SAM Magazine—Eden, Utah, June 2, 2014—The Summit Series, which purchased Powder Mountain ski resort here in 2013, has revealed its plan for a village and cultural/entrepreneurial paradise at the resort. If approved, Summit Powder Mountain will consist of 500 homesites and a village core. Luxury homesites will sprout around the mi...

SAM Magazine—Duluth, Minn., May 30, 2014—The Spirit Mountain recreation area has hired a new executive director, Brandy Ream, to replace Renee Mattson, who is stepping down from the post. Ream will assume her new role in June after she and her family relocate from Washington State to Duluth. Before ascending to her new position, Ream...

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, May 21, 2014—Utah District Judge Ryan Harris has ruled that Park City Mountain Resort failed to properly renew its lease in 2011, and dismissed all but one of PCMR’s claims for relief. In addition, the judge ruled in favor of Vail Resorts and Talisker (current leaseholder of the disputed land and the ...

SAM Magazine—Denver, May 19, 2014—Resorts East and West saw destination visits increase in the 2013-14 season, and revenues for summer lodging are poised for double-digit growth, according to the latest data from DestiMetrics. DestiMetrics draws its data from a sample of approximately 300 property management companies in 31 mountain ...

SAM Magazine--Whistler, B.C., May 15, 2014--Despite a downtick in visits, revenue saw a slight uptick for the three and six months ended March 31, 2014. Total revenue was $138.8 million (all amounts in Canadian dollars) and $188.6 million for the three and six months, respectively, increases of $6.6 million or 5% and $6.2 million or 3%, respectivel...

SAM Magazine—Denver, May 14, 2014—Intrawest Resorts Holdings, Inc. results for the three months ended March 31 improved, largely due to reduced interest expense following its successful IPO offering in February. Net income for the January-March quarter was $108.9 million, compared to $62.1 million for the year-ago quarter. Intrawest ...

SAM Magazine--West Dover, Vt., May 13, 2014--A jury found that there was a two-year contract in place between Mount Snow and Alli (whose parent company is NBC) with an option for a third year to host the Winter Dew Tour event. Alli performed the first year of the contract by holding the Winter Dew Tour at Mount Snow in January of 2010 but did no...

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, May 12, 2014—Snowbird Resort’s Dick Bass has partnered with Ian Cumming in a move that took many by surprise. The families have formed a partnership that makes billionaire Cumming majority owner of the resort. Bass remains as chairman. Cumming has the deep financial pockets Snowbird needs for capit...

SAM Magazine--Cheyenne, Wyo., May 10, 2014--A Wyoming Federal Court jury took less than 30 minutes to decide that Snow King Ski Area and Mountain Resort in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, was not liable for a minor’s fall from a chairlift in December of 2009. Texas residents Leya and Glenn Oswald, the child’s parents, sued Snow King Ski Area and...

SAM Magazine—Washington, D.C., May 9, 2014—In a sign of the underlying strength of the winter sports market, snowsports retail sales rose 7 percent this past season, to $3.6 billion, compared to the prior year, according to the RetailTRAK report from Leisure Trends and Snowsports Industries America (SIA). For the season, apparel sale...

SAM Magazine--North Woodstock, N.H., May 9, 2014--Jessyca Keeler has been selected by Ski New Hampshire's board of directors to serve as executive director of the state association, which represents 33 Alpine and cross-country resorts. Keeler is an avid skier and snowboarder and has been involved in the winter sports travel and tourism industry...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., May 5, 2014—Resorts nationwide tallied 56.2 million visits for the 2013-14 season, making a strong rebound in the latter stages after a weather-challenged start. The total represented a mere 1.3 percent drop from the previous season, according to preliminary results from the most recent Kottke National End ...

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, May 1, 2014—Powdr Corp and Vail Resorts have continued to address one another through the media and public forums, including a series of public letters between the two companies’ CEOs and the Mountain Travel Symposium, as they await a judge’s ruling on the status of Park City Mountain Resort&rsq...

SAM Magazine--April 28, 2014--Several resorts announced record-breaking seasons today. First up, Stevens Pass, Wash., hosted more than 406,000 visits this winter making 2013/14 its largest season since visits have been electronically tracked. While much of the West Coast saw below average snowfall, Stevens Pass surpassed its 450-inch average with a...

SAM Magazine--Broomfield, Colo., April 24, 2014--Vail Resorts, Inc. (VR) reported certain season metrics for the comparative periods from the beginning of the season through April 20, 2014 and were adjusted as if Canyons was owned in both periods (but they do not include Afton Alps and Mt. Brighton). In short, visits were up 2.3% and lift revenue w...