Report: Ski industry sees $1 billion in global warming losses

Posted on December 6, 2012 by Bob Berwyn
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Global warming likely to inflict significant economic losses on ski industry. Bob Berwyn photo.

Costs expected to mount as temperatures rise

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — A new report on the economic costs of global warming to the ski industry will resonate especially loudly during Colorado’s second consecutive early season snow drought.

With the state’s major ski resorts struggling to open just minimal amounts of terrain in time for the busy Christmas holiday season, two University of New Hampshire researchers estimate that the $12.2 billion industry has already suffered a $1 billion loss and dropped up to 27,000 jobs due to diminished snow fall patterns and the resulting changes in the outdoor habits of Americans.

More than 23 million people participated in winter sports during the winter 0f 2009-2010.  Snow-related economic activity resulted in $1.4 billion in state and local taxes and $1.7 billion in federal taxes.

The economic study was prepared for the nonprofit groups Protect Our Winters and the Natural Resources Defense Council. The two organizations have partnered the past few years to raise awareness of climate-change impacts to snow-dependent mountain communities and snow sports industries. (more…)

Filed under: business, climate and weather, Colorado, economy, global warming, ski industry, Ski Resorts | Tagged: , , , , , | 5 Comments »

Vail Resorts dials back earnings expectations

Posted on December 4, 2012 by Bob Berwyn
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Will the early season snow drought affect Vail’s bottom line? Only time will tell. Bob Berwyn photo.

Colorado’s second consecutive early season snow drought may be affecting pass sales and advance bookings

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Vail Resorts stock swooned a bit, but then started to recover, after   CEO and chairman Rob Katz, said this week that it may be a challenge for his company to achieve its previously stated earnings goals.

MTN dropped as much as 12 percent and ended the day down 8 percent, at about $52 per share, after Katz said that early season booking trends are not as strong as they could be. The stock price started to recover Wednesday, climbing back up about 2.5 percent, perhaps with investors, just like skiers, taking a wait and see attitude.

That was Katz’s line, too, as he told investors that the holiday season will likely tell the tale.

“We will know more about the season after the holidays and intend to address our fiscal 2013 guidance when we release our ski season metrics in mid-January,” Katz said in the earning statements released to investors early Tuesday morning.

For the first quarter of fiscal year 2013, the company reported a net loss of $60.6 million compared to a net loss of $55.7 million in the same period in the prior year, a decline of 8.7 percent.

Season passes helped drive revenue in the quarter, with sales to-date (including 4-Packs) up about 5 percent in units and approximately 8 percent in revenue compared to the same period in the prior year, and adjusted as if Kirkwood were owned in both periods.

But lack of early season snowfall in Colorado may be affecting overall sales. Katz said current weather conditions are a concern for skiers who have delayed their pass-purchasing decisions.

“The total growth of the (pass) program is slightly below our expectations, as we believe that the amount of sales that we pulled forward to earlier selling periods was somewhat larger than expected,” he said. “Sales in Tahoe and international markets continued to show the most strength. We expect the final results of the program will be generally consistent with these percentage increases as final sales conclude in the coming weeks,” he added.

Overall,  lodging reservations are slightly down from last year, but a kids-ski-free with lodging program at Keystone has helped drive strong early bookings at that Summit County resort. Based on historical averages, less than half the winter season reservations are on the books this time of year.

With the ski season just ramping up, Katz said the earnings figures from the first fiscal quarter generally reflect late summer activity at the company’s properties, and that there were “positive trends” in summer mountain and lodging operations, with improved visitation driving increased revenue from summer activities and dining.

The company sold four luxury condos at the Ritz-Carlton Residences in Vail and reported a positive net real estate cash flow of $5.5 million for the quarter.

Filed under: business, climate and weather, Colorado, global warming, Ski Resorts, skiing and riding, Snow and weather, Summit County snow and weather, tourism, Vail Resorts | Tagged: , , , , | Leave a Comment »

A test drive for the sustainable ski industry model

Posted on October 25, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Grassroots group strives toward sustainable ski industry.

