SAM Magazine—Hancock, Mass., April 23, 2019—More than 400 ski area operations professionals, industry suppliers, and experts from across the country spent three days learning, collaborating, and networking during the 42nd annual Lift Maintenance Seminar (LMS) at Jiminy Peak, Mass., April 16-18. More than a dozen new sessions were introduced amo...

Special Report by Steven Threndyle What do China, shopping malls, and snowball fights have in common? All three were floated as possible ideas for increasing skiing and snowboarding participation during the Mountain Travel Symposium (MTS) at Whistler-Blackcomb in early April. From the cavernous convention space of the Whistler Conference Centre t...

SAM Magazine—Ludlow, Vt., April 19, 2019—The North American Snowsports Journalists Association (NASJA) has named the winners of four of its annual awards.  Rick Kahl: Carson White Snowsports Achievement Award NASJA journalist and corporate members voted SAM’s own Rick Kahl as the 2019 Carson White Snowsports Achievement Award reci...

SAM Magazine—Jasper, Alberta, Canada, April 18, 2019—Longtime Marmot Basin president and CEO Dave Gibson will retire at the end of June after leading the resort for 32 years. Jason Paterson, who has served as vice president of operations and maintenance at Marmot Basin since 2012, will succeed him. “I am both honored and thrilled for the opp...

SAM Magazine—Denver, April 17, 2019—The only question left about western mountain lodging for the 2018-19 season is how big the record numbers will be—and if the record will be for occupancy, rate, revenue, or all of them.  In the most recent monthly DestiMetrics Market Briefing released by Inntopia, aggregated actual occupancy for the ...

SAM Magazine—Woodbury, Conn., April 11, 2019—Kicking off in the west this week, an intense spring snowstorm is expected to drop flakes all the way to the Northeast, making the 2018-19 season one that just keeps on giving. And since the snow’s not quitting, neither are resorts. Incredible snowpack has led many areas to extend their seasons and...

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., April 9, 2019—Vail Resorts, Inc. has closed on its acquisition of the ski field leases and related infrastructure at Falls Creek Alpine Resort and Hotham Alpine Resort in Victoria, Australia. The closing price was approximately AU$179 million (approximately US$127 million) after adjustments for certain agreed-upo...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., April 2, 2019—The 2019 SAMMY Leadership Award winners include a sustainability leader, a change leader, a guest experience guru, and an innovative marketer: Dawn Boulware, Geoff Buchheister, Simon Pagé and Hugh Reynolds. The four, nominated by their peers, have demonstrated the leadership skills needed to help steer...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., March 29, 2019—Is there a 20-something rising star at your ski area who is poised to make an impact and climb through the ranks? If so, we encourage you to submit a nomination for him or her to be profiled as one of the “10 Under 30” in the July issue of SAM magazine. Nominations are due by April 19.Thi...

SAM Magazine—Vernon, N.J., March 29, 2019—Industry veteran Charles Blier is joining the SNOW Operating executive team as vice president and general manager of Mountain Creek Resort, N.J., which SNOW Operating owns and operates. Blier brings more than 30 years of resort operating experience to his role at Mountain Creek, where he previously spen...

SAM Magazine— Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada, March 25, 2019—Vista Ridge, an all-seasons park in Alberta, Canada, named Dan Wilson as its new general manager in December 2018. Wilson took over as GM for Kevin Grogan, who stepped back from managing winter operations. Grogan continues as project manager for Vista Ridge’s several capital project...

In SAM’s monthly Snow People, we highlight recent personnel moves that have been made in the mountain resort industry. STEVE BOULANGER, MAINE Sunday River promoted Steve Boulanger to VP of mountain operations. Prior to the promotion, Boulanger served as the ski operations director since 2015, and patrol director before that. He started at S...

SAM Magazine—Denver, March 19, 2019—A winter season that began on a downward trend in the wake of last year’s disappointing snow conditions is now moving toward new records for lodging occupancy and revenue, according to the monthly DestiMetrics Market Briefing from Inntopia. DestiMetrics, part of the Business Intelligence platform for Innto...

SAM Magazine—Lead, S.D., March 19, 2019—A ski resort in the Black Hills of western South Dakota is up for sale. The former Deer Mountain ski area shut down two years ago while going through bankruptcy proceedings. The current owners, the Milan Investment Club, made repairs and upgraded the water system for the 440-acre property, according to t...

by Evan Reece With a bold announcement last week, Vail gifted the ski industry an opportunity to broadly correct lift ticket pricing problems that have been building for many years, and to more quickly leap toward becoming wholly e-commerce/pre-sale businesses. While the announcement of “Epic for Everyone” paints a picture of some legitimatel...

