Month: January 2019

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Jay Peak is officially for sale.

Jay Peak is officially for sale – will it be able to get the $250M to pay back investors?

Jay Peak is officially for sale – will it be able to get the $250M to pay back investors?

News from Burlington Free Press and WCAX

After years of turmoil due to one of the biggest frauds to ever have hit the federal EB-5 program, Jay Peak Resort is now for sale.

Ariel Quiros, former owner of the resort and his partner Bill Stenger, allegedly as per the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission misused $200 million in foreign investor funds, with Quiros pocketing personally some $50 million.

The investors have put down $500,000 each in order to receive a green card for themselves and their families. The Miami-based federal receiver Michael Goldberg said that of the 540 investors in Jay Peak, only six have received conditional residency and moved to the United States. About 160 are waiting for their permanent residencies to be approved.

Investors have not received their money back but will they? The answer depends on whether Jay Peak could be sold for $250 million.

Michael Goldberg pointed out that investors from China and other Asian countries, Latin America and Europe were never guaranteed their money back, but the 35 investors in Jay Peak’s Tram Haus Lodge have been repaid in full.

Goldberg said “This was not a loan, it was an investment, and it’s quite possible that these individuals made a bad investment. Basically, the resort will be worth what it’s worth. The fact is, even if there was no fraud, they may not have gotten their whole money back.”

New York’s investment banker Jeffrey Altman of Houlihan Lokey was hired by Goldberg to help sell Jay Peak. Altmann declined to comment the price in which he things the resort can be sold. He was involved in the recent sale of Stowe to Vail Resorts, advising the seller which was the insurance giant AIG.

Mike Krongel of Mirus Resort Advisors, located in Burlington, Massachusetts, explained that a ski resort’s value is estimated as some multiple of its EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation).

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Grandvalira heads into the weekend with more slopes open and a packed schedule of activities

Photo: Grandvalira, Andorra. HOW WOULD A NO-DEAL BREXIT AFFECT THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY? MPI BROKERS GIVES ITS INTERPRETATION OF INFORMATION FROM VARIOUS SOURCES.

Grandvalira heads into the weekend with more slopes open and a packed schedule of activities

  •  The resort is working towards opening the Àliga World Cup slope to the public soon
  •  Family activities, sports experiences and plenty of culinary opportunities will fill the resort with winter fun

Grandvalira heads into the weekend with all six sectors running at full capacity. The resort is currently working to increase its kilometres of skiable slopes. It now has 90% of its ski lifts up and running and plans to prepare 170 km of slopes.  The latest news is that El Tarter plans to open the iconic Àliga slope to the public. This season, the piste will become one of the venues for the 2019 World Cup Finals.

Photo: Grandvalira: 15 Jan 2019. Grandvalira heads into the weekend with more slopes open and a packed schedule of activities.
Photo: Grandvalira: 15 Jan 2019. Grandvalira heads into the weekend with more slopes open and a packed schedule of activities.

Weather forecasts indicate that, from Thursday 17 January, clouds will gather in the mountains and leave some fresh layers of snow. Meanwhile, teams on the ground are working hard to guarantee the quality and safety standards required for winter sports.

Activities for all the family

This weekend, Grandvalira aims to fill the resort with a wide range of activities for all audiences.

World Snow Day:

On Sunday 20 January, the Soldeu sector will mark World Snow Day with a series of activities for children. Parallel skiing, giant slalom and mini ski cross sessions will begin at 9:30 a.m., as well as various workshops in the Ski School’s snow garden. Hot chocolate will be served at 11:30 a.m. at Pla d’Espiolets.

Sledding by night:

Grandvalira is now offering night-time sledding on the La Solana/Tubs slope in the Pas de la Casa sector. At the bottom of the La Solana chair lift, visitors will find a marquee with sleds available to rent for €10 (no time limit, until 8 p.m.). Users can enjoy a discounted price of €5 in the final hour (7 p.m.–8 p.m.). The slope, which also offersnight-time skiing, is lit up every Thursday and Friday from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. to host these two activities.

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Two ski patrollers died in Morillon setting avalanche control charges.

Avalanches are a risky business if you venture off-piste. Photo credit Andrew Coelho - Unsplash

Two ski patrollers died on Sunday in the ski resort in Morillon in the Haute Savoie region of France while setting avalanche control charges before the resort opened to the public. These avalanche-control charges accidentally went off, killing them.  Police are investigating the cause of this, which is rare. Ski patrollers set up controlled explosions before the slopes open to mitigate the risk of larger avalanches. You can read my previous interview to Coco Torres, former Head of Operations at Valle de Las Leñas in Argentina, about how patrollers control avalanches in this high-avalanche prone valley.

The accident took place at an altitude of 1,800 metres (6,000 feet). Forecasters at Meteo France warned of high avalanche risks in the Savoie and Hatue-Savoie regions following overnight snowfalls. The risk of avalanches was at 4 out of 5.

Two ski patrollers died in Morillon setting avalanche control charges.
Two ski patrollers died in Morillon setting avalanche control charges.

