Advance bookings point to another top season
Sun Valley opened November 22 — the earliest date ever — and business over Thanksgiving and the first week in December jumped 400 per cent.
Group business seemed to be up all over the place, and may be reflecting a shift in marketing strategies. At Sun Valley, for instance, while individual bookings remain about the same as last year, group business, which is concentrated mainly in January and March, is up by 30 per cent. Park City Resort in Utah is also experiencing a big increase in group business, with about two-and-a-half times as much booked as last year. Also in Utah, Snowbird’s guest-night bookings as of the beginning of December were at 105,000, compared to 62,000 for all of last season. Many more groups have been booked into the area, with skiers expected from Canada, Europe, Japan and Australia.
In Michigan, both the Boyne Country resorts were ahead 10 per cent in advance bookings, and the Iowa area, Sundown, was about 20 per cent ahead of last year based on group bookings.
Fred Cimino, of Alpine Valley in Wisconsin, says this season will probably be comparable or better than last year, based on advance bookings, and “last year was the best in the past 11.”
Crystal Mt. in Thompsonville, Mich., is running well ahead, according to president George Petritz. To meet the growth demands Crystal has added lighting for night skiing, increased snowmaking and doubled rental inventory.
In California, ski travel specialists are noticing a trend to “something different” and it is taking the form of getting the “foreign experience” in western Canada.
Global Ski Tours, of Beverly Hills, already had 1,500 paid reservations by December 1 from southern California skiers to go to Canada.
Another indicator of California’s fascination with Canada came from Hans Gmoser, the king of helicopter skiing in British Columbia. Two-thirds of his customers are from the U. S., of whom 16 per cent are from California.
The rest of the country was feeling the same optimistic surge. Only in the east, where the Holiday season approached with fine advance reservations, but little or no base to work with, was the optimism tinged with apprehension; and even there, most resorts felt they could have a good year with “just an average snow year — not great, but just average . . . that’s all we need.”
Gloria Chadwick named Burke Mt. President
Another step in an amazing ski world career became known in the announcement that Gloria Chadwick will be the new President and General Manager of Burke Mt. Ski Area in Vermont.
Most recently, Ms. Chadwick has been Vice President, Operations, at Big Sky, Montana, as well as a member of the Board. Prior to that she had run the NASTAR program for Ski Magazine in its first two years. And prior to that she was Executive Director of the U.S. Ski Association.
Ms. Chadwick is also very active in FIS racing circles, and is currently a member of the Nordic FIS jury and will be attending the Olympics in Innsbruck in that capacity.
Burke Mt., where Ms. Chadwick will be running the show, is the site of a separately organized racing programs that is one of the most active and best known in the country.
“I am sorry to be leaving Big Sky,” Ms. Chadwick said, “and it has been a wonderful experience to have been part of the management team that brought it into being.” But I am also very excited about the Burke Mt. challenge, and look forward to it greatly.”
Aspen may get new ski area
After years of being a gleam in several developers’ eyes, the Little Annie Ski Area in Aspen may become a reality. It is located on about 3,500 acres on the back slopes of Aspen Mountain.
David Farny, head of the Little Annie Corporation, has emphasized that it is planned as a day area, with no overnight accomodations at the base. There are no plans for any link-up with the established facilities on the town side of the mountain.
A dual, 4-passenger gondola is planned for transporting skiers from the valley floor 2,200 feet to the base of the ski terrain. From there, a gondola and three chairlifts would serve the skiable vertical of Richmond Hill and Little Annie Basin.
ENVIRONMENT
Brodie marks a movable feast
A “Mobile Massachusetts Mountain Marker” was introduced recently by Jim Kelly, president of Brodie Mountain in the Berkshire mountains.
“This is no bull,” he pointed out. “It’s probably the only method left to us that will be acceptable to the Boston Brahmins who dictate the policy of the state’s Outdoor Advertising Board.”
Among the other unique benefits claimed by Kelly for his sign are: 1) It is completely compatible with any local landscape, and comes in a wide variety of natural, rustic colors to suit the mood (moo-ed) of any area; 2) It enriches any spot where it is tethered; 3) It can provide liquid sustenance for lost skiers, particularly children, that is much more acceptable than the tippling trademark of the St. Bernard; 4) Unlike ugly metal signs, it is bio-degradable, and can be converted to many useful end products in the restaurant and leather-working trades after its own productive life span. Further, it is capable of reproducing itself.
Kelly began his search for an acceptable market when he became the first target of a zealous Outdoor Advertising Board bent on “Beautifying the Berkshires” by removing every type of sign, regardless of its usefulness.
The two-toned model used by Brody, with its Kelly green markings, inspired one wag to comment, “Great yankee ingenuity and that’s the udder truth!”
MARKETING
Vail to host Black Summit ’77
Following a National Brotherhood of Skiers (NBS) board of directors meeting, Ray Mott, president, announced that Vail had been chosen as the site for a Black Summit ’77.” The Summit is a bi-annual ski gathering of NBS, an affiliation of predominately black ski clubs from all over the United States. Dates of the Summit will be March 12-19, 1977.
