SAM Magazine—Kennebunk, Maine, Jan. 11, 2021—Cal Conniff, president/executive director of the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) from 1973 to 1990 and a 1990 U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame honoree, died Jan. 8, a month shy of his 91st birthday.   Conniff devoted his life to the betterment of the sport and business of ski...

by Roger Lohr The Cross Country Ski Areas Association (CCSAA) has been conducting online sessions with members since last spring, focused on sharing information about how X-C operations should respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. Discussions resulted in widespread adoption of plans aimed at minimizing risk of virus transmission for staff and guests.&...

SAM Magazine—Jan. 7, 2021, Ludlow, Vt.—This holiday period didn’t break any visitation records, but demand across the country was solid, even as conditions varied wildly from region to region. For many North American resorts, this was also the first major test of their Covid-related policies, with mask compliance overall pretty good, though s...

SAM Magazine—Hunter, N.Y., Jan. 6, 2021—Hunter Mountain was compelled to close Tuesday, Jan. 5, after "a number of ski patrollers excluded out of work relating to COVID-19," according to a statement from Vail Resorts, and will remain closed through Jan. 7. The area plans to reopen on Friday, Jan. 8.  The closure of the resort was due to s...

Coronavirus cases were flat or down in 46 states and Washington, D.C., as the Christmas holiday week began, according to the latest tracking report from the Insights Collective. The trends were favorable in many major markets of importance to winter resorts, and in many resort communities as well. Check out the full report for the specifics here. ...

SAM Magazine—Collingwood, Ont., Dec. 23, 2020—The province of Ontario has imposed a 28-day shutdown of much of the province beginning Dec. 26 to curtail a spike in coronavirus cases, shuttering most of the province's ski areas during the holiday period and beyond. The shutdown has stirred pushback from both skiers and some resorts after months ...

SAM Magazine—Kelowna, B.C., Dec. 18, 2020–A cluster outbreak of 76 positive Covid-19 cases at Big White Resort has spurred action from the resort and community. The cases were related to group housing and social gatherings, according to Canada’s Interior Health, and led to the termination of seven Big White employees. Big Whit...

SAM Magazine—United Kingdom, Dec. 18, 2020—Here we present a roundup of ski industry news from across the pond, based on Patrick Thorne’s “Snow Hunter’s World Weekly Snow Resort News” for the week ending Dec. 19, 2020.Samnaun in Switzerland Most Swiss Ski Areas Now Open for 2020-21 Season More than 100 Swiss ski areas are now open wit...

SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Dec. 18, 2020—The surging pandemic and resort capacity limits combined to negatively impact lodging reservations in November at mountain resorts throughout the western U.S., with marginal snowfall at some destinations adding to the mix. Aggregated data from 18 mountain destinations in seven western states compil...

SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Dec. 16, 2020—Winter Park is implementing a passholder reservation system ahead of the holidays, as large crowds and limited terrain continue to stretch capacity limits at Colorado resorts. Previously, passholders were free to come and go as usual. Winter Park becomes the second Alterra Mountain Company resort t...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Dec. 14, 2020—National Ski Patrol (NSP) board of directors chairman Brian Rull wrote the following letter in response to a report published on SAM's website on Dec. 12, regarding the chairman's comments in the Fall issue of Ski Patrol Magazine and the departure of former NSP executive director Meegan Moszynski from t...

SAM Magazine—Sundance, Utah, Dec. 14, 2020—Robert Redford is selling Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah to Broadreach Capital Partners and Cedar Capital Partners, which are both real estate investment firms specializing in the hospitality industry.  The transaction includes all assets of Sundance Mountain Resort, including the resort b...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Dec. 11, 2020—Meegan Moszynski is no longer executive director of the National Ski Patrol (NSP) after three and a half successful years in the position, and NSP members are wondering why. Her abrupt mid-November departure coincides with mounting backlash from something NSP board chair Brian Rull wrote in his “Cha...

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Dec. 11, 2020—Vail Resorts (VR) reported a 44-percent net loss for its first fiscal quarter of 2021, a consequence of Covid-19 impacts on summer ops across North America and winter ops in Australia for the period ending Oct. 31. Season pass sales through Dec. 6 saw a 20 percent increase in units year-over-year, t...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Dec. 9, 2020—Ski area operators worked hard for months to develop operating plans and protocols for this strange winter, knowing all along their original plans would likely change several times after opening day depending on several variables: the severity of the pandemic, guidance and restrictions from government, g...

