CUTTER'S CAMP 2017— MOUNT SNOW
More than 70 terrain park builders and industry experts gathered for Cutter’s Camp Fall Refresher at Mount Snow, Vt., Nov. 6-8 for a deep dive into season preparation and best practices for terrain park operation. More than 40 resorts from across North America were represented—including major destinations and small community operations. And with the winter season knocking on everyone’s door, the discussions were focused on actionable lessons attendees could apply right away.
Camp kicked off with the popular Fireside Chat where industry veterns shared their stories. (L to R): Elia Hamilton, Peak Resorts; Jay Scambio, Loon; Mike Bettera, SPT; Ken Gaitor, Snowshoe.
Steve Petrie of Arena Snowparks presents a behind-the-scenes look at his Holy Bowl-Eh event at Sunshine Village.
Campers taking part in the group exercise of creating pre-season checklists.
Tim Bruce of Safehold Special Risk reviews incidents and claims to highlight the 10 biggest terrain park risks resorts need to address.
Loon's Jay Scambio and Peak Resorts' Elia Hamilton lead the jump measurement session and discuss the ins and outs of measuring techniques.
The annual Terrain Park Manager's Roundtable where attendees talk shop about staffing, training, budget planning and more.
SNOW Operating's Eric Lipton inspires the group with successful programs that help grow progression in the park.
Snowshoe's Ken Gaitor strategically uses a few stickers to demostrate how to build a mogul field.
Jesse Whitcomb of Safehold Special Risk discusses terrain park risks that attendees can avoid.
Peak Resorts' Elia Hamilton shares building techniques at the Feature Construction breakout pod.
PistenBully's game of Stump! never disappoints.
Snow Park Technologies' Mike Bettera presents Strategic Terrain Park Planning and shares best practices for answering guest demands.
Boyne Resorts' Brian Norton shares his expertise at the Feature Construction breakout discussion.
Charles Mickley of 1Risk leads the Documentation breakout pod.
SAM's Dave Meeker and Olivia Rowan taking their turn at Stump!
(L to R) SAM's Dave Meeker, Peak Resorts' Elia Hamilton and Jesse Boyd and Hidden Valley's Brian Hun.
Prinoth's Zach Collins leads the breakout discussion on vehicle maintenance.
HKD's Nate Ringquist shares his expertise at the Snowmaking in the Park pod discussion.
Snowshoe's Ken Gaitor shares the resort's Berming Man banked salmon event during the Transition Events session.
SAM's Dave Meeker (left) and Big Boulder's Pat Morgan (right) lead the breakout discussion on events and social media.
PistenBully's Josh Lempert (left) awarding the Stump! winner his very own cat.
Camp kicked off with the popular Fireside Chat where industry veterns shared their stories. (L to R): Elia Hamilton, Peak Resorts; Jay Scambio, Loon; Mike Bettera, SPT; Ken Gaitor, Snowshoe.
Steve Petrie of Arena Snowparks presents a behind-the-scenes look at his Holy Bowl-Eh event at Sunshine Village.
Campers taking part in the group exercise of creating pre-season checklists.
Tim Bruce of Safehold Special Risk reviews incidents and claims to highlight the 10 biggest terrain park risks resorts need to address.
Loon's Jay Scambio and Peak Resorts' Elia Hamilton lead the jump measurement session and discuss the ins and outs of measuring techniques.
The annual Terrain Park Manager's Roundtable where attendees talk shop about staffing, training, budget planning and more.
SNOW Operating's Eric Lipton inspires the group with successful programs that help grow progression in the park.
Snowshoe's Ken Gaitor strategically uses a few stickers to demostrate how to build a mogul field.
Jesse Whitcomb of Safehold Special Risk discusses terrain park risks that attendees can avoid.
Peak Resorts' Elia Hamilton shares building techniques at the Feature Construction breakout pod.
PistenBully's game of Stump! never disappoints.
Snow Park Technologies' Mike Bettera presents Strategic Terrain Park Planning and shares best practices for answering guest demands.
Boyne Resorts' Brian Norton shares his expertise at the Feature Construction breakout discussion.
Charles Mickley of 1Risk leads the Documentation breakout pod.
SAM's Dave Meeker and Olivia Rowan taking their turn at Stump!
(L to R) SAM's Dave Meeker, Peak Resorts' Elia Hamilton and Jesse Boyd and Hidden Valley's Brian Hun.
