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Pacific Group Resorts, Inc. Submits Top Bid for Jay Peak at $76 Million
PGRI president and CEO Vern Greco shares his thoughts on the acquisition with SAM. SAM Magazine—Jay, Vt., Sept. 8, 2022—Pacific Group Resorts, Inc. (PGRI) made the highest and best final bid to buy Jay Peak, $76 million, following an auction with multiple bidders. PGRI president and CEO Vern Greco told SAM that after three years spent pursuing the acquisition, PGRI is poised to bring renewed stability to the resort and its staff, and tap into its passion and energy. The prevailing bid remains subject to approval by the United States District Court in Southern Florida during a final hearing scheduled for Sept. 16. Judge Darrin P. Gayles, who has presided over the receivership in federal...
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SAM Magazine—Jan. 22, 2025, Ludlow, Vt.—As usual, snow, both manmade and natural, played a major role in shaping business over the three-day MLK holiday weekend. So did operational disruptions. Busy new mid-mountain lodge at Tamarack, Idaho. While a cold snap blanketed nearly the entire country at some point throughout the holiday, the effec...
SAM Magazine—Istanbul, Turkey, Jan. 21, 2025—A predawn fire at a hotel in the Kartalkaya Ski Resort in Turkey killed at least 66, with another 51 injured, Turkey's Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said Tuesday. The resort is located in Northwestern Turkey's Koroglu mountains, about 185 miles east of Istanbul. The fire ignited at 3:30 a.m. News...
SAM Magazine—Barcelona, Spain, Jan. 20, 2025—A chairlift failure injured more than a dozen people Saturday morning at Astún resort in the Spanish Pyrenees. The bullwheel on a 1985 fixed-grip quad detached, causing the lift to derope on numerous towers, according to liftblog.com’s Peter Landsman.Credit to Meteosojuela La Rioja “Without a b...
SAM Magazine—Arapahoe Basin, Colo., Jan. 20, 2025—Members of the Arapahoe Basin ski patrol voted 30-22 in favor of unionizing. If the results are certified by the National Labor Relations Board, the Arapahoe Basin Ski Patrol Union (ABSP) will join the Communication Workers of America (CWA) 7781 United Mountain Workers, which will represent ABSP...
SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Jan. 17, 2025—Vail Resorts reported that season-to-date total skier visits for North America were down 0.3 percent while lift ticket revenue rose 4.5 percent from the beginning of the ski season through Jan. 5, 2025, compared to the prior year period through Jan. 7, 2024. Revenues from ancillary businesses we...
SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Jan. 16, 2025—December daily rates nudged up a bit, occupancy edged down a bit, and lodging results among the participating properties in 17 regions across seven Western states looked a lot like last year at this time, according to the most recent monthly report from DestiMetrics, part of Inntopia’s business ...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Jan. 15, 2025—Online voting for the videos produced by five chosen resorts competing in the 2025 “I AM a Snowmaker” contest, sponsored by HKD Snowmakers, is now open. Voting ends Wednesday, Jan. 29, at 11:59 p.m. EST. Since it debuted in winter 2013-14, the annual I AM contest has served as an important recogn...
SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, Jan. 9, 2025—Members of the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association (PCPSPA) have voted to ratify the contract negotiated by the United Mountain Workers union with Vail Resorts on Tuesday. The agreement, reached after 10-months of negotiations for increased wages, ended a nearly two-week strike. “The roa...
SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, Jan. 8, 2025—Vail Resorts and the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association (PCPSPA) have reached a tentative contract agreement following a mediated negotiating session on Jan. 7, ending the ski patrollers’ 12-day strike. The union unit will vote to ratify the agreement today. Park City Mountain owner Vail ...
SAM Magazine—Cambridge, Vt., Jan. 3, 2024—Good snowmaking conditions, timely—and in some cases abundant—snowfall, and high demand from skiers and riders were among the contributing factors that ski areas across North America cited as the catalysts for strong business over the extended holiday period of Christmas to New Years. WEST Pho...
