SAM Magazine—Durango, Colo., Feb. 26, 2015—Durango-based investor and resort entrepreneur James Coleman has completed his purchase of Durango Mountain Resort. He marked the occasion by declaring he will change the name of the area back to Purgatory.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Feb. 26, 2015—A Democratic state representative from Steamboat Springs has proposed a bill that would require noncommercial vehicles on a 130-mile stretch of I-70 through the mountains to have snow tires or chains from Nov. 1 to May 15, as the law now requires of commercial vehicles. This section of I-70 experiences chronic closures due to snow-related accidents, and has seen several such closures this winter. The goal is to reduce the incidence of accidents and smooth the flow of traffic during the snowiest months.

SAM Magazine – Denver, Colo., Feb., 20, 2015 – Business over the Presidents Day weekend and into this week has been a tale of opposites. In the West, temperatures remain warmer than average, and in the Northeast, Midwest, and South, the mercury fell to the bottom of the thermometer. But overall, ski areas are reporting that business for the week has been in the black.

SAM Magazine—Ithaca, N.Y., Feb., 19, 2015—Over the past couple of weeks, politicians, meteorologists, and even destination tourism officials in the Northeast have been giving snow a bad name, adding to the challenges resorts face in drawing visitors. Elected officials and meteorologists are advising people to not go outside, and a visitor’s bureau went so far as to recommend that people head to Florida.

SAM Magazine—Salt Lake City, Utah, Feb. 18, 2015—The Mountain Accord blueprint, which proposes to connect ski areas and other major recreation and economic centers via a multi-modal mountain transportation system in Utah’s Central Wasatch, is available for public comment through March 16. The Accord could have broad and varied impacts on the Wasatch resorts.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., Feb., 18, 2015—Aggregated mountain lodging revenues at 19 participating resorts in six western states are poised to eclipse the record business levels of the pre-recession 2007-08 season, according to the most recent data released by Denver-based DestiMetrics.

SAM Magazine—Quebec City, Quebec, Feb. 16, 2015—The North American Snowsports Journalists Association (NASJA) honored four distinguished ski industry veterans during its Annual Meeting Feb. 7-11 at the Fairmont Chateau Frontenac, Quebec City.

SAM Magazine—Wintergreen, Va., Feb. 12, 2015—EPR Properties, a real estate investment trust (REIT), has purchased the assets of Wintergreen Resort in conjunction with its operator for the property, Pacific Group Resorts, Inc. Pacific Group Resorts will lease the property from EPR and manage the resort.

SAM Magazine—Seattle, Wash., Feb. 12, 2015—The Summit at Snoqualmie has closed Alpental, the only one of the four Snoqualmie resorts that was still open, due to the deteriorating snow conditions at the area, just before the President’s week holiday begins.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., Feb., 9, 2015—Intrawest reduced its year-over-year second quarter loss for the period ending Dec. 31 and reported increased revenues for the quarter. The improvements were largely due to the company’s IPO in February 2014 and the acquisition of Blue Mountain, Ontario, in September 2014.

SAM Magazine—Littleton, N.H., Feb. 9, 2015—A community-wide effort is credited for bringing New Hampshire's Mount Eustis back into operation this season with a novel business plan: free skiing and snowboarding for all. Guests must sign a waiver, and the area is suggesting a $5 donation per day.

SAM Magazine—Chehalis, B.C., Feb., 9, 2015—Hemlock Resort will not open this season due to warm temperatures and precipitation that has come in the form of rain rather than snow, while Utah’s Cherry Peak remains closed while new owners continue renovations on the base lodge.

SAM Magazine—Telluride, Colo., Feb. 6, 2015—Members of the Telluride ski patrol will soon vote on whether to form a union, according to the Telluride Daily Planet. The report said patrollers filed a petition with National Labor Relations Board on Jan. 2 to have an election, which at least 30 percent of the group signed.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., Feb. 6, 2015—Nearly 400 mountain tourism and ski industry executives from destinations spanning North America convened Jan. 28 at the SIA Snow Show as part of The Assembly, a one-day forum that presents both a fact-based and knowledge-based assessment of the 2014-15 season at the midway point and identifies emerging growth opportunities in the mountain travel industry.