Prinoth's Zach Collins leads the breakout discussion on vehicle maintenance.
HKD's Nate Ringquist shares his expertise at the Snowmaking in the Park pod discussion.
Snowshoe's Ken Gaitor shares the resort's Berming Man banked salmon event during the Transition Events session.
SAM's Dave Meeker (left) and Big Boulder's Pat Morgan (right) lead the breakout discussion on events and social media.
PistenBully's Josh Lempert (left) awarding the Stump! winner his very own cat.
This is first time in 15 years that Cutter’s Camp has been held just before winter, so a variety of new sessions were specifically designed for the Fall Refresher program. Among them was “Strategic Terrain Park Planning,” aimed at helping campers form strategic business practices to better serve guest visitation trends with corresponding park opening procedures. Another newly added session was the “Freestyle Terrain Resource Guide Live Survey,” where attendees participated in a real-time survey that helped the group learn about updates and available content that can assist their park programs. It was an eye-opening experience for everyone as it provided a platform for members of the industry to better understand the type of information resorts and park staff need to improve their park operations and how to make it more available.
In addition, the “Terrain Park Pre-Season Checklist” workshop was among the most popular of the educational sessions. The two-hour workshop focused solely on providing attendees with tangible information and expertise that they can immediately apply to their park program. The format included intimate brainstorming discussions led by industry experts, who helped campers create detailed checklists for every aspect of park operation. That was followed by a group discussion, which provided an opportunity for all to share fresh ideas with the group.
When it was all said and done, attendees went back to their operations armed with fresh ideas and energy, and strategies to get newly hired park teams the information they need to succeed this coming season. <
The new format was well received. "My Cutter’s Camp experience was incredible. Very informative and good to be reminded of a lot of the things we need to organize before our resort opens," said one camper.
Cutter’s Camp is one of the industry’s only open-forum events focused solely on terrain park operations. It would not be possible without the support of this year’s Fall Refresher sponsors, including 1Risk, Arena Snowparks, BlackStrap, Burton, HKD Snowmakers, PistenBully, Prinoth, Safehold Special Risk, and Snow Park Technologies. And the invaluable contributions from the industry’s leading terrain park experts bring it all together.
Cutter’s Camp will return to Timberline Lodge, Mt. Hood, Ore., in the spring of 2018 for the annual weeklong camp, which includes one-on-one coaching for on-hill park building and an extended line up of sessions and workshops.
CUTTER'S CAMP 2017—TIMBERLINE, MT. HOOD
For the 15th consecutive year, terrain park professionals from across the globe gathered at Timberline, Mt. Hood, Ore., May 16-20 for a week of building, educational workshops, networking, and camp activities. More than 50 resorts were represented. With so many regions represented—from the East coast to the West coast, and from the Midwest to Canada—and with a wide range in resort size, discussions were lively and productive.
SAM's Olivia Rowan (left) and Liz Mettler (right) hosting the Cutter's Camp game show.
Burton's opening night party featured the ever-popular ice cream carving contest.
During the Transistion Events session Steve Petrie of Arena Snowparks shared inspiration from his Holy Bowly event at Lake Louise.
Mistica Walker of Safehold Special Risk led the discussion on freestyle terrain staff guides and training.
Mike Bettera of Snow Park Technologies led the session, Milestone and Holiday Weeks and how to find the balance of a park's product mix.
Loading up to get up the hill!
Tim Yates of Safehold Special Risk talked with the group on terrain park documentation.
Lukas Ingold of Leica Geosystems presents the latest technologies to the group.
The coveted risk management panel at Cutter's Camp (L to R): Jason Kartchner, MountainGuard; Mistica Walker, Safehold Special Risk; Brian Rosser, MountainGuard; Brad Standford, Farleigh, Wada, Witt; Tim Yates, Safehold Special Risk; and Ruth Nielsen, Keating, Bucklin & McCormack.
PistenBully's Colin Hales shares the SNOWsat system technoloiges during the Park Tech Talks session.
The annual Prinoth dodgeball tournament!
Prinoth's John Swartz presenting the custom made dodgeball trophy to Parker Gokey of Mt. Ashland.
Timberline GM Steve Kruse leads an "expert station" during the park challenge group exercise.
Mike Beterra of Snow Park Technologies discusses park metrics with campers during the park challenge exercise.
Campers practicing jump measurement protocols during the park challenge exercise.