SAM Magazine—L’Anse-Saint-Jean, Quebec, and Enfield, N.H., Dec. 31, 2024—Two community-owned ski areas have forged a unique partnership. Starting this winter, season pass holders from Mont Edouard in Quebec and Whaleback Mountain in New Hampshire have unlimited reciprocal access at no additional cost. “As community-owned ski areas, we shar...
SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, Dec. 31, 2024—Park City ski patrollers went on strike Friday, Dec. 27, after a breakdown in mediated contract negotiations with Park City Mountain-owner Vail Resorts. In a statement shared online, the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association (PCPSPA) cited “Vail’s bad faith tactics” in a Thursday, Dec. ...
SAM Magazine—Dresser, Wis., Dec. 20, 2024—Photo credit: Krista HoldenSeventeen female terrain park builders gathered Dec. 8-14 at Trollhaugen Ski Area for the 4th annual Take the Rake—a weeklong event where female diggers and snowcat operators attend shop clinics and on-hill workshops to learn about topics ranging from rail setting and park m...
SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, Dec. 18, 2024—Vail Resorts and union representatives for the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association (PCPSPA) have agreed to mediation following a Dec. 16 bargaining session. Courtesy of the Park City Professional Ski Patrol Association Members of PCPSPA unanimously voted Dec. 14 to authorize the union to d...
SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo. Dec. 16, 2024—Bookings for the winter months surged during November at Western resorts, according to the monthly Market Briefing from DestiMetrics, the business intelligence division of Inntopia. For participating properties in 17 mountain destinations across seven western U.S. states the combination of occupancy...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Dec. 16, 2024—More than 1,700 votes were cast in the 18th annual SAM Terrain Park Contest in which a total of 60 resort-submitted entries from ski areas around the globe competed for the top spot in one of four categories: features, events, edits, and park crews. A selection of entries was shared in the November 2...
SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Dec. 11, 2024—Vail Resorts (VR) has reported results for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 ended Oct. 31 and provided season pass sales results for the 2024-25 season. For the quarter, financial results were similar to the prior-year period. Total net revenue increased $1.7 million, or 0.7 percent, to $260.3 ...
SAM Magazine—Denver, Nov. 19, 2024—Alterra Mountain Company closed the purchase of Arapahoe Basin in Colorado, expanding Alterra’s portfolio to 18 mountain destinations. A-Basin president and COO Alan Henceroth, who has been with the resort for 36 years, will continue to lead the resort and oversee daily operations with his longtime team....
SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Nov. 15, 2024—The pace and pattern of early bookings at Western mountain destinations is largely consistent with last winter, according to the Monthly Market Briefing from the Business Intelligence division of Inntopia, which aggregates data from 28,000 lodging units in 17 mountain destination communities across...
SAM Magazine—Killington, Vt., Nov. 13, 2024—Vermont’s Killington Resort and Maine’s Sunday River are both opening Nov. 14 at 9 a.m., making them the first Northeast ski areas to open for daily operations.Courtesy of Sunday River The first day at each resort will be exclusively for passholders; the general public can get on snow starting Nov...
SAM Magazine—Los Alamos, N.M., Nov. 13, 2024—A “monster” early-season storm allowed Pajarito Mountain to open five weeks ahead of schedule last weekend on Nov. 9. “This is historic for Pajarito Mountain,” said general manager Jasen Bellomy. “It’s been about 40 years since Pajarito has been able to open before Thanksgiving.” ...
SAM Magazine—Tooele, Utah, Nov. 8, 2024—Italy-based snowmaking equipment manufacturer Demaclenko named Diego Facchinetti as the new general manager for Demaclenko North America, which serves the Canadian and U.S. markets.Andreas Lambacher and Diego Facchinetti He is responsible for leading the company’s local teams, developing new market str...
SAM Magazine—Reno, Nev., Nov. 8, 2024—Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe dropped ropes today on 1,000 vertical feet of skiing and riding. It’s one of several western ski areas to open for the early season in recent days.Courtesy of Breckenridge Natural snow and cold temps that allowed Mt. Rose to fire up its snow guns enabled the resort to be the first to ...
