SAM Magazine—Denver, June 6, 2024—Alterra Mountain Company has expanded its partnership with payment network Affirm, allowing customers the option to pay over time when purchasing local mountain passes, lodging, and lessons for any of Alterra’s North American destinations. The option to use Affirm to split a purchase into monthly payments wa...

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, June 3, 2024—The Cross Country Ski Areas Association (CCSAA) held its annual conference in Park City, Utah, April 8-10, drawing 58 attendees representing 36 entities including cross country ski areas, suppliers, media, and related businesses. City of Aspen's Austin Weiss and Blaine County’s (Idaho) Eric Rector. ...

SAM Magazine—Teton Village, Wyo., May 31, 2024—Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (JHMR) chief financial officer Matt McCreedy will retire on June 30 after more than three decades at the resort. Corporate controller Braden Turner will succeed McCreedy as the resort’s new CFO. Turner is a licensed CPA who has served as the resort’s corporate cont...

SAM Magazine—Frisco, Texas, May 31, 2024—The 2024 National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) National Convention and Tradeshow welcomed 687 attendees to the Omni PGA Frisco Resort, May 21-24, for meetings, educational sessions, tradeshow, and networking.  Many of the industry’s biggest challenges and opportunities were discussed, both formally a...

SAM Magazine—Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, May 31, 2024—Quebec ski resorts were able to attract more than 6 million skier visits during the 2023-24 season despite serious weather challenges and other obstacles, according to preliminary results from the “23-24 Economic and Financial Study of Quebec Ski Resorts.” Skier visits were down 10 percent...

In SAM’s Snow People, we highlight personnel moves in the mountain resort industry. From resort hires, promotions, and retirements to awards, obits, and supplier news, we celebrate the people that make this industry thrive. PEOPLE KELLY PAWLAK and CHIP SEAMANS, NSAA Kelly Pawlak is stepping down as president and CEO of the National Ski Areas A...

SAM Magazine—Nederland, Colo., May 29, 2024—Eldora Mountain Resort president and general manager Brent Tregaskis informed members of the resort’s ski patrol today that Eldora is withdrawing its challenge to the patrollers’ vote to unionize and shared a desire to bargain in good faith. “After careful consideration, Eldora Mountain Ski Res...

SAM Magazine—Juneau, Alaska, May 29, 2024—The Eaglecrest Ski Area board of directors asked general manager Dave Scanlan to resign last week from the position he’s held since being hired to run the community-owned ski area in 2017. Scanlan complied, effective June 3.   According to a report from Alaska Public Media, Scanlan did not want to ...

SAM Magazine—Denver, May 28, 2024—Alterra Mountain Company has appointed Dave Hunter as president and COO of Steamboat in Colorado and Eric Clark to president and COO of Mammoth Mountain and June Mountain in California.Eric Clark and Dave Hunter Both served as interim leaders at their respective resorts throughout the 2023-24 winter season aft...

SAM Magazine—Denver, May 23, 2024—In a 5-2 ruling, the Colorado Supreme Court found that liability waivers cannot be used to protect ski areas from negligence claims related to chairlift accidents. The decision will allow a negligence per se claim brought against Vail Resorts to proceed in the district courts. Negligence per se is negligence i...

• Summer Operations News

SAM Magazine—Eagle Mountain, Utah, May 24, 2024—Loam Pass, a new multi-destination product in the vein of Indy Pass but geared toward mountain bikers, has added 12 new destinations for its first summer season, bringing its total to more than 40 resort, bike park, and shuttle service partners. "We are super stoked to be partnering with some of ...

SAM Magazine—Frisco, Texas, May 23, 2024—Kelly Pawlak is stepping down as president and CEO of the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA). Newly appointed NSAA board chair and Windham Mountain Club, N.Y., president Chip Seamans shared the news at the NSAA National Convention and Trade Show in Frisco, Texas, today during the morning general sessi...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., May 22, 2024—The U.S. ski industry overcame significant weather challenges in 2023-24 to post the fifth best season on record, according to preliminary data from the National Ski Area Association (NSAA). Skier visits totaled 60.4 million. The performance follows the two strongest seasons since NSAA began keeping t...

SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., May 21, 2024—Winter lodging occupancy across 17 western mountain resorts in seven states declined in the 2023-24 November-to-April winter season, according to the monthly Market Briefing from DestiMetrics, the business intelligence division of Inntopia. Aggregated daily rates increased slightly, helping to mitig...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., May 21, 2024—Six lift maintenance teams have been chosen as finalists in the fourth annual Rise Up Challenge, sponsored by Leitner-Poma of America (LPOA). The crews from Berkshire East, Mass., Crystal Mountain, Wash., Mt. Sunapee, N.H., Palisades Tahoe, Calif., Purgatory, Colo., and Snowbird, Utah will compete this...