The weekly virus tracking report from the Insights Collective shows a mixed performance for Western resorts and major metro markets across the U.S. Cases are at elevated levels, based on the 7-day average for new cases per 100,000 population, in Miami, Salt Lake City, Albuquerque, N.M., and Jackson, Wyo., though the trend in the latter two is decre...

With vaccines on the way, some travel companies are planning for future growth, according to the Weekly Briefing compiled by the Insights Collective. At present, though, employees at companies across the U.S. have become increasingly hesitant to travel for business, Zoom remains the go-to meeting site, vacation rentals—both globally and in the U....

SAM Magazine—San Francisco, Calif., Dec. 4, 2020—Liftopia Inc. entered an “assignment for the benefit of creditors,” or ABC, to liquidate its assets, through which Norwegian-Spanish holding company Skitude has acquired the assets of Liftopia Inc., according to a source with knowledge of the situation. The proceeds from the sale will be use...

SAM Magazine—Paris, France, Dec. 2, 2020—The debate about restrictions on opening ski resorts, especially for the holidays, in European nations is evolving as government leaders begin to announce decisions about what can be open, when, and who can’t go where. Over 300 ski area workers attended a protest to open the resort at Les 2 Alpes ...

SAM Magazine—Ludlow, Vt., Dec. 2, 2020—While holiday openings were still plentiful this Thanksgiving, the model for opening seems to have shifted in parts of the country, with many resorts opting to slow roll their winter operations with post-holiday, midweek first-day targets. A handful of resorts had record setting holiday periods though, and...

RESORTS Sarah Sherman, Snowbird Sarah Sherman has been appointed communications manager at Snowbird, working within the marketing team to oversee the resort’s public and media relations and communications. Originally from Los Angeles, Sherman began her career as a snow reporter at Mammoth Mountain after graduating from the University of Souther...

SAM Magazine—Paris, France, Nov. 30, 2020—With the pandemic spiking across many regions in the European Union, France has declared that ski lifts won't run this December, while fellow EU members Germany and Italy are threatening to keep ski areas from operating through the month as well. But with other nations vowing to keep resorts open, it re...

The latest news and observations from the Insights Collective regarding how Congress, states, and municipalities are trying to aid business even as they try to stem the spread of COVID-19. From tax holidays and increased safety messaging to online sales assistance and a liability waiver for businesses, you can read the details here. Add a co...

It will be several months before vaccination levels dent the spread of the pandemic. That should make us thankful for the financial benefits of outdoor dining, wearing masks, and COVID information apps, all of which are chronicled in the latest Weekly Briefing from the Insights Collective. Get the details here. ...

SAM Magazine—Newry, Maine, Nov. 20, 2020—Resorts have had to get creative with their formerly indoor, packed-room staff orientations. Sunday River, Maine, has gone the drive-in route. The evening of Nov. 17 saw the first of at least five drive-in staff orientations at the resort. Each will have about 50 cars, and staff members who live in the ...

While COVID-19 infection levels remain high—and climbing, in many locations—this week’s Virus Tracker from the Insights Collective shows a bending of the curve. If that continues, this fall’s wave could hit a lull ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. See the full report, with data on both major markets and local resort communities, here....

SAM Magazine—Bradenton, Fla., Nov. 18, 2020—Western mountain resorts enjoyed a slight 1.3 percent bump up in year-over-year occupancy in October compared to October 2019, and a rise in average daily rate (ADR) of 20.1 percent pushed total revenues up a healthy 21.7 percent for the month, according to the DestiMetrics Market Briefing from Inntop...

SAM Magazine—Portland, Ore., Nov. 17, 2020—The Indy Pass now includes access to Snow Ridge Ski Resort in upstate New York and Antelope Butte in northern Wyoming, bringing the total number of independent ski areas on the pass to 59. Snow Ridge is the fourth New York ski area on the pass, and Antelope Butte is the third in Wyoming. Passholders ge...

SAM Magazine—Santa Fe, N.M., Nov. 14, 2020—New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and state health officials temporarily re-imposed a statewide order Friday that closes in-person services for all non-essential activities, including skiing and snowboarding, in an attempt to blunt the spike of COVID-19 illnesses and the escalating strain on hospi...

SAM Magazine—Ludlow, Vt., Nov. 12, 2020—The 2020-21 ski season has begun, with more resorts confirming opening dates even as COVID-19 cases surge across the U.S. SAM has been tracking the virus. This week, we spoke to several operators, and all are confident in the operating plans they've developed in accordance with local, state, and fede...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Nov. 11, 2020—To help terrain park professionals prepare for the challenges of the upcoming season, SAM partnered with Effective Edge to create a condensed virtual Cutter's Camp program. This self-paced course opens today with courses from leading freestyle terrain professionals sharing solutions ...

