Oz Brains | December 20, 2018Falls Creek, Australia. Credit: Falls CreekVail Resorts is planning to buy Victoria’s Mount Hotham and Falls Creek ski resorts for about $120 million to expand its global offering of resorts reports the Australian Financial Review (paywall).Vail Resorts, which already owns 15 ski fields across the US, Canada, and Australia – including Perisher in NSW, Australia’s largest ski field – is understood to be paying a hefty 10 times earnings for the two ski fields. The purchase gives Vail Resorts a dominant presence in Australia, as Falls Creek, and Mount Hotham are Australia’s 3rd and 5th largest resorts respectively (Thredbo 4th, Mt Buller joint 1st).Falls Creek, Australia’s 3rd largest resort The company sees the southern-hemisphere market as a way to tap the fast-growing market of Chinese skiers that has the potential to supercharge the global skiing industry.“What’s happening on a global scale is changing the game,” said businessman Lorenz Grollo, whose family owns the Mount Buller resort, also in the Victorian Alps.Epic Pass holders can now add Australia to their bucket list. Credit: Mt. HothamFor Vail Resorts, adding Falls Creek and Mount Hotham increases the value of their Epic Pass to existing holders, which allows them unlimited access to its resorts. Although not all skiers see it like that. After Vail resorts added Whistler Blackcomb to their portfolio, Canadian skiers complained that the resort favored high spending tourists over locals and the pass priced in US dollars pushed up costs for people paying in the weaker Canadian currency.Mr. Grollo said Colorado-based Vail Resorts had also approached his family about buying Mount Buller and the multiple it was prepared to pay on Mount Hotham and Falls Creek showed it was confident about future growth prospects for the industry.Posted from SnowBrainsThe post Vail Resorts Just Took Over Australia appeared first on Ski Federation.Read in browser » by APDecember 15, 2018GETTY IMAGESStefan Luitz of Germany celebrates after crossing the finish line to win men’s Giant Slalom in Colorado.The International Ski Federation intends to strip German racer Stefan Luitz of his first World Cup win for using an oxygen mask but will not seek further punishment.FIS secretary general Sarah Lewis said the German Ski Association has been notified that the rules call for “disqualification from the race at the event where the offense occurred.”Racing in a giant slalom in Beaver Creek, Colorado, this month that started at an altitude of 3,152 metres, Luitz was seen using an oxygen tank between runs. He won by retaining his first-run lead.The victory ended runner-up Marcel Hirscher’s five-race winning streak in the event but the Olympic champion in giant slalom could yet be awarded the win.FIS anti-doping rules state oxygen tanks cannot be brought to race venues, and “competition results achieved after the use of the equipment shall be automatically disqualified.”“It” part of the anti-doping and medical guide regulation but it’s related to a prohibited method so it’s very different from blood doping or taking of anabolic steroids and different offences are categorised in different ways,” Lewis said. “This is just a breach of the regulations.”Added Norwegian skier Kjetil Jansrud, “You see the logic behind it. You don’t want athletes in cross country or other disciplines using oxygen. It doesn’t send a good signal.”GETTY IMAGESStefan Luitz was seen using an oxygen tank between runs.While Norwegian athletes are banned under national rules from using oxygen tanks, Jansrud said he’s seen athletes from many other teams use them during training at altitude.The German association was informed of the FIS decision this week and has two weeks to request a hearing before a decision will be made. After the decision is issued, the German association can appeal the ruling to the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport.While there were reports other German skiers also used oxygen masks, Lewis said no other athletes were investigated.Germany team director Wolfgang Maier acknowledged the team made a mistake but maintained it had not cheated.Besides the victory and valuable World Cup points, Luitz also stands to lose 45,000 Swiss Francs ($45,000) in prize money.In the meantime, Luitz is still racing. He finished 30th in a GS in Val d’Isere, France, last weekend and is expected to compete in races in Alta Badia, Italy, and Saalbach, Austria, over the next week.“I feel very sorry for him, because it’s just a stupid mistake by someone who should have known better,” Aksel Lund Svindal said after winning a super-G on Friday. “And it’s too bad that this is what we’re talking about now instead of the fact that he tore his ACL in Alta Badia last year and he won in Beaver Creek this year. Sad is the only word to describe the whole situation.”Posted from Stuff.co.nz via Powder MadazineThe post Skier Stripped of World Cup Win for Using Oxygen Mask appeared first on Ski Federation.Read in browser » Jay HamburgerDecember 14, 2018Park City Mountain Resort has closed two tracts of high-elevation terrain as a result of an unidentified landowner opting not to renew a lease, the resort said on Thursday.A spokesperson for the resort provided the information in response to a Park Record inquiry.According to the resort, Scott’s Bowl and West Scott’s Bowl are closed to the public based on the loss of the lease. The closure is “until further notice,” the statement from the spokesperson said. The two bowls, accessed by the Jupiter lift, are close to the resort boundary. The statement indicated the resort will post signs and ropes marking the closure.The closure will also include terrain located between Scott’s Bowl and Constellation, a nearby ski run.The statement indicated terrain that is open off Pinecone Ridge will be accessible from the Quicksilver Gondola midstation.The resort said the landowner “has chosen not to renew the lease” after an agreement was in place for longer than 14 years. The statement said the talks with the landowner continue, “but it is likely that this area will not open for the 2018-19 season.”