SAM Magazine—Killington, Vt., Sept. 16, 2020—More resorts are releasing 2020-21 operating plans and opening dates, as operators shift their focus from summer to winter. The range of plans is highly varied, reflecting COVID-19 considerations and the specific circumstances of individual resorts.Killington will open later than usual this season. ...

SAM Magazine—Lebanon, N.H., Sept. 15, 2020—A partnership between Halley O’Brien Productions and SnoCountry, Inc. will bring “The Snow Report-TV presented by SnoCountry," a new branch of The Snow Report brand owned and operated by Halley O’Brien Productions, to nearly 40 major markets, including NBC4 New York and NBC Boston. The sponsored ...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Sept. 15, 2020—The Professional Ski Instructors of America and the American Association of Snowboard Instructors (PSIA-AASI) has released “Navigating the 2020-21 Snowsports Season,” a COVID-era guide for snowsports schools and instructors. The guide positions adaptability as the key focus for lesson providers ...

SAM Magazine—Rangeley, Maine, Sept. 14, 2020—An anonymous donor has made a $100,000 gift to the Saddleback Mountain Foundation to be used to subsidize Saddleback Mountain season passes for every child in Rangeley schools for the next five years. The Laker Pass, named after the Rangeley school nickname of “Lakers,” this year is $329 at full...

SAM Magazine—Denver, Sept. 14, 2020—Alterra Mountain Company said it will prioritize access for season passholders and will require day lift tickets to be purchased in advance online for its 15 resort destinations this winter. In addition, many Ikon Pass partner resorts are not requiring passholders to make a reservation in advance of arrival, ...

SAM Magazine—Lakeshore, Calif., Sept. 10, 2020—Snow may be falling in the Rockies, but wildfires are raging up and down the West Coast. The impacts could be far-reaching for ski resorts touched by the conflagrations. China Peak, Calif., found itself directly threatened by the 167,000-acre-and-growing Creek Fire as it hit the backside of the sk...

COVID practices and safety are key as consumers shift their focus, from fear and isolating to getting out and being active. With demand for recreation picking up, a range of businesses are adopting creative strategies and technology to enhance protections and manage the increase in volume. See the details in the latest weekly Briefing Sheet from th...

SAM Magazine—Denver, Sept. 9, 2020—The Pennsylvania Ski Areas Association (PSAA) membership is suspending its popular 4th & 5th Grade Snow Pass, while Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA) begun selling its various pass products for the 2020-21 winter season—with new restrictions.  In its statement, PSAA said: “Due to our cu...

SAM Magazine—Sept. 9, 2020—A cold snap earlier this week marked the end of summer in Colorado, as a storm dropped more than a foot of snow in parts of the region. With eyes turning toward winter, resorts have begun rolling out opening dates and operating plans for the 2020-21 season. Loveland's webcam caught the first snow on Chet's Dream ...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Sept. 9, 2020—During a Sept. 8 webinar, the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) presented a series of sign templates that convey messages about physical distancing, face covering requirements, hand sanitization, and other COVID safety measures. The templates are available for ski areas to use for on-site signage,...

The Insights Collective presents its take on Vail's access reservation system, Labor Day coronavirus mitigation, thermal scanning and facial recognition cameras to monitor the health of air travelers, and how hotels and resorts can offer alternative formats for meeting planners. Read the full report. ...

SAM Magazine—Denver, Sept. 1, 2020—Red Mountain in British Columbia, Canada, is now a partner resort on the Ikon Pass. Ikon Passholders now have access to a total of 44 destinations for the 2020-21 season.  Independently-owned Red Mountain is among the 10 largest ski areas in North America with 3,850 acres of skiable terrain. Since 2013, ...

SAM Magazine—Portland, Ore., Sept. 1, 2020—For its second season, the Indy Pass has added 11 resorts and dozens of independent lodging properties for the 2020-21 season. The adult pass provides two days at 55 resorts for $199. The Indy Pass has also added discounts at lodging properties and an assurance program in case Indy Passholders use thei...

SAM Magazine—Montpelier, Vt., Aug. 31, 2020—Vermont's Agency of Commerce and Community Development (ACCD) has proposed that federal aid funds be given to the state's ski areas for COVID-related mitigations. The money is part of a proposed $133 million targeted to businesses that were shut out of earlier COVID relief efforts. ACCD said the fund...

By Charles Gfeller and Mellicent B. Thompson,Partners, Gfeller Laurie LLP COVID-19 has led to a variety of measures aimed at mitigating its impact. While some of these have been straightforward, like sending $1,200 checks to individuals, others have been more complicated, and even contentious. Business interruption insurance, workers' compensation...

