SAM Magazine-Vail, Colo., Dec. 11, 2006-Vail Resorts reported quarterly revenues up nearly 33 percent for the first quarter of fiscal 2007, primarily on increased real estate revenues, but expenses largely offset the gain. However, the resort cited increases in season's pass sales (21 percent in dollars) and advance bookings (24 percent in dollars...

SAM Magazine-Plymouth, N.H., Dec. 11, 2006-The ownership of Tenney Mountain Ski Resort has decided not to open the ski operation this winter. Instead, it is focusing on future planning for the entire resort including an outdoor adventure partnership plan with Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS). The decision came as the resort management and staff was in...

SAM Magazine--Tuxedo, N.Y., December 8, 2006--Sterling Forest ski resort, which was shut down during the 2005-06 season, was purchased by a local resident, Glenn Godsey. According to The Journal News, Godsey is hoping to open the 250-acre resort with the first snowfall this season. Sterling Forest has 4 double chairs, a vertical of 400 feet and ...

SAM Magazine-Vail, Colo., Dec. 8, 2006-CNL Income Properties, a Florida-based company, will soon own four of the six resorts currently part of Booth Creek Ski Holdings, Inc., as part of a complex deal that will net three current Booth Creek principals ownership of two of the resorts, along with a long-term lease for the other four areas. The dea...

SAM Magazine - Boulder, Colo., December 6, 2006 - While the methodology used remains controversial (ski areas are docked points if they have a master plan which could lead to additional terrain being developed, even if the resort has no plans to develop said terrain), the Ski Area Citizens Coalition (SACC) released its annual ranking of how "green"...

SAM Magazine - Vail, Co, December 5, 2006 - With western resorts opening more terrain by the day (the ropes drop on Vail's Back Bowls today and November was a record month for snowfall in Whistler), Eastern resorts are regrouping and European ski areas are wondering when winter will arrive. The guns are hard at work at Seven Springs.  In ...

SAM Magazine - McLean, VA, December 5, 2006 - SnowSports Industries America's (SIA) Winter Feels Good campaign and SnowMonsters are partnering to teach children how to dress for snow sports activities with a new interactive tool on the winterfeelsgood.com website. The tool is also featured on all SnowMonsters sites provided to more than 100 resorts...

SAM Magazine - Wolf Creek, CO, December 5, 2006 - Nordic skiers at Wolf Creek have found their groomed trail options limited as the conflict unfolds between the owners of the resort and a developer behind the Village at Wolf Creek project. The dispute revolves around access across land owned by the developer, Texas businessman B.J. McCombs, and ...

SAM Magazine--December 5, 2006, Mt,. Hood, OR - Mt. Hood Meadows will open for the 2006/07 season this Saturday, December 9, after a glacial outburst washed out the area's public access on November 7. The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) announced today that highway 35 will reopen at 5 a.m. Saturday, allowing access to the resort for the ...

SAM Magazine--December 1, 2006, Korea (SnowHunter)--Korea's newest resort, scheduled to open today, December 1, is Land's High 1 in Gangwon Province. The resort has 18 trails, more than half of them graded black or double black diamond, served by five chairlifts named after Greek gods (Zeus, Apollo, Hera, Athena and the previously unknown Victoria)...

SAM Magazine--December 1, 2006, Snowhunter--The first stone of "Les terrasses d'Eos," the first building within the new Intrawest resort village being built at Flaine in France, has been laid. Les terrasses d'Eos is a four-star tourism residence made up of 91 apartments, the first part of Flaine Montsoleil village, which will ultimately have 2,...

SAM Magazine--December 1, 2006, Snowhunter--"Where to Ski and Snowboard", one of the world's leading guidebooks to ski resorts around the planet, is well known for pulling no punches. In its very first edition, back in 1994, the "skier's bible" labelled the French resort of Les Menuires 'The Ugliest Resort in the Alps'--in contrast to the resort's ...

