SAM Magazine-Breckenridge, Colo., June 12, 2011-The U.S. Forest Service has approved Breckenridge Ski Resort's Peak 6 expansion plan despite opposition from some environmental groups. The draft EIS, released on Friday, would allow the area to add 550 acres of lift-served and hike-to terrain, a six-pack detachable chairlift, and a 150-seat lodge at ...

SAM Magazine-Broomfield, Colo., June 12, 2011-According to initial tallies by Vail Resorts (VR), Vail Mountain set a new record for season visits during the 2010-11 season. The ski area saw 1.75 million skier visits, up 9.2 percent from the previous winter. Third quarter profitability also increased, by 5.6 percent, over the prior season, totaling...

SAM Magazine--June 12, 2011--The state of Maine has released a report on the chairlift accident at Sugarloaf citing several factors. The accident, a deropement, occurred at 10:30 a.m. on December 28, 2010 with the lift fully loaded. Eight people sought medical attention as a result. The report stated that while the exact cause of the incident ca...

SAM Magazine-June 7, 2011-The operating partners of Jiminy Peak, Mass., and Cranmore Mountain Resort, N.H., Brian and Tyler Fairbank, have been tapped to run Bromley Mountain in Vermont. The Fairbanks and Bromley owner Joseph O'Donnell have signed a management agreement that places the Fairbanks in charge of all aspects of Bromley resort operations...

SAM Magazine-Hancock, Mass., June 6, 2011-The 2nd Annual SAM Summer Ops Camp, which affords managers and operators a chance to uncover the benefits and pitfalls of other-season activities, will move its dates from September to October 3-5 at Jiminy Peak, Mass. The move to October is to avoid any conflict with the Fall trade shows in September at Su...

SAM Magazine-Windham, N.Y., June 7, 2011-Yes, you can go home again. Windham Mountain president and general manager Tim Woods will assume ownership of the Woods Valley Ski Area in Westernville, NY, about 15 miles northwest of Utica, in early fall 2011. Woods will continue to serve as president and GM at Windham Mountain through the end of the 2011-...

SAM Magazine-Taos, N.M., June 6, 2011-Spiking temperatures over the past week have kicked off the western wildfire season, and ski areas are starting to feel the heat. Last week, the Osha wildfire in northern New Mexico threatened the Sipapu Ski Area, forcing residents to evacuate the area. The fire is blamed on downed power lines from a fallen ...

SAM Magazine-Edwards, Colo., June 6, 2011-Colorado Mountain Express (CME), owned by Vail Resorts, will offer daily shared-ride shuttle service from downtown Denver to both Summit County and Vail.
 Denver visitors and residents can enjoy a daytrip or overnight getaway to the mountains without hassling with I-70 traffic. And residents of Summit...

SAM Magazine-Grand Junction, Colo., June 1, 2011-Western Colorado's Powderhorn Ski Resort will be offered for sale at auction on Aug. 4. The resort, which consists of 44 trails and four lifts on 1,600 acres, is located on the Grand Mesas outside of Grand Junction. The sale is being conducted by J.P. King, a brokerage that specializes in high val...

SAM Magazine-Sandy, Utah, June 1, 2011-It's official, this year is one for the record books. With Snowbird still open, Utah resorts have chalked up a near-record number of approximately 4.2 million skier day visits during the 2010-11 winter season. The number represents four-percent growth over the prior year, making this winter the second best in ...

SAM Magazine-La Parva, Chile, May 26, 2011-La Parva, located 50 kilometers outside of Santiago, Chile has unveiled a comprehensive plan designed to develop the freeride and freeski potential of the resort intended to make it a world-class freeride and freeski destination. Now that men's and women's ski halfpipe are in the 2014 Olympics, "We knew...

SAM Magazine-McLean, Va., May 26, 2011-SnowSports Industries America (SIA) has retained Reese Brown and his company, RDB Marketing & Event Services, as Nordic program director. Under the agreement, Brown will manage SIA's Winter Trails program and the SIA Snow Show's Nordic On-Snow Demo. The relationship is not a new one. For the past nine years...