Chuck Johnsos, Marketing Director for Vail Associates, Inc., said: “Vail Associates is pleased to be hosting the Summit. We look forward to working with the Brotherhood on the biggest and most extensive Summit program in its history.” At least 1,200 skiers are expected to attend the Summit, the third in the history of the Brotherhood.
New Hampshire area makes a Copper deal
Bill Bardsley, manager of New Hampshire’s King Ridge Ski Area in New London, has announced an arrangement made with Colorado’s Copper Mt. whereby King Ridge customers will get special discounts at Copper. Bardsley will also be featuring spring group trips to Cooper for the weeks of March 14, April 4 and April 18.
The discounts will be available to King Ridge season ticket holders and also to their reservation card holders.
Bardsley believes his conditioning crew produces some of New England’s most consistently good skiing, but he admits it isn’t easy to compete with Rocky Mountain powder. “If you can’t beat ’em, you might as well join ’em.”
NASTAR finals on two Aspen mountains
The 1976 NASTAR Finals will be held at two separate, but nearby ski areas: Aspen Highlands and Snowmass. This is the first time they have been split in this way.
The first day’s racing on April 9 will be at Aspen Highlands and the second at Snowmass. “This will add the challenge of a new course on a different mountain each day,” said Bob Beattie, NASTAR Commissioner.
PEOPLE
Gerald J. Jensen, Jr., formerly sales director at Sugar Loaf Village, Cedar, Mich., has joined the Boyne Country resorts in Michigan as director of sales . . . Joseph Malina is new manager at the Highlands of Scotsland, Oconomowoc, Wis. . . . Tim St. Clair has joined Scotsland as assistant area manager . . . Scott Stillings is new marketing advertising director at Schuss Mountain, Mancelona, Mich. . . . Gary D’Amico heads up marketing department at Powder Ridge in Connecticut . . . Bill Sargent promoted to Director, Mountain Operations at Vail; also at Vail, Jim Roberts to Race Coordinator, and Bob Momsen to Lift Department Manager . . . Hermann Muckenschnabl is new Ski School Director at Vermont’s Bolton Valley . . . Rudolph J. Eggert is new Treasurer – Controller for Kissing Bridge Corp. in Glenwood, N.Y. . . . Felix Kagi is new area manager for Ski Liberty in Pennsylvania. He formerly managed Bethany Ski Area in Ontario . . . Mount Snow in Vermont appointed Philip Saluter as Director of Marketing; Marie Fleming, Controller; and Lorraine Smith, Sales Coordinator.
SUPPLIER NEWS
Bromley builds new summer attraction
Bromley Ski Area in Vermont is installing two side-by-side slides developed by the Demag Corporation of West Germany.
“We have been looking for a long time for something to increase the use of our facilities in summertime, and we have found it,” stated Stig Albertsson, Bromley’s president. “Each of our two slides will be over one-half mile in length, winding down the mountain over a specially prepared course dropping 660 feet of elevation on interesting and thrilling curves, straightaways and rolling terrain.”
According to a Bromley spokesman, riders have complete control over their descent and may accelerate, slow down or come to a complete stop if desired.
It is expected that Bromley will be marketing the Demag system in North America.
Thiokol plans larger lifts
The Logan Division of Thiokol has announced that they are considering extending the drive capabilities of their Liftmaster chairlifts to the 300-350HP range. Until now, these lifts have been up to the 200HP range. The greater power would permit longer lifts with greater verticals.
These new lifts would feature upper terminal vault drive, arranged for unloading at the bullwheel, and the design configuration for the lower tension terminal would be arranged for loading at the bullwheel.
Because of the long lead times and special equipment involved, Thiokol will require orders for these bigger lifts by the end of January if construction is to be completed in 1976.
East and West Guides
Two new regional guides of ski areas have been compiled and published by the editors of Ski. The books, Skier’s Guide to the East And Skiers’ Guide to the West, feature the reports of facilities, maps, and facts about ski areas that have appeared in Ski for the past three seasons. In addition, each book contains listings of pertinent information such as what areas have nurseries and night skiing, where to get help in making a lodging reservation and where to find lodges next to the ski slopes.
The Western book also has longer feature stories on 25 destination resorts in the Rockies and on the West Coast. The Eastern book has feature stories on some of the classic mountain towns of the region. Each book includes short descriptions of cross country touring centers.
Larchmont’s Tropeano honored by N.E. Council
Joe Tropeano, president of Larchmont Engineering, was awarded the New England Council’s 1975 Silver Bowl for “outstanding work in the field of skiing.” The bowl was presented by last year’s winner, Walter Schoenknecht, founder of Mt. Snow.
Joe and his brother Phil were among the pioneers in snowmaking, and they ended up owning the original patent. Their earliest system operated in 1951, and they have been prominent in developing much of the subsequent technology.
Radio/SCR drive Alert
The David E. Fleming Company recently announced through Barringer and Williams, a potentially dangerous situation which ovvurred recently in Washington state. It involved a change in lift speed to 100 fpm above rated speed. Variation in speed was apparently caused when a 5-watt FM radio was transmitting near an SCR drive. SAM has since contacted Norm Gassett, a Solid State lift expert and a Motorola representative for comments. However, more time is required to consider all possibilities and until we have the answers in Spring SAM, exercise caution by keeping each radio outside of the critical range of the SCR units.