“Fortunately, the rest of the terrain surrounding Jupiter Lift will be open for normal operations this season,” the statement said.Posted from the Park Record via Powder MagazineThe post PCMR indefinitely closes two upper-elevation bowls after losing lease appeared first on Ski Federation.Read in browser » Andy DennisonDecember 17, 2018Get lucky with first-track freshies at Vermont’s Sugarbush. (Sugarbush/Facebook)At many U.S. resorts, you can have the mountain to yourself before the first chair.Known as “first tracks,” the chance to put your signature carvings on the hill before others is a tantalizing option. There may be a charge, and all have limited space and require mid-level skills. Here’s some of what SnoCountry found:Fresh corduroy awaits for early birds at Sunday River. (Sunday River/Facebook)On weekends and holidays, Sunday River gets skiers and riders on the hill earlier than most — 7:15 a.m. – because lifts open at 8. Advanced sign-up and lift pass required, but you get first cinnamon buns out of oven at Peak Lodge.Sugarbush charges $75 for early ‘cat ride up Lincoln Peak. Daily limit is 12 skiers and ‘boarders.Hop gondola before the crowds for carving heaven at Aspen. (Aspen-Snowmass/Facebook)Freshies with a guide at Aspen Mountain or Snowmass doesn’t cost anything. At Aspen, the gondola ride goes at 8 a.m. daily, while Snowmass’ first tracks runs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.Complete first figure-eights on the mountain. (Breckenridge/Facebook)At Breckenridge — the nation’s busiest resort – getting first dibs is a prime opportunity. All you have to do is stay at resort lodging and show up at 7:30 a.m. on selected dates.The whole mountain is yours to track up new powder at Steamboat. (Larry Pierce, Steamboat/Facebook)There’s no guide at Steamboat so what’s open to all is open to early birds. Cost is about $40, but they sell out quickly. First turns on Sundown Express, Sunshine and South Peak await.First light of the day illuminates an early run at Angel Fire. (Angel Fire/Facebook)At New Mexico’s Angel Fire Resort, first tracks program runs every Saturday and Sunday and select days during holidays. Cost is $49. Go up at 7:30 a.m. with a ski school instructor for at least two early-bird runs.Lady leads down unbroken powder during first-tracks run at Grand Targhee. (Grand Targhee/Facebook)You don’t need a lift ticket to join the patrol and instructors at Grand Targhee for their Early Tracks. Fee is $89 or free if you stay at resort lodging. Lifts turn at 8 a.m. and early-trackers get to stay on mountain until 9:30 a.m. The Idaho resort also offers a 10-trip early tracks punch ticket.Posted from SnoCountryThe post Get Up Early: Laying Down The First Tracks On The Mountain appeared first on Ski Federation.Read in browser » Martha WilsonDecember 19, 2018Mount Snow is putting the finishing touches on the new Carinthia base lodge. (Mount Snow)Mount Snow’s highly anticipated new Carinthia Base Lodge will host an official kickoff party Dec. 22, celebrating the new offering of a range of guest amenities at the Carinthia base area.At 42,000 square feet, this $22 million project is five times the size of the former lodge and features a sit-down restaurant, two bars, multiple made-to-order food stations, as well as everything a skier or rider needs during the course of his or her day, including a retail store, rentals, tuning, ski patrol and ticket sales.The parking area view of the new Carinthia Lodge. (Mount Snow)This two-year project is the start of a larger master plan for the Carinthia base area that will eventually see an additional 100 units of ski-in/ski-out lodging.“This lodge is a drastic upgrade. We went from one cafeteria in the old lodge to two restaurants, a cafeteria, and two bars in the new lodge. To put it in scale, the new lodge’s slopeside deck alone is bigger in its entirety than the old lodge,” Mount Snow’s Jamie Storrs told SnoCountry.com.The slopeside view of Carinthia Base Lodge. (Mount Snow)High Timber Lounge starts the day off as a coffee bar and breakfast place, then transforms into paninis and good food to fuel you up mid-day, finishing as a cocktail lounge as the afternoon progresses into the evening.High Timber will offer multi-station made-to-order choices such as a noodle bar, grill station, salads and soups.Iron Loft will be Carinthia’s full sit-down restaurant, along with an attached cocktail bar. “That’s going to be a place for people that want to take a little more time at lunch and enjoy some time with family and friends, or to meet up for a cocktail and tapas for après,” Storrs told us.The new preferred parking lot at Carinthia is the closest lot to the ski lifts, so Storrs said many people are utilizing their preferred parking pass and going over there for quick access to the slopes. “It has always been an area where people that know go to start their day because there are going to be less crowds over there.”Carinthia currently boasts the largest terrain park in North America. (Mount Snow)He added that even though Carinthia is currently the largest terrain park in North America, “we keep wide corridors at the sides of the parks, for people who aren’t hitting the features to make their way down to the lodge, as well as to just go and watch some of the action.”Along with the opening party at Carinthia Lodge Dec. 22, Mount Snow is also celebrating the 10th anniversary of Carinthia Parks and hosting the Carinthia Classic fueled by Monster Energy. Come to watch some great competition or test your luck at the $20,000 cash purse.Posted from SnoCountryThe post Mount Snow Opens New Carinthia Lodge appeared first on Ski Federation.Read in browser »Recent Articles: NSCF Newsbeat November-December 2018 Powder through Christmas and beyond Snowdon Six Debuts As Killington Improves Flow, Lifts Storm Dispatch: Mad River Glen, Vermont Trail Name Series: Doc Dempsey’sCopyright © 2018 National Ski Council Federation, All rights reservedhttp://www.skifederation.org |