Building above the clouds!
Charles Mickley of 1Risk shares advise at his expert station during the Park Challenge group exercise.
Jay Scambio of Boyne Resorts leading his team during the park challenge group exercise.
Brian Norton of Boyne Resorts (left) helps guide a camper during the on-hill building session.
Teams presented their park challenge solutions to the group.
(L to R): Mike Bettera, SPT and Benny McGinnis, Mount Snow leading the feature construction breakout pod.
Phil Van Why and Ben Siefert of HKD Snowmakers lead the snow science and snowmaking breakout pod.
Windells Academy president and SNOW Operating consultant, Chris Hargrave, leads the session on progression in the park.
Burton's Shaun Cattanach talks with the group about their progression initiatives to help get kids in on the fun of freestyle terrain.
During the progression session a few luckly campers got to try their hand as something entirely new... reminding them what it's like to be a first-timer.
PistenBully's annual Game of Sleds was nothing short of entertaining.
And there was sumo wrestling, of course...
The gold, silver and bronze medal winners!
The park challenge group exercise had campers working through daily complications of operating a safe and successful park.
Greg Hughes (right) of Tobe Outerware shares the technologies of the company's product line.
Breckenridge's Nik Symon (left) coaches a camper on-hill.
Peak Resorts' Elia Hamilton leads his team during the park challenge exercise.
Kevin Laverty, Vail Resorts; and Jay Scambio, Boyne Resorts, leading a park challenge team.
Timberline's Ricky Hower leading an expert station on events during the park challenge exercise.
A big thanks to our long-time coaches and panelists who help make Cutter's Camp possible... Elia Hamilton, Peak Resorts; Ken Gaitor, Snowshoe; Jay Scambio, Boyne Resorts; and Kevin Laverty, Vail Resorts.
HKD's Phil Van Why addresses the group during his sponsored lunch.
Snowshoe's Ken Gaitor leading his team during a park challenge session.
Teams presenting during the park challenge exercise.
PJ Markow of Arapahoe Basin (left) - the lucky winner of a Tobe Outwear suite, celebrates with Tobe's Greg Hughes.
Sugarbowl's Kirk Borodaeff is stoked to be on Mt. Hood!
The annual manager's roundtable discussed hot topics like staffing and employee training.
SAM's Olivia Rowan (left) and Liz Mettler (right) hosting the Cutter's Camp game show.
Burton's opening night party featured the ever-popular ice cream carving contest.
During the Transistion Events session Steve Petrie of Arena Snowparks shared inspiration from his Holy Bowly event at Lake Louise.
Mistica Walker of Safehold Special Risk led the discussion on freestyle terrain staff guides and training.
Mike Bettera of Snow Park Technologies led the session, Milestone and Holiday Weeks and how to find the balance of a park's product mix.
Loading up to get up the hill!
Tim Yates of Safehold Special Risk talked with the group on terrain park documentation.
Lukas Ingold of Leica Geosystems presents the latest technologies to the group.
The coveted risk management panel at Cutter's Camp (L to R): Jason Kartchner, MountainGuard; Mistica Walker, Safehold Special Risk; Brian Rosser, MountainGuard; Brad Standford, Farleigh, Wada, Witt; Tim Yates, Safehold Special Risk; and Ruth Nielsen, Keating, Bucklin & McCormack.
PistenBully's Colin Hales shares the SNOWsat system technoloiges during the Park Tech Talks session.
The annual Prinoth dodgeball tournament!
Prinoth's John Swartz presenting the custom made dodgeball trophy to Parker Gokey of Mt. Ashland.
Timberline GM Steve Kruse leads an "expert station" during the park challenge group exercise.
Mike Beterra of Snow Park Technologies discusses park metrics with campers during the park challenge exercise.
Campers practicing jump measurement protocols during the park challenge exercise.
Building above the clouds!
Charles Mickley of 1Risk shares advise at his expert station during the Park Challenge group exercise.
Jay Scambio of Boyne Resorts leading his team during the park challenge group exercise.
Brian Norton of Boyne Resorts (left) helps guide a camper during the on-hill building session.
Teams presented their park challenge solutions to the group.
(L to R): Mike Bettera, SPT and Benny McGinnis, Mount Snow leading the feature construction breakout pod.
Phil Van Why and Ben Siefert of HKD Snowmakers lead the snow science and snowmaking breakout pod.