SAM Magazine—Salt Lake City, Utah, March 14, 2019—Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month (LSSM) resort partners provided more than 150,000 beginner lessons in January, bringing the total to more than one million lessons provided by the initiative since it launched in 2009. As reported earlier, 6,200 of those lessons were provided on Friday, Jan. 11, ...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., March 12, 2019—The nomination period for the 2019 SAMMY Leadership Awards closes tomorrow, March 13, 2019. SAM encourages members of the winter sports industry to nominate leaders who they believe deserve to be considered for this recognition, and do it today. Now in its 22ndyear, the SAMMY Leadership ...

SAM Magazine—Portland, Ore., March 8, 2019—A planned season pass product called the Indy Pass is partnering with a growing roster of small-to-medium sized independent ski areas with the goal of offering an alternative pass product to casual skiers and riders. Set to go on sale Sept. 1, 2019 for $199, the Indy Pass has 11 western ski areas signe...

SAM Magazine—West Dover, Vt., March 7, 2019—’Tis the season for season pass sales for 2019-20, and the offers and deals are piling up. Among the latest multi-area companies to unveil their mostly East-facing offers are Peak Resorts and Boyne Resorts. Peak Resorts' Peak Pass, valid at 10+ Eastern, mid-Atlantic, and Midwestern areas, will retu...

SAM Magazine—Denver, March 5, 2019—Alterra Mountain Company’s Ikon Pass and Vail Resorts’ Epic Pass are both offering new products, payment plans, and benefits for the 2019-20 season. Both passes went on sale today. Epic Pass The full 2019-20 Epic Pass is $939, the Epic Local is $699, and the Military Pass options are $129 for active and ...

SAM Magazine—Copper Mountain, Colo., March 5, 2019—Copper Mountain is planning more big capital improvements ahead of the 2019-20 and 2020-21 winter seasons as part of a multi-year, $100 million investment plan by parent company POWDR. Copper will add lift service to the expert high-alpine terrain on Tucker Mountain, construct a new mid-mountai...

SAM Magazine—Denver, March 5, 2019—Alterra Mountain Company will invest $181 million in capital across its 14 North American resorts ahead of the 2019-20 season. This is round two of a multi-year plan totaling $555 million that began before this season, when the company invested $171 million at its resorts. Alterra CEO Rusty Gregory said, “W...

SAM Magazine—Ludlow, Vt., Feb. 25, 2019—Resorts across the country experienced historic snow totals and record-breaking visitation numbers through Presidents’ Day weekend and into the holiday week. A generous snowstorm leading up to the holiday and comfortable temperatures had many resorts in the East up over previous years. In the Midwest, ...

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Feb. 25, 2019—Vail Resorts (VR) has entered into an agreement to acquire Falls Creek and Hotham ski resorts in Australia from Living and Leisure Australia Group (LLA), a subsidiary of Merlin Entertainments, for AU$174 million (approx. US$124 million). The purchase price is based on a multiple of roughly 10-times ...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Feb. 21, 2019—The nomination period for the 2019 SAMMY Leadership Awards is now open. SAM invites members of the winter sports industry to nominate leaders who they believe deserve this recognition, and do it soon—nominations close March 13, 2019.The SAMMY Leadership Awards honor individuals who, at mid-c...

In SAM’s monthly Snow People, we highlight recent personnel moves that have been made in the mountain resort industry. MICHAEL VAN EYCK, The Fairbank GroupMichael Van Eyck has been promoted to the newly created role of chief revenue officer for the Fairbank Group, which owns Bromley, Vt., Jiminy Peak, Mass., and Cranmore, N.H. In his n...

SAM Magazine—Denver, Feb. 21, 2019—Abundant snowfall in most mountain regions of the West led to strong bookings through January and increased aggregated occupancy and revenues for the month and the season, according to Inntopia's DestiMetrics January briefing. Weather and the economy are combining to create favorable comparisons to last year; ...

SAM Magazine—Reno, Nev., Feb. 19, 2019—Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe earned USFS approval for a 112-acre terrain expansion into the Atoma area of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. The approved amendment to Mt. Rose’s existing special use permit includes 11 trails, two chairlifts, a five-million-gallon water tank for snowmaking, and a skier brid...

SAM Magazine—Keystone, Colo., Feb. 18, 2019—Arapahoe Basin has decided it will not renew its pass partnership with Vail Resorts for the 2019-20 season, citing parking and facility crowding.In a letter to fans and followers, A-Basin COO Alan Henceroth stressed the importance of retaining A-Basin’s culture and vibe. “Looking forward, we striv...

SAM Magazine—Gatlinburg, Tenn., Feb. 15, 2019—The 10th annual SAM Summer Ops Camp is headed to Gatlinburg, Tenn., Sept. 3-5, 2019. Gatlinburg is a major summer destination and serves as the gateway community to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited national park in the United States. Gatlinburg and surrounding towns we...

