SAM Magazine--Whistler, B.C., August 8, 2013--Whistler Blackcomb Holdings Inc. reported financial results for the three months and nine months ended June 30, 2013. The corporation holds a 75% interest in Whistler Blackcomb. The company reported a 25% drop in skier visits for the third quarter, which went from 332,000 to 249,000, and a 4% decrease f...

SAM Magazine--Vail, Colo., August 8, 2013--Intouch Technology Group, formed in 1993 to develop the Ultima product suite for the wintersports industry and recreational facilities, has joined forces with Trojan Holdings, a New Zealand-based tourism company that operates three ski areas in the southern Alps. As a result of the merger, Intouch appointe...

SAM Magazine--Utah, August 8, 2013--On the heels of the annoucement by Alta, Snowbird, Deer Valley and Park City that each of their season pass holders can enjoy priveleges at any of the four areas, Brighton Resort and Solitude teamed up to offer the Big Cottonwood Pass for $999. The joint pass is valid at both resorts with no blackout dates. The t...

SAM Magazine—Mars Hill, Maine, Aug. 6, 2013—The nonprofit Maine Winter Sports Center (MWSC), which has owned the Bigrock Mountain community ski area here since 2000, hopes to turn over the area to the community of Bigrock supporters. MWSC expects the community will fund operations and establish a new non-profit to operate the area, much...

SAM Magazine—Aspen, Colo., Aug. 5, 2013—The Mountain Collective, an alliance of independent mountain resorts—Aspen/Snowmass, Whistler, Alta, Snowbird, Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows, Jackson Hole, and Mammoth—and Protect Our Winters (POW) are partnering in an effort to unite the winter sports community on climate change. The...

SAM Magazine—Killington, Vt., Aug. 1, 2013—Killington is making beginning adult skiers an amazing offer: complete a four-lesson package and receive a new pair of Elan eRise skis—along with discounts on boots and poles, and half-price lessons and lift tickets through the 2014-15 season. The details: the $249 learn-to package inc...

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, Aug. 1, 2013—Qualifying season’s passholders at Alta, Deer Valley, Park City Mountain Resort and Snowbird will receive three free days at each of the other resorts in the group for the 2013-14 season. The free tickets will be honored seven days a week, except for Dec. 21-Jan. 5 and Feb. 15-17. Elig...

SAM Magazine—Big Sky, Mont., July 25, 21013—CrossHarbor Capital, which owns the Yellowstone Club, and Boyne Resorts, which owns Big Sky Resort, have jointly purchased The Club at Spanish Peaks, a 5,700-acre upscale residential development near Big Sky, for $26.1 million. The private community filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2011. I...

SAM Magazine--July 25, 2013--Alpine Mountain Ski and Snowtubing, located in the Poconos in Pennsylvania, will be sold by competitive sealed bid in September. According to the Pocono Record, Alpine was bought two years ago by Appletree Management, which managed the ski area for three years prior. Appletree management stated that it wanted to get bac...

SAM Magazine--July 19, 2013--The following is a letter Laszlo Vajtay, owner of Plattekill Mountain in Roxbury, N.Y., wrote to the Department of Environmental Conservation in opposition of the proposed expansion at neighboring Belleayre Mountain. For more on the story, check out yesterday's headline news story at http://www.saminfo.com/news/neig...

SAM Magazine—Rumford, Maine, July 19, 2013—Ownership of Black Mountain Ski Resort has been transferred from the Maine Winter Sports Center, which has owned the area since 2003, to the resort’s volunteer board of directors, effective Monday. The resort remains a non-profit, but will no longer enjoy the financial support of the Libr...

SAM Magazine—Wrightwood, Calif., July 18, 2013—In response to the development of other multi-area pass deals, a dozen Western resorts have created the Powder Alliance and are offering free lift access to “anytime” passholders from member resorts. The areas are Crested Butte, Colo.; Snowbasin Resort, Utah; Sierra-at-Tahoe, Ch...

SAM Magazine--July 18, 2013--A proposed $74 million expansion of Belleayre Mountain Ski Center, in Ulster County, N.Y., is being opposed by neighboring Greene County lawmakers. In a letter to the State Department of Environmental Conservation, the Greene County legislature claims that using taxpayer dollars for the expansion of the state-owned ski ...

SAM Magazine—Stockholm, Sweden, July 15, 2013—Private equity group Altor is acquiring a majority stake in Rossignol Group from the current owners, Australian bank Macquarie (77 percent) and U.S. sporting goods conglomerate Jarden (17 percent), which also owns K2, Marker, Volkl, and several other brands. The deal values Rossignol at $196...

SAM Magazine—Denver, July 15, 2013—Hot temperatures throughout the western U.S. and increased summer programming have led to growing summer lodging occupancy, according to DestiMetrics (formerly the Mountain Travel Research Program). The June occupancy rate rose 3.9 percent compared to a year ago, and revenue increased by 9.9 percent. P...