December 2022 – January  2023

Important Precedent Set in Oregon Ski Area Ruling. Recreational use law was successfully used as a defense against a plaintiff seeking $1.5 million in a parking lot slip-and-fall claim against Hoodoo Ski Area in Oregon. Recreational use statutes limit the liability of landowners if they make their land available for recreation free of charge. More. SAM

Tahoe MegaResort Opens in Time for Snowmageddon. Palisades Ski Resort and Alpine Meadows Ski Resort in the Lake Tahoe area are now one giant MegaResort, thanks to the opening of the base-to-base gondola between the neighboring ski areas. The two resorts, owned by Colorado’s Alterra Mountain Company, have become the second largest single ski destination in the country. More. Connectcre via Ski Racing Media

Steamboat Resort Unwraps ‘One-of-a-Kind’ Wild Blue Gondola.  With snow falling, Steamboat Resort opened the Wild Blue Gondola on Saturday, Dec. 24, just in time for Christmas. The debut was complete with a red bow on the first car, a ribbon cutting, a jingle of bells, and a long line of people waiting to board. More. Vail Daily via Ski Racing Media

Owners of Mountain High and Dodge Ridge (CA) Purchase China Peak. China Peak Mountain Resort has been sold to Mountain High Resort and Dodge Ridge, Calif. All three are also existing partners on the Indy Pass and Powder Alliance.  More. SAM

Mont-Sainte-Anne Ski Resort (Quebec) to Reopen Jan. 8 After Dec. 10 Shutdown Over Gondola Cabin Disconnect. The Régie du bâtiment du Québec (RBQ) has authorized the reopening of four of the resort’s five lifts that were shut down after a gondola fell to the ground last month. Though nobody was injured in the incident, the resort has been closed since Dec. 10. More.  CBC/Radio-Canada

Tree Falls on Park City Mountain Chairlift, Employee Killed. A Park City Mountain staff member was killed Jan. 2 after falling from the chairlift they were riding. A tree fell on the line of the Short Cut chairlift, unseating the employee who fell at least 25 feet to the ground, according to a Vail Resorts spokesperson. The staff member was working at the time of the incident. More. SAM

Indy Expands Colorado Foothold with Echo Mountain, Granby Ranch. The coalition now has four partner areas in Colorado, including Sunlight Mountain and Bluebird Backcountry, and is up to 121 downhill and Nordic resorts total across the U.S., Canada, and Japan. More. SAM

Indy Pass Adds Four Northeastern Nordic and Alpine Resorts. The Indy Pass has added four Northeastern Alpine and Nordic ski areas, making for 21 total participating ski areas in the Eastern region. Included are Peek ‘n Peak in New York and Tussey Mountain, Pa., on the Alpine side, and cross-country areas Catamount Outdoor Family Center, Vt., and the Rangeley Lakes Trail Center in Maine. More. SAM

Mt. Bachelor Biomass Boiler to Provide Cleaner Heat, Reduce Wildfire Risk. Powdr-owned Mt. Bachelor in Oregon will install a new wood energy facility to provide heat for four of its base area buildings using a modern biomass boiler fueled by the byproducts of forest management and wildfire fuel reduction activities within the surrounding Deschutes National Forest. Mt. Bachelor anticipates the new facility will reduce the resort’s propane consumption by roughly 150,000 gallons annually and reduce CO2 emissions by nearly 1,000 tons per year.  More.  SAM

Ski California Debuts Updated Digital Mountain Safety Guide. Ski California has debuted an updated digital version of its Mountain Safety Guide. Designed by the association and its member resorts in California and Nevada, the new version is a play off the group’s existing Mountain Safety Guide.  More. SAM

Fourteen New Chairlifts to Ride This Winter. There are a lot of new lifts, and even some expanded terrain, coming online this winter. Here’s what you can look forward to as you click into your planks at ski resorts across North America. More. Ski

The 10 Best—and Worst—Ski Resorts For Parking. An overview of parking requirements at the worst offenders this winter. More. Outside

Ed. Note: The following two articles list some of the same resorts but also some different ones.

