NEWS AND DEALS
from ski and snowboard resorts around North America

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Got deals? Send 'em to mitch@skisnowboard.com

SKI/SNOWBOARD NEWS July 19-22, 2008
Edited by Steve Giordano

Non-stop air service between Salt Lake City and the Canadian Rockies International Airport (YXC) in Cranbrook, BC starts December 17th. The airport is just 20 minutes from Kimberley Alpine Resort and 60 minutes from Fernie Alpine Resort.

Freestyle skiing and snowboarding’s elite athletes will converge in southern Vermont's Mount Snow January 8-11, 2009. Mount Snow will be the only East Coast stop of the AST Winter Dew Tour (see why below). The event features slope style and superpipe disciplines in both skiing and snowboarding. It will be televised live on NBC. The complete 2008/2009 AST Winter Dew Tour schedule is as follows: Dec. 18-21 Breckenridge Ski Resort – Breckenridge, Colo. Jan. 8-11 Mount Snow Resort – West Dover, Vt. Feb. 19-22 Northstar-at-Tahoe Resort – Lake Tahoe, Calif. The AST Summer Dew Tour, which features skateboarding, BMX and freestyle motocross, started its third season in June.

Mammoth Mountain, the third most visited ski resort in the US, announced Horizon Air daily service from Los Angeles starting on December 18th 2008. Skiers and boarders will now be able to fly directly into Mammoth Yosemite Airport, cutting out the drive from Los Angeles or Reno, NV. The one-hour-and-five-minute flight will depart Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) daily at 2:20 p.m. and arrive at Mammoth Yosemite Airport (MMH) at 3:25 p.m. The return flight will leave Mammoth at 4:05 p.m. and arrive at LAX at 5:10 p.m.

Freestyle terrain at Mount Snow is about to get a major makeover. Officials announced June 10 that the resort will dedicate the entire Carinthia mountain face to freestyle terrain parks when it opens for the 2008-09 season, transforming 95 acres of trails into a massive park system. A smorgasbord of rails, jumps and halfpipes will cover nearly five miles of terrain at Carinthia. A snowskate playground, hikable park, beginners’ learning park and a skate ramp will surround the base area, while the base lodge itself will be renovated and outfitted with lounge areas, an extended outdoor deck with ample seating, counter seating along the windows, free wireless internet, flat screen televisions and outdoor fire pits. A high-speed quad and a double chairlift will shuttle skiers and riders up the hill, where they can choose from a variety of approximately 125 freestyle features scattered around 12 full terrain parks. A tree-skiing area, a superpipe with 18-foot walls, a mini-pipe with 8-foot walls, an all-natural park absent of manmade material and a big-air site will also be featured.

For the 2008/2009 ski season Crested Butte Mountain Resort is planning on increasing its air service by an additional 6,000 seats with new flights from Salt Lake City, Atlanta and direct service from Chicago. The resort is offering travelers two major incentives along with the increased access that translate over into an average of $700 in savings for a family of four. *****Friends and Family Fly Free offers one free ticket for every two tickets purchased *****$30 baggage check in credit ($15 each way) for each traveler

The Summit at Snoqualmie is installing a high-speed quad to replace the low-speed triple on Silver Fir. Ride time will be 4 minutes instead of 10.

Revelstoke Mountain Resort announced its new partnership with Hawkair Aviation for flights between Calgary and Revelstoke this coming winter season. Scheduled air service between Calgary International Airport and Revelstoke Airport will commence on December 8th, 2008. The initial schedule calls for round-trips on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. See www.revelstokemountainresort.com for more information.

Crested Butte is working on next season's improvements: increased and expanded airline service, upgrades and remodel of the Treasury Center, a new "Kids Base Camp" replacing Kids World, on-mountain terrain expansion in Teocalli Bowl and glading and brush cutting on the mountain. The resort base area hotels continue to expand guest amenities and services. The Lodge at Mountaineer Square, Elevation Hotel and the Grand Lodge were recently accepted and are now part of the prestigious Preferred Hotel Group.