SAM Magazine-Girdwood, Alaska, May 26, 2011-The Mountain Rider's Alliance (MRA) and its Manitoba Mountain Ski Area Restoration Project, which aims to restore lift access to a ski area that last operated in 1960, continue to move forward. The plan for the area, located on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska, was introduced at a mid-February public forum i...

SAM Magazine-Mead, Wash., May 24, 2011-The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission has approved Mt. Spokane's proposal to add a chairlift and seven runs to the northwest quadrant of the ski area at Mt. Spokane. The decision in favor of the not-for-profit ski area was made last Thursday in Spokane, and included a blended land classificat...

SAM Magazine-Boulder, Colo., May 19, 2011-In a sign of the continuing strength of outdoor sports despite a sluggish and perhaps stalling economy, dollar sales in April for outdoor retailers rose 8% compared April 2010, according to prelilminary data from the Leisure Trends Group. Outdoor specialty store sales increased a healthy 6 percent, outdoor ...

SAM Magazine-Aspen, Colo., May 19, 2011-The Aspen Skiing Company today became the latest in a long line of areas to extend the season. And as with some other areas, Aspen is reopening after being closed for weeks. Aspen Mountain will reopen for May 28-30, and for additional weekends as conditions permit. The decision comes on the heels of record...

SAM Magazine-Kirkwood, Calif., May 18, 2011-Bud Klien, founder of Kirkwood resort, has died at the age of 83 after a battle with cancer. Klien, a number one draft pick for the Red Sox upon his graduation from Stanford in 1950, choose to return to California and help run his family's agricultural business rather than play ball. He switched to the s...

SAM Magazine-Jindabyne, New South Wales, Australia, May 18, 2011-Perisher Blue resort will open this Friday, making it the first resort to open in the Southern Hemisphere. Recent snowfalls coupled with cold temperatures for snowmaking have combined to allow the mountain to open weeks ahead of schedule. The resort will have a mini-terrain park on ta...

SAM Magazine-Wanaka, New Zealand, May 13, 2011-Treble Cone will once again host the most prestigious big-mountain event in New Zealand,The North Face Freeski Open, Sept. 12-16. The event is expected to bring a global field of athletes to Treble Cone and is part of the Freeride World Tour's (FWT) slate of Freeride World Qualifying (FWQ) events. The ...

SAM Magazine-Broomfield, Colo., May 13, 2011-Vail Resorts is extending its discounted prices on 2011-2012 season passes until May 30. The discounts, introduced on Apr. 15, were initially set to expire on May 8. The discounts apply to all of the company's pass products, including the Epic Pass, Epic Local Pass, Epic 7-Day, Summit Value Pass and T...

SAM Magazine-Lakewood, Colo., May 12, 2011-Six resorts have been granted funds from the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) Sustainable Slopes program. The ski areas, Arapahoe Basin, Colo.; Beaver Valley Ski Club, Ontario; Mt. Hood Meadows, Ore.; Oak Mountain, N.Y.; Stevens Pass Resort, Wash.; and Stratton Mountain Resort, Vt. The resorts will s...

SAM Magazine-Olympic Valley, Calif., May 12, 2011-Squaw Valley USA is winding down a record-breaking winter by offering discounted lift tickets to season passholders from other resorts. The ski area, which racked up more than 730 inches of snow on the year, is running the promotion through closing day, May 30, 2011. The discounted lift tickets cost...

SAM Magazine-Tahoe City, Calif., May 11, 2011-Alpine Meadows Ski Resort and Kirkwood Mountain Resort are partnering on a new season pass program that will allow access to both mountains. In addition, the new passes will also allow access to Homewood Mountain Resort, Red Lodge Mountain Resort, and Durango Mountain Resort. With the partnership, Al...