SAM Magazine - Pennsylvania, December 1, 2006 - Laurel Mountain will not fire up the lifts this winter. The Pennsylvania resort, which has been operated by nearby Seven Springs since 2004 has been plagued by a lack of snow and mediocre weather which has prevented snowmaking. The announcement is the latest in a long string of bad news for the resort...

SAM Magazine - Alyeska, AK, November 29, 2006 - Alaska's Alyeska resort has been sold. The purchaser, John Byrne III, a hardcore skier who regularly tops 100 days each winter, says he'll be a very hands-on owner who will play an active roll in the resort. Byrne, who currently lives in Alta, Ut, purchased the resort from Japanese company Seibu Holdi...

SAM - Magog, QC, November 28, 2006 - An eleventh hour deal struck by Québec Environment Minister Claude Béchard has saved Québec's Mont Orford's season. The resort was in the throes of a labor dispute, and the differences between management and the union which represented ski area workers seemed intractable. In fact, the situation was so ...

SAM Magazine - Wittenburg, Germany, November 28, 2006 - The world's largest indoor halfpipe is slated to open the second week of December in Wittenburg, Germany. The pipe is the prime feature of SnowFunPark, Germany's fifth indoor ski area. The facility is scheduled to open December 8. The indoor skiing facility is one of the largest in the world a...

SAM Magazine--Elk Meadows, Utah, November 28, 2006--The controversial Mount Holly Club planned for the defunct ski area at Elk Meadows, Utah, has received conceptual approval from the Beaver County Planning and Zoning Commission. The resort, which opened in 1971, went into bankruptcy in 2004. It has 420 skiable acres and 1,400 feet of vertical drop...

SAM Magazine - Northstar-At-Tahoe, November 27, 2006 - Northstar-At-Tahoe has teamed up with legendary snowboard icon Jake Burton to design a natural jib run called The Stash. The run, developed by Burton and his team riders, features trees, jibs and road jumps constructed with wood logs and other materials native to the Lake Tahoe region. "I've...

SAM Magazine - Salt Lake City, UT, November 21, 2006 - You've heard of them: Blogs. The web logs that are written by somewhat anonymous personalities about every subject under the sun. The best Blogs have become alternative sources of news and commentary, vaulting their authors into the limelight and providing valued insights. At their worst, Blogs merely waste bandwidth. After all, who really cares about the daily adventures of Aunt Martha's cat? Still, as resorts come to grips with new technology and the power of the Internet, Blogs can provide another weapon in the marketing war. And, if you have a Blog that combines the elusive combination of authenticity and mass appeal, they can become powerful voices for your brand.

SAM Magazine, Boulder, CO, November 20, 2006 - Eastern ski resorts are back on track as cold weather returned to the region over the weekend and resorts have resumed snowmaking operations. Numerous resorts delayed opening dates last week as warm weather stymied snowmaking and Mother Nature failed to cooperate. But with colder temperatures in store...

SAM Magazine - Lake Louise, Alberta, November 17, 2006 - Lake Louise has gotten the go-ahead to host the first men's World Cup Downhill race of the season. The event is scheduled for November 25 and 26. The resort recently passed a hill inspection by the FIS and met the conditions to host the DH. Given the speeds at which World Cup DH racers re...

SAM Magazine--Boston, Mass., November 17, 2006--This year's BEWI Award luncheon had one of its largest crowds ever to honor Bernie Weischel and Philip Gravink. The location was Gillett stadium where they were busy trying to get the field repaired after last Sunday's muddy game. Left to right: Herbert Schneider, Billy Kidd, Bernie Weichsel, Phil ...

SAM Magazine--Burlington, Vt., November 16, 2006--After four years of tracking helmet use among skiers and snowboarders at three Vermont Ski areas, the Vermont Snow Sports Research Team announced it is expanding its project to up to eight additional Vermont resorts, thanks to a collaboration with the Vermont Ski Areas Association (VSAA). The res...