 The pandemic is on the march in many local resort communities and in the larger market areas from which they draw their customers. State and local governments are taking measures to stop the advance of COVID-19, hoping to avoid the need for a broad economic shutdown. And both public and private entities are seeking to boost tourism. For detai...

An informative Q & A with Aspenware’s VP of Service, Jenni Buonanni. Snow is falling, and some North American resorts have already opened, with many more opening in the next month. This season, resorts are relying on online bookings more than ever before. In fact, many resorts are closing their ticket windows and only accepting bookings onli...

SAM Magazine—Nov. 5, 2020—While many resorts projected conservative opening days (think late November to mid-December) to allow for time to implement new COVID protocols, several ski areas across North America were able to make a quick pivot from summer to winter operations in the last two weeks. Wolf Creek, Colo. opening day Midwest As ...

SAM Magazine—McCall, Idaho, Nov. 5, 2020—Brundage Mountain Holdings LLC has acquired the majority interest in Brundage Mountain Resort from the DeBoer family, which has held ownership interests in the resort since 1980, and became sole owners in 2006.  Resort president Bob Looper will lead the new ownership group made up of local individu...

As COVID-19 injections spike again, a couple of developments are worthy of note, according to the latest Weekly Briefing from the Insights Collective. Among the highlighted news items: MIT has developed software that can accurately test a person’s cough and determine if it signals COVID-19 or not. It’s 98.5 percent accurate, and can identify th...

SAM Magazine—Montpelier, Vt., Nov. 3, 2020—The Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development in cooperation with the Vermont Department of Health, Vermont Department of Public Safety, and the Vermont Ski Areas Association released operating guidance today for the state’s ski areas. The guidance details a variety of requirements that sk...

SAM Magazine—Boulder, Colo., Nov. 3, 2020—American skiers and riders are willing to make several accommodations to the novel coronavirus when they hit the slopes this winter, according to a survey of more than 20,000 downhillers conducted in September by RRC Associates. Knowing how guests are prepared to modify their routines, and understa...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Nov. 2, 2020—Last month, 180 current and up-and-coming ski area leaders participated in the Summit Series Bootcamp: Resilient Leadership Training. Due to overwhelming positive feedback and additional demand, SAM and High Peaks Group are conducting the Bootcamp again for those that missed it the first time.&...

SAM Magazine—November 2, 2020, Boulder, Colo.—SKI released its annual resort guide, which ranks the best 50 resorts across North America based on its 2020 reader survey. In the West, Sun Valley, Idaho, took top honors, while Smugglers’ Notch, Vt., was named number one in the East. Sun Valley Challenge often took...

SAM Magazine—Vienna, Austria, Nov. 2, 2020—In an effort to slow rapidly-spreading novel coronavirus cases in Austria, the government there announced on Oct. 31 a nationwide partial lockdown beginning Nov. 3 for at least the rest of the month. As a result, the eight glacier ski resorts that are currently open in Austria—reportedly enjoying exc...

SAM Magazine—Snowbird, Utah, Oct. 30, 2020—Most POWDR-owned resorts will manage visitation this winter using a parking reservations system that requires visitors arriving in personal vehicles to reserve a parking spot in advance, whether they’re skiing or not. Date-specific reservations will be made online and validated upon arrival. Up to se...

SAM Magazine—Glenwood Springs, Colo., Oct. 30, 2020—The Freedom Pass, a reciprocal lift ticket partnership that grants passholders three free days at member resorts, has survived the pandemic and the shifting season's pass landscape with a new, slightly smaller lineup for 2020-21.  This year's lineup includes a new member—Mont du Lac Re...

As the elections approach, there’s a bit of COVID-related news to relate. A Harvard study shows that air travel has a low COVID transmission risk compared to other settings, thanks in part to hospital-grade air filtering—destination resorts may not be so hard to reach after all. The failure of the COVID economic relief negotiations makes an eco...

SAM Magazine—Oct. 30, 2020—Even with winter approaching, Americans are turning to the outdoors for safety, sanity, and entertainment, according to a Harris Poll conducted Oct. 15-17 and sponsored by the Out of Home Advertising Association. More than two-thirds of Americans say they have an increased appreciation of the outdoors since lockdowns ...

SAM Magazine—Bartlett, N.H., Oct. 29, 2020—Tennessee native Greg Gavrilets is the new general manager of Attitash in New Hampshire. He succeeds longtime Attitash leader John Lowell, who is retiring from his role as vice president and general manager of Attitash and nearby Wildcat effective Nov. 1. Gavrilets’ first day on the job was Oct. 26. ...