The 10 Best Ski Resorts in North America for Seniors. The number of seniors on the slopes has reached epic proportions. In 2020-21 seniors accounted for 16.1% of skier visits, totaling 59 million, while a record 10.5 million seniors participated in the sport, according to the National Ski Areas Association. More. Travel + Leisure via Google Alerts

The Top 9 Resorts in the U.S. for Seniors. According to the National Ski Area Association (NSAA), the median age of snow sports participants has been gradually increasing. Additionally, over 16% of all participants are now seniors. These seniors are proving that there is no age limit for winter fun, and you don’t have to fly south when the weather turns cold. More Snowbrains via Google Alerts

New to the Market, Peak Skis Is Bringing Innovation to the Slopes. Developed by professional ski racer Bode Miller, Peak Skis is shaking up the industry with design technology that put Miller on podium after podium throughout his racing career. More. Ski

How to Wax Your Own Skis In 4 Easy Steps. Mere mortals can, in fact, learn to maintain their skis at home (and save money in the process). More. Ski

The Art of Charcuteski: Craft an On-mountain Dining Experience with the Skis That Got You There. Picture this: You’re at your favorite resort, and there’s bluebird skies above as you clip out of your skis, wedge them into the snow, and start layering on stacks of salami, cheese wedges, heaps of crackers and punchy pickled vegetables. This, my friends, is charcuteski. More. Tahoe Daily Tribune via Ski Racing Media

81-Year-Old Cross-Country Skier Odd Osland Still Finds Joy on the Trails. Norwegian transplant Odd Osland is at home in Minnesota’s Nordic ski community. Odd Osland is an elite skier who still competes across North America. More. Star Tribune via Ski Racing Media

The Hidden History of Skiing in the West. Skiing in the U.S., as we think of it now, came from Europe in the late 1800s by way of Scandinavian immigrants, who used skis as a mode of transportation. They also liked to have a good time in the long, dark mountainous winter, founding ski jumping hills at places like Howelsen Hill, in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, and Ecker Hill, near Parleys Summit, in Utah. More. Deseret News via Google Alerts.

September 2022

Historic Climate Bill Expected to Benefit Ski Industry. The package includes the largest climate, energy, and environmental justice investment ($370 billion) in U.S. history, from which the U.S. ski industry stands to benefit. More. SAM

Ski and Sports Shops See Impact of Russia-Ukraine War on Equipment Supplies. Ukraine is one of the biggest producers of winter sports equipment in Europe, producing hundreds of thousands of skis and snowboards each year. Certain brands may be hard to come by this snow season as disruptions in ski production from the war could rupture the supply chain. More. Sacramento Bee via Stars and Stripes

After Apocalyptic Lift Lines Last Year, Vail Resorts will Limit Ticket Sales this Winter.  Daily tickets at all of the company’s 37 North American resorts will be capped, but Epic Pass holders will not be affected. More. Ski Magazine

Vail Resorts Drops Vaccine Requirements, Will Limit Day Tickets. Vail Resorts has updated its Covid protocols, dropping vaccine requirements for guests and staff, and will limit day ticket sales for the upcoming winter season, according to its 2022-23 operating plan. Across all its resorts, the company will no longer require face coverings, vaccines, or dining reservations for guests. More. SAM

More Bidders for Jay Peak Likely to Appear. With the likelihood that another bidder (or more) for Jay Peak will surface in the next few days, the resort’s federal court appointed receiver, Michael Goldberg, filed a motion Aug. 18 proposing a new deadline of Sept. 2 for the sale of the resort. More. SAM

Indy Pass Adds Mountain High and Dodge Ridge in Calif. Indy Pass has added two more resorts to its growing list of partners for the 2022-23 season:  Mountain High and Dodge Ridge, Calif. The additions bring Indy Pass’s total alpine and Nordic resort partners to 106. More. SAM

Big Rock, Maine Gets $2.5 Million Boost from U.S. Department of Commerce. The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Authority (EDA) has awarded a $2.5 million grant to Big Rock Mountain to boost tourism by supporting investment into a new chairlift and increased snowmaking capacity at the Mars Hill, Maine, ski area. More. SAM

Big Snow, Mich. Acquisition Closed, Renames as  Snowriver Mountain Resort. Charles Skinner Jr. has closed on the acquisition of Big Snow Resort, which includes Indianhead and Blackjack ski areas, all of which will be renamed with new branding. Big Snow will transition to Snowriver Mountain Resort, the Indianhead area will be called Jackson Creek Summit, and Blackjack will be Black River Basin. More. SAM

Ikon Pass Adds Lotte Arai, Japan and Panorama, B.C. Alterra Mountain Company’s Ikon Pass has added Lotte Arai Resort in Japan and Panorama Mountain Resort in British Columbia. With the additions, the pass will provide access to more than 50 destinations in 10 countries for the 2022-23 season. More. SAM

The Most Legendary Skier in California History? “Snowshoe Thompson.” He was a skiing beast who charged 90 miles over the Sierra Nevada in the dead of winter – solo – on 10-foot skis carrying an 80-100-pound pack in only three days. Then, he’d turn around and charge the 90 miles back home in only two. The guy did this twice a month during winter for 20 years (1856 – 1876)…. More. SnowBrains