SAM Magazine—Denver, March 5, 2019—Alterra Mountain Company will invest $181 million in capital across its 14 North American resorts ahead of the 2019-20 season. This is round two of a multi-year plan totaling $555 million that began before this season, when the company invested $171 million at its resorts. Alterra CEO Rusty Gregory said, “W...

• Resort Development

SAM Magazine—Ludlow, Vt., Feb. 25, 2019—Resorts across the country experienced historic snow totals and record-breaking visitation numbers through Presidents’ Day weekend and into the holiday week. A generous snowstorm leading up to the holiday and comfortable temperatures had many resorts in the East up over previous years. In the Midwest, ...

• Grooming
• Trail Maintenance
• Cross Country / Snowshoeing

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Feb. 25, 2019—Vail Resorts (VR) has entered into an agreement to acquire Falls Creek and Hotham ski resorts in Australia from Living and Leisure Australia Group (LLA), a subsidiary of Merlin Entertainments, for AU$174 million (approx. US$124 million). The purchase price is based on a multiple of roughly 10-times ...

• Resort Development
• Safety

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., Feb. 21, 2019—The nomination period for the 2019 SAMMY Leadership Awards is now open. SAM invites members of the winter sports industry to nominate leaders who they believe deserve this recognition, and do it soon—nominations close March 13, 2019.The SAMMY Leadership Awards honor individuals who, at mid-c...

• Ski School
• Grooming
• Trail Maintenance

In SAM’s monthly Snow People, we highlight recent personnel moves that have been made in the mountain resort industry. MICHAEL VAN EYCK, The Fairbank GroupMichael Van Eyck has been promoted to the newly created role of chief revenue officer for the Fairbank Group, which owns Bromley, Vt., Jiminy Peak, Mass., and Cranmore, N.H. In his n...

• Safety
• Racing

SAM Magazine—Denver, Feb. 21, 2019—Abundant snowfall in most mountain regions of the West led to strong bookings through January and increased aggregated occupancy and revenues for the month and the season, according to Inntopia's DestiMetrics January briefing. Weather and the economy are combining to create favorable comparisons to last year; ...

• Lifts
• Racing

SAM Magazine—Reno, Nev., Feb. 19, 2019—Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe earned USFS approval for a 112-acre terrain expansion into the Atoma area of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. The approved amendment to Mt. Rose’s existing special use permit includes 11 trails, two chairlifts, a five-million-gallon water tank for snowmaking, and a skier brid...

• Lifts
• Ski Area Profiles

SAM Magazine—Keystone, Colo., Feb. 18, 2019—Arapahoe Basin has decided it will not renew its pass partnership with Vail Resorts for the 2019-20 season, citing parking and facility crowding.In a letter to fans and followers, A-Basin COO Alan Henceroth stressed the importance of retaining A-Basin’s culture and vibe. “Looking forward, we striv...

• Lifts

SAM Magazine—Gatlinburg, Tenn., Feb. 15, 2019—The 10th annual SAM Summer Ops Camp is headed to Gatlinburg, Tenn., Sept. 3-5, 2019. Gatlinburg is a major summer destination and serves as the gateway community to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited national park in the United States. Gatlinburg and surrounding towns we...

• Resort Development
• Lifts

SAM Magazine—Denver, Feb. 13, 2019—Continued growth in the number of businesses getting into the aerial adventure industry was on full display at the 2019 Association for Challenge Course Technology annual conference and expo, held Feb. 7-10 in Denver. More than 1,000 people attended the event, which gathers traditional and commercial aerial ad...

• Legal

SAM Magazine—Bend, Ore., Feb. 13, 2019—After several feet of snow fell at its member ski areas over the last few days—and with more on the way—the Pacific Northwest Ski Areas Association (PNSAA) proactively distributed a press release defining and outlining the dangers of snow immersion suffocation (SIS). It also included a PDF of a brochur...

• Resort Development
• Lifts

SAM Magazine—Donnelly, Idaho, Feb. 13, 2019—Tamarack Resort is on the verge of realizing the vision of its founders. Starting this spring, Tamarack will complete the base village projects that were started a decade ago, and re-access 200 acres of skiable terrain by installing a new lift. Tamarack has changed hands several times since its f...

• Area Management
• Legal

SAM Magazine—Snowbird, Utah, and Killington, Vt., Feb. 13, 2019—Snow in many regions of the country has ski areas off to a successful start to the season, and the large attendance at both the Eastern and Western National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) Winter Conferences reflected that. Snow was both a blessing and a curse for the 700-plus at...

• Lifts

SAM Magazine—Sun Valley, Idaho, Feb. 6, 2019—It’s only the beginning of February and the season pass wars for 2019-20 have already begun. Sun Valley, Idaho, and Snowbasin, Utah, are joining Vail Resorts’ Epic Pass in a “multi-year alliance” starting next winter. Sun Valley is the first Idaho resort to become an Epic Pass partner, and th...

• Lifts
• Area Management

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, Feb. 1, 2019—The most successful female ski racer in the world, Lindsey Vonn has decided to retire after what will be her eighth World Championships bid in Åre, Sweden, this month. Vonn's achievements are record-setting. She has captured an all-time record 82 women's World Cup races. She is the only American woma...