These fatalities bring the number of weather-related deaths in Europe this month to at least 26, with heavy snow blanketing the Balkans and part of the Alps.

Two Bulgarian snowboarders were killed by an avalanche in the Pirin Mountains on Friday. The Bulgarian Red Cross said that the pair ignored the warnings and weather alerts and triggered the avalanche.

A 48-year old driver of a snow plough died in Germany this past Friday after his vehicle plunged into an icy river.

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Killington will replace the North Ridge Triple Lift with a Quad Chairlift

Killington ski map. Killington will replace the North Ridge Triple Lift with a Quad Chairlift.

Killington will replace its North Ridge Triple Lift with a Quad Chairlift. They have filed paperwork with the state to replace the vintage upper mountain lift.

News from New England Ski Industry.

Killington will continue its activity of lift projects this summer, as the resort has filed with the State of Vermont a project to replace the North Ridge Triple Chairlift. This will result as per the Act 250 filed made public this week, in a Leitner Poma fixed grip quad chairlift installed along the existing line. A draft permit has been generated by the state.

Killington will replace the North Ridge Triple Lift with a Quad Chairlift.
Killington will replace the North Ridge Triple Lift with a Quad Chairlift.

The Triple North Ridge Chair was installed by Heron-Poma in 1972, with 587 feet climb in vertical drop over a run of 2,290 feet. The oldest lift in Killington, the North Ridge, is typically the first chair to open in New England’s ski season each year. But because of its high elevation, the lift construction season may be limited due to environmental issues.

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Three German Skiers got killed in an Avalanche near the Austrian resort of Lech, fourth is missing

Lech Zürs am Arlberg photo by Sepp Mallaun. Lech Zürs Tourismus GmbH. Three German Skiers got killed in an Avalanche near the Austrian resort of Lech, fourth is missing.

Three German Skiers got killed in an avalanche near the Austrian resort of Lech, the fourth skier is missing. The group was ski touring at the time.

The dead men were from the Upper Swabia area of southwestern Germany. They were found around 11 PM local time after one of their wives alerted that they were missing. They were aged 57, 36 and 32. The fourth missing person, also from southern Germany was 28.

Three German Skiers got killed in an Avalanche near the Austrian resort of Lech, fourth is missing. Photo: Reuters.
Three German Skiers got killed in an Avalanche near the Austrian resort of Lech, fourth is missing. Photo: Reuters.

The search for this fourth person has halted due to heavy avalanche risk.

Police in the Vorarlberg province has said they have located the people through mobile phone tracking near the Lanzeg Zug slope – one of the steepest in the world.

As per the Associated Press, weather-related deaths in parts of Europe this month account to at least 24.

Austria has been hit by large snowfalls this past week, and the avalanche warning levels have gone up while local roads have been cut. The warning level above 2,000 meters (6,560 feet) was on Saturday on a scale of 3 of 5. The slope has been closed due to avalanche danger.

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A British skier dies after falling 32 feet from a chairlift in the French resort of Méribel at the 3 Vallées.

The pretty resort of Méribel in Les Trois Vallées. A British skier dies after falling 32 feet from a chairlift in the French resort of Méribel at the 3 Vallées.

A British skier dies after falling 32 feet from a chairlift in the French resort of Méribel at the famous 3 Vallées

The reports say that the 65 years old man, who was not yet named by authorities, had a heart attack just before he fell. He was seating next to a female friend. She is being interviewed by the police.

Investigators want to find out if the victim might have squeezed down the metal safety bar of the chairlift that protects passengers.

The lift was a six-seater built by the company Pomagalski in 2017 that transports 2,400 per hour.

A British skier dies after falling 32 feet from a chairlift in the French resort of Méribel at the 3 Vallées.
A British skier dies after falling 32 feet from a chairlift in the French resort of Méribel at the 3 Vallées. Illustrative photo.

Emergency services were called at 12.20 to the Roc-de-Tougne lift and from the six first respondents, two doctors tried to resuscitate the man for more than half an hour but unfortunately the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

The man suffered a heart attack and died on the slopes in the resort of Méribel.

Police are investigating whether the 65-year-old man was in cardiac arrest before falling 32 feet from the chairlift.

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What is the real risk from avalanches?

Photo- Mike Suarez- Unsplash. What is the real risk from avalanches?

What is the real risk that avalanches pose?

From Swissinfo.ch

How common are avalanches in Switzerland?

Over the past 20 years, there has been an average of 100 reported avalanches a year where people were involved. On average, 23 people die in avalanches every year, the majority (+90%) in open mountainous areas where people were off-piste skiing, snowboarding, or backcountry touring on skis or snowshoes.

In controlled areas (roads, railways, communities and secured ski runs) the 15-year annual average number of victims dropped from 15 at the end of the 1940s to less than one in 2010. The last time anyone died in a building hit by an avalanche was in 1999.

Avalanche crashes into hotel in eastern Switzerland. What is the real risk from avalanches?
Avalanche crashes into hotel in eastern Switzerland. What is the real risk from avalanches?

Avalanches such as the one that hit the Hotel Säntis in Schwägalp are rare.

