In SAM’s Snow People, we highlight recent personnel moves that have been made in the mountain resort industry. From resort hires, promotions, and retirements to supplier news, awards and obits, we celebrate the people that make this industry thrive.

PEOPLE

KATIE VAN RIPER and JUSTIN SOINE, POWDER MOUNTAIN

Powder Mountain has hired Katie Van Riper as director of marketing. Riper brings more than 15 years of experience in ski industry marketing. She has contributed to many distinguished brands including Snowbird, Helly Hansen, Boyne Resorts, Elevated Outdoor Collective, and Visit Salt Lake.

Justin Soine has joined Powder Mountain as director of sports and recreation. Soine has nearly 20 years of experience in ski school management and has served as the ski school manager at Utah’s Canyons Village, ski school director at Afton Alps, Minn., and training manager at Breckenridge, Colo.

BRANDON HAMMER and NICK TOLAND, BRUNDAGE MOUNTAIN

Brandon Hammer has joined Brundage Mountain as director of projects. In this new role, Hammer will execute Brundage’s wide-ranging improvement plans, which include new base area facilities, ski-in/ski-out lodging, and employee housing initiatives, among other projects.

Nick Toland has been promoted to director of base area operations. Toland brings more than a decade of property management and ski resort experience to the position. His responsibilities include management and oversight of all building maintenance, janitorial, resort security, transportation, parking, and groundskeeping operations for Brundage Mountain Resort, the activity barn snow tubing facility, the Creekside RV Park & Campground, and the Meadows Haus employee housing facility.

GENE SYRIA, KILLINGTON RESORT

Gene Syria, the longest continuously serving mountain ops worker at Killington, is retiring after 46 years. Syria started at Killington in 1977 as a seasonal employee working on the old Killington Gondola. Since then, he has worked in various roles at the resort including gondola base foreman, lift maintenance manager, and supervisor of maintenance for all lifts.

TONY EDMONDS, ELM CREEK PARK and HYLAND HILLS

Tony Edmonds, ski area specialist at Elm Creek Park, Minn., is retiring. Edmonds started at Hyland Hills the winter of 1999-2000 as a snow maker and groomer. He was there for 13 years until being promoted to ski area specialist, where he was in charge of directing crews, snowmaking, grooming, and overseeing inspection on conveyor lifts. 

DEMPSEY MENDRZYCKI, BIG SNOW AMERICAN DREAM

SNOW Partners has appointed Dempsey Mendrzycki as the new general manager of its Big SNOW American Dream indoor ski and snowboard facility, effective immediately. Mendrzycki previously held the role of risk and safety ranger for both Mountain Creek—also owned by SNOW Partners—and Big SNOW, and will continue managing those responsibilities for both properties in his new role. Find a full report on SAM’s Headline News.

DAN EGAN, TENNEY MOUNTAIN

Extreme skier-turned-media professional Dan Egan has been named general manager of Tenney Mountain, N.H. Egan previously served as GM at the ski area, which was purchased by a new ownership group last year, from 2002 to 2004. Find a full report on SAM’s Headline News.

SUPPLIERS

JON WALTERS, LEITNER-POMA OF AMERICA (LPOA)

LPOA has hired Jon Walters as business development and sales manager. Walters brings in more than three decades of experience in sales and business development at various companies including The Sebastian Hotel in Vail, the Westin Snowmass, and Colorado’s Crested Butte Mountain Resort, Vail Resorts, and Copper Mountain Resort. In his new role, he will focus on guiding sales efforts across all of LPOA’s cable transport systems. 

SPOTLIO

Ticketing platform Catalate has joined Spotlio. The integrated operations, which will be marketed under the consolidated banner of Spotlio, will redefine destination digital technology and provide cutting-edge solutions for the ski resort, parks, and attractions sector. The combined operations provide for integration of capabilities across a diverse portfolio, enabling Spotlio to efficiently connect resorts and attractions with consumers.

OBITUARIES

WAYNE HARLIN RAGLAND

Longtime SMI employee, Wayne Ragland, died on Aug. 18. Ragland had been with SMI for 32 years, working in sales and support before retiring in 2018 to spend time with family. Before joining SMI, he ran Park West Resort in Utah, which was later renamed Canyons and is now a part of Park City Mountain Resort.

HANS GEIER

Hans Geier, innovator and passionate ski industry leader, died on Aug. 18. He spent most of his 30+-year career in the ski industry at various resorts including Steamboat, where he served as president and CEO, and Stratton Mountain, where he was president. He was also president of Doppelmayr North America from 1994-1997. He served on the Board of Directors of Colorado Ski Country USA and the National Ski Areas Association, and received NSAA’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998. In 2013, he was inducted into the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame.

BRUCE WYMAN

Bruce Wyman died June 21 in Vermont. Wyman was an electrician by trade and spent most of his career in the ski industry. He had a long career at Mount Snow, Vt., and was active with the National Ski Areas Association. He also served nearly 23 years in the U.S. Military.

TODD GREEN

Todd Green, a ski industry veteran with more than 40 years’ experience working at snowsports resorts and, most recently, as service manager for TechnoAlpin USA, died Sept. 23. Green’s career included stints at Copper Mountain, Colo., Squaw Valley (now Palisades Tahoe), Calif., and Vail Resorts. He had been with the TechnoAlpin team for nearly five years.