SAM Magazine—Kansas City, Mo., April 6, 2017—Och-Ziff Real Estate, EPR Properties, and CNL have completed the sale of CNL’s ski area and attractions portfolios. The deal leaves Ski Resort Holdings LLC, owned by funds affiliated with OZRE, with 14 former CNL ski resort properties. EPR, the REIT that has funded Peak Resorts, adds Northstar California resort to its portfolio, along with 15 of CNL’s water and amusement parks, and five smaller family entertainment centers.

SAM Magazine—Killington, Vt., April 4, 2017—[UPDATED] Killington has entered into a two-year agreement with USSA to get a FIS World Cup event back to the resort over Thanksgiving weekend in 2017 and 2018. The spot on the race schedule has not been firmed up by FIS yet, but the resort hopes FIS will confirm it as a stop on the calendar at the federation's meeting in May. This comes after a tremendously successful initial foray in 2016, when the event drew an estimated 30,000 spectators.

Welcome to the March edition of Snow People, where we highlight happenings to prominent ski industry and supplier personnel.

SAM Magazine—Auburn, Maine, March 30, 2017—Kässbohrer ATV, Inc., the North American Division of German parent company Kässbohrer AG and distributor of PistenBully snow grooming equipment, has chosen Lost Valley ski area in Auburn, Maine, as the site of the company’s future regional headquarters, which will include construction of a new facility.

SAM Magazine—Granby, Quebec, March 28, 2017—Industry veteran Charles Blier has been named Prinoth’s vice president of sales, snow grooming North America. He will start in this new role April 3.

SAM Magazine—Copper Mountain, Colo., March 28, 2017—Several improvements for both winter and summer are on the docket at Copper Mountain in Colorado. The resort plans to install a new high-speed quad chairlift and RFID gates at the lifts in time for the 2017-18 winter season. New warm-season activities include an alpine coaster, obstacle course, and a mountain biking trail.

SAM Magazine—Cheyenne, Wyo., March 22, 2017—Wyoming has become the 29th state to adopt ski safety legislation after Gov. Matt Mead signed the Wyoming Ski Safety Act into law earlier this month. According to an NSAA report, the bill defines inherent risks involved with skiing and snowboarding, immunizes ski areas from claims resulting from these risks, and places operational requirements on ski areas to improve mountain safety.

SAM Magazine—Washington, D.C., March 22, 2017—Today, the Forest Service will host an ADA webinar for ski area and agency personnel from 2 to 3 p.m. EST. The subject of the webinar is Accessibility for Resorts and Areas with Four Season Uses.

SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., March 21, 2017—At the end of the day on Friday, March 31, Winter Park Resort president and CEO Gary DeFrange will retire from the post he’s held since 1997. Intrawest COO Sky Foulkes will succeed DeFrange as president.

SAM Magazine—Aspen, Colo., March 21, 2017—FIS should be thrilled with Aspen after the resort hosted a tremendously successful World Cup finals event that drew huge crowds, had excellent TV ratings, and garnered compliments from competitors, right? Not according to FIS secretary general Sarah Lewis.

SAM Magazine—Denver, March 20, 2017— The list of accessible ski areas on the M.A.X. Pass continues to get longer, with six new properties hopping on-board for 2017-18, including Windham, Belleayre, Gore, and Whiteface in New York, Lutsen in Minnesota, and Granite Peak in Wisconsin. That brings the grand total up to 44 ski areas in roughly 22 states and provinces that M.A.X. Pass-holders will have access to next season, with five unrestricted days at each.

SAM Magazine—Denver, March 20, 2017—With less than a month remaining in the winter 2016-17 booking season, overall aggregated occupancy for 19 western mountain resorts remains essentially flat, up 0.3 percent as of Feb. 28, compared to the same time last year. In contrast, overall aggregated revenue is up 7.3 percent for the same time period, according to a report by DestiMetrics. The data also revealed that 90 percent of all of last season’s business has already been booked or “banked” for this season.