SAM Magazine—Denver, Feb. 13, 2019—Continued growth in the number of businesses getting into the aerial adventure industry was on full display at the 2019 Association for Challenge Course Technology annual conference and expo, held Feb. 7-10 in Denver. More than 1,000 people attended the event, which gathers traditional and commercial aerial ad...

SAM Magazine—Bend, Ore., Feb. 13, 2019—After several feet of snow fell at its member ski areas over the last few days—and with more on the way—the Pacific Northwest Ski Areas Association (PNSAA) proactively distributed a press release defining and outlining the dangers of snow immersion suffocation (SIS). It also included a PDF of a brochur...

SAM Magazine—Donnelly, Idaho, Feb. 13, 2019—Tamarack Resort is on the verge of realizing the vision of its founders. Starting this spring, Tamarack will complete the base village projects that were started a decade ago, and re-access 200 acres of skiable terrain by installing a new lift. Tamarack has changed hands several times since its f...

SAM Magazine—Snowbird, Utah, and Killington, Vt., Feb. 13, 2019—Snow in many regions of the country has ski areas off to a successful start to the season, and the large attendance at both the Eastern and Western National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) Winter Conferences reflected that. Snow was both a blessing and a curse for the 700-plus at...

SAM Magazine—Sun Valley, Idaho, Feb. 6, 2019—It’s only the beginning of February and the season pass wars for 2019-20 have already begun. Sun Valley, Idaho, and Snowbasin, Utah, are joining Vail Resorts’ Epic Pass in a “multi-year alliance” starting next winter. Sun Valley is the first Idaho resort to become an Epic Pass partner, and th...

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, Feb. 1, 2019—The most successful female ski racer in the world, Lindsey Vonn has decided to retire after what will be her eighth World Championships bid in Åre, Sweden, this month. Vonn's achievements are record-setting. She has captured an all-time record 82 women's World Cup races. She is the only American woma...

SAM Magazine—Denver, Jan. 30, 2019—The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA), Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), and Snowsports Industries America (SIA) have formed the Outdoor Business Climate Partnership, an alliance aimed at providing leadership on climate change advocacy and action across the outdoor business sector. The partnership was un...

SAM Magazine—Government Camp, Ore., Jan. 29, 2019—Registration is open for the 17th annual Cutter’s Camp. This year’s event will be held May 13-17, 2019 at Timberline, Mt. Hood, Ore. The five-day spring program for terrain park professionals features on-hill and classroom workshops, including the return of one-on-one on-hill operator coachi...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Jan. 25, 2019—The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) presented the Ski Industry Impact Award to Peter “Mongo” Schory during the Western Winter Conference and Tradeshow at Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort, Utah this week. Schory is being honored for his significant contributions to snow safety over a long and...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Jan. 25, 2019—January is National Safety Month (NSM), and resorts across the country have been offering safety related events and programs to support the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) initiative.  In the East, Stratton, Vt., is running a Mountain Safety Passport program and offering guests a limited e...

SAM Magazine—Ludlow, Vt., Jan. 23, 2019—Roughly 6,200 beginner ski and snowboard lessons were taught on Jan. 11, 2019, the first national Learn to Ski and Snowboard Day (LSSD), with many resorts offering discounts and deals to encourage participation. The day was a new initiative as part of Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month (LSSM).The participat...

SAM Magazine—Waitsfield, Vt., Jan. 25, 2019—Several resorts are now offering free skiing and snowboarding to furloughed federal workers during the government shutdown.Angel Fire, N.M., started offering free midweek skiing and snowboarding to affected federal workers on Jan. 12. It appears to be one of the first resorts to make such an offer, an...

In SAM’s monthly Snow People, we highlight recent personnel moves that have been made in the mountain resort industry. This report was written by Katie Brinton. JOE HESSION, N.J. Snow Operating CEO Joe Hession was named the keynote speaker for the 2019 Interski Congress at Pamporovo, Bulgaria, this March. Hession was nominated by the ...

SAM Magazine—Boulder, Colo., Jan. 21, 2019—Head has named Jon Rucker as president of the Head/Tyrolia USA Winter Sports Division. He has been with the company for nearly a decade, and served as vice president for the past seven years.“Jon’s leadership of our Winter Sports Division has helped drive us to record heights," said Head North Amer...

SAM Magazine—Oberhofen, Switzerland, Jan. 21, 2019—The eighth annual World Snow Day held Jan. 20 encouraged would-be winter sports participants to try skiing and snowboarding. Word of the Day's 464 events, from South America to China, reached a reported 3.5 million people in 45 countries. World Snow Day was created by the Internationa...