Bruno Vattioni, director of the Säntis lift company, said on Friday “an avalanche of this size is not predictable”. Locals have not experienced anything like it in the 84 years’ existence of the Säntis cable car. Normally, the southern face of the Säntis, the other side of the peak, is the more dangerous.

How are avalanches normally monitored?

Since 1945, the national avalanche warning service, run by the Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research (SLF) in Davos, produces a twice-daily national avalanche bulletinusing data gathered by 200 people trained to do the job and 170 automatic measuring stations dotted across the Swiss Alps. This information is shared and used by the police, cantons, communes, mountain resorts, rescue services and other winter professionals across the country.

Are they normally successful at monitoring and protecting against avalanches?

The density of the avalanche warning network and the level of training and expertise is unique to Switzerland. But it cannot catch every avalanche, as SLF avalanche forecaster Frank Techel explained to swissinfo.ch.

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ASPEN SKIING COMPANY RELEASES 2018 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT In the style of Stan Lee

Snowmaking. Photo: Aspen Skiing Company. ASPEN SKIING COMPANY RELEASES 2018 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT In the style of Stan Lee.

 

ASPEN SKIING COMPANY RELEASES 2018 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT in the style of Stan Lee

Departing from its usual format, Aspen Skiing Company’s (ASC) twelfth Sustainability Report is a graphic novel. The report highlights Aspen’s history and details the company’s story of how sustainability became one of ASC’s principal efforts.

Photo: Aspen Skiing Company. ASPEN SKIING COMPANY RELEASES 2018 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT In the style of Stan Lee.
Photo: Aspen Skiing Company. ASPEN SKIING COMPANY RELEASES 2018 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT In the style of Stan Lee.

The report follows ASC’s founding, its journey to find a mission beyond skiing, and the impact of the 2016 election on the company’s renewed commitment to community and the environment. It concludes with ASC’s very public stance in support of tolerance and climate action, and the resulting Give a Flake campaign, which evokes Elie Wiesel’s advice that: “We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere.”

More benignly, in true Sustainability Report form, the 2018 version includes data on ASC’s carbon emissions and philanthropic contributions.

“Nobody reads corporate sustainability reports – they’re too boring,” says Auden Schendler, senior vice president of sustainability and one of the report authors. “We decided it’s less important to deliver every detail. Instead, we try to tell the story of our strategic and philosophical evolution, with Batman-style graphics.”

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Crested Butte Mountain Resort Announces Plans to Replace the Teocalli Lift for the 2019-20 Winter Season

Crested Butte Mountain Resort- Vanderlinden. Crested Butte Mountain Resort Announces Plans to Replace the Teocalli Lift for the 2019-20 Winter Season.

Crested Butte Mountain Resort Announces Plans to Replace the Teocalli Lift for the 2019-20 Winter Season

  • Pending U.S. Forest Service approvals, the Teocalli Lift realignment and replacement will include a new fixed-grip quad chairlift increasing uphill capacity by 50 percent.

Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) is excited to announce plans to replace the Teocalli Lift – a 1979 Riblet fixed-grip double chairlift – for the 2019-20 winter season, pending approval by the U.S. Forest Service. If approved, the new Teocalli Lift would be upgraded to a fixed-grip quad chairlift, increasing uphill capacity by 50 percent.

Crested Butte Mountain Resort. Photo: Trent Bona. Crested Butte Mountain Resort Announces Plans to Replace the Teocalli Lift for the 2019-20 Winter Season.
Crested Butte Mountain Resort. Photo: Trent Bona. Crested Butte Mountain Resort Announces Plans to Replace the Teocalli Lift for the 2019-20 Winter Season.

The proposed realignment and installation of the new lift would take place following the close of the 2018-19 winter season. Plans to realign the Teocalli Lift would shift the upper terminal closer to the top of the Red Lady Express; the lower terminal would remain in the existing location at the intersection of the Bushwacker, Gunsight Pass and Upper Conundrum trails.

The Teocalli Lift replacement would improve the on-mountain guest experience at CBMR by providing increased uphill capacity, a secondary egress to the base area from the Paradise Warming House and quick access to beginner and intermediate terrain.

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Skeetawk ski area gets funding for first ski lift

Hatcher Pass in Winter, where Skeetawk resort will be developed. Skeetawk ski area gets funding for first ski lift.

The Skeetawk ski area located in the Hatcher Pass will get funding for its first ski lift. The Skeetawk is a great area now for sledding but by Christmas next year it will have a downhill slope served by a lift.

The name Skeetawek is a phonetic spel of a Dena’ina word – Shk’ituk’t that means ‘where we slide down’ as per Louisa Branchflower, board president for Hatcher Alpine Xperience (HAX).

Amy O’Connor, the Executive Director of the non-profit group HAX in charge of building the Valley’s first downhill resort in the Mat-Su said that it will be a 1,200-foot triple chairlift with a 300+ foot of vertical drop.

Partnering with groups such as Rasmuson Foundation and the Mat-Su Health Foundation and thanks to also some private donations, HAX has got the $1.2 million it needs to purchase its first ski lift that will be put up in the next summer. The group will need $750,000 to cover installation costs.

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