The Insights Collective reports that as reported COVID cases are decreasing, resorts from Florida to Colorado are expanding their reopenings—even as staff cases turn up. Resort-town hotels are pursuing "mixed-use" options, such as work-from-hotel packages for those who don't care to work from home, to fill rooms and raise revenue. States and town...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Aug. 27, 2020—The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA), with the help of industry leaders and associations, has developed “Ski Well, Be Well”—a foundational set of best practices for winter operations that is designed to help advocate to local officials for reopening, and to set the foundation for ski area o...

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Aug. 27, 2020—Vail Resorts has released answers to the biggest question looming over the mountain resort industry as of late: “What’s the plan for this winter?” A letter from Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz details universal plans for all 34 of the company’s North American resorts. Katz said the goal is to des...

SAM Magazine—East Rutherford, N.J., Aug. 26, 2020—Big SNOW American Dream, North America’s first indoor, real-snow ski and snowboard center, will resume operations on Sept. 1 in accordance with current state guidelines under today’s Executive Order. As an indoor recreational facility, Big SNOW will be implementing several updated COVID-19 s...

SAM Magazine—Olympic Valley, Calif., Aug. 25, 2020—Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows has committed to removing “squaw” from its resort name. “Having our name be associated with pain and dehumanization is contrary to our goal of making the outdoors a welcoming space for all people,” said resort president and COO Ron Cohen in an email to patron...

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., Aug. 25, 2020—Fourteen nonprofit youth organizations will receive grants ranging from $15,000 to $200,000 from the Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust—founded by Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz and his wife Elana Amsterdam—and Vail Resorts. The total donation is $1.5 million.  According to Vail Resorts, “Each o...

SAM Magazine—Jacksonville, Fla., Aug. 21, 2020—The latest briefing from Insights Collective shares a new study that found political polarization has heightened as we head into November. Most resorts and destinations have been politically agnostic—however, visitors are not. The briefing also points to economic indicators showing mixed signals ...

SAM Magazine—Eden, Utah, Aug. 21, 2020—Nordic Valley Ski Resort has unveiled a major capital improvement project that includes the area's first high-speed chairlift and the largest terrain expansion project in resort history. Both are slated to open during the upcoming winter. High speed six pack top terminal construction Earlier this sum...

SAM Magazine—August 20, 2020—The FIS Audi Alpine World Cup tour will not travel to North America in the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19 complications. Early season men’s and women’s races at Killington, Vt., Lake Louise, AB, and Vail/Beaver Creek, Colo., have all been cancelled.  “The North American races are always a very special tw...

SAM Magazine—Hastings, Minn., Aug. 19, 2020—In lieu of its traditional summer meeting and tradeshow, the Midwest Ski Areas Association (MSAA) hosted members at a new virtual event, MSAA Summer Connect, held Aug. 17 and 18. COVID-19 was the common theme across the four one-hour-long Zoom sessions. MSAA members heard from the National Ski Areas ...

SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., Aug. 19, 2020—At the midpoint of the summer, occupancy and revenues at western mountain destinations continue to be dramatically lower than last summer, according to the latest DestiMetrics monthly Market Briefing by Inntopia. However, the month of July saw pent-up demand bring a return of some overnight stays.V...

SAM Magazine—Warren, Vt., August 13, 2020—Sugarbush Resort president and COO Win Smith is retiring from his post. John Hammond, Sugarbush vice president of mountain operations and recreational services, has been named as Smith’s successor, effective Sept. 1. Smith will stay on as a senior adviser to the current leadership team. Win Smith...

SAM Magazine—Jacksonville, Fla., Aug. 12, 2020—A new study shows that the odds of catching COVID-19 on a flight are less than most travelers think. House leaders in Congress are open to including some relief for the hotel industry in any stimulus deal. Massive Airbnb house parties in New Jersey have led to more restrictions on rentals. Why th...

SAM Magazine—Telluride, Colo., Aug. 13, 2020—Bill Jensen has stepped down from his position as CEO of Telluride Ski & Golf Resort, effective Aug. 7. Jensen had joined Telluride as CEO and partner in December 2015.  In a prepared statement, Chuck Horning, the majority owner of Telski, said, “Given the current situation, man...

SAM Magazine— Duluth, Minn., Aug. 12, 2020—Spirit Mountain executive director Brandy Ream and her husband, general manager Jody Ream, have both resigned their positions and will be leaving at the end of August. Spirit Mountain is an authority of the City of Duluth, Minn., and the resignations come just ahead of the first meeting of a newly est...

