SAM Magazine-Copper Mountain, Colo., Oct. 17, 2008-Copper Mountain will open Nov. 7, one week ahead of its scheduled opening date. Traditionally, the mountain has run the lifts in late October and early November, but the sessions are reserved for race training and other private access, including PSIA demo team training. Expected open terrain includ...

SAM Magazine-Ishpeming, Mich., Oct. 16, 2008-American ski mountaineering pioneer and famed instructor Bill Briggs joins the U.S. Ski Team's Liz McIntyre, Nelson Carmichael, and Cary Adgate as this year's inductees into the U.S. National Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony will take place in April. Briggs became a fully certifi...

SAM Magazine-Palm Beach, Fla., Oct. 16, 2008-Michael Strauss, who was the voice of skiing in The New York Times for two decades, died Oct. 11 at the age of 96 in Palm Beach. In his extensive and remarkable 75-plus years as a sports journalist, Strauss covered everything from archery to yachting, but he especially loved skiing. He served as The Time...

SAM Magazine-Orlando, Fla., Oct. 15, 2008-Stephen Rice has been named vice president and managing director at CNL Lifestyle Company, LLC. In his new role, Rice will focus on asset management within CNL's ski and mountain lifestyle portfolio and work closely with the company's acquisitions team to expand CNL's holdings. CNL Lifestyle Company is the ...

SAM Magazine - Mammoth Lakes, Calif., October 15, 2008 - A 200-foot-long tunnel under Mammoth's Lupine ski run and the Eagle Express chairlift collapsed on Friday, closing the Lake Mary Road. The road services the Tamarack Lodge and the Eagle Lodge base area. There were no injuries in the incident and a cause has yet to be determined. Lake Mary Roa...

SAM Magazine - Heber, Utah, October 14, 2008 - Deer Valley ski resort has teamed up with Utah Valley University's Heber campus to offer a ski instructor training course. The course will include six hour-and-a-half classroom sessions at the UVU Heber campus and two full days of on-mountain training. The sessions will be lead by Deer Valley Resort D...

SAM Magazine - Boulder, Colo., Oct. 14, 2008-Arapahoe Basin and Loveland have agreed to a truce in the first-to-open war this year, as both will drop the ropes at 8:30 a.m. on Oct. 15. Over the past several years Arapahoe Basin and Loveland have jousted to win "first to open" honors in a competition that's been spirited and intense. For many yea...

SAM Magazine-Vancouver, B.C., Oct. 14, 2008-Intrawest and The Coca-Cola Company have entered into a new multi-year strategic partnership to expand upon their existing relationship. Coca-Cola remains the official beverage providers (Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero and Sprite, Minute Maid juices, Evian and Dasani waters, glacéau enhanced waters and Odw...

SAM Magazine-Arapahoe Basin, Colo., Oct. 13, 2008-Arapahoe Basin will open Oct. 15, 2008, joining Timberline, Ore., which currently offers glacier skiing from Friday to Sunday 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. as part of that ski area's "autumn" season, as one of two American ski areas open to the public. Arapahoe will have machine-made snow on one intermediate...

SAM Magazine-Big Sky, Mt., October 12, 2008-Boyne Resorts' recent financing agreement with CNL Lifestyle Properties (see earlier report) could lead to the sale of Montana's Big Sky ski and snowboard resort to CNL for $74 million during the next two years. According to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last w...

SAM Magazine - Squaw Valley, Calif., October 13, 2008 - Skiers and snowboarders at Squaw won't have to fumble for lift tickets or passes this winter. For the 2008 - 2009 season, the resort will implement a new ticketing system from Axess. The AX500 Smart Gates and Smart Card allow guests to access lifts more efficiently and quickly by automatically...

SAM Magazine-Ray Brook, NY., Oct. 10, 2008-Plans to link New Yorks's Gore Mountain Ski Center with nearby North Creek Ski Bowl were given the nod by the Adirondack Park Agency Agency at its October meeting today. The Agency confirmed that ski trails proposed for the link comply with State Land Master Plan requirements. The interconnect plan cal...

SAM Magazine-Vail, Colo., Oct. 10, 2008-Vail Resorts stock price is tumbling along with the market. The stock lost more than 10 percent of its value on Thursday, dropping $2.90, and closing at $24.07. That came on the heels of a bad Wednesday for the company, when the stock tumbled $2.28. Nearly a month ago, in mid-September, the stock traded as hi...

SAM Magazine-Wrightwood, Calif., Oct. 10, 2008-Mountain High has doubled the ski area's investment in its Faultline terrain park offerings for 2009. The investment will result in a wide range of new features including a massive 20' x 20' wallride. In addition, two new park-specific Prinoth grooming machines costing more than $800,000 have been adde...

SAM Magazine-Lakewood, Colo., Oct. 9, 2008-A special NSAA report prepared by RRC Associates concludes that snowfall will be a greater indicator of visits this coming season than the economy. The report is based on an analysis of visits, snowfall, economic conditions, and consumer confidence over the past 30 years. RRC outlines two different scen...