The $4 million Diamond Peak Base Lodge Renovation (Phase 1) on schedule and set for a completion on November 1, 2008.

Stowe Mountain Lodge opened its doors to the public on Saturday, June 14, 2008. The 139-room resort claims to be the first true luxury resort hotel experience to open in Vermont in more than 50 years. The Spa and Cooper Wellness at Stowe Mountain Lodge is a destination in and of itself. Cooper Wellness is endorsed by the Dallas-based Cooper Aerobics Center and offers special programs and seminars focusing on healthy lifestyle choices. For more information, visit www.stowemountainlodge.com.

Maine's Shawnee Peak Ski Area donated $15,000 and provided nearly 100 complimentary season passes to Maine Medical Center's, Children's Cancer Program patients and their families during the 2007-2008 season. The Maine Children's Cancer Program Social Workers also received complimentary season passes.

Central reservations offices at Big White and Silver Star are already taking bookings for the 2008/09 ski season. Deer Valley is now taking advance reservations for all Deer Valley Skier Services winter products, children’s activities, ski rentals and private lessons.

Planned improvements at Deer Valley Resort for the 2008/2009 ski season include a remodel of the Empire Canyon Lodge replacement of the existing Cushing’s Cabin at the top of Flagstaff Mountain with a new cabin that will seat 40 to 45 guests. Deer Valley will also replace the main snowmaking line from the Snow Park (base) area to the top of the Carpenter Express and Silver Lake Express chairlifts.

Glacier skiing and riding on Blackcomb’s Horstman Glacier runs to July 27, and this summer, Whistler Blackcomb doubled its terrain park features and upgraded to a Superpipe. Grooming and parks crews built the summer Superpipe under the Glacier Express chair. The pipe wall features three to four medium jibs and is groomed nightly. As the build-out continued, the bottom of Showcase T-Bar became jib central with six rails and boxes, varying in difficulty from small to large, and four medium-sized booters. Regular skiing and riding lanes are also open to the public. Glacier skiing runs 12-3 p.m. (uploads 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.).

Solitude Mountain Resort is spending $7 million this summer to replace two fixed-grip quads with high-speed detachable quads. One will load from each of the two base areas.

Keystone Resort announced plans to install a new state-of-the-art eight-passenger gondola to replace the current six-passenger River Run Gondola for the 2008-2009 ski and snowboard season. A key component of the plan includes moving the bottom terminal of the new River Run Gondola into the River Run Village. The upgraded River Run Gondola will follow the same alignment as the existing gondola with the top terminal located in the same location at the summit of Dercum Mountain. A new mid-station will be constructed halfway up Dercum Mountain with loading and unloading in both directions, giving skiers and snowboarders an option to access the upper trails from mid-mountain and to download at the end of their ski day.

Organizers of the annual Winter Trails program have announced that January 10, 2009, is the date set for the 14th annual event nationwide. Winter Trails is an opportunity for those new to snow sports to try snowshoeing and cross country skiing free at participating locations around the U.S.

United Airlines will begin daily flights from Chicago to Montrose/Telluride Regional Airport on December 11, 2008. United will also be increasing the number of flights it operates from Los Angeles to Montrose/Telluride to twice-weekly. Delta Airlines will be increasing its Atlanta – Montrose route from two to three flights a week. The new flight brings the total number of winter non-stops to the Montrose/Telluride Regional Airport to eight cities, including daily Chicago, Denver, Dallas, Houston and Salt Lake City, plus Newark (weekly), Atlanta (3x weekly) and Los Angeles (2x weekly). Direct flights from Denver and Phoenix into the Telluride Regional airport are also available during the winter season.