SAM Magazine—Victoria, Australia, Aug. 10, 2020—The Victorian government last week ordered Mt. Buller and Mt. Stirling—the last two operating alpine ski areas in the state—to close to the public as part of stage 3 coronavirus restrictions. As of 5 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 6, visitors were not allowed to enter the resorts, and any violation...

SAM Magazine—Fairfield, Idaho, Aug. 10, 2020—Soldier Mountain Ski Area in Idaho was supposed to celebrate the grand opening of its new bike park Aug. 7 and 8. Instead, resort staff had to evacuate and close the access road on Aug. 6 due to a nearby wildfire that marched across the property over the weekend.  The Phillips Fire destroyed th...

In SAM’s monthly Snow People, we highlight recent personnel moves that have been made in the mountain resort industry. STEVE KRUSE, TIMBERLINE LODGE After 31 years at Timberline Lodge, Ore., longtime GM Steve Kruse has retired. Kruse was a World Cup technician in the 1980s and started at Timberline as the rental and repair m...

SAM Magazine—Jacksonville, Fla., Aug. 7, 2020—Schoolchildren could become COVID-19 superspreaders. Resorts that open with a laissez-faire approach to masking and distancing could face a major media backlash. And tourism organizations—including resorts—are facing increased political pressure from local residents.  These are among the i...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., Aug. 6, 2020— As discussions take place on Capitol Hill about a new round of funding to combat the impacts of COVID-19, NSAA is urging resorts to contact their U.S. Senators and request support for the RESTART Act. With Congress set to leave Washington for its August recess next week, immediate action is required. ...

SAM Magazine—Boulder, Colo., Aug. 4, 2020—In a measure of pent-up demand, more than three-quarters of mountain visitors are eager to travel once conditions are safe again, according to a recent Mountain Traveler Sentiment Survey conducted in July by RRC Associates. The survey was one of several data sources highlighted by members of the Insight...

SAM Magazine—Victoria, Australia, Aug. 4, 2020—Vail Resorts (VR) will not reopen lift operations for skiing and snowboarding in 2020 at Falls Creek and Hotham in Australia following the Victorian government’s introduction of Stage 4 restrictions for Melbourne and Stage 3 restrictions for regional Victoria, which will be in place for six weeks...

SAM Magazine—Kelowna, British Columbia, Aug. 3, 2020—The Canada West Ski Areas Association (CWSAA) has submitted a proposal for specific carve-outs in the province’s CAN$1.5 billion recovery plan to support resort communities. Revelstoke, Credit: Hywel Williams The Mountain Resort Community Emergency Funding Program (MRCEFP) asks the pr...

SAM Magazine—Spokane, Wash., July 30, 2020— Mt. Spokane Ski & Snowboard Park, a 501(c)3 non-profit ski area, has named Jim van Löben Sels as its new general manager, effective Aug. 3. Van Löben Sels succeeds longtime GM Brad McQuarrie, who is retiring after 18 years at the helm.  Van Löben Sels was the general manager at Arbor Cres...

SAM Magazine—Aspen, Colo., July 30, 2020—In open letters published this week, Aspen Skiing Company CEO Mike Kaplan and Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz discuss the reality that the pandemic will be ongoing throughout this winter, operational changes are immanent, and everyone must do their part to ensure there can be a safe winter season. Rob Kat...

SAM Magazine—Park City, Utah, July 23, 2020—In response to the ongoing pandemic, the 2020 Snowbound Festivals in Boston and Denver have been cancelled and organizers are working on new ways to digitally connect with the events’ audiences as winter approaches.  Snowsports Industries America (SIA) acquired the Boston and Denver Ski & ...

SAM Magazine—Jacksonville, Fla., July 23, 2020—As summer business returns to mountain resorts, road trips, mask wearing, second-home use, and proactive health programs headline the key trends, according to the weekly briefing sheet from the recently formed Insights Collective (IC), a destination travel think tank. Most means of trans...

SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo., July 22, 2020—For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began shutting down mountain destinations, lodging properties at Western mountain destinations are seeing an appreciable uptick in bookings and occupancy for the summer months—although they remain at levels well below previous years, according to the...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., July 22, 2020—The Professional Ski Instructors of America and the American Association of Snowboard Instructors (PSIA-AASI) have partnered with the Professional Mountain Bike Instructors Association (PMBIA) to bring year-round educational opportunities to ski, snowboard, and mountain bike instructors. The par...

Wintersteiger, and its BootDoc and Hotronic division, have prepared detailed suggestions for rental operations and retail bootfitting to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 among staff and customers. Here are links to documents for rental and retail: Best Practices for Rental Best Practices for Retail Want more on rental? Li...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., July 14, 2020—A handful of state and regional trade organizations have cancelled their scheduled in-person conferences and trade shows in response to safety concerns amid the ongoing pandemic. Trade Show floor from SANY/PSAA Expo 2019. The Midwest Ski Areas Association (MSAA) board of directors voted to cancel ...