SAM Magazine—Denver, March 20, 2017—Visits to Colorado Ski Country USA’s 22 member ski areas were up 1 percent during the second period of the 2016-17 season, which runs from Jan. 1, 2017 through Feb. 28, 2017, compared to the same period last year.

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., March 13, 2017—Vail Resorts fiscal 2017 second quarter results for the period ending Jan. 31 show growth in just about every category compared to the same period last year, with Whistler Blackcomb driving much of the increase. The slow start to the winter season in Colorado dragged the results a bit for the rest of the company.

SAM Magazine—Dover, Vt., March 13, 2017—Snow continues to be the story here in the States as well as in Europe.

SAM Magazine—Denver, March 13, 2017—Sales tax collections in Colorado’s mountain communities once again reached an all-time high in 2016, mirroring the steep climb of skier visit numbers, resort revenues, and statewide tourism numbers since 2012, according to a report in The Denver Post. And while winter is still the high season, it’s difficult to call the non-winter months the “off-season” any longer.

SAM Magazine—Dover, Vt., March 9, 2017—Season-pass launch season has begun, and many 2017-18 products are currently available at their introductory prices. There are also some updates and additions to the mix.

SAM Magazine—Durango, Colo., March 3, 2017—The Colorado Passenger Tramway Safety Board identified several deficiencies during a lift inspection at Hesperus Ski Area, including signage, record keeping, general maintenance, and insufficient operator training, prompting management to close the ski area until the issues are addressed.

SAM Magazine—Sugar Mountain, N.C., March 3, 2017—The family of a teenager who was stranded on a chairlift after it closed last February at Sugar Mountain, N.C., is suing the resort for $75,000.

March 25 – April 1, 2017, Banff and Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada
The annual Mountain Travel Symposium gathers more than 1,000 mountain travel experts from around the world for a week of networking, deal-making, education, and fun. Each day features a variety of programming geared toward growing the mountain travel business. Part of the programming is Wednesday and Thursday’s MTS Forum—a series of discussions and seminars led by top industry professionals.

SAM Magazine—Dover, Vt., March 1, 2017—As usual, Mother Nature played the biggest role in how successful the Presidents’ holiday period was for ski areas across the country. In general, it appears that a majority of the nation’s ski areas fared pretty well.

Welcome to the February edition of Snow People, our monthly roundup of happenings to prominent people in the mountain resort industry.

SAM Magazine—Killington, Vt., Feb. 23, 2017—Resort managers and operators from across North America will gather at the 2017 edition of SAM’s Summer Ops Camp, Sept. 5-7, at Killington in central Vermont. The annual hands-on educational and networking event focuses on maximizing four-season operations and revenue, which makes Killington and its ongoing multi-million dollar investment into summer attractions and activities an ideal location for the event.

SAM Magazine—Taos Ski Valley, N.M., Feb. 22, 2017—Taos Ski Valley is the first ski resort in the world to become a Certified B Corporation, a recognition awarded to for-profit companies that meet the highest standards of economic, social and environmental performance, and public transparency. These standards are verified by B Lab, a “nonprofit organization that serves a global movement of people using business as a force for good.” There are 2,048 Certified B Corps in the world.

SAM Magazine—Arapahoe Basin, Colo., Feb. 22, 2017—Following nearly 10 years of planning, Arapahoe Basin gained approval from the National Forest Service for a 468-acre terrain expansion into an area located to the west of the existing ski area boundary called the Beavers and the Steep Gullies, eventually served by a new fixed-grip quad scheduled to be installed for the 2018-19 season. When complete, the new terrain will bring A-Basin’s total skiable area to 1,428 acres.

SAM Magazine—Highmount, N.Y., Feb. 22, 2017—After committing $20 million in January to upgrade state-owned Gore Mountain and Whiteface, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo today said the state would invest an additional $8 million for upgrades at Belleayre Ski Center. The investment includes a new eight-person gondola as well as upgrading and expanding its two main lodges.