SAM Magazine—Palmerton, Pa., Nov. 7, 2024—A brush fire has burned several hundred acres near Blue Mountain Resort, Pa., this week. The resort has supported fire crews in efforts to suppress the Gap Fire, also called the Blue Mountain fire.Courtesy of Blue Mountain The fire, which is reportedly no longer advancing, is burning roughly 4 miles to...
SAM Magazine—Glenwood, N.Y., Nov. 1, 2024—Kissing Bridge Ski Resort was sold to California tech investor Rhett McNulty for $1.06 million. McNulty formed Kissing Bridge All Seasons Resort Inc. in Wyoming to purchase the ski area, which is about 40 minutes south of Buffalo. While the deal closed this week, McNulty told Buffalo Business First t...
SAM Magazine—Leadville, Colo., Nov. 1, 2024—Starting this winter, Ski Cooper lift ticket rates will be the same online as they are at the ticket window, bucking the trend of ski areas charging top dollar on-site to incentivize guests to purchase tickets in advance online at a discounted rate. The nonprofit ski area has also reduced its Monday-T...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Oct. 31, 2024—Snowbasin, Utah, earned the top spot in the West and Mad River Glen, Vt., repeated as the best in the East in the 2025 SKI Reader Survey Awards. There were a few big movers in the rankings, both up and down, as well as a continued affinity for independent resorts. Rankings are based on responses from S...
SAM Magazine—New York City, Oct. 30, 2024—The Mountain Collective Pass has expanded its network of resorts with the additions of Sunday River, Maine, and Megève, France, for the 2024-25 season, bringing the total number of resort partners to 27 worldwide. “These two world-class resorts complement our existing network perfectly,” said Mo...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Oct. 23, 2024—SAM invites ski area operators to participate in a new survey aimed at gathering insights into summer business and operations. The survey, launching today, seeks to capture the latest trends and challenges faced by ski areas as they continue to evolve their operations. Responses are requested by Monday,...
SAM Magazine—New York City, Oct. 24, 2024—Indy Pass has added access to 30 more alpine, cross-country, and indoor ski areas for the 2024-25 season, including Loveland Ski Area, Colo., and 12 resorts in Innsbruck, Austria. The additions were revealed at a media event in New York City Wednesday night. With the additions, Indy Pass will release a...
SAM Magazine—Shrewsbury, Mass., Oct. 21, 2024—Thanks to its all-weather snowmaking system, Massachusetts’ Ski Ward has staked its claim as the first ski area in North America to open for lift-served skiing and snowboarding for the second year in a row.Courtesy of Ski Ward Several Colorado ski areas also appear ready to drop ropes in the comin...
SAM Magazine—Homewood, Calif., Oct. 14, 2024—Homewood Mountain Resort will not operate for 2024-25 after its financial partner withdrew its support for this upcoming winter season, the Lake Tahoe ski area said in an announcement published on its website. Homewood cited financial viability and delays in approvals to proposed updates of the resor...
SAM Magazine—Jackson, N.H., Oct. 5, 2024—At a standing room only crowd at Black Mountain, Indy Pass and Entabeni Systems announced they have purchased Black Mountain from the Fichera family, who have owned and operated the ski area for the past 30 years. Indy Pass managing director and Entabeni Systems founder Erik Mogensen, who spoke at the co...
Photo courtesy of Kim Jochl.SAM Magazine—Banner Elk, N.C., Oct. 2, 2024—Ski areas in the mountains of western North Carolina appear to have suffered relatively minimal damage from Hurricane Helene, which caused historic flooding after dropping 1-2 feet of rain, or more, through a wide swath of mountain communities in a short time, Sept. 26-27. ...
SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Oct. 1, 2024—Vail Resorts has unveiled a "resource efficiency transformation plan" that will save $100 million over the next two years, and then $100 million a year after that. The plan is designed to improve organizational effectiveness through a combination of scaled operations, global shared services, and exp...
SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Oct. 1, 2024—Vail Resorts' Epic Pass product sales through Sept. 20, 2024, for the upcoming 2024-25 North American ski season decreased approximately 3 percent in units and increased approximately 3 percent in revenue in sales compared to the prior year through Sept. 22, 2023. Pass sales dollars are benefiting...
SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Oct. 1, 2024—Vail Resorts reported its Q4 and full-year 2024 results last week for the fiscal year ending July 31, detailing what was a difficult 2023-24 season across North America and in Australia. Even so, VR fared relatively well compared to the record fiscal year 2023 that preceded it. VR also revealed a "r...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Sept. 30, 2024—Ski areas across North America are invited to nominate their snowmaking teams to participate in the 10th annual “I AM a Snowmaker” contest, presented by HKD Snowmakers. The “I AM” contest offers the opportunity for a handful of resorts to showcase their snowmaking teams and the work they do via...
SAM Magazine—Greenwood Village, Colo., Sept. 23, 2024—PNP Supply reached a partnership agreement with Demaclenko that will support and expand North American distribution of TRM (Tiroler Rohre GmbH) ductile-iron pipe for snowmaking systems. TRM is based in Tirol, Austria, and PNP Supply LLC has been the exclusive North American importer of the ...
SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Sept. 17, 2024—Lodging properties in Western mountain destinations eased back on daily rate increases over the summer and successfully boosted summer occupancy. The same strategy has sparked a significant boost in early bookings for the upcoming winter. That's the latest news from the monthly Market Briefing fro...
SAM Magazine—Wrightwood, Calif., Sept. 13, 2024—Leadership at Mountain High were able to return to the resort over the last two days to start assessing the damage from the Bridge Fire, which moved through the ski area Tuesday night and remains active in Angeles National Forest.Courtesy of Mountain High Karl Kapuscinski, CEO of California Mount...
SAM Magazine—Granby, Colo., Sept. 13, 2024—Indy Pass is offering a new employee pass program that the company said is designed to help its partner ski areas recruit seasonal staff and retain year-round employees. Like the consumer Indy Pass product, employees at Indy Pass partner ski areas that opt-in to the program can redeem two days of skiin...
SAM Magazine—San Bernardino, Calif., Sept. 11, 2024—The Bridge Fire, burning in the Angeles National Forest, grew exponentially on Tuesday, surging into Mountain High resort and the communities of Wrightwood and Mt. Baldy, which are under mandatory evacuation orders. Credit to ALERTCalifornia An update from the Wrightwood Fire Safe Council at...
SAM Magazine—Reno, Nev., Sept. 9, 2024—Evacuation orders are in place for Mt. Rose –Ski Tahoe and neighboring Sky Tavern as firefighters work to contain the Davis Fire. A screen capture from the ALERTNevada webcam on top of Slide Mountain, the peak of Mt. Rose – Ski Tahoe. The 6,500-acre wildfire, which started in the Washoe Valley south ...
SAM Magazine—Denver, Sept. 6, 2024—Alterra Mountain Company has invested more than $300 million in capital improvements ahead of the 2024-25 season. The capital investment cycle included major projects at Deer Valley, Utah, and Winter Park, Colo., among others. The first phase of the East Village expansion at Deer Valley will debut this winter...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Sept. 6, 2024—SAM Magazine is offering a virtual Ski Resort AI Bootcamp this fall, aimed at informing resort personnel of the available artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and teaching practical AI skills, including the pros and cons of the various tools. The bootcamp, led by Mike Lannen of the digital agency ...
SAM Magazine—Denver, Sept. 4, 2024 – Alterra Mountain Company has named Amy Ohran the new president and COO of Palisades Tahoe. She succeeds Dee Byrne, who is retiring after 40 years in the industry. “I am very excited for this new opportunity at the legendary Palisades Tahoe,” said Ohran, in part, in a statement. “I look forward to le...
SAM Magazine—Big Sky, Mont., Sept. 4, 2024—After nearly three decades leading Big Sky Resort, president and chief operating officer Taylor Middleton will step down from day-to-day responsibilities on Oct. 1, 2024.Taylor Middleton and Troy Nedved Current general manager Troy Nedved will succeed him, assuming both the president and COO positions....