SAM Magazine—Mesa, Colo., Feb. 4, 2015—Four years after the purchase of Powderhorn Mountain Resort by Gart Capital Partners and Andy Daly, the resort is planning to invest $5 million in the coming year to improve the slopes for winter and summer recreation.

Topping the list of capital investments is the installation of a Poma high-speed quad chairlift along the same alignment as the current Take Four lift, the area’s base-to-summit lift. Construction begins next summer, with completion planned for opening day in mid-December for the 2015-2016 season.

SAM Magazine—Fairport, N.Y., Feb. 4, 2015—Three new safety-related studies suggest that helmets reduce head injuries, ski and snowboard injuries overall are trending downward, and that terrain parks have not led to an increase in catastrophic injuries. All three studies are in the process of being published in the upcoming ASTM STP: Selected Technical Papers 1582, which will appear this spring.

SAM Magazine—Danbury, N.H., Feb. 3, 2015—Ryan Schramm has been named general manager of Ragged Mountain Resort. Schramm, 36, joined the staff in 2010 and most recently served as director of business development, information technology (IT), F&B, and competitions.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., Jan. 28, 2015—There’s stoke, and then there is the opposite of stoke. When Bill Jensen, former CEO of Intrawest, told a crowd of nearly 400 ski industry executives that from his view, 150 ski areas were in “the sunset of their existence” and an additional 150 ski areas could also be out of business within the decade, it became an immediate water-cooler topic.

Jensen was speaking as part of The Assembly 2015, a one-day forum that took place on the first day of the SIA Snow Show held at the Colorado Convention Center.

SAM Magazine—Hancock, Mass., Jan. 27, 2015—State-wide travel bans in Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York – all of which were subsequently lifted by mid-day Tuesday morning—were ordered in preparation for Winter Storm Juno that was expected to drop more than 2 feet of snow throughout the Northeast. The travel bans forced some ski area closures, proving that it is possible to have too much of a good thing. Juno brought up to 30 inches in some, mostly coastal and suburban areas.

SAM Magazine—Woodbury, Conn., Jan. 27, 2015—SAM and SIA are once again sponsoring Rental + Backshop + Uniform at the SIA Snow Show in Denver Jan. 29-Feb. 1. The three exhibits give buyers a one-stop overview of market trends and key offerings from more than 50 suppliers and offer the chance to compare products side by side, free from sales pressure. And for early birds, there’s an additional benefit: free breakfast.

SAM Magazine—White Haven, Pa., Jan. 26, 2015—Ski areas are reporting steady attendance over the Martin Luther King weekend despite short interruptions brought about by inclement weather in the Northeast and Pacific Northwest.

Linda Irvin, executive director of the Pennsylvania Ski Areas Association (PSAA) said Saturday saw strong attendance at many of the ski areas but rain and poor road conditions in eastern part of the state drove down attendance until the weather turned more favorable on Monday.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Jan. 26, 2015—Total skier and snowboarder visits at 21 Colorado resorts during the first part of the season were one percent shy of last year’s record pace, according to Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA). The data reflects visits from Oct. 17 through Dec. 31, 2014.

SAM Magazine—Gaylord, Mich., Jan. 23, 2015—The University of Michigan chapter of the Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity has been suspended indefinitely by the national office after its members were named as suspects for having caused nearly $75,000 worth of damage at Treetops ski area Jan. 16-17. The Sigma Delta Tau sorority is also accused of being involved with the vandalism.

SAM Magazine—Woodbury, Conn., Jan. 22, 2015—Cutter's Camp registration is now open for both of this year's sessions, at Loon Mountain, N.H., April 12-14 and Timberline, Mt. Hood, Ore., May 11-15. Space will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Registrations are processed at www.cutterscamp.com.

SAM Magazine—Pine Crest, Calif., Jan. 22, 2015—Yesterday, Dodge Ridge and Donner Ski Ranch became the latest ski areas in California to suspend operations due to a lack of snow. Badger Pass, Mt. Shasta, and Alta Sierra are also closed.