SAM Magazine—Cervinia, Italy, Oct. 29, 2020—With COVID-19 cases rising quickly in Europe, winter resorts across the continent are facing new capacity restrictions and delayed openings. The new rules arrived just as early snow had allowed glacier resorts to spin lifts and with many other areas poised to begin operations. Cervinia Resort lif...

The weekly coronavirus infection rate trends compiled by the Insights Collective shows a steady and worrisome rise in COVID-19 cases in many major wintersport markets. That increases the chances that states and counties will impose tighter restrictions on indoor capacity and group sizes. Already this fall, Italy has shut down its glacier areas due ...

SAM Magazine—Taylors Falls, Minn., Oct. 26, 2020—Early snowfall and consistent snowmaking conditions allowed two North American resorts, Wild Mountain, Minn., and Mt. Norquay, Alberta, to open for the season.Wild Mountain, Minn. Photo: Wild Mountain Facebook page, Oct. 21. Wild Mountain opened Oct. 19, operating 1-7 p.m. midweek, 11 a.m.–7 p...

SAM Magazine—Albany, N.Y., Oct. 23, 2020—As the winter season approaches, ski-country states and state ski associations are unveiling guidance and requirements for ski areas to open as safely as possible amid the ongoing pandemic.  Many plans include the National Ski Areas Association’s “Ski Well, Be Well” guidance. In most cases, i...

SAM Magazine—Glenwood Springs, Colo., Oct. 23, 2020—Sunlight Mountain Resort is supporting fundraising efforts to restore portions of the White River National Forest that were burned by the Grizzly Peak fire in nearby Glenwood Canyon this year.  Sunlight skiers and riders can add voluntary $5 contributions to their online season pass or l...

This week's briefing from the Insights Collective addresses both short- and long-term issues confronting resort businesses during the pandemic. In the short term: As coronavirus cases and test positivity rates rise across the U.S., states and organizations are ramping up efforts to bend the curve (again). At the same time, those efforts continue t...

SAM Magazine—Albany, N.Y., Oct. 19, 2020—The governments of New York state and the Quebec province have given ski areas in their respective regions the greenlight to open this winter. In both regions, reopening is contingent on compliance with stringent public health recommendations. Tremblant, Quebec New York Beginning Nov. 6, New York ...

SAM Magazine—Portland, Ore., Oct. 19, 2020—The Indy Pass has added Jay Peak in Vermont to its alliance of independent ski areas, bringing alliance membership to a total of 57 resorts. Jay Peak will offer two days of skiing and riding to Indy Pass holders, with no blackout dates for the 2020-21 season.  “We’re happy to be joining this ...

The latest weekly briefing from the Insights Collective notes that lodging properties are responding to COVID-19 by offering extended-stay options, citing recent examples from Jay Peak, Vt., and the Red Lion chain. It further notes that during the pandemic, some customers have more money to spend on travel than in the past—because they have reduc...

SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Oct. 15, 2020—With only one month remaining in what has been a bleak summer for lodging at western mountain resorts, bookings and rates in the past few weeks have showed an appreciable uptick, helping to record early on-the-books revenue gains for the months of October and November—the first revenue gains sinc...

SAM Magazine—Ludlow, Vt., October 14, 2020—As new consumer-facing plans roll out, resorts remind guests to prepare for continued operational changes and challenges this winter. While reservation systems, capacity caps, and facility access will vary, guests can expect some consistency in protocols across the country and even internatio...

SAM Magazine—East Rutherford, N.J., Oct. 14, 2020—To help resorts plan for the upcoming winter, SAM and SNOW Operating have partnered to produce the Capacity Management Video Series. The four-part video series will share insights on how resorts can manage capacity while providing a safe guest experience in a COVID-19 world.  Using real da...

SAM Magazine—San Francisco, Calif., Oct. 14, 2020—A substantial portion of the assets of Mountain News Corporation have been acquired from Vail Resorts by an investment group led by MNC veteran Chad Dyer and Jon Brelig. The 52-year-old international company provides snow reports, news, and information of interest to skiers and snowboarders thro...

SAM Magazine—Jackson, Wyo., October 14, 2020—Snow King Mountain Resort secured preliminary US Forest Service (USFS) approval for major capital improvements slated to begin summer of 2021. Big ticket items include two new lifts: an eight-passenger Leitner-Poma gondola, and a Skytrac chair that will serve new terrain.  Snow King has been en...