SAM Magazine-East Rutherford, N.J., May 5, 2011-Triple Five, operator of the Mall of America and the new owner of the former Meadowlands Xanadu project, plans to expand the plan and rename the project American Dream. When completed, the $2.7 billion megamall is expected to draw even more visitors than Triple Five's current flagship operations, t...

SAM Magazine-Hancock, Mass., May 5, 2011-The 2nd Annual SAM Summer Ops Camp, which affords managers and operators a chance to uncover the benefits and pitfalls of other-season activities, will take place Sept. 7-9 at Jiminy Peak, Mass. In addition to workshops and seminars, the program allows campers to experience the several summer activities a...

SAM Magazine--May 3, 2011--HKD Snowmakers and Turbocristal have announced that the two companies will be merging by June 30, 2011, to be called HKD Turbo and will service the U.S. and Canada and have distribution around the world. HKD Turbo will offer a complete line of air/water and fan snowmaking technology in both manual and automatic configurat...

SAM Magazine--May 3, 2011--According to a release from SIA, the snow sports market brought in a record $3.3 billion over the full 2010/11 season (previous highest sales record was $3 billion, set in 2007/08). Overall, snow sports sales were up 8% in units sold, and 12% in dollars sold. Leaner inventories kept prices strong throughout the season, eq...

SAM Magazine--May 3, 2011--According to published reports, Vail Resorts (VR) announced that 2010/2011 skier visit totals at its six resorts were up 3.9 percent. VR also announced that ski school revenue was up 8.4 percent, dining up 9 percent and retail/rental increased by 8.3 percent over last season. (All of these totals were adjusted as if North...

SAM Magazine-McLean, Va., April 29, 2011-The board of directors for SnowSports Industries America (SIA) has decided to keep the organization's annual Snow Show in the late January/early February timeframe. The latest move reverses SIA's decision in March to shift the show dates earlier in January. "At the end of the day, the voice of the reta...

SAM Magazine-Hamilton, Ga., Apr. 21, 2011-Ralph Walton, who co-owned Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) with Howard "Bo" Callaway for more than three decades, died Apr. 17 at his home in Georgia. He was 80. Walton had been a manager with Westinghouse Electric for nearly 15 years when, in 1970, just months from earning a lifetime pension, he jo...

SAM Magazine-Tabernash, Colo., Apr. 21, 2011-Devil's Thumb Ranch, a 6,000-acre guest ranch and resort with an extensive cross-country network, has named Sean Damery as its new vice president and general manager. A 22-year hospitality industry veteran, Damery has worked in a number of positions in food and beverage, lodging and operations. At Oja...

SAM Magazine--April 18, 2011--Peak Resorts, Inc. announced that it has filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") relating to a proposed initial public offering of shares of its common stock. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the offering have not yet been determined....

SAM Magazine--April 15, 2011--The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) found "serious" workplace violations at Wolf Creek Ski Area, Colo., following an investigation of the avalanche death of the area's patrol director. On November 22, 2010, Scott Kay was performing avalanche control work by himself and was not wearing a helmet, ...

SAM Magazine--April 13, 2011--The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) announced that Dick Kun, CEO of Snow Summit Ski Corporation, has been selected as the recipient of the 2011 NSAA Lifetime Achievement Award. Snow Summit Ski Corp. owns and operates Snow Summit and Bear Mountain ski areas in Big Bear Lake, Calif. Snow Summit was started in 1...

SAM Magazine-Jiminy Peak, Mass., Apr. 13, 2011-As America's lift system ages, springtime lift maintenance seminars and attendance are growing. The training season kicks off with the 34th annual Lift Maintenance Seminar (LMS) next week at Jiminy Peak and continues through Doppelmayr's two new Hall-specific training sessions in late May and June. ...

SAM Magazine-Vernon, N.J., Apr. 12, 2011-Gov. Chris Christie signed the New Jersey helmet law on Apr. 8, requiring all youths under age 18 to wear a helmet while skiing or riding in New Jersey. The law, the first statewide requirement for ski/ride helmets, takes effect Nov. 1. Enforcement is left up to parents and guardians. The parent or guardi...