Ishpeming, Michigan is the home of the U.S. National Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum. This year's Hall of Fame Week-end will be September 19-21, 2008. Among the "Class of 2007" inductees will be Jake Burton Carpenter and Donna Carpenter. They are the first representatives from snowboarding to be elected and also the first to be elected as a couple. For more info, see http://www.skihall.com/

Telluride Ski Resort announced the opening of Revelation Bowl for the 2008-09 winter season. This European-style terrain, located directly off the back side of Gold Hill and Chair 14, will be served by a new, locally manufactured Leitner-Poma quad-lift. Situated above tree line, the natural, wide-open bowl offers advanced and expert skiing.

Vermont's Mount Snow announced that it will install more than 150 additional fan guns this summer, investing over $5 million in energy-efficient snowmaking. Combined with last summer's installation of 101 of the machines, Mount Snow will have the most new-technology fan guns in North America when it opens for the 2008-09 ski season.

Park City Mountain Resort announced $10.5 million in improvements for the 2008-09 winter season including a new high-speed chair lift, terrain enhancements and renovation of the Mid-Mountain Lodge. The new Crescent lift will replace, realign and lengthen by twice the existing Ski Team lift and will begin near the base of the Resort and extend to Crescent Ridge (also known as Ski Team Ridge). It will give access to a majority of the Resort and direct access to the Silverlode, Bonanza, King Con, PayDay, Town, Pioneer and McConkey’s lifts.

Aspen Skiing Company announced that a new lift will be built this summer to replace the 1975 double Sheer Bliss lift at Snowmass. The new lift will be a high speed quad and will be realigned to provide easy access to the entire Big Burn and Sheer Bliss areas. The new lift plus a new $9 million restaurant will bring the 3-year Snowmass upgrade total to $50 million.

Sunday River announced plans to install a unique hybrid ski lift, called a chondola (a high-speed detachable six-pack chairlift with some gondolas), in time for the 2008-2009 winter season. It will run from the South Ridge Base Area to the summit of North Peak. From the top, six of the mountain's eight peaks will be accessible. Planners hope to offer 12-hour skiing on North Peak and South Ridge as soon as next season.

Sun Valley Resort will begin construction of the Bald Mountain Gondola in September, 2008. It will originate at the base of River Run and climb to the Top Terminal Plaza at the Roundhouse.

Killington and Pico resorts plan to invest $8.4 million in capital improvements for next season, Killington's 50th anniversary. The fixed-grip Skye Peak quad chair will be replaced by a detachable high-speed quad, reducing transit time from the current 13 minutes to just under five minutes. That will make nine high-speed lifts at the largest ski area in the eastern US. Other improvements will include energy efficient upgrades to the snowmaking systems on both mountains.

Jiminy Peak, in western Massachusetts, became first ski area in North America to produce its own power. It built a $3.9 million, 1.5-megawatt wind turbine that supplies one-third of the power for Jiminy's operation.

Skisnowboard.com features a new set of deals every other week in summertime, edited by Mitch Kaplan. The deals for June 30, 2008, are:

Hotel Terra in Jackson Hole is a LEED-certified eco-hotel offering this summer several value-added packages. The Hot Hotel at a Hot Value offers guests an opportunity to stay four nights for the price of three nights, equaling a savings of 25%. The three-night Suite Getaway package includes three nights’ lodging in a one bedroom suite and two 50-minute massages, one per person, starting at $479/pn for a three night minimum. Both deals are good through September 20, 2008, exclude include taxes, fees for supplemental services, or gratuities, and cannot be used in conjunction with any other special offer or package. Info: 800-631-6281, 307-739-4000, or www.hotelterrajacksonhole.com.

Way up in northern Montana, Whitefish Mountain Resort has created the Long Summer Weekend Package starting at $552/pp/do. Included are three nights’ lodging in a standard condominium, two scenic lift rides, and round trip train fare in a sleeper car on Amtrak with departure from Seattle station. Taxes and fees not included. Some restrictions apply. Local rental cars are also available. You can do this until September 7, 2008. Info: 877-754-3474.