SAM Magazine--Aspen, Colo., November 16, 2006--Pat O'Donnell, president and CEO of the Aspen Skiing Company, has moved up his retirement, which is effective immediately. O'Donnell joined Aspen in 1993 and became CEO in 1996. During his tenure, O'Donnell brought the environment to the forefront of industry thinking, as well as customer service. "...

SAM Magazine - Vail, Colorado, November 14, 2006 - Resorts have faced a mixed bag of weather over the past week. With snow and cold temperatures in the west and warm eastern temps, the outlook for Thanksgiving openings is mixed. Groomers putting final touches on Winter Park slopes.  The situation is the best in the western region of Nort...

SAM Magazine - Sugarloaf/USA and Sunday River, Maine, November 14, 2006 -Sugarloaf/USA and Sunday River have become the largest purchasers and consumers of wind power in New England. Both Maine resorts have jointly chosen to offset 100 percent of their resort operations' electricity usage with energy generated from wind. Wind energy exclusively wil...

SAM Magazine-Middlebury, Vt., Nov. 8, 2006-Middlebury College Snow Bowl is raising the bar on carbon dioxide offsets. According to Middlebury College assistant treasurer and director of business services Tom Corbin, "The Middlebury College Snow Bowl may well be the first ski area to take carbon neutrality to this level by offsetting electric, gas, ...

SAM Magazine-Yellowstone, Mont., Nov. 8, 2006-Tim Blixseth, the developer of Montana's Yellowstone Club, is being sued by three-time Tour de France champion Greg LeMond. LeMond, an early investor in two of the companies that control the Yellowstone club, claims that Blixseth has cheated him out of millions of dollars. Blixseth has counter-sued L...

SAM Magazine - Denver, Co, November 7, 2006 - It's a gutsy, innovative move that could change the face of skiing and snowboarding. It's also the kind of bold action that you'd expect from Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, who made his fortune as an entrepreneur in the restaurant business. Hickenlooper was the most famous face among many city of De...

SAM Magazine - Keystone, CO, November 7, 2006 - Vail Resorts has named Patricia Campbell the new chief operating officer of Keystone Resort. Campbell will report directly to Roger McCarthy, co-president of Vail Resorts' mountain division and chief operating officer of Breckenridge. Patricia Campbell For the past six years, Campbell has been...

SAM Magazine--Idaho Springs, CO, November 6, 2006--Colorado's Clear Creek County has delayed a crucial planning meeting on the rezoning of the former St. Mary's ski area and the opening of the new Eclipse ski resort on the property. Eclipse, which is headed by Michael Coors of the Coors brewing dynasty, hopes to open this winter. The County Plannin...

SAM Magazine--Woodbury, CT, November 6, 2006--It may come as a surprise to those enjoying some balmy fall days in New England, but the region is open for skiing, courtesy of plucky Woodbury ski area, which pulled out all the snowmaking stops to open on Friday. With man-made conditions and a solid base, the ski area clocked a record attendance on it...

SAM Magazine--Findley Lake, N.Y., November 6, 2006--The new ownership group of New York's Peek'n Peak Resort and Conference Center expects to pump massive infusions of cash into the resort over the next ten years. The investment is part of a revitalization plan for the resort implemented by Kiebler Recreation, LLC and Kiebler Properties. The group,...

SAM Magazine-Vancouver, Nov. 2, 2006-Joe Houssian, Intrawest founder and CEO, is retiring, and Intrawest president and chief operating officer Alex Wasilov replaces him effective immediately. Wasilov, who joined Intrawest two years ago, will report to Fortress Investment Group CEO Wes Edens and managing director Bill Doniger. Houssian will serve in...

SAM Magazine-Denver, Nov. 2, 2006-A series of early storms have allowed Colorado resorts to get the jump on the ski season. Currently Loveland, Arapahoe Basin, Wolf Creek and Copper Mountain are open, with more resorts planning to fire up the lifts soon-including Keystone tomorrow. The state benefited from substantial October snowfall, which left u...

