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February 23, 2009

Gangbangers Aren't Boy Scouts: Resort Towns Should 'Be Prepared'

Look around. It all seems idyllic, the quaint historic homes and business facades. Friendly locals greeting you in the restaurants, bars, and ski resorts. The escape from the chaos and realism of the outside urban world feels complete on a ski vacation. Not so fast.

Park City, Utah, and Summit County where the Wasatch ski resort town is located, have experienced two gang-related homicides in the past five years; an armed robbery of an ice cream shop in the Redstone development in 2007; a stabbing in 2006 by a 17-year-old female gang member; at least one rape case attributed to gangsters at a hotel; and, gang-related graffiti behind Smith's Market this past Christmas.

That sounds dramatic on its surface, though that's just two aggravated crimes in four years. The problem lies deeper, as Det. Andrew Burton from the Summit County Sheriff's office in Park City, Utah, explained it last week to The Industry Report.

It's A 'New' England In Post American Skiing Company Era

Reinvestment and rejuvenation at some of New England's premier mountain resorts has been the dramatic end result of the demise of American Skiing Co. and subsequent sale of its assets.

Investment in facilities and operations at Killington, Sugarloaf, Sunday River, Mount Snow, and Attitash was essentially on hold for a decade.

Then came those rocking few months in 2007: ASC sold Killington to POWDR Corp. for $85 million; Mount Snow and Attitash to Peak Resorts for $73.5 million; and Sugarloaf and Sunday River to Boyne for $77 million in cash and assumption of $2 million in debt, with Boyne immediately reselling the two resorts to CNL Income Properties Inc., which leased them back to Boyne as operator.

Lessons From The Chat Room: Defusing A Potential Firestorm

Sugarloaf operators ran into a chat room buzz saw when they yanked the season pass of a longtime 'Loafer for an off-hand, but ill-advised, comment he made about a tragic ski accident. A 16-year-old student at the Stratton Mountain School had skied off Spillway and hit a tree Jan. 20. She died the next day.

Posts at the resort's chat room, discussed the accident and speculated about many aspects of it. One frequent poster, calling himself "Exiled/Vonzipe," commented three days after the accident on what he perceived as marketing spin in a statement by one mountain employee reported in a news article.

Sugarloaf revoked his season pass, effectively "exiling" Vonzipe for real, the next day. He was told he would be escorted off the premises should he show up to ski again this season.

February 12, 2009

Nielsen Audit Confirms OnTheSnow.Com Remains Dominant Web Portal

Orinda, Calif. - OnTheSnow.com once again has confirmed its dominance as the number one most visited snow sports Web site, proving skiers and snowboarders remain passionate about their sport even during the current economic malaise.

Nielsen//NetRatings reports OnTheSnow.com captured 53.6 percent of the snow sports portal market share by logging 1,592,879 million unique visitors in January 2009. The ranking, certified by Hitwise Competitive Intelligence, increases OnTheSnow.com's market share from 49.6 percent a year ago. OnTheSnow.com is published by Mountain News Corp.

February 09, 2009

It's A 'Home Game' Olympics With American Heroes Says Kelly - 'A Real Opportunity'

Turner's At It Again: Here Comes 'Cheap Ski Movie'

Business Up In Europe; Fewer Flying West

Once Around The Ski Pole...

A cliffhanger at Jiminy Peak: CNL bought Jiminy Peak last month as we reported in an Industry Alert. Jiminy's Brian Fairbank gives us an inside story. "I had a full staff meeting with a team of 60 managers scheduled for 4 p.m., and CNL called me at 5 of 4 and said, 'You can't tell anyone, the deal's plugged up in the Fed's wire transfer system.' Well, I had everybody waiting for me, and I'm thinking, 'What am I going to do?' So we left somebody here with a radio, and I went down, and at 4 after 4 he called and said, 'The eagle has landed.'" ...

Here's when an audit is welcome: OnTheSnow.com - the worldwide consumer Web site published by Mountain News Corp. (parent of The Industry Report) - was audited in January by Neilsen Net Ratings and Hitwise Competitive Analysis. The site received 1,592,879 unique visitors, up 31 percent from Jan. 2008. OnTheSnow's market share among snow sites was 53.60 percent...

Keynoters at MTS to knock down barriers: "Stumbling Blocks to Stepping Stones" is the theme of the Mountain Travel Symposium March 29-April 4 in Keystone, Colo. Dr. Lalia Rach will focus on identifying the potential and possibilities in this difficult economic market. Dr. Oren Harari hits on maintaining profits and developing a competitive edge. Both speak during the Forum April 1-2.