Summer rocks at Snowbird, where the All-Day Activities Pass includes unlimited, daily use of the new four-station climbing wall, Aerial Tram, Alpine Slide, ZipRider, Bungy Trampoline, Peruvian Chairlift and Tunnel, Mechanical Bull and Inflatables. Other summer activities at Snowbird include hiking, fishing, mountain scooters, mountain biking, a 12-story climbing wall, the Cliff Spa, patio dining, the Cool Air Concert Series with free weekend concerts, Folk and Bluegrass festival (July 11-13), Rock and Blues festival (Aug. 1-2) and Oktoberfest. Snowbird summer lodging packages including accommodations and an All-Day Activities Pass begin as low as $75 pp/do. Info: 800-453-3000 or www.snowbird.com.

Luxury, they tell us, meets adventure in Beaver Creek this summer.
How? Try this: the Pines Lodge offers a family Hike by Day, Raft by Night package. It includes three nights’ lodging for four people, a guided day hike, a family picnic lunch, a nighttime float trip on the Colorado River with special night vision glasses to view wildlife, and a family fun pack amenity upon arrival. Rates start at $999, excluding taxes and gratuities. The package is subject to availability, but you can do this til September 15, 2008. Info: 800-859-8242 or www.vbcrp.com.

At Whistler, Helijet International and the Fairmont Chateau Whistler have created Heli-va-Game, a unique golf package. Designed for foursomes, the Heli-va-Game package includes round-trip, private helicopter transfer from Vancouver to Whistler, eight rounds of golf on the award-winning Chateau Whistler Golf Course, four hours of lessons at Canada’s only David Leadbetter Academy, a round of specially designed golf massages, dinner in The Wine Room, and three nights’ accommodation on the resort’s exclusive Fairmont Gold floor. Rates start from C$6,635/pp to live in the lap of luxury. Info: 800-441-1414 or www.fairmont.com.

Jiva Hill Park, located on the French/Swiss border, just 15 minutes from Geneva and five minutes from Monts Jura resort, the largest skiing center in the Jura mountains, is an exclusive new resort offering all kinds of sports and relaxation. The major French Alps resorts of Megève, Avoriaz, Chamonix and La Clusaz, or the Swiss Alps’ Gstaad, Verbier, Zermatt and Crans Montana are nearby. Situated in its own 70-acre park, the hotel has a huge man-made lake with a water sports center where in summer guests can enjoy waterskiing, slalom and jumping, plus a riding school, tennis courts, jogging circuit, fitness trail, bikes for rent, and golf driving range on the grounds. Off property, two 18-hole golf courses are just minutes away, as are hiking in the Jura mountains, horseback riding, water sports on Lake Geneva, wind surfing, canoeing, boat rental and fishing in neighboring lakes and rivers. Indoors, the Wellness Center offers swimming, Jacuzzi, sauna, hamman, massage, Carita facial and body treatments, a fitness center and herbal tea bar. Rates for deluxe rooms start at US$373 pn/do and junior suites start at US$687 pn/do. A Waterskiing Package, which includes one night in a deluxe room with breakfast, four ski rides of 15 minutes each, equipment rental, boat and qualified instruction costs US$567 pn/do. Info: +33-450-28-48-48 or www.jivahill.com.

Most Recent Deals:

