SAM Magazine-Nederland, Colo., April 3, 2009-Jim Spenst is the new general manager at Eldora Mountain Resort. Spenst was vice president of operations at Tamarack Resort in Idaho from 2004 to 2008, and worked in a variety of capacities at Copper Mountain from 1973 to 2004, including vice president of operations from 1998 to 2004. Spenst grew up i...

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SAM Magazine-Innsbruck, Austria, March 27, 2009-With great fanfare, PRINOTH unveiled its new European groomer, the Beast, on a clear night in the Austrian Alps in front of 600 spectators from around the world. Attendees of the event, which was themed "Beauty and the Beast," were treated to a visual extravaganza that included a helicopter shooting o...

SAM Magazine-Concord, N.H., April 1, 2009-After extended contemplation and study, 100 acres of the upper portion of the dormant Mittersill ski area has joined the system of state lands as part of Cannon Mountain Ski Area. The move is part of a land exchange that transfers the 244 acre Sentinel Mountain Forest, including approximately ¼ mile of t...

SAM Magazine- Alta, Wyo., April 1, 2009-Grand Targhee Resort has become the first winter resort to register its complete emissions inventory with the Climate Registry. The move establishes a baseline for measuring the resort's carbon footprint, which can be used to accurately and comprehensively manage the resort's emissions. The Climate Registr...

SAM Magazine-Boulder, Colo., March 31, 2009-Mike Federle is the new group publisher of the Bonnier Mountain Group where he will head up SKI and Skiing magazines and SkiNet.com, plus Warren Miller Films. He replaces Jamie Pentz, who was ousted in early February. Federle brings more than 25 years of sales experience to the task, including a succes...

Time is running out to send in nominations for two important industry awards: the SAMMY Leadership Award and the Diversity Leadership Award. Both awards close at the end of this week, April 3rd, 2009. Nominees for the SAMMY Leadership Awards can come from both the resort side of the industry and the supplier side. The SAMMYs honor people who, at...

SAM Magazine-Winter Park, Colo., March 28, 2009-Winter Park and Copper Mountain have slashed the price of the areas' joint Rocky Mountain Super Pass Plus. The pass, which cost $439 this winter, is now offered for $399. The pass includes unlimited access at Copper and Winter Park and six days at Steamboat, as it did last eyar. In addition, consumers...

SAM Magazine-Denver, Colo., March 28, 2009-Not only is Snowsports Industry America's annual trade show moving to Denver after 37 years in Las Vegas, the organization is changing the name of the event to the SIA Snow Show. "With our move to Denver we have the opportunity to put the 'snow' back in snow sports and return to the core of our sport, s...

SAM Magazine-Corvara, Italy, March 26, 2009-World-renowned big-mountain freeskier Shane McConkey died today while ski-BASE jumping in the Dolomites. He was working on a new film with JT Holmes and a crew from Matchstick Productions. Details of the accident are not clear; McConkey had planned to do a double backflip off the Val Scura couloir on Sass...

SAM Magazine-Tannersville, Pa., March 23, 2009-Camelback Mountain Resort, in its 46th year, will set a new mark for length of season on Wednesday, its 124th day of operation. The old record was set in 1992-93. To celebrate the milestone, Camelback will offer a special $12.40 lift ticket on Wednesday. Camelback anticipates it will close temporari...

SAM Magazine-Denver, Colo., March 18, 2009-Western destination lodging reservations were down 16.3 percent through February, according to the latest data from the Mountain Travel Research Program (MTRiP). In addition, average daily room rates were down 7.6 percent. MTRiP data cover 216 properties in 15 destination resorts in Colorado, Utah, Califor...

SAM Magazine-Telluride, Colo., March 19, 2009-In the wake of additional spring snowfall, several resorts, among them Telluride, Mount Washington, B.C., and Belleayre, N.Y., are extending their seasons. Telluride will keep the Coonskin and Plunge lifts open for an additional week after the scheduled resort close, April 5. Only terrain off the Plu...

SAM Magazine-Squaw Valley, Calif., March 19, 2009- Squaw Valley is cutting season pass prices for the 2009-10 ski and snowboard season by up to $1,000 in honor of the 60th Anniversary of the ski area's founding and the 50th Anniversary of Squaw Valley hosting the 1960 Winter Olympics. Coined the "50/60 Pass," the restructured season passes go o...

SAM Magazine-Kiltarlity, Ireland, March 17, 2009-Recession, what recession? U.S. ski areas are selling 19 of the 20 most expensive six-day lift tickets on the planet, according to the World Ski Lift Ticket Price Report (2009). This annual study compares six-day, peak-season prices from more than 600 ski areas in 40 countries worldwide. The repor...