Ski Girl Says

Jeannie Thoren Center for Women’s Skiing to open at Vail

Jeannie Thoren has signed on with Vail to open the Jeannie Thoren Center for Womens' Skiing at Vail in the 2009-2010 season. This is fantastic news for ski girls who will have the opportunity to visit the center. Thoren has been a leader in the ski industry, driving equipment design and fittings geared for females.

I had the opportunity this past weekend to hear Jeannie speak and to have my boots fitted by her and by the great staff at Dekdebruns Ski Shop.  (More to come on my boot fitting experience in the next post.) I can tell you that after years of arguing that my boots and my skis should not be the same as men's it is so refreshing to hear the Thoren theory.  

Jeannie breaks down the barriers of traditional thinking--that women's equipment is mens' gear with a pretty design, or a softer core.  She looks at anatomy and physical movement to show why for many females, creating an athletic stance on your skis requires gear set up to align a woman's body properly. 

Correct equipment and fit can make breakthroughs in your skiing. So if you are out at Vail this winter, schedule an appointment with Thoren and her team.   Find out, while having fun, if your skiing can be improved by tailoring your gear to meet a female stance. I dare you try not to crack a smile during and after the experience.  I am not sure it is possible.

Ski Area For Sale

"If I had a million dollars, I would buy you....," so goes the popular song by the Barenaked Ladies.

What would you wish someone would buy you? For a million dollars, you just qualify to bid on a ski area.

Elk Meadows in Beaver, Utah is up for auction until November 20.  Minimum bid is $1,000,000 and the projected value is over $5,000,000.  If you just happen to have a few million lying around and want to get in on the action, you could buy the area for ski girls everywhere.  Check it out online at the auction site. 

Ski Area Improvements Part V

As we've been counting down the top resorts and the improvements being made at each over the summer, one thing became evident.   There just is not as much development and expansion going on at resorts for this winter as in recent years.

The economy and in some states the weather, were tough on ski areas last season.  Ski resorts tend to have a long-range plan of improvements they intend to make.  When winter revenue is good, it is followed by a summer of reinvesting in the mountain. When revenues are slow, plans go on hold until a better year.

That is exactly what is happening this season. Many resorts has no development on the boards for this summer. What development there is, tends to be more in real estate and lodging than on the mountain. There are some exceptions, but in general reporting trail and chairlift expansion is pretty slow news this year.  Rather than continue the list,  Ski Girl will move on to other stories.

There is a bright spot in this lack of reinvestment. When resorts are challenged for growth, they are going to fight to bring in guests. So expect plenty of deals and lots of customer service focus in 2009-2010.  Ski areas want you back in a big way.  They need plenty of skier visits and a strong season.  If that happens, the reinvestment can pick back up next summer.

2009 Ski Area Improvements Part IV

Part IV in our series as we see what's new and improved for the upcoming ski season at the top ski areas.

 

16)   Keystone, Colorado & 17) Heavenly, California-  Both ski areas are part of Vail Resorts.   After a tough season and management changes, the company is playin git conservative this year. No big project on tap for 2009-2010.   Go out and enjoy the River Run Gondonla at Keystone, completed last season.

 

18)   Aspen Highland, Colorado - Also, nothing new here. 

 

19)   Copper Mountain, Colorado - Ouch. Also nothing for this season. However, Copper is working on a 7 year plan for growth. The plan has been through various stages of approval, but isn't quite ready for unveiling new features this season.

 

20)   Crested Butte, Colorado- Thank you. Crested Butte, for giving me a little to talk about this week.  Crested Butte is adding a revised learn to ski area. The beginner rea is regraded and expanded.   There is a new adventure park and a tubing area. The outpost and icebar are both receiving facelifts and expansions before winter.

 

Swain Rescued from Precipice

Every year ski areas go out of business. Swain Ski Area staff in upstate New York closed the lifts at the end of the 2008-2009 season, fearing they would never re-open.  The owners stated the resort would be permanently closed, unless a new ownership or operating plan could be arranged by the end of summer.

Summer is winding down and the little mountain announced it has been rescued. The owners of Ski Denton, which is only about an hour south of Swain in Pennsylvania, plans to purchase the New York resort. Denton owners will lease Swain with an intent to buy, while Swain staff continue to manage the mountain for the 2009-2010 season.

2009 Ski Area Improvements Part II

Part two in our Saturday Series on how the top resorts are upgrading this summer to earn your visits in winter 2009-2010.

6) Beaver Creek, Colorado- Beaver Creek doesn't mention any slope or facility upgrades for the coming season on their website. They do, however, mention a new web site. href=http://www.beavercreekextreme.com/beavercreekextreme/" target="blank">Beaver Creek Extreme appears to be geared at the freestyle and extreme skiers and snowboarders. It targets the visitors who Beaver Creek's previous marketing of their uber-grooming practices and posh facilities forgot. Previous marketing would thwart these skier visits, giving the impression Beaver Creek is a big open field of Corduroy. Yes, it has more to offer. Yes, the less swanky and more hardcore skiers are worth attracting. Beaver Creek is finally catching on.

7) Aspen, Colorado - I tried and tried. I couldn't find anything new posted about Aspen. The web site is a bit behind the times, touting what will be new for the 2008-2009 season. However, it does announce the dates of operation for 2009-2010.

8) Steamboat, Colorado - Perhaps I should not have been so hard on Aspen for their lack of promoting anything new. Visit Steamboat's site and it tells you how to view facts on the 2007-2008 season.

Are resorts suffering that much from the economy that no upgrades are being made? Or does the pr staff have the summer off and won't announce anything til fall? You would think with most mountains trying to sell season tickets now, they would be putting their best foot forward and bragging about the upcoming season.

9) Breckenridge, Colorado  - Peak 8 Base Area is undergoing renovations. Expect plenty of celebrations to mark the resorts 150th anniversary this year.

10) Telluride, Colorado - This resort also is mum about 2010 plans. However, we'll give them a break since they added over 400 acres of terrain, opening the Revelation Bowl last year. If you didn't get to Telluride for the opening of this acreage, it's new to you this year.

Would You Buy into a Ski Resort?

Magic Mountain in Londonderry, VT, announced they are selling shares to skiers. For $3,000 you could own one of 1,000 shares in the mountain. With ski areas closing up around the country, this creative financing could revive the New England resort.

Time will tell if skiers at the mountain will invest in exchange for discounts on passes and services, and a chance to own a piece of where they ski.  Magic is modeling their plan after Mad River Glen, which sold shares starting in the mid 1990s and operates as a co-op.

Mad River, however, has a fanatical customer base. What other resort has skiers who will post stickers of the mountain anywhere in the world?The bumper sticker slogan, "Mad River Glen, Ski it if You Can," has resulted in sightings of the sticker around the world. The area is also a mecca for tele-skiers.  Fans of Mad River, one of the few resorts to still ban snowboarding, are uniquely dedicated to their mountain.

Will Magic be able to entice it's customers to buy into their plan? Will it suffer the fate of so many other mountains?  Let's hope there are 1,000 people who believe in the mountain and have the ability to invest.

Ski Resort Improvement Across North America in 2009

Every summer, ski areas compete to add new features, new facilities, more snow-making, more trails, more innovation and bells and whistles. They are looking for the additions that will upgrade to keep them current, or to be the best of the best. Ski areas need you to visit to stay in business. They continually make summer improvements to keep you coming back. Over the “2009 Ski Area Improvements” series, we’ll count down the top resorts* and what they are doing to win your business.  Look for the series on the next few Saturdays.

 *Top resorts as ranked in November, 2008, edition of Ski Magazine.