PEAK RESORTS ACQUIRES HUNTER MOUNTAIN On Nov. 30, Peak Resorts entered into an agreement to purchase Hunter Mountain, N.Y., for cash consideration of $35 million plus the assumption of two capital leases estimated at approximately $1.8 million. Hunter generates approximately $27 million (unaudited) in annual revenue. Shortly after the acquisition, Peak added Hunter to its unlimited Nor’easter Pass, which includes all of its Northeast properties. Hunter Gold Pass holders were given the option to upgrade to a Nor’easter for $299. Peak Resorts portfolio now consists of 14 ski areas. SKI PATROLS UNIONIZING The ski patrol at Telluride, Colo., ratified its first union contract on Nov. 9 by a 50-1 vote. The three-year deal addressed several of the concerns that led to the formation of the union, which patrollers voted in favor of forming last February by a 47-1 margin. In Utah, that first step was taken by the newly-merged Park City Mountain ski patrol (consisting of the staffs from the Park City Resort base area and Canyons Village base area) on Dec. 14 when the group voted in favor of forming a union by a narrow count of 97-94. Canyons ski patrol had been unionized for the last 15 years, but failed to agree to terms on a new contract with Vail Resorts. OREGON COUPLE BUYS SOLDIER MOUNTAIN Matt and Dianne McFerran, a couple from Bend, Ore., are the new owners of Soldier Mountain. More than 2,100 people had inquired about the resort, which was put up for sale on Oct. 14 at the price tag of $149,000, the amount of money the non-profit area owed to the bank. The resort re-opened on Dec. 12 and is offering lift tickets for $38 for adults and $22 for kids. Soldier Mountain was owned by Hollywood star Bruce Willis until 2012 when he donated the property to the 501[c]3 Soldier Mountain Ski Area, Inc. PEOPLE In Colorado, Katie Brown has been promoted to vice president of sales and marketing for the Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation. Brown takes over the top marketing spot for the resort after Rob Perlman, who previously held the position, assumed duties as president and chief operating officer last summer. Also at Steamboat, Karen Schneider has been named director of sales for the Steamboat Ski Resort and the Steamboat Grand Hotel. … Phil Metz has been named director of marketing at Beaver Creek Resort. He will oversee all aspects of marketing for Beaver Creek as well as strategic marketing for Vail Resorts Signature Clubs. … Tim Petrick is now COO of Silverton Mountain Ski Area and Silverton Mountain Guides Alaska Heli. Most recently, Petrick was president and CEO of K2 Sports. … Aspen Skiing Company hired Michael Miracle as the new director of community engagement. Elsewhere in the West, Dave Amir-ault is now marketing director at Snowbird Mountain Resort. … Diamond Peak, Nev., welcomed Paul Raymore as its new marketing manager. … Taos Ski Valley has hired several new departmental directors. Cecelia Cuff is director of food and beverage, John Kelly is TSV director of operations, Chris Kuhn is director of information technology, and Burt Skall is taking over as director of the Ernie Blake Snowsports School. In the Midwest, Jeff Morrison has been named director of ski operations for Otsego Club & Resort, Mich. He is responsible for managing the ski operations, increasing the resort’s visibility, and exploring off-season opportunities for the 76-year-old club’s ski hills. In the East, Mount Snow, Vt., has made some personnel changes in the mountain operations department, promoting Kyle Meegan to freestyle terrain manager. Travis Abrose has been hired as snow surfaces manager. ... Dave Van Houten has joined the Peak Resorts terrain parks team as a builder. ... Stratton Mountain, Vt., welcomed Jan Giejda as its new executive chef. … Greg Bowen is now the director of marketing for King Pine Purity Spring Resort in New Hampshire. ... John Kitonis was recently appointed as the new vice president of software development at Stowe Mountain Resort, Vt. Tom Winter has been named lifestyle director for Mountain Rider’s Alliance. ... The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association promoted Eric Webster to senior director of events. Stein Eriksen was honored at the 2015 Ski Oscars. Eriksen received the grand finale award of the night for Outstanding Contribution to Ski Tourism for his work at Boyne Mountain, Mich., Sugarbush, Vt., Heavenly Valley, Calif., Snowmass and Aspen, Colo., and Park City ski community, Deer Valley Resort, and Stein Eriksen Lodge in Utah. OBITUARIES William “Fitzy” Fitzcharles III died unexpectedly on Nov. 26, 2015. He headed the Camden Parks and Recreation Department in Maine and served as the terrain and lift manager at Camden Snow Bowl. Earlier in his career he served as maintenance manager at Shawnee Peak, Maine, and at Red Lodge, Mont. Jackson Hole Mountain Resort co-founder Alex Morley died Nov. 1, 2015 from pancreatic cancer. He and Paul McCollister packed out test slopes together and went on to create the world-renowned resort on Rendezvous Mountain. Rhoda Blake, a Taos Ski Valley pioneer with her late husband Ernie Blake, died after a brief illness on Nov. 3, 2015. Gerald “Jerry” Groswold died on Thanksgiving Day. He was a renowned member of the Winter Park community in Colorado and served the ski industry in many capacities, including board chairman for Colorado Ski Country USA and the National Ski Areas Association/USIA. Raymond Twomey Duncan, founder of Purgatory Resort in Durango, Colo., died Oct. 9, 2015. He was inducted into the Colorado Ski Hall of Fame in 2006.