SAM Magazine—McCall, Idaho, Sept. 4, 2024—Brundage Mountain Resort has established a new fire department based at the resort and will soon be a licensed EMS transport provider, creating its own independent emergency response agencies that will serve the resort area. The new Brundage Mountain Fire Protection Association (BMFPA) hired a fire chi...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Sept. 4, 2024—Nine mentors have been named for the seventh annual SAM Summit Series leadership development program, which will explore the theme “Leadership During Times of Constant Change” this year. In the mentor/mentee program, emerging resort leaders engage and learn from top industry veterans on a variety ...
SAM Magazine—Canmore, Alberta, Aug. 30, 2024—Switzerland-based wire rope manufacturer Fatzer AG has acquired Canada-based Rocky Mountain Lift Services and Supplies Inc., aka Rigging Specialties. Rocky Mountain Lift Services and Supplies Inc. (RMLSS) provides products and services for rope rigging applications as well as rope installations, mag...
SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Aug. 30, 2024—National Ski Patrol (NSP) is expanding its membership to include working patrollers who have first responder credentials, such as emergency medical technicians (EMTs), wilderness first responders (WFRs), and paramedics. NSP had previously only opened membership to those who intended to take or had alr...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Aug. 28, 2024—The 2024 Rise Up Challenge, sponsored by Leitner-Poma of America, highlighted up-and-coming lift mechanics and their lift maintenance teams from six ski areas across North America: Berkshire East, Mass.; Crystal Mountain, Wash.; Mount Sunapee, N.H.; Palisades Tahoe, Calif.; Purgatory, Colo.; and Snowbir...
SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., Aug. 27, 2024—Sierra-at-Tahoe has joined the Ikon Pass for winter 2024-25. It will be one of six California ski resorts offered on the Alterra Mountain Company-owned pass this winter. “We are excited to expand Ikon Pass access in California by offering even more in the Tahoe area,” said Erik Forsell, chief mar...
SAM Magazine––Shawnee on Delaware, Pa., Aug. 27, 2024––Shawnee Mountain Ski Area has entered a four-year renewable energy credit (REC) purchase agreement with ENGIE Resources, a subsidiary of ENGIE North America. Under the agreement, Shawnee will claim 6,000 annual RECs, equivalent to 6,000,000 kWh of electricity delivered to the grid from ...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Aug. 27, 2024—Massive fall snowstorms set South America’s ski season off on what has been the best winter this century for many centers there, the majority of which opened weeks early in May.Courtesy of La Parva It was a more challenging first month or so in Australia and New Zealand, though snowmaking pulled ski a...
SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Aug. 27, 2024—Drawing insights from a survey of ski area marketers across North America, the inaugural "Outlook on Resort Marketing" report, created by SAM Magazine and MMGY Origin, is now available exclusively for SAM subscribers. Designed as a key resource for marketing professionals in the ski industry, the repor...
POWDR to Sell Killington Resort / Pico Mountain, Put Mt. Bachelor, Eldora, and SilverStar Out to Bid
Updated at 11:15 a.m. on Aug. 22, 2024. SAM Magazine—Killington, Vt, Aug. 22, 2024—POWDR has agreed to sell Killington Resort and Pico Mountain to a group of local investors. The sale is expected to close this fall. Following news of the sale, sources report that POWDR also plans to put several of its other ski resort properties—Eldora, Col...
SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Aug. 16, 2024—Rates and occupancy are leveling out in the West, according to the latest Monthly Briefing from DestiMetrics, the business intelligence division of Inntopia. The latest report highlights just how rate sensitive summer guests have become, as a slight uptick in rates last month led to a modest dip in...
Crystal Ridge general manager Riley May at the Midwest Ski Areas Association show.SAM Magazine—Franklin, Wis., Aug. 14, 2024—Rock Snowpark has rebranded as Crystal Ridge, which was the ski area’s original name when John Kaishian first opened it in 1987. The new name goes into effect immediately and the rebrand includes a new Crystal Ridge log...