SAM Magazine—Denver, Jan. 18, 2019—Strategic rate management coupled with widespread snowfall across the western U.S. helped turn December from a challenging month to a revenue winner for mountain lodging properties. According to Inntopia's monthly DestiMetrics Market Briefing, bookings made in December 2018 for arrivals in that month were up a...

SAM Magazine—Jay Peak, Vt., Jan. 17, 2019—The court-appointed receiver who’s been overseeing Jay Peak since the resort was seized by the SEC nearly three years ago has put Jay up for sale, with the help of financial services firm, Houlihan Lokey. No sale price has been set, but recent news reports speculate it could be anywhere from $60 ...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Jan. 17, 2019—The 2018-19 HKD I AM a Snowmaker contest, showcasing six snowmaking teams from resorts across North America, concluded on Tuesday, Jan. 15. Nearly 4,000 votes were cast over the 12-day voting period, with the Mount Sunapee, N.H., snowmaking crew earning the most votes to emerge as the winner. The crew w...

SAM Magazine—Oberhofen, Switzerland, Jan. 14, 2019—The eighth edition of World Snow Day, a FIS (International Ski Federation) initiative aimed at increasing participation in and awareness of winter sports, will take place on Sunday, Jan. 20. The events also promote environmental stewardship, the health benefits of snowsports, and safety. T...

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Jan. 14, 2019‚—Vail Resorts, Inc. (VR), said visits through the holiday period, Jan. 6, were up nearly 17 percent compared to a year ago, and major revenue departments also showed gains. But VR had expected even better results, compared to a relatively poor early season a year ago, and said it now expects resor...

SAM Magazine—Salt Lake City, Utah, Jan. 9, 2019—After more than 40,000 lift rides and 44 years in the business, working at six ski resorts, in five states, and with one Austrian lift manufacturer, F. Scott Pierpont retired from the industry on Dec. 21.“There are many wonderful people who share my passion for skiing in this country, and it has...

SAM Magazine—Ludlow, Vt., Jan. 8, 2019—Americans seemed keen to spend their holiday break this winter on the snow, as resorts across most regions saw an upward trend in visitation and revenue. Whitefish Mountain Resort on December 30, 2018 This was particularly true out west where resorts benefited from ample natural snowfall.The Rockies ...

SAM Magazine—Durango, Colo., Jan. 8, 2019—Dave Rathbun, a snowsports vet with more than 30 years of experience in the resort and hospitality industry, has been named the new general manager of Purgatory Resort in Colorado.Rathbun, a 2010 SAMMY Award winner, got his start at Stratton Mountain, Vt., as a lift attendant. He served in management po...

SAM Magazine—Woodbury, Conn., Jan. 3, 2019—Nearly 2,500 votes were cast in the 14thannual SAM Terrain Park Contest, in which a total of 52 entries from ski areas around the world looked to earn the top spot in one of the three contest categories: Bread and Butter, Terrain Park Event, and Terrain Park Feature. The votes have been tallied, and th...

        EDITORS' PICKS: As we charge into 2019, we at SAM took a look back at some of our favorite articles from 2018 and selected a top-10 (OK, top 11) list. The list encompasses some of the most important stories that occupied the industry in the past year: • welcoming a new president of NSAA• pursuing market grow...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Jan. 4, 2019—Voting for HKD’s I Am a Snowmaker contest opens today and continues through Monday, Jan. 14. Started in the winter of 2013-14, the contest highlights the hard work, determination and camaraderie of snowmakers, and recognizes how critical they are to the success of our industry.Six teams were chosen in ...

SAM Magazine—Snowmass, Colo., Jan. 3, 2019—After more than 23 years working in leadership roles for Aspen Skiing Company, Susan Cross now holds the top spot at Snowmass as the resort’s new general manager. Cross succeeds Steve Sewell, who retired Dec. 31 after a 42-year career with SkiCo. He had served as Snowmass GM since 2006. Cross be...

SAM Magazine—Wildwood, Mo., Dec. 21, 2018—Despite growing competition in the Northeast in the multi-resort pass market, Peak Resorts reported record season pass sales through Dec. 17, 2018. Company-wide pass sales were up 36 percent in units and 38 percent in revenue year over year. The company’s flagship Peak Pass product was up 18 perc...

SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Dec. 21, 2018—A strong wave of mid-November snowfall from the Sierras to the Rockies gave winter bookings a boost at western mountain resorts. According to the DestiMetrics monthly Market Briefing, bookings made during the month of November for arrivals from November through April rose 12.8 percent compared to t...

SAM Magazine—Wildwood, Mo., December 21, 2018—Peak Resorts has created several new key roles and appointed new personnel at the corporate and managerial levels to better facilitate operations at its growing portfolio of resorts in the eastern United States.Eric Flynn Jason Boyd has been appointed senior vice president of operations, mid-Atlant...