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Feb. 21, 2017—The rumors began swirling recently that Vail Resorts was looking to expand its portfolio east, and Stowe Mountain Resort was its target. The rumors were true. Vail Resorts is acquiring all of the assets related to Stowe’s mountain operations, including base area skier services (food and beverage, retail and rental, lift ticket offices and ski and snowboard school facilities) at Mount Mansfield and Spruce Peak from Mt. Mansfield Company, Inc.—a wholly-owned subsidiary of American International Group (AIG)—for $50 million.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Feb. 17, 2017—In its winter mid-season summary for more than 290 participating lodging properties, DestiMetrics reported that generous snowfall across the Rocky Mountain and Far West regions contributed to both positive and negative trends in lodging numbers at western mountain destinations. As of Jan. 31, aggregated actual occupancy for the winter season from November through April was up 1.3 percent, and revenues were up 8.7 percent compared to the same time last year.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Feb. 10, 2017—Intrawest Resorts Holdings, Inc., reported improved numbers for the second quarter ending Dec. 31, 2016, compared to the same period last year.

SAM Magazine—Wildwood, Mo., Feb. 10, 2017—With improved snow conditions compared to a year ago, sales of Peak Resorts’ new Peak Pass products were up 28 percent in units and 23 percent in dollars from the beginning of the ski season through Jan. 29, 2017, compared to the same period year-over-year. Paid skier visits at the company’s 14 ski areas were up 40 percent through the same period.

SAM Magazine—Teton Village, Wyo., Feb. 8, 2017—A massive power outage overnight Tuesday has left Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and Teton Village without power, and the resort will be closed at least through the weekend as a result. At present, the resort is targeting Monday, Feb. 13 as a possible reopening date.

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Jan. 31, 2017—The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) has posted on its website details for the position of president and CEO, and is soliciting resumes from prospective candidates. The new head will succeed longtime president Michael Berry, who is retiring at the end of the year.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Jan. 26, 2017—During yesterday’s National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) board meeting in Denver at the SIA Snow Show, NSAA president Michael Berry informed the board that he is retiring at the end of this calendar year. Berry has been president of NSAA since January 1993.

SAM Magazine—Princeton, Mass., Jan. 26, 2017—Head Skis has been working with the Professional Ski Instructors of America on a rekindled graduated-length method of learning, called Headway, which guarantees results in just one day. This “total immersion” program combines three different lengths of specially-designed rental skis with all-day instruction, and on-mountain testing of the program has officially begun at two participating resorts.

SAM Magazine—United Kingdom, Jan. 26, 2017—Over in the United Kingdom, taking selfies while skiing and riding has its consequences, according to a recent study of British skiers funded by UK-based travel insurance company Columbus Direct. The company’s research revealed that just over half (51 percent) of experienced skiers have been injured while trying to film or photograph themselves skiing/riding on expert terrain or off-piste.

SAM Magazine—Waitsfield, Vt., Jan. 26, 2017—The nation’s only cooperatively-owned ski area, Mad River Glen in Vermont, has hired Matt Lillard as its new general manager. Lillard is currently the GM of community-owned Eaglecrest Ski Area in Juneau, Alaska, where he’s been at the helm for the past five years. He’ll start at Mad River in early March.

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Jan. 25, 2017—Registration is now open for 15th anniversary of the spring session of Cutter's Camp, May 16-20, 2017, at Timberline, Mt. Hood, Ore. The weeklong spring program for terrain park professionals features on-hill and classroom workshops, including the return of one-on-one customized operator coaching and the Park Challenge workshop.

SAM Magazine—Squaw Valley, Calif., Jan. 24, 2017—Joe Zuiches, a 42-year-old resident of Olympic Valley and a member of the Squaw Valley professional ski patrol since 2012, was killed in an incident at 8:35 a.m. this morning during avalanche control activities. The cause of the incident, which occurred at the top of Gold Coast Ridge at Squaw Valley, is believed to be the detonation of an explosive charge, the resort said in a statement this afternoon.

