, creator of hardware/software to help independent ski areas modernize their operations.

Ski Magazine underscored Mogensen’s emphasis on  “community, affordability, and preserving independent skiing for future generations.”

Black Mountain claimed bragging rights by being the first ski area in the state to open for the 2025-26 season: on Nov. 15 with first chair at 7:45 a.m., just beating out Bretton Woods, which officially opened just a little later that morning.

And Mogensen plans to claim bragging rights again by being the last ski area in the state to close this season. “100 percent,” he said about the chances of doing that.

On March 12, Mogensen was the featured speaker at the CEO Lecture Series, held at the Three Chimneys Inn in Durham by the CEO & Family Enterprise Center at the University of New Hampshire Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics.

He traced for the group his path from watching as a kid his local hill, Ski Tamarack near Buffalo, N.Y., close to saving another local hill, Black Mountain, from suffering the same fate. That same morning he announced his full ownership of Black Mountain and the relocation of his Entabeni Systems from Colorado to the Mount Washington Valley of New Hampshire.

He said in an interview with NHBR after the forum that his intent is to consolidate the Entabeni Systems and Indy Pass operations to the Granite State to better concentrate system development efforts, using Black Mountain as the proving ground.

“I’m making it an incubator to solve the bigger problems,” said Mogensen, who has spoken of the need for skiing to become more accessible, more affordable, less of a hassle than dealing with the skiing corporate giants — Ikon (owned by the Alterra Corporation) and Epic (owned by Vail Resorts).

“Black Mountain can remain vibrant and and remain sustainable under our ownership and guidance, but we’re going to learn things and we’re going to build things that are going to help other areas,” Mogensen said.

Erik Mogensen talks about his journey as general manager and now owner of the Black Mountain ski area in Jackson at the March 12 CEO Lecture Series, held at the Three Chimneys Inn in Durham by the CEO & Family Enterprise Center at the University of New Hampshire Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics. (Corey Garland/@coreygarlandphotography)

The announcement caught the attention of skier and Gov. Kelly Ayotte, who said: “It’s exciting to have Indy Pass and Entabeni Systems relocate to the Mount Washington Valley with the goal of making Black Mountain a hub for innovation in the ski industry. With our unmatched quality of life, beautiful outdoors, and welcoming environment for businesses, there is no better choice for companies looking to grow than New Hampshire.”

Mogensen founded Entabeni Systems in 2015 as a hardware/software start-up that uses transactional data to help make operational decisions, specifically geared toward ski areas. The data comes from points-of-sale, e-commerce, and RFID information that can guide everything from when to replenish the hot dogs and chicken fingers in the cafeteria to what trails might need more snowmaking overnight.

He acquired Indy Pass in 2023, which in turn was founded in 2019 by Doug Fish in Oregon as a way to connect small and mid-size independently owned ski areas into a collective that shared branding and ticket access.

As of the current season, some 270 ski resorts were part of Indy Pass. Another 16 will be added for next season. New Hampshire members, besides Black Mountain, include Ragged Mountain, Cannon Mountain, Waterville Valley Resort, McIntyre Ski Area, and Whaleback Mountain.

He’ll use Black Mountain as a base of operations and as Entabeni’s beta site. “That’s the purpose,” he said. “We’re going to optimize and fix them here and allow them to scale for other people to use them. So we’re going to run Black Mountain, but we’re also going to support all of our other partners and people.”

Originally founded in the 1930s, using shovel handles from Sears and Roebuck on mechanized overhead cables to get up the hill, Black Mountain is the oldest continuously operating ski area in New Hampshire. It was owned and operated by the Fichera family for 30 years before the Mogensen/Indy Pass purchase.

The intent at the time was creation of a community cooperative ownership model, and Mogensen sold all of the shares he had available. “We had a waiting list that far surpassed the amount of shares available,” Mogensen said.

In announcing his 100% ownership of Black Mountain, he said he bought back the share at the original price.

“I am grateful that every single shareholder not only consented, but also allowed me to purchase back their stock at par to their original purchase price,” he said. “This direction change is only possible because of their trust and belief that the best path forward for a sustainable and vibrant Black Mountain is under the stewardship of Entabeni, Indy Pass and myself.”

According to the company, the Entabeni move will add more than 30 highly skilled and paid positions to the region. Jobs include roles in software and hardware development, finance, marketing, and management, expanding the local workforce beyond traditional seasonal tourism positions.

Mogensen had never skied Black Mountain before seeing it for the first time, remarking, “This thing’s just an absolute mess.” But it reminded him — and motivated him to save it from closure — of Ski Tamarack that he skied as a kid and saw close in 2009.

His efforts at Black have focused on expanding snowmaking, upgrading lifts, widening trails, and enhancing guest facilities, all focused on enhancing the mountain experience. “We are competing for people’s time,” he noted.

“The culture and community that I had at my little ski area where I grew up is exactly what we’re trying to recreate and protect at Black,” he said.

The process has had its bumps. He’s tussled with — and resolved — disagreements with Jackson officials and police over snowmaking noise and serving alcohol.

What remains uppermost for Mogensen is the vibe he’s created at Black Mountain as a place to go for good skiing and a good time.

“Sure, it has been a good snow year, but something magical happened that had little to do with snowfall and everything to do with a new ‘vibe’ that has been created here,” he said.

He noted in his interview that everything from regular entertainment to champagne service at mid-mountain is a nod to the ski culture.

“It’s the sport and culture of skiing,” he said. “And the culture is very important. So we need things to be a party. We need things to be celebratory.”

Mogensen is very transparent about the doings and successes and challenges at Black as is evidenced by his detailed social media postings, particularly Facebook. Stay tuned for news about future upgrades at the mountain. One hint: Don’t expect a high-speed chair any time soon.

“I definitely have some lift plans, not quite ready yet to say what they are, but whatever we do, though, we’re not putting in a high speed quad,” he said. “We’re not changing the character of that mountain. That mountain skis really well.”

The Ski Magazine recognition puts him in a group of 10 skiers that includes alpine skier Mikela Schriffin, alpine skier Lindsay Vonn, and freestyle skier Michelle Gu, household names from their February performances at the Winter Olympic Games in Italy but well known among skiers for their on-slope competitive drive and accomplishments.

“Rather than just talking the talk, Indy Pass director Erik Mogensen spent 2025 working to make skiing more accessible and affordable for more people,” Ski said. “Under his leadership, Indy Pass has expanded its network to hundreds of independent ski areas worldwide, putting skiing closer to more people and keeping it less crowded compared to the megaresorts.”

And how did Mogensen find out about the Ski Magazine honor?

“I was surprised. My mom sent it to me,” he said.