SAM Magazine--The 2011 SAMMY Leadership Award honorees were announced today. This award goes to individuals who, at mid-career, show great promise as the winter sports industry's future leaders. They are: 1) Joe Hession, GM, Mountain Creek-Joe began his career at age 14 as a parking attendant at Vernon Valley Great Gorge, currently known as Mou...

SAM Magazine-Whistler, B.C., Apr. 11, 2011-Whistler Blackcomb is testing a new app which allows cell phones to serve as lift passes. The app, the Whistler Blackcomb Live Powered by Telus, will also allow users to track their runs using GPS, view trail maps, track the total vertical and distance they've traveled and their maximum speed, share their ...

SAM Magazine-Butler, Ohio, Apr. 11, 2011-Four local residents have acquired the Clear Fork Ski Area here and plan to turn it into a year-round destination. The four, Rick Weemhoff, Brian Johnson, and Ben and Luke Flynn, all grew up near Clear Fork, where they all worked and played. The area closed in 2006 after 40 years of operation. The foursom...

SAM Magazine-McLean, Va., Apr. 6, 2011-The snow sports market surpassed the $3 billion mark for the 2010-11 season in February, even as sales slowed significantly. After two months of double-digit sales gains, units sold were down 2 percent in February 2011 compared to 2010, and dollar sales slipped 1.5 percent. Lean inventories contributed to the ...

SAM Magazine-London, Apr. 6, 2011-The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today confirmed the inclusion of ski halfpipe for both men and women and women's ski jumping among six new events on the program of the Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, in 2014. The other events are the biathlon mixed relay, figure skating team event and luge team rel...

SAM Magazine--April 3, 2011--The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) announced that Dan Fuller, president of Bristol Mountain Winter Resort in Canandaigua, N.Y., is the recipient of this year's Sherman Adams Award. The Sherman Adams Award is presented annually to an individual from an Eastern ski area that has significantly influenced the indust...

SAM Magazine-Whistler, B.C., April 1, 2011-Whistler Blackcomb has instituted a new height restriction for all skiers and riders due to the area's prodigious, record-breaking snowfall this season. The policy is intended to prevent guests from drowning in the bottomless pow. To that end, the resort is prohibiting guests shorter than 350cm/11.5 ...

SAM Magazine-Denver, Mar. 24, 2011-For the sixth consecutive month, occupancy at western mountain destinations rose. According to the most recent data released by the Mountain Travel Research Program (MTRiP), occupancy was up 1.2 percent compared to February 2010. Overall results for September through February are up 7.3 percent compared to the sam...

SAM Magazine-McLean, Va., Mar. 17, 2011)-The board of directors for SnowSports Industries America (SIA) has voted to shift the SIA Snow Show dates to an earlier, mid-January time slot beginning in 2013. That year, the show will begin Saturday, Jan. 12 and run through Tuesday, Jan. 15 at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver. The On-Snow Demo wil...

SAM Magazine-Lakewood, Colo., Mar. 18, 2011-The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) will present its Industry Impact Award to snowboarder Shaun White. Last presented in 2009 to the Winter X Games, the Industry Impact Award recognizes significant contributions made to the ski and snowboard industry by an individual, business, or other entity. NSAA...

SAM Magazine-Broomfield, Colo., Mar. 18, 2011-Vail Resorts (VR) second-quarter net income rose 34 percent as ample snow and the improving economy brought more people out skiing, and the addition of Northstar-at-Tahoe boosted results. Net income during the quarter rose to $54.6 million, from $40.7 million a year earlier. VR's revenue rose 29 perc...

SAM Magazine-Denver, Mar. 18, 2011-Colorado's ski season continues on a positive path despite a small dip in visitation during the first two months of 2011. Visits were down .75 percent at the 22 members of Colorado Ski Country USAS during January and February, but remain up by 3.4 percent season-to-date compared to the same time last season. "Our ...

