News Search

SAM Headline News

HEADLINE NEWS

FEATURED STORY

  • SAM Taps Whistler Blackcomb to Host 2025 Summer Ops Camp

    SAM Magazine—Whistler, British Columbia, March 18, 2025—SAM’s Summer Ops Camp will be held at Whistler Blackcomb, Sept. 2-4, 2025, offering three days of education, networking, and hands-on learning focused on the future of summer operations at mountain resorts. This year’s camp will also feature a partnership with the Canada West Ski Areas Association (CWSAA), bringing together a dynamic mix of resort professionals from across North America.   Whistler Blackcomb has been at the forefront of year-round recreation development, balancing business innovation with environmental sustainability. With a robust lineup of summer attractions—including the Whistler Mountain Bike Park, Peak...

    Read More

Get SAM Headline News delivered to your inbox. It's not just another email—it's industry news and special reports that matter to you, coming from the industry's trusted resource. 

GetNewsButton

 

PEAK Navigator Program: Become a Better Leader

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Aug. 26, 2019—SAM Magazine has partnered with High Peaks Group—a consulting firm specializing in leadership and team development—to offer the Professional Enrichment and Knowledge (PEAK) Navigator program, a leadership workshop designed to help mountain resort leaders tune their leadership style, get teams engage...

Several Leadership Changes at Vail Resorts

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., August 26, 2019—Vail Resorts (VR) has made significant leadership changes in in the wake of executive vice president Chris Jarnot's retirement and in anticipation of closing its Peak Resorts acquisition this fall. Jarnot will be Chris Jarnotstepping down at the end of 2019, and VR has created three new senior lea...

Midwest Ski Areas Association 2019 Summer Meetings & Trade Show

SAM Magazine—Lake Geneva, Wis., Aug. 26, 2019—The Midwest Ski Areas Association (MSAA) Summer Meetings & Trade Show drew a large crowd of 424 attendees—including supplier reps and personnel from 55 different ski areas—to the Grand Geneva Resort, Aug. 18-21. The first-time location, a former Playboy Hotel, was well received. Grand Geneva...

Summer Ops Camp Registration Closes in Five Days

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Aug. 23, 2019— Registration for SAM’s 11th annual Summer Ops Camp—a series of site visits, seminars, on-hill workshops, demos, and networking events that explore the current state of mountain resort summer operations—closes Wednesday, Aug. 28. Only a few spots remain before the attendee roster is full for this ...

Chris Diamond and SAM Partner to Launch Groundbreaking Book

SAM Magazine—Steamboat Springs, Colo., Aug. 23, 2019—Chris Diamond, the former president of Steamboat Resort, has written a blockbuster follow-up to his acclaimed memoir, Ski Inc. His latest effort, Ski Inc. 2020, serves up a sharply defined perspective on the current and future resort scene. To give industry insiders the first look at this fut...

Gunstock GM Greg Goddard to Retire

SAM Magazine—Gilford, N.H., Aug. 21, 2019—After a 39-year career at Gunstock Mountain Resort, including the last 21 years serving as general manager, Greg Goddard will retire from the resort in August 2020. He is the longest tenured GM in Gunstock’s history. Goddard began his career at Gunstock in the winter of 1981-82 as a bartender at the ...

Snow People – July/August 2019

In SAM’s monthly Snow People, we highlight recent happenings to people who are part of the mountain resort industry. This time around, we’ve combined July and August. For even more updates on industry people, be sure to read News & Views in each and every issue of SAM Magazine. TESS HOBBS, SNOWBIRD, UTAHTess Hobbs Tess Hobbs has been pr...

Sea to Sky Gondola Haul Rope Intentionally Severed

SAM Magazine—Squamish, B.C., Aug. 16, 2019—The haul rope of the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish, B.C., was reportedly cut in what police are calling a “deliberate act” at around 4:30 a.m. PST on Saturday, Aug. 10. Most of the 30 gondola cabins on the line fell to the ground. No one was injured in the incident. The Royal Canadian Mounted Poli...

Western Destinations See Business Stall This Summer

SAM Magazine—Denver, Aug. 16, 2019—At the halfway point of summer, lodging properties in mountain destinations are enjoying a strong overall seasonal performance, largely even with a year ago. The year-over-year growth figures of the past decade, though, are gone, according the monthly DestiMetrics Market Briefing. The 18 destinations across s...

Tariffs Still Set to Hit Winter Sports Gear

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Aug. 16, 2019—President Trump postponed the 10 percent tariffs on Chinese-made goods, set to take effect on Sept. 1, for many categories of goods—but not winter sports gear. As a result, ski gear made in China will be subject to the 10 percent tariff. The list of gear subject to the tariff includes skis, ski and...

New Mayflower Resort to Connect With Deer Valley

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, Aug. 13, 2019—Extell Development Company is building a new mountain resort located right next to Deer Valley Resort outside of Park City, Utah. Extell has purchased roughly 5,600 acres of private land in recent years, including the 2,300-acre Mayflower property where Mayflower Mountain Resort and Village will be bu...

Aspen Snowmass Raises Entry Level Pay to $15 Per Hour

SAM Magazine—Aspen, Colo.,Aug. 7, 2019—As the labor pool shrinks and competition for employees increases, Aspen Snowmass has responded by raising entry-level pay to $15 an hour and increasing pay for other positions across the company as well. The resort has also launched a new employment website, www.aspensnowmass.com/jobs, and posted al...

Summer Ops Camp Gatlinburg Adds New Tours and Connectivity Pop-ups

SAM Magazine—Woodbury, Conn., Aug. 2, 2019—The SAM Summer Ops Camp in Gatlinburg, Tenn., is taking a new approach to seminars: it incorporates “pop-up discussions” into hands-on visits to a variety of summer operations. This format, along with new pre- and post-Camp tours and demos, expand the already chock-full program. Local “connectivi...

Arapahoe Basin Joins Ikon Pass

SAM Magazine—Denver, Aug. 2, 2019—Arapahoe Basin’s ski season ended July 4, so it was officially unaffiliated with any other resorts or resort groups for less than a month before today, when it joined the Ikon Pass as a partner resort. Starting this winter, Ikon Pass holders will have seven days of access to A-Basin with no blackout dates, an...

Latest Trump Tariffs Would Impact Winter Sports Goods

SAM Magazine—Washington, D.C., Aug. 2, 2019—President Trump said yesterday that the U.S. will impose a 10 percent tariff on $300 billion worth of Chinese imports, including a great percentage of snowsports products, starting Sept. 1. The move followed two days of trade negotiations with China, which produced little movement. The tariffs will pr...