SAM Magazine - Denver, Colo., January 23, 2009 - Colorado skier visits dipped slightly says Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA). The industry organization, which represents 22 resorts in Colorado, reports total skier visits down 7.7 percent during the first period of the 2008-2009 ski season, defined as October 15, 2008 through December 31, 2008. How...

SAM Magazine-Boulder, Colo., Jan. 23, 2009-In a report that has long-term implications for western resorts already battling a plague of beetles and beetle-killed trees, a Colorado University scientist says that there is a trend of increasing tree deaths across the west. The deaths encompass a variety of species-not just the lodgepole beetle-killed ...

SAM Magazine-Crested Butte, Colo., Jan. 22, 2009-The U.S. Geological Survey has made public the agency's Snodgrass report after a lengthy review process by the US Forest Service and provides the basis for Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) to revise its Master Plan. Both CBMR and the US Forest Service conducted in-depth geological hazards inve...

SAM Magazine-Aspen, Colo., Jan. 22, 2009-As this year's ESPN Winter X Games ramp up in Aspen, the Aspen Skiing Company has reached an agreement that will keep the Winter X Games in Aspen/Snowmass through 2012. Winter X has been in Aspen since 2002. Winter X began at Snow Summit Mountain Resort, Calif., in 1997 then moved to Crested Butte, Colo....

Denver, Colorado, Jan. 22, 2009-A combination of factors including timely snowfall, discounted lodging, incentive packages, and aggressive marketing campaigns helped destination resort minimize their losses over the holidays, according Mountain Travel Research Program (MTRiP) data. As a result, "While the results are not as good as previous years, ...

SAM Magazine-Avon, Colo., January 21, 2009 -SkiData AG, a provider of RFID access controls, has acquired a 25 percent ownership in Resort Technology Partners, LLC (RTP), a major provider of integrated point-of-sale and Internet software for the resort, recreation, and attractions industries. The investment will strengthen and expand the existing...

SAM Magazine-Vienna, Austria, Jan. 21, 2009-The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has criticized Sochi, the 2014 Olympic site, and other Central and Eastern European ski resorts over their development plans, claming they will irreparably damage some of Europe's last pockets of wilderness. In addition, the WWF claims that many of the resorts are unsustainab...

SAM Magazine-Welch, Minn., Jan. 21, 2009-Welch Village is opening its Back Bowl slopes and new quad chairlift to all guests daily beginning Thursday, Jan. 22, until the end of the season in March. The quad is the first installation of a "cookie cutter" design created by Doppelmayr in conjunction with Welch Village specifically for smaller resorts. ...

SAM Magazine-Killington, Vt., Jan. 19, 2009-Killington Resort and Burton Snowboards joined forces this past summer to break ground on the East Coast's first Stash run, one of only five in the world. The Stash opened to the public in December, with a grand opening on Jan. 15. Celebrating the day were Burton pro riders Dave Downing, Yale Cousino, and...

SAM Magazine-Sacramento, Calif., Jan. 16, 2009-In the wake of a mixed holiday season that saw both slumps and records set, resorts are still seeking ways to drive traffic to the lifts. One of the more recent promotions is Squaw Valley's Sacramento shuttle service. The shuttles leave Sacramento at 7 a.m. every Saturday for Squaw Valley, providing...

SAM Magazine-Helena, Mont., Jan. 16, 2009-The Montana House of Representatives is considering an assumption of risk law to protect a wide range of recreation businesses from liability lawsuits. The bill would shift the burden for managing the inherent risks in many sports to participants, much like ski-related assumption of risk laws in many other ...

SAM Magazine-Granby, Québec, Jan. 16, 2009-The Leitner Technologies Group has acquired the Camoplast Track Machine Group and will integrate the division into Prinoth, Leitner's snow grooming division. Prinoth will manage production and sales of the group's utility and municipal vehicles as well as its existing Alpine machines. Leitner expects th...

SAM Magazine-Cody, Wyo., Jan. 13, 2009-Wyoming's Sleeping Giant ski area, which has been closed since 2004, has just received a $500,000 grant from the state as the resort seeks to remake itself as a non-profit, community venture. The grant was part of $22 million doled out by the State Loan and Investment Board (SLIB) at its meeting last Thursday ...

SAM Magazine - Crystal Mountain, Wash., January 10, 2009 - With surrounding resorts reopening after warm rains caused havoc to conditions and spiked avalanche danger, Washington's Crystal Mountain remains embattled due to road closures. The Washington Department of Transportation has continued road closures on Highway 410, the only access road to t...

SAM Magazine-Vail, Colo., Jan. 9, 2009-Unaudited interim data for Vail Resorts (VR) show season-to-date skier visits for the company's five mountain resorts were down 5.8 percent compared to the prior year. Lift ticket revenues dropped 7.5 percent, including an allocated portion of season pass revenue for each year. Bookings through VR's central re...