SAM Magazine-Park City, Utah, Oct. 30, 2006-American Skiing Company cited strong season pass sales, continued growth at The Canyons resort, and excellent performance at Steamboat resort as factors behind a record-setting revenue year. Significantly, ASC also made payment in full of the principal balances of all real estate-related debt as a result ...

SAM Magazine - Champion,Pa, October 31, 2006 - Scott L. Bender has been promoted to the Chief Executive Officer position at Pennsylvania's Seven Springs Mountain Resort. A familiar face in the organization - he has been employed with the resort since 1983 - Bender's prior positions include President, Chief Operations Officer and Chairman of the Bo...

SAM Magazine - Lakewood, CO, October 30, 2006 - Alpine Meadows, Calif., Grand Targhee, Wyo., and Middlebury College Snow Bowl, Vt., have recently joined 16 other ski areas that are offsetting 100 percent of their energy use by purchasing renewable energy. Together, these 19 resorts are purchasing 258,574,498 kWh of green energy and their purchases ...

SAM Magazine--Londonderry, VT, October 26, 2006--Magic Mountain is set to open for the 2006/2007 season under a new ownership group which has revamped several aspects of the resort. The group, JLS Magic LLC, a partnership headed by Jim Sullivan, agreed to purchase the resort from Magic Mountain Management LLC. Although the deal is expected to be fi...

SAM Magazine - Wilmington, VT, October 26, 2006 - Vermont's Haystack Ski Area is on its way to becoming a private club. The ski area, which was sold approximately one year ago by the American Skiing Company to a group of local business people, is slated to undergo a five-year, $450 million dollar makeover, including new lifts and 100 percent snowma...

SAM Magazine - Midland, MI, October, 26, 2006 - Snowmaking equipment manufacturer Snow Machines, Inc. (SMI) has introduced the quietest, lightest design in its more than 35-year history, the SMI Kid PoleCat. In addition, the machine also is light, and, according to manufacturers, has a delivery capability and throw of up to 100 feet, making it idea...

SAM Magazine--Londonderry, VT, October 26, 2006--Magic Mountain is set to open for the 2006/2007 season under a new ownership group which has revamped several aspects of the resort. The group, JLS Magic LLC, a partnership headed by Jim Sullivan, agreed to purchase the resort from Magic Mountain Management LLC. Although the deal is expected to be fi...

Founder Of Mt. Hood Retires SAM Magazine-Mt. Hood, OR, October 25, 2006-The founder of Mt. Hood Meadows Resort, Franklin Drake, has announced that he is turning management of the resort over to his two protegees. Drake, who was the president/CEO of Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Resort in addition to the founder of the ski area, has managed the mountain s...

SAM Magazine- Alta, Utah, October 25, 2006 - Alta ski resort has committed to purchasing 900,000 kilowatt-hours (kwh) of renewable energy over the next 12-month period. The purchase will offset more than 23 percent of the ski resort's annual energy usage. The move marks the latest effort by the Utah resort to limit the environmental impacts of...

SAM Magazine-Park City, Ut, October 23, 2006-US Skiing has announced the 2006 Nor-Am Freestyle Schedule. The season opens with a selection round at Park City, Utah. These December events will determine which freestyle athletes compete on the Nor-Am Circuit, which officially opens with events at Mont Gabriel, Quebec. A surprising addition to this ye...

SAM Magazine - Kingston, NY, October 24, 2006 -- The chalk boards at the base of ski lifts across North America have been an institution for decades, providing lift ops the opportunity to scrawl cryptic jokes, the ski patrol a forum for tracking down lost kids and the place to view-at least in Vail -updated NFL playoff scores if the skiing was too ...

SAM Magazine-Vancouver, B.C., Oct. 20, 2006-Intrawest laid off 200 full-time employees, primarily managers, across its several divisions and resorts earlier this week as part of an effort to improve its bottom-line performance in the coming year. The move was made the day before Intrawest shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favor of the company's ...

