2009 SAMMY Winners Announced - Ski Area Management

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16 April 2009

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SAM Magazine--Woodbury, Conn., April 16, 2009--SAM Magazine is proud to announce the recipients of the 12th annual 2009 SAMMY Leadership Awards and the third annual SAM Diversity Award. They are:

1) Alan Henceroth, COO at Arapahoe Basin, Colo. Alan first entered the ski industry working at Keystone Resort for five seasons and transitioned over to A-Basin in 1988. There he quickly worked his way up from ski patrol director to director of mountain operations and currently to vice president and COO.

2) Jonathan Davis, IT Manager at Perfect North Slopes, IN. Jonathan started at Perfect North Slopes in 1992 working as a lift attendant and rental shop manager. In 1999 he filled his current position as IT Manager. Jonathan is now a key director at the resort, overseeing all network management, point-of-sales and "all things IT."

3) Jesse Boyd, General Manager at Jack Frost/Big Boulder, PA. Jesse grew up working in the ski industry and took his first GM position at Hidden Valley Ski Area in 2004. In 2005, Jesse became the GM of Jack Frost and Big Boulder Resorts and is currently a VP in Peak Resorts. He oversees operations of six resorts and has spearheaded the freestyle terrain evolution at Big Boulder PARK and Carinthia at Mount Snow.

4) Diversity Award: Arn Menconi, founder and executive director of SOS Outreach. Arn began teaching snowboarding at Vail in 1991 and founded SOS Outreach in 1993. The program teaches more 3,600 kids each year at 36 ski resorts in the U.S. SOS Outreach is a not-for-profit organization, averaging 500 adult volunteers each season. The program's growth has seen a 16-percent increase from last season and 170-percent growth from 2006-07.

"It's always exciting to see the worthy pool of nominees each year and Jesse, Jonathan, Alan and Arn certainly stood out," says publisher Jennifer Rowan. "To see the industry get behind these awards through peer nomination is great."

These awards are made possible with the generous support of: Leitner-Poma, Wells Fargo Special Risk, RSN, Magic Carpet and Resort Technology Partners.