SAM Magazine—Hotham Heights, Vic., Australia, July 9, 2020—Vail Resorts is suspending operations at Hotham and Falls Creek Ski Resorts in Victoria, Australia, due to a new restrictions related to a recent COVID-19 outbreak. The suspension is effective July 9, 2020 and follows the stay-at-home order for the Melbourne metro area. Reopening will b...

SAM Magazine—Natick, Mass., July 9, 2020—Mountain resorts in North America that are open for summer operations didn’t really know what visitation would be like over the typically busy 4th of July weekend due to limited/modified operations and rising COVID-19 concerns. As it turns out, several areas were pleasantly surprised with how loud the ...

SAM Magazine—Wausau, Wis., July 8, 2020—Granite Peak Ski Resort has hired industry veteran Greg Fisher as its new general manager and marketing director. Fisher will be responsible for the overall operations of Granite Peak, including overseeing mountain operations, skier services, food and beverage, ski school operations, facilities, and resor...

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., July 1, 2020—Vail Resorts (VR) took a major step toward its 100 percent renewable electricity goal as a new large-scale wind farm, enabled in part by VR, has come online. VR will purchase 310,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of wind energy annually from the new 82-turbine Plum Creek Wind project, which will address more ...

SAM Magazine—Boulder, Colo., July 1, 2020—Active Interest Media (AIM) has sold SKI, Warren Miller Entertainment, Nastar, and SNEWS to Pocket Outdoor Media (POM). The winter sports-related properties are part of a much larger package of three divisions of AIM—fitness, outdoor, and healthy living—purchased by POM. Both AIM and POM are based i...

SAM Magazine—Washington D.C., June 23, 2020—President Trump issued a proclamation Monday that extends a freeze on several types of immigration visas—including J-1 cultural exchange visas and H-2B temporary worker visas, both vital to the mountain resort industry—through December. The administration cites the pandemic and resulting high unem...

SAM Magazine—Denver, June 22, 2020—As stay-at-home restrictions ease, and lodging properties throughout the western mountain region are gradually opening up more capacity, demand has ticked up slightly. However, according to the monthly DestiMetrics* Market Briefing from Inntopia, aggregated summer occupancy is still limping along, down 85.4 pe...

In SAM’s Snow People, we highlight recent personnel moves that have been made in the mountain resort industry. For even more updates on industry people, be sure to read News & Views in the upcoming July issue of SAM. Resorts Don Finn, Crystal Mountain, Wash. Don Finn started as Crystal Mountain’s director of sales on March 15...

SAM Magazine—Lakewood, Colo., June 17, 2020—Skier visits in the U.S. totaled 51.1 million in the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 season, according to the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA). That represents a 13.9 percent decline from 2018-19, which was the fourth-best season on record. NSAA projected that 2019-20 would have topped the previous ye...

SAM Magazine—Aspen Snowmass, Colo., June 12, 2020—The Mountain Collective pass now includes Sun Peaks Resort in British Columbia, bringing the total number of resorts on the pass to 23. Passholders get two days access to each resort on the pass, and 50 percent off daily lift tickets on all additional days, plus a bonus third day at one destinat...

Snowsports Organizations Commit to Diversity, Inclusivity and Equity SAM Magazine—Denver, June 12, 2020—Snowsports organizations continue to rally in support of the global call to end racial injustice and inequity. Schone Malliet, CEO and president of Winter4Kids, which introduces thousands of people of color to snowsports each winter at its ...

SAM Magazine—Queenstown, New Zealand, June 10, 2020—Ski Areas Association New Zealand (SAANZ) has shared its coronavirus-mitigating operations protocols with resorts worldwide so that they can benefit from the group's work. Paul Anderson, CEO of NZSki, which owns The Remarkables, Coronet Peak, and Mt. Hutt, provided the document to SAM followi...

SAM Magazine—Aspen, Colo., June 10, 2020—The leaders of two of the biggest players in the mountain resort industry have responded to the worldwide movement to end racial inequality and injustice. Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz published an open letter titled ,“We Are Part of the Problem,” and Aspen Skiing Company CEO Mike Kaplan and Skico owner...

SAM Magazine—Broomfield, Colo., June 4, 2020—Vail Resorts' third-quarter report showed the impact of the pandemic shutdown on business at its 37 resorts worldwide, including 34 in North America. Overall mountain division revenues for the first nine months of VR's fiscal year, through April 30, fell by 7.6 percent. Third-quarter results, which w...