SAM Magazine-Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah, June 26, 2008-Utah's Solitude has long been known as a sleepy backwater, with slow, fixed grip chairs, plenty of powder and no crowds. Next winter, however, life will become a little faster at the resort, with the summer installation of two high-speed quads in a $7 million lift upgrade. Less than three y...

SAM Magazine-Mt. Crested Butte, Colo., June 26, 2008-Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) is investing to enhance the guest experience through ncreased and expanded airline service, expanded services and amenities in the base-area hotels, upgrades and remodel of the Treasury Center, a new "Kids Base Camp" replacing Kids World, and expanded terrain....

SAM Magazine-Deer Valley, Utah, June 25, 2008-Deer Valley will double the ski resort's seasonal employee housing for the 2008-2009 winter. Given the pricy real estate surrounding the ski area, where many homes are valued at more than $1 million, the resort won't build slopeside accommodations for its seasonal workforce. Rather, the ski resort will ...

SAM Magazine-Snow Park, New Zealand, June 25, 2008-In a scenario which will be familiar to some Northern Hemisphere resort operators, the 2008 season Down Under has been delayed due to unseasonably warm weather. Snow Park, New Zealand's only dedicated terrain park resort, was scheduled to open on June 18, but had to delay operations, as did The Rem...

SAM Magazine--Grand Junction, Colo., June 13, 2008--Thomas W. Richardson, 71, died on June 5, 2008. Richardson started his industry career in 1964, when he was hired by the Aspen Skiing Company as a management trainee. From there, he rose through the ranks to president and CEO, a position he held for three years until his retirement in 1982. Bet...

SAM Magazine--June 12, 2008--Both Vermont and New Hampshire reported their 2007-008 skier visit numbers, and the news was good. First, the Vermont Ski Areas Association announced that 4,354,621 visits took place on Vermont slopes last season, which is a 14 percent increase over the prior season and well ahead of the 10-year average. Next up,...

SAM Magazine-Crested Butte, Colo., June 12, 2008-Melanie Mills, director of public affairs for Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA), has become the group's new president. She replaces Rob Perlman, who is leaving to join Steamboat Ski Resort as VP of sales and marketing. Mills' appointment came at the annual CSCUSA meeting here today. The organizati...

SAM Magazine-Bend, Ore., June 10, 2008-After a nationwide search, Mt. Bachelor has named Dave Rathbun president and general manager, succeeding Matt Janney. Rathbun, who moves to Bachelor from its sister resorts Killington and Pico, Vt., where he served as director of marketing, sales, reservations and golf, starts his new position immediately. ...

SAM Magazine-New York, June 11, 2008-According to a new study on injuries and recreational sports, more snowboarders are sent to the emergency room than participants in any other sport. The study, headed by researchers associated with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was reported in the journal Wilderness and Environmental Medicine. The ...

SAM Magazine-West Dover, Vt., June 11, 2008-Vermont's Mount Snow has announced that the ski resort will dedicate the entire Carinthia area as a freeride zone, transforming 95 acres of trails into a massive park system. The new freeride terrain will feature rails, jumps and halfpipes and will cover approximately five miles of terrain at Carinthia...

SAM Magazine-Portland, Ore., June 11, 2008-The Pacific Northwest Ski Areas Association has named Gary Larsen its 2008 Forest Service Partner of the Year. This honor recognizes environmental stewardship, knowledge of ski area operations, and contributions to administration of special use permits for ski areas. Larsen, the forest supervisor on the...

SAM Magazine-Aspen, Colo., June 9, 2008-Aspen Skiing Company will open the top of Aspen Mountain for skiing this weekend, June 13-15. The top of the mountain still sports three feet of snow as the traditional summer operating season begins. The resort will offer seven runs and about 45 acres of mostly intermediate terrain served by the Ajax Express...

SAM Magazine-Will this season ever end? Willamette Pass will begin summer gondola operations Saturday and Sunday, June 14 and 15, with sightseeing to the top of Eagle Peak and skiing and snowboarding on the Peak 2 lift. Due to all the snow covering the slopes, Willamette is unable to offer its usual summer fare of mountain biking, hiking, and do...

SAM Magazine - Wolf Creek, Colo., June 5, 2008 - Wolf Creek ski area has settled a lawsuit with an adjacent property owner who plans to develop the land next to the ski area out of court. The ski area was opposed to the development. The project, headed by Billy Joe "Red" McCombs, one of the founders of Clear Channel Communications, consists of a...

SAM Magazine - Broomfield, Colo., June 5, 2008 - Vail executives are smiling after the company posted strong results in the third quarter. For 2008, the company posted record third quarter resort revenues of $369.3 million, 4.8 percent over 2007's record results. Net income was a record $87.3 million, 11.3 percent over 2007. Strong snowfall thr...