SAM Magazine—Plattsburgh, N.Y., Jan. 23, 2017—Gov. Andrew Cuomo is committing $28 million for capital enhancements at two of New York’s state-owned facilities—Whiteface and Gore Mountain. Both ski areas are located in the Adirondacks, and Cuomo said the goal is to attract more tourists to the areas so they can rival ski resorts in nearby Vermont and Canada.

SAM Magazine—Granby, Colo., Jan. 20, 2017—Preliminary investigation into the death of Texas mom Kelly Huber in a chairlift accident at Ski Granby Ranch Dec. 29 now suggests that the likely cause was an independent contractor’s modification to the lift’s electrical drive/control system, according to a statement released by the resort.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Jan. 20, 2017—Considering how long it took the ski season to get rolling in Colorado, it’s not surprising that total skier visits for the period Oct. 21 through Dec. 31 are down year-over-year at Colorado Ski Country USA’s 22 member resorts. The fact that they’re only down by single digits compared to last year, and actually up 3 percent over the five-year average, is a testament to how good things have been of late.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Jan. 19, 2017—With the Christmas holiday season and the month of December now officially in the books, many western mountain lodging properties have much to cheer about, according to the most recent data released by DestiMetrics. As of December 31, while actual occupancy for the month of December was up a scant 0.6 percent compared to last December, revenues jumped 13.2 percent.

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Jan. 16, 2017—Before the snow started piling up this month at its properties in western North America, the ski season got off to a slow start for Vail Resorts’ destination areas in Colorado, Utah, California, and British Columbia. According to an interim period report from VR, skier visits were down more than 13 percent since the beginning of the season through Jan. 8, 2017, compared to the same period ending Jan. 10, 2016.

SAM Magazine—Incline Village, Nev., Jan. 13, 2017—After serving as Diamond Peak’s interim general manager during the 2015-16 season, Mike Bandelin had the “interim” removed from his title in October, and now serves as the resort’s full-on GM.

SAM Magazine—Tahoe, Calif., Jan. 11, 2017—Is it possible to have too much snow? Ask anyone in the Sierras or Colorado right now, and they’ll say yes. A storm of rare strength, moisture content, and duration has been dumping feet of snow on many areas in the West, causing major roads and resorts to close until they can dig out and manage severe avalanche danger.

SAM Magazine—Granby, Colo., Jan. 10, 2017—The investigation into the fatal chairlift accident at Ski Granby Ranch Dec. 29 has “identified issues within the chairlift’s electrical drive/control system that contributed to a rare dynamic event that occurred on the lift at the time of the incident,” according to a report from the Colorado Passenger Tramway Safety Board. In addition, the report said that the chair in which a Texas mom and her two daughters were riding struck a lift tower a third of the way up the mountain before the three fell 25 feet to the ground.

SAM Magazine—Killington, Vt., Jan. 9, 2017—A longtime Killington lift mechanic died after he reportedly fell 13 feet from the catwalk while working on Killington’s Skyeship gondola at its North Brook terminal on Saturday.

SAM Magazine—Truckee, Calif., Jan. 5, 2017—Mountain resorts continue to make progress combating the ongoing housing crisis, with Northstar California the most recent to step up. The resort will participate in the newly emerging Truckee North Tahoe Regional Housing Council, kicking in $30,000 to its Housing Solutions Fund. The money will be used to prioritize opportunities, support resident assistance programs, and leverage capital funding.

Welcome to Snow People. This time, our monthly roundup of happenings to prominent people in the mountain resort industry is a combo of December and early January.

SAM Magazine—Riviera Maya, Mexico, Jan. 5, 2017—Powdr plans to open its newest Woodward center in October 2017 at a location nowhere near the snowy slopes—Riviera Maya, Mexico. The new facility will operate as part of the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya.

SAM Magazine—Durango, Colo., Jan. 5, 2017—Purgatory Resort has appointed Colin McBeath as its new general manager, taking over for interim GM and company CFO Mark Seiter. McBeath brings more than 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry, most recently as general manager of the Sheraton Anchorage Hotel and Spa in Alaska. His first day on the job will be Jan. 10.