SAM Magazine—Montpelier, Vt., Jan. 22, 2015—Doug Hoffer, Vermont State Auditor, said the state should to be charging higher rates for use of its mountain lands. Hoffer says the money the state gets out of current lease payments, about $3 million, doesn’t reflect the value of the state’s land, according to a report by Vermont Public Radio (VPR).

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Jan. 22, 2015—The National Ski Patrol (NSP) has re-elected Ed McNamara as the organization's board chair, effective Jan. 10, 2015. McNamara will serve a second term as board chair in his third year on the board.

SAM Magazine – Cortina D’Ampezzo, Italy, Jan. 19, 2015 –– Lindsey Vonn put down a near flawless super G run Monday to win her 63rd Audi FIS Ski World Cup and etch her name into the record books as the winningest women's World Cup racer ever. Skiing at the end of the top seed in the 22nd start position, Vonn took command from the start and posted a .85 second margin over Austria's Anna Fenninger.

The win—her second straight in two days—boosted her beyond the mark of 62 set by Austria's Annemarie Moser-Proell between 1970-80.

SAM Magazine—Cortina D’Ampezzo, Italy, Jan. 18, 2015—Lindsey Vonn captured her 62nd career World Cup win, tying a 35-year record that many race experts have thought was unbeatable, during the Audi FIS downhill in Cortina. Vonn won the race by .32 seconds over Austria's Elisabeth Goergl, and in doing so, ties the record of 62 wins by Austrian Moser-Proell from 1970 to 1980.

SAM Magazine—Steamboat Springs, Colo., Jan. 17, 2015—Chris Diamond, president and COO of Steamboat Ski and Resort Corporation, will retire June 30, 2015.

During his 15-year tenure, Steamboat has greatly expanded its snowmaking capabilities, added night skiing, constructed the Four Points Lodge, and completed numerous lift upgrades and various Urban Renewal Authority projects. Diamond began his ski industry career in 1972, following discharge from the U.S. Army. He joined Steamboat in 1999 as managing director.

SAM Magazine—Mount Washington, B.C., Jan. 16, 2015—Mount Washington—the Canadian one, not the New Hampshire one—was today’s new-snow winner with 11 inches as ski areas across North America prepare for the Martin Luther King Holiday, one of the busiest periods of the season.

Snow also blanketed ski areas in the Pacific Northwest, including Washington, where Crystal Mountain received 10 inches, and seven to eight inches fell at the Summit at Snoqualmie, Mt. Baker, and Mt. Spokane.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., Jan. 16, 2015—Revenues at 19 mountain resorts in six states are up 15 percent over last season while occupancy is up 9 percent, according to Denver-based DestiMetrics. The data reflect aggregated occupancy based on reservations already made through April.

Revenue and occupancy have experienced gains every month from November through April, with double-digit percentage increases in February and April. This year Easter is April 5.

SAM Magazine—Oliver, B.C., Jan. 16, 2015—Mount Baldy ski area re-opened 500 acres to skiers and riders this season after scrapping operations last season. The Baldy Capital Corporation, based in Calgary, has arranged interim financing along with a Memorandum of Understanding to purchase the resort.The plan is to open Fridays through Sundays.

SAM Magazine—Baar/Straubing, Germany, Jan. 9, 2015—Marker Völkl has entered into a purchase agreement to acquire the Dalbello Group, a family-owned Italian company that has been making ski boots since 1974.

SAM Magazine—Wildwood, Mo., Jan. 9, 2015—Peak Resorts noted in its latest earnings report that total skier and snowboarder visits in November and December, the first two months of its third quarter, were behind the five-year average due to late openings at the company’s Midwest ski areas.

Tim Boyd, Peak president and COO, said late openings are not unusual in the region, and that visits to the day-drive resorts typically rebound quickly because of their close proximity to the customer base.

SAM Magazine—Monarch Mountain, Colo., Jan. 7, 2015—A 15-year-old male was arrested yesterday by the Chaffee County Sheriff's Office on charges stemming from two recent attempted sexual assaults on teenage girls at Monarch ski area.

SAM Magazine—Zagreb, Croatia, Jan. 7, 2015—Seven American men ski racers wore black armbands and tape on their helmets in the Audi FIS Ski World Cup night slalom to honor Ronnie Berlack, Franconia, N.H. and Burke Mountain, Vt., and Bryce Astle, Sandy, Utah—two teammates killed in an avalanche Monday. Prior to the race, the race organizers held a moment of silence.