SAM Magazine-Rutland, Vt., Mar. 11, 2011-Despite good snow nearly everywhere for the Presidents' Day holiday, U.S. resorts saw signs of winter fatigue. Business levels were sporadic, ranging from "absolutely rockin'" in Utah and "crazy busy" in Vermont, to "not stellar' at Wachusett, Mass., "not outstanding" in Colorado, and only "decent" at Liber...

SAM Magazine--March 10, 2011--Jason Gibbs has been named director of marketing for Ski Vermont, the Vermont Ski Areas Association (VSAA). Gibbs has an extensive background in brand management and strategic communications, formerly serving as commissioner of the Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation and as communications director for Governor Ji...

SAM Magazine-Idaho Springs, Colo., Mar. 10, 2011-Echo Mountain is turning five this spring, and celebrating by offering $5 lift tickets on Friday nights, Mar. 18-Apr. 15. The tickets are good for skiing and riding 4-9 p.m. The 700-vertical-foot area is the closest ski and ride area to Denver, about 35 minutes away. To further mark its fifth anni...

SAM Magazine-Cortland, N.Y., Mar. 9, 2011-Greek Peak Mountain Resort, NY is developing an Adventure Fun Center that's part of a $20 million expansion. The center, scheduled to open in June, includes a ropes course, zip lines, a mountain biking park, alpine coaster and tubing center. The Wiegand alpine coaster will be 4,300 feet in length. There ...

SAM Magazine-Broomfield, Colo. , Mar. 9, 2011-Vail Resorts (VR) plans to invest $30 million on capital improvement projects at Northstar-at-Tahoe. VR aims to enhance the guest experience both on the mountain and in the Village at Northstar for the 2011-12 winter season. Plans include the installation of a new backside high-speed chair that will ...

SAM Magazine-Boulder, Colo., Mar. 8, 2011-Snow sport sales increased 13 percent in units and 16 percent in dollars for a total of $516 million at retail this January, the strongest in at least 10 years, according to the Leisure Trends Group. Snow sport retailers comfortably outpaced general retail, which was up 8.3 percent over January 2010, accord...

SAM Magazine--March 7, 2011--Johnson Controls Snow announced the hiring of James Voskuil as the new GM for the North American market. Voskuil will be based out of Denver, Colo., and started on February 28, 2011. Voskuil is new to the industry, but has an extensive international sales and general management background and is also bilingual in Englis...

SAM Magazine--March 7, 2011--Mount Snow, Vt., announced that it will replace its Summit Local triple chair with a Leitner-Poma high-speed detachable six-passenger bubble chairlift. The new lift will have a ride time of seven minutes. Every night the chairs will be run off the line and stored in a heated barn to protect the bubbles and allow the ...

SAM Magazine-Nederland, Colo., Mar. 7, 2011-Eldora Mountain Resort's 2011 Master Plan has been accepted by the U.S. Forest Service. Eldora has been working on its updated Master Plan for more than two years, during which time it conducted research, solicited public input and studied the impacts of future projects from both business and environmenta...

SAM Magazine-Ruidoso, N.M., Mar. 7, 2011-Two weeks ago, the Elk Lodge at Ski Apache became the nation's first winter resort to offer slopeside slot machines. "During the Presidents' Day weekend we had a nice turnout," said Justin Rowland, Ski Apache's director of operations. "We opened midday on Saturday, and ran Saturday, Sunday and Monday." Th...

SAM Magazine--February 24, 2011--The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) announced that Todd Buchholz, a former White House director of economic policy, will be the keynote speaker at the NSAA National Convention in May. Buchholz's presentation, "New Realities in the Post-Recession American Economy,"will decipher the riddle of the evolving eco...

SAM Magazine--The Canada West Ski Areas Association (CWSAA) has announced the appointment of David Lynn to president and CEO. Lynn comes to CWSAA from Sun-Rype Products Ltd., where he was president and CEO. Lynn, an avid skier, will begin his duties on April 4, 2011. In the meantime, Lynn will travel with retiring CEO and president, Jimmie Spenc...