SAM Magazine-Andover, N.H., Oct. 20, 2006-In a move that could have a big impact on the retail and rental ski equipment markets, Dalbello Skiboots and Elan Skis are beginning a new strategic global alliance as of Jan. 1. Clint Lyon, CEO of the newly formed Dalbello~Elan Sports, said, "Dalbello and Elan firmly believe that focused, specialized co...

SAM Magazine--October 20, 2006--Pennsylvania's Seven Springs Resort has announced that it will be withdrawing its limited Category 3 gaming license application after the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board determined that the reworked proposal would not comply with the current requirements of the gaming regulations. The inability to secure a g...

SAM Magazine--Burlington, VT, October 20, 2006-- The Vermont Snow Sports Research Team has received a $20,000 grant from the Fletcher Allen Community Health Foundation to expand its program to increase voluntary ski helmet use among children to prevent serious head injuries. The snow sport research team is a partnership of the University Of Vermon...

SAM Magazine--Wolf Creek, Colo., October 20, 2006--Colorado Wild and the San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council have filed a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Forest Service's decision to allow two access roads accessing the proposed Wolf Creek Village to be built. Both groups contend that the roads, which would cross public lands, are only two dominos in th...

SAM Magazine-Portland, Ore., October 15, 2006--Salomon North America is expected to announce that the company will relocate from Portland, Oregon to Ogden, Utah in the summer of 2007. The move is part of a reorganization by Salomon's parent company, Finland based Amer Sports Corp, which will consolidate the groups North American holdings, which als...

SAM Magazine--Beaver Creek, Colo., October 17, 2006--Plans by Vail Resorts to build an Alpine slide on Beaver Creek have local homeowners up in arms. The slide, proposed for Beaver Creek's Haymeadow area, has been aggressively opposed by local property owners, including the Beaver Creek Property Owners Association, with approximately 2,000 voicing ...

SAM Magazine--Vancouver, BC, October 17, 2006-- Fortress Investment Group is expected to become the new owner of Intrawest after Intrawest shareholders approved the sale of the company to the private investment firm. The deal, worth $2.8 billion needed the approval of two-thirds of Intrawest shareholders to be consummated. The decision to sell was ...

SAM Magazine-Summit County, Colo., Oct. 13, 2006-This is what they were hoping for when they installed snowmaking four years ago. And today, for this year, they are the champions. Colorado's Arapahoe Basin beat out perennial champion Loveland for the first time, chalking up the earliest opening ever for the 60-year old area and claiming boasting ri...

SAM Magazine-Mammoth Lakes, CA., Oct. 11, 2006-Last April, a tragic accident at Mammoth Mountain resulted in the deaths of three ski patrollers. James Juarez, John "Scott" McAndrews and Charles Walter Rosenthal all died from a fall into a volcanic fumarole inside the ski area boundary. The California Department of Industrial Relations' Division of ...

SAM Magazine--October 11, 2006--Ski Utah has announced a new initiative to combat global warming. Called KeepUtahCool.com, the new website offers information on global warming, how warming impacts the ski industry and what individuals can do to help combat global warming. In addition, the site also has coverage of what Utah ski resorts are doing to...

SAM Magazine--Lakewood, Colo., Oct. 10--The National Ski Area Association (NSAA) has announced that 45 ski resorts across the nation are currently buying green energy. The list of mountains that have taken this proactive step is diverse, and ranges from Aspen, Colorado to Okemo, Vermont. Green power is generated from renewable and nonpolluting en...

SAM Magazine-Beaver, Ut., Oct. 5, 2006- CPB Development has proposed a $3.5 billion plan to local planning authorities for a Yellowstone Club-style resort at Elk Meadows, which hasn't operated for four years. Resort property owners, who would lose their access to the mountain, are rising in opposition. The resort, which opened in 1971, went ...

SAM Magazine-Broomfield, Colo., Oct. 5, 2006-Vail Resorts, Inc. reported record net income of $45.8 million for the fiscal year ended July 31,2006 compared to net income of $23.1 million for fiscal 2005, a rise of 98 percent. Much of the increase stemmed from mountain operations, plus reduced depreciation and interest expense and a gain on the sale...