SAM Magazine—Soelden, Austria, Jan. 5, 2015—The U.S. Ski Team is mourning the loss of two promising development-level ski racers killed Monday in an avalanche in Soelden. The two were among a group of six athletes freeskiing at the Austrian resort. The other four skied out of the slide.

Killed in the avalanche were Ronnie Berlack, 20, of Franconia, N.H., and Burke Mountain, Vt., and Bryce Astle, 19, of Sandy, Utah.

SAM Magazine—McLean, Va., Jan. 5, 2015—This month marks the seventh year of Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month, and several states, including Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Utah and Vermont, are promoting statewide discounted beginner lesson packages. A few associations have recruited partners to help spread the news.

SAM Magazine—Sun Valley, Idaho, Dec. 22, 2014—Temperature, more than precipitation, has factored heavily thus far into the 2014-15 season. Resorts in the Rockies are celebrating up to two feet of new snow in the past two days, while rain has hampered the start of the season in other regions.

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Dec. 22, 2014—The National Ski Patrol (NSP) has elected five directors to its board of directors, including former board member Keith Cassidy, a patroller at Wintergreen, Va. Others include Rick Knight, of Mount Southington, Conn., Ken Kramer, of Winter Park, Colo., Chris Pringle, of Bradford Ski Area, Mass., and Bill Sinykin, Beaver Mountain, Utah. NSP’s board members serve three-year terms.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Dec. 18, 2014—A town hall-style roundtable featuring insights from Bill Jensen, former CEO of Intrawest, Harry Frampton, managing partner of East West Partners, and Steve Rice, senior vice president and senior managing director of the CNL Financial Group tops the bill for The Assembly 2015. Now in its third year, The Assembly, which aims to collect the broadest possible perspective on the winter sports industry, will be held Jan. 28 at the Colorado Convention Center in conjunction with the SIA Show Snow and the Industry + Intelligence seminar series.

SAM Magazine—Mt. Hood, Ore., Dec. 12, 2014—Mt. Hood Meadows has named Jake Bolland as the company’s chief operating officer as part of a sweeping administrative reorganization.

Bolland will oversee the day-to-day operations of Mt. Hood Meadows and Cooper Spur Mt. Resort, working with the leadership team to develop the strategic, financial and operational plans. Bolland will also serve on the company’s board of directors.

SAM Magazine—Wrightwood, Calif., Dec. 11, 2014—The Powder Alliance has officially launched the 2014-15 Wild West Powder Quest, a visit-based sweepstakes designed to encourage skiers and snowboarders to explore and uncover the best powder stashes at all 13 participating areas. Those areas include California’s China Peak, Mountain High, and Sierra At Tahoe, Oregon’s Mt Hood Ski Bowl and Timberline, Angel Fire, N.

SAM Magazine—Crystal Mountain, Wash., Dec. 10, 2014—Crystal Mountain took delivery of the first two diesel electric PistenBully 600 E+ snowgroomers in North America yesterday. The 600 E+ uses a new diesel electric drive that significantly lowers environmental and economic impacts while it enhances performance capabilities, according to PistenBully.

SAM Magazine—Carrabassett Valley, Maine, Dec. 9, 2014—Karl Strand will succeed John Diller as the resort’s president and general manager after Diller retires in April, 2015. In the interim, Diller remains in charge at Sugarloaf, and Strand, currently vice president of mountain operations at Sunday River, will remain in that position. He will begin the transition to Sugarloaf in March.

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Dec. 8, 2014—Vail Resorts will make more than $50 million worth of upgrades to Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR) for the 2015-16 ski season. The plan will connect PCMR and Canyons resort and create a single ski area with more than 7,300 acres of skiable terrain.

SAM Magazine–Park City, Utah, Dec. 8, 2014—The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Teams picked up this past weekend where they left off last season: with multiple medalists on the podium.

SAM Magazine—Thompsonville, Mich., Dec. 8, 2014—Crystal Mountain is the first location in northern Michigan designated as a Tesla Driving Destination Partner, in which the electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer establishes complimentary charging stations for its customers.