Windells Academy president and SNOW Operating consultant, Chris Hargrave, leads the session on progression in the park.
Burton's Shaun Cattanach talks with the group about their progression initiatives to help get kids in on the fun of freestyle terrain.
During the progression session a few luckly campers got to try their hand as something entirely new... reminding them what it's like to be a first-timer.
PistenBully's annual Game of Sleds was nothing short of entertaining.
And there was sumo wrestling, of course...
The gold, silver and bronze medal winners!
The park challenge group exercise had campers working through daily complications of operating a safe and successful park.
Greg Hughes (right) of Tobe Outerware shares the technologies of the company's product line.
Breckenridge's Nik Symon (left) coaches a camper on-hill.
Peak Resorts' Elia Hamilton leads his team during the park challenge exercise.
Kevin Laverty, Vail Resorts; and Jay Scambio, Boyne Resorts, leading a park challenge team.
Timberline's Ricky Hower leading an expert station on events during the park challenge exercise.
A big thanks to our long-time coaches and panelists who help make Cutter's Camp possible... Elia Hamilton, Peak Resorts; Ken Gaitor, Snowshoe; Jay Scambio, Boyne Resorts; and Kevin Laverty, Vail Resorts.
HKD's Phil Van Why addresses the group during his sponsored lunch.
Snowshoe's Ken Gaitor leading his team during a park challenge session.
Teams presenting during the park challenge exercise.
PJ Markow of Arapahoe Basin (left) - the lucky winner of a Tobe Outwear suite, celebrates with Tobe's Greg Hughes.
Sugarbowl's Kirk Borodaeff is stoked to be on Mt. Hood!
The annual manager's roundtable discussed hot topics like staffing and employee training.
The week kicked off with 20 inches of fresh snow, perfect for grooming demos from PistenBully and Prinoth. While the snow fell, campers gathered for a "Fiireside Chat" centered on how to turn a passion into a career, followed by Burton's Welcome Party.
For the next three days, terrain-building was front and center on the agenda. Each camper was assigned a four-hour, one-on-one on-hill coaching block to work with an expert groomer on advancing their building and shaping skills and exchanging tips and shortcuts.
For campers not on-hill, that second day was devoted to risk management, planning, and logistics. Sessions dove into terrain park documentation, staff training and freestyle terrain staff guidelines, transition events, and planning for holiday weeks and milestones. That evening, campers experienced the Windells sports bubble and participated in the 5th annual Prinoth DodgeBall Tournament.
On the third day, campers broke into four groups and participated in the risk management-themed Park Challenge Workshop, which tested their skills in communication, jump measurement, incident investigation, and strategic thinking as they worked through real-world scenarios. The afternoon presentations covered a host of park topics, from feature construction and vehicle maintenance to snow science and events. The day finished with a session on progression as a business, followed by the annual PistenBully Snowmobile races and sumo wrestling.
The fourth day saw campers complete a second Park Challenge Workshop, this one on planning and logistics, followed by the popular Terrain Park Managers' Roundtable.
All of that served as fuel for what was the most beneficial aspect of camp, according the campers: the conversations that continue through the evening after the workshops end.
As one camper summed up the week:
"It has been so amazing, meeting all of these park professionals. I learned so much and gained many positive perspectives from the people I have met here. Everyone has been very supportive and helpful. I am excited to go home and apply my new knowledge and skills to my park back home. This camp really encouraged a positive and real vibe that feels like a family. My eyes have been opened. I hope I get to come back every year. I am forever grateful for this experience."
This important industry resource would not be possible without the expertise and guidance of our core panelists, some of whom have been part of Camp from the beginning: Elia Hamilton, Peak Resorts; Jay Scambio, Boyne Resorts; Kevin Laverty, Vail Resorts; Ken Gaitor, Snowshoe; Chris Hargrave, Windells and Logan Stewart, Timberline.
We also thank our Cutter's Camp sponsors, who have kept us going for 15 years. This year’s sponsors were 1Risk, Arena Snowparks, BlackStrap, Burton, Gogglesoc, HKD Snowmakers, Leica, PistenBully, Prinoth, Safehold Special Risk, Snow Park Technologies, Pabst Blue Ribbon, and Tobe.
Cutter's Camp is excited to head east this fall for a first-ever Fall Refresher at Mount Snow, Vt., Nov. 6-8. Registration will open on July 15th. The Refresher is designed to energize and engage park staff for the season ahead.