SAM Magazine—Dover, Vt., Jan. 4, 2017—When we asked a handful of ski areas across North America how they fared during the Christmas holiday week, the following are just some of the adjectives used to describe it: “fantastic,” “excellent,” “wonderful,” “nuts,” “spectacular”—even “perfect.” From coast to coast, Santa brought snow, and people followed—in record numbers.

SAM Magazine—Stowe, Vt., Jan. 4, 2017—Growth through acquisition continues for Inntopia. The software as a service (SaaS) e-commerce company has acquired Denver-based DestiMetrics, which has been supplying lodging metrics and market intelligence to North American travel destinations, including the mountain travel industry, since 2004. This is the second acquisition for Inntopia since October, when it acquired database and CRM firm Ryan Solutions.

SAM Magazine—Dover, Vt., Jan. 4, 2017—After its inaugural attempt in Jan. 2016 fell short, organizers for this year’s shot at breaking the Guinness World Record for the largest ski and the largest snowboard lessons are giving it another go. On Friday, Jan. 6, more than 80 different ski areas across the U.S. and Canada will simultaneously hold individual events to try and break the record—and help generate enthusiasm for Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month.

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Jan. 4, 2017—Vail Resorts has more capital enhancements planned for three of its Colorado resorts—Vail, Keystone, and Breckenridge—highlighted by a new high speed six-passenger lift at each of the properties, all scheduled to be installed in time for the 2017-18 ski season. Each new lift will increase capacity by up to 25 percent compared to the lifts they’re replacing. All installations will be done by Leitner-Poma, and are subject to U.S. Forest Service approval.

SAM Magazine—Granby, Colo., Dec. 31, 2016—A Texas mother, 40-year-old Kelly Huber, died and two young daughters were hurt after they fell about 25 feet from a quad chairlift Thursday morning Dec. 29 at Ski Granby Ranch. One daughter remains in serious condition after being transported by Flight for Life helicopter to Children’s Hospital in Denver.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Dec. 20, 2016—Golf clubs and bicycles got some additional use during an unseasonably warm November, which appears to have had an adverse effect on lodging bookings at western mountain destinations, according to a recent report by DestiMetrics. As of Nov. 30, actual bookings made in November for arrivals during the six winter months (November through April) were down 7.9 percent compared to bookings made in November 2015 for the same months last winter. November bookings for November arrivals were down a dramatic 25.9 percent and down 15.3 percent compared to the same time last year, as several resorts delayed their planned openings due to the warm weather.

SAM Magazine—Woodbury, Conn., Dec. 20, 2016—This spring, Cutter's Camp will celebrate 15 years of gathering freestyle terrain professionals for educational seminars and hands-on workshops. Timberline, Mt. Hood, Ore., will once again host the longer-camp format, May 16-20, 2017. Mount Snow, Vt., will host the return of an eastern camp and the debut of the new “Fall Refresher” format, Nov. 6-8, 2017.

SAM Magazine—Gatlinburg, Tenn., Dec. 20, 2016—Gatlinburg Sky Lift, a Boyne Resorts-owned scenic chairlift attraction in Gatlinburg, Tenn., was in the path of the wildfire that spread through the popular resort town on Monday, Nov. 28. The chairlift’s upper section and upper terminal experienced significant damage, the degree of which is being evaluated. The facilities on the upper viewing deck, including the gift shop, are a total loss. The street-level building that houses ticket sales, offices, and a maintenance shop, as well as the lift’s bottom terminal, were completely unharmed.

SAM Magazine—Wildwood, Mo., Dec. 13, 2016—Any EB-5 program turmoil, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services backlogs, questions, and delays are, for now, in the rearview mirror for Peak Resorts and its flagship property, Mount Snow, Vt. Earlier today, the USCIS approved the first I-526 petition submitted by an investor in Mount Snow’s EB-5 offering, immediately releasing the $52 million of investor funds that have been sitting idle in escrow for more than two years, delaying some projects and forcing Peak to find alternate funding sources.