SAM Magazine-Boulder, Colo., May 19, 2011-In a sign of the continuing strength of outdoor sports despite a sluggish and perhaps stalling economy, dollar sales in April for outdoor retailers rose 8% compared April 2010, according to prelilminary data from the Leisure Trends Group. Outdoor specialty store sales increased a healthy 6 percent, outdoor ...

SAM Magazine-Aspen, Colo., May 19, 2011-The Aspen Skiing Company today became the latest in a long line of areas to extend the season. And as with some other areas, Aspen is reopening after being closed for weeks. Aspen Mountain will reopen for May 28-30, and for additional weekends as conditions permit. The decision comes on the heels of record...

SAM Magazine-Kirkwood, Calif., May 18, 2011-Bud Klien, founder of Kirkwood resort, has died at the age of 83 after a battle with cancer. Klien, a number one draft pick for the Red Sox upon his graduation from Stanford in 1950, choose to return to California and help run his family's agricultural business rather than play ball. He switched to the s...

SAM Magazine-Jindabyne, New South Wales, Australia, May 18, 2011-Perisher Blue resort will open this Friday, making it the first resort to open in the Southern Hemisphere. Recent snowfalls coupled with cold temperatures for snowmaking have combined to allow the mountain to open weeks ahead of schedule. The resort will have a mini-terrain park on ta...

SAM Magazine-Wanaka, New Zealand, May 13, 2011-Treble Cone will once again host the most prestigious big-mountain event in New Zealand,The North Face Freeski Open, Sept. 12-16. The event is expected to bring a global field of athletes to Treble Cone and is part of the Freeride World Tour's (FWT) slate of Freeride World Qualifying (FWQ) events. The ...

SAM Magazine-Broomfield, Colo., May 13, 2011-Vail Resorts is extending its discounted prices on 2011-2012 season passes until May 30. The discounts, introduced on Apr. 15, were initially set to expire on May 8. The discounts apply to all of the company's pass products, including the Epic Pass, Epic Local Pass, Epic 7-Day, Summit Value Pass and T...

SAM Magazine-Lakewood, Colo., May 12, 2011-Six resorts have been granted funds from the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) Sustainable Slopes program. The ski areas, Arapahoe Basin, Colo.; Beaver Valley Ski Club, Ontario; Mt. Hood Meadows, Ore.; Oak Mountain, N.Y.; Stevens Pass Resort, Wash.; and Stratton Mountain Resort, Vt. The resorts will s...

SAM Magazine-Olympic Valley, Calif., May 12, 2011-Squaw Valley USA is winding down a record-breaking winter by offering discounted lift tickets to season passholders from other resorts. The ski area, which racked up more than 730 inches of snow on the year, is running the promotion through closing day, May 30, 2011. The discounted lift tickets cost...

SAM Magazine-Tahoe City, Calif., May 11, 2011-Alpine Meadows Ski Resort and Kirkwood Mountain Resort are partnering on a new season pass program that will allow access to both mountains. In addition, the new passes will also allow access to Homewood Mountain Resort, Red Lodge Mountain Resort, and Durango Mountain Resort. With the partnership, Al...

SAM Magazine-East Rutherford, N.J., May 5, 2011-Triple Five, operator of the Mall of America and the new owner of the former Meadowlands Xanadu project, plans to expand the plan and rename the project American Dream. When completed, the $2.7 billion megamall is expected to draw even more visitors than Triple Five's current flagship operations, t...

SAM Magazine-Hancock, Mass., May 5, 2011-The 2nd Annual SAM Summer Ops Camp, which affords managers and operators a chance to uncover the benefits and pitfalls of other-season activities, will take place Sept. 7-9 at Jiminy Peak, Mass. In addition to workshops and seminars, the program allows campers to experience the several summer activities a...

SAM Magazine--May 3, 2011--HKD Snowmakers and Turbocristal have announced that the two companies will be merging by June 30, 2011, to be called HKD Turbo and will service the U.S. and Canada and have distribution around the world. HKD Turbo will offer a complete line of air/water and fan snowmaking technology in both manual and automatic configurat...

SAM Magazine--May 3, 2011--According to a release from SIA, the snow sports market brought in a record $3.3 billion over the full 2010/11 season (previous highest sales record was $3 billion, set in 2007/08). Overall, snow sports sales were up 8% in units sold, and 12% in dollars sold. Leaner inventories kept prices strong throughout the season, eq...

SAM Magazine--May 3, 2011--According to published reports, Vail Resorts (VR) announced that 2010/2011 skier visit totals at its six resorts were up 3.9 percent. VR also announced that ski school revenue was up 8.4 percent, dining up 9 percent and retail/rental increased by 8.3 percent over last season. (All of these totals were adjusted as if North...

SAM Magazine-McLean, Va., April 29, 2011-The board of directors for SnowSports Industries America (SIA) has decided to keep the organization's annual Snow Show in the late January/early February timeframe. The latest move reverses SIA's decision in March to shift the show dates earlier in January. "At the end of the day, the voice of the reta...