Sure, Telluride is wonderful in winter. But, it may be even more wonderful in summer. Particularly if you take advantage of the Luxury Upgrade at the Mountain Lodge at Telluride. Here’s how it works: book a standard lodge room for three or more nights and receive an upgrade to a luxurious resort studio suite. What you get: 650 square feet with separate living/dining area, kitchen, dining table, and master bedroom, large bathroom with jetted tub, private balcony, fireplace. Regular rates at Mountain Lodge range from $119/night for a studio to a maximum of $2,000/night for a four-bedroom cabin. Info: www.mountainlodgetelluride.com or 866-368-6867; mention promotion code UPGRADE. And, while you’re there, get in on the myriad outdoor adventures Telluride offers by hooking up with the folks at Telluride Sports’ Adventure Desk. They provide help planning activities ranging from mild to extreme. Among the options: Mountain biking, a full day’s rental is $35 or $49, and a Telluride Outside gentle, half-day Head Pass guided tour costs $90/person; half- and full-day raft trips ranging from Class I to Class III rapids and cost $85-$95; half-day fly fishing for novices to experienced range between $225-$335/person and full day trips including lunch range from $290-flight. Info: 800-828-7547 ext. 211.

Way up in Maine, Sugarloaf USA hides one of the most challenging mountain golf courses you’ll ever want to play. To entice you to try it, they’ve invented the Sugarloaf Golf & Stay Packages, which you can do through October, 2008. Pricing: through July 3rd & midweek in October, $99-$109; midweek July 7-September 25, $115-$129; weekends July 4 to course closing, $139-159. That’s pp/pn/do, and includes nightly lodging, 18 holes of golf with cart each day, and Sports & Fitness Center access. Taxes & resort fees additional. Info:www.sugarloaf.com.

West coast golfers aren’t left out. Not with the Northstar-at-Tahoe Resort Stay & Golf Package. The links is like two courses in one: the front nine is commonly referred to as the mountain nine; the back nine, or the meadow nine, offers a more links-style golf experience. The deal costs as little as $69.50 pp/pn and includes lodging, two rounds of golf per person, per two-night stay and a $35 gift card for shopping or other activities at the resort. Guests receive use of a shared golf cart during play and tee times are available daily starting at noon. Unused golf passes can be exchanged for a $25 Northstar Resort gift card. Info: 800-GO-NORTH (466-6784) or www.NorthstarAtTahoe.com.

Devil’s Thumb Ranch, which characterizes itself as an eco-friendly, wilderness-based upscale ranch resort and spa in Colorado’s Fraser Valley 10 minutes west of Winter Park, is offering two special women-only clinics in July. The first one is Women, Wheels and Wine on July 6th. It’s designed to improve skills, knowledge and fitness and then reward attendees with special spa and rejuvenation options. For a mere $85, participants get: professional mountain bike instruction from Women’s Quest and the Titus Factory Team; lunch; Lectures on bike fit, bike training and bike maintenance; a Yoga for Improved Performance class; use of the sauna, steam room, hot tub and pool; individualized instruction; a gift water bottle, t-shirt and bike gloves; and raffle drawings for goods and gear throughout the day. Advanced reservations are required and can be made through the Devil’s Thumb Ranch Adventure Center: 970-726-8231. Better yet—make it an overnight spa getaway. When you mention Women, Wheels & Wine you receive a 10% discount on spa treatments at Ranch Creek Spa and get lodging rates starting at $210/night. Info: www.devilsthumbranch.com or 800-933-4339 or 970-726-5632.

As if there’s not already enough stuff going on at Whistler/Blackcomb these days, now this: Whistler Wellness Week 2008. With more than 100 seminars and instructors from around the world, the event is a premier wellness event. The focus is on body, beauty and betterment—a holistic approach to life, with seminars addressing everything from physical fitness and beauty to un-cluttering your home to provide a more harmonious living space. Participants choose from up to five sessions each day. And, there’s Yoga Twenty Four, a 24-hour yoga marathon. The week ends with a Gaia Gala, satsangs (gatherings) inspired by Deepak Chopra's visit to Whistler last year where he challenged people to explore how they could "be the change that they want to see in the world." The Gala will feature a reception, entertainment, presentation and discussion of how each one of us can make the world a better place. Day passes are $40. Two-night packages start at $179/pp, including two-nights' accommodation and a two-day pass. Info: www.whistler.com/wellness or 800.WHISTLER; also www.yogatwentyfour.com.