SAM Magazine—Truckee, Calif., Dec. 5, 2014—The continued front of winter storms passing through California’s Lake Tahoe region has brought more than three feet of snow to higher elevations some ski areas, enabling resorts in the Sierra expand their open terrain or in some cases open for the season. Up to a foot of additional snow could fall on higher elevations through Saturday. In the Northwest, though, conditions still remain challenging for many areas.

SAM Magazine—Wildwood, Mo., Dec. 1, 2014—Peak Resorts, Inc., operator of 13 ski resorts located primarily in the Northeast and Midwest, 12 of which are company-owned, has closed its initial public offering of 10,000,000 shares of common stock at a public price of $9 per share. At today’s close the shares were trading at $8.59. All of the shares were offered by the company.

SAM Magazine—Woodbury, Conn., Nov. 21, 2014—After six successful camps at Carinthia, Mount Snow, Cutter's Camp will change the venue of its eastern location to Loon Mountain Resort, N.H., April 12-14, 2015. The western camp will remain at Timberline, Mt. Hood, Ore., May 11-15.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Nov. 21, 2014—Intrawest Resorts Holdings, Inc. has named Thomas F. Marano as the company’s chief executive officer, effective immediately. Marano will also serve on the company’s board of directors. Additionally, Intrawest has promoted Sky Foulkes, President of Stratton Mountain Resort, to the position of Chief Operating Officer.

William A. Jensen has tendered his resignation as CEO for personal reasons. A former head of Vail Resorts’ mountain division, he became CEO of Intrawest in 2008.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Nov. 20, 2014—With cold and snow sweeping through much of the Rockies and the eastern half of the country, resorts there are opening ahead of schedule and with more terrain than usual. Nationwide, there were nearly 50 resorts open today, with more than 80 ski areas nationwide open this weekend.

Meanwhile, snow remains in short supply on the West Coast.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Nov. 17, 2014—Despite mild October temperatures, lodging reservations for the six-month winter season (November through April) are currently running ahead of the same time last season. Denver-based DestiMetrics, an organization that tracks mountain lodging bookings in 19 Western mountain resorts in six states, said that reservations as of Oct. 31 are up 7.4 percent and revenues are up 13.9 percent for the six-month period compared to the same time last year, with increases in every month except April.

SAM Magazine—Salt Lake City, Utah, Nov. 14, 2014—Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation and Visit Salt Lake have settled the litigation involving Steamboat’s Ski Town, U.S.A. trademark and Visit Salt Lake’s Ski City USA marketing campaign. The upshot: Visit Salt Lake has agreed to revise its campaign in a manner that is acceptable to the parties. All other terms of the settlement are confidential.

SAM Magazine—Woodbury, Conn., Nov. 13, 2014—A strong cold front that continues to sweep through most of the country this week blanketed some ski areas with nearly two feet of fresh snow, allowing snowmaking crews to piggyback off of Mother Nature’s graces as they work to open for the 2014-15 season.

The National Weather Service said that the front is the result of a developing El Nino weather pattern, and that, as resorts know, could have season-long impacts.

SAM Magazine—Denver, Nov. 7, 2014—Three Colorado resorts headline this weekend’s openings, along with resorts in California, Nevada, and Michigan, as the winter season slowly gets underway. The pace could well pick up soon, though: With an extended cold snap forecast next week for much of the nation east of the Rockies, more resorts are expected to open within the next week.

SAM Magazine — Broomfield, Colo., Nov. 5, 2014 — Vail Resorts, Inc. today announced that Patricia Campbell, executive VP and COO of Breckenridge Ski Resort, will become president of the company's mountain division effective Aug. 1, 2015.

SAM Magazine – Aspen Snowmass Village, Colo. Nov. 4, 2014 – Today Aspen Skiing Company announced an internal reorganization that is says is aimed at enhancing the guest experience through improved operational efficiencies, developing a more collaborative environment among employees, and allowing the company to keep up with the pace of the changing business environment.

The announcement comes just a few weeks before the scheduled Nov. 27 openings of Snowmass and Aspen Mountain. Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk are set to open Dec. 13.