Mountain Rider’s Alliance partners with sustainable engineering group to refine vision

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — The Mountain Rider’s Alliance vision for a sustainable ski industry is about to grow some flesh and bones, as the grassroots group partners with a well-known engineering firm to develop specific plans for carbon-neutral, net-zero-energy ski areas.

The partnership between MRA and the Brendle Group with forge toward a new model for sustainability in the ski industry, focused on alternative business models for small and medium-sized resorts.

For starters, the Brendle Group will develop and test a model for sustainability at Mt. Abram that can be replicated elsewhere, starting with comprehensive assessments of energy use, land use, procurement, and community sustainability to identify options for net zero carbon, energy, and water operations as well as integrating sustainability and local economic development. (more…)

Filed under: business, Colorado, economy, recreation, ski industry, skiing and riding | Tagged: , , , , | 1 Comment »

Vail Resorts 2012 earnings, revenue and skier visits down

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Company reports increases in season pass sales and advance bookings

Breckenridge ski resort peaks seen from Dillon, Colorado.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — After one of the toughest seasons in memory, Vail Resorts wrapped up its fiscal year 2012 with earnings down about 7.5 percent from 2011, according to the company’s earnings statement released today (Sept. 25).

Total net revenue was $1,024.4 million in 2012 compared to $1,167.0 million in the prior year, a 12.2 percent decrease.

For 2012, VR reported a net income of $16.5 million, down from $34.5 million in 2011, as skier visits dropped steeply at the company’s California and Colorado ski areas. In Colorado (Vail, Beaver Creek, Keystone and Breckenridge) visits dropped 8.9 percent, from 5.2 million in 2011 to 4.8 million in 2012.

Overall VR skier visits dropped by 12.1 percent, from 7 million in 2011 to 6.1 million in 2012. (more…)

Filed under: business, Colorado, ski industry, Ski Resorts, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news, Vail Resorts | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Critics plan appeal of Breckenridge Peak 6 expansion

Posted on September 18, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

DU Law Clinic may help with administrative or legal challenge

The Peak 6 expansion at Breckenridge will very likely be appealed and a legal challenge is not out of the question. Click on the map a couple of times to see the full-size version.

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — The U.S. Forest Service approval of the Peak 6 expansion at Breckenridge Ski Area probably won’t go unchallenged. Longtime critics of the project scrutinizing the the final environmental study say they are likely to appeal several elements of the decision, including, fundamentally, whether the expansion meets the stated purpose and need.

Vail Resorts claimed from the start that the new lifts and terrain will ease congestion at Breckenridge by spreading out skiers on peak visitation days, but at least some of the data in the Final Environmental Impact Statement seem to contradict that conclusion.

Skiers and snowboarders will still have to use the busiest lifts out of the Peak 8 base area to reach the new terrain. At one point in the document the Forest Service appears to flat-out acknowledge that the expansion won’t significantly shorten lift wait times on Peak 7 and Peak 8.

All the documents for the Peak 6 project are at this Forest Service website. Extensive background stories about Peak 6 are online at this Summit Voice page. Some of the ongoing community concerns and criticisms of the Forest Service decision are spelled out on the Save Peak 6 Facebook page.

(more…)

Filed under: Breckenridge, Breckenridge Peak 6 expansion, Breckenridge Ski Resort, Colorado, endangered species, Environment, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Crowdfunding helps new ski industry vision emerge

Posted on September 3, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

The future of skiing is now.

Support the future of skiing!

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — The prevailing corporate model of ski area ownership and management may not have run out of gas completely, but it’s sputtering along, sustained mainly by cannibalizing itself through more mergers and vertical integration (by which large corporations buy up retail and rental outlets, lodging and transportation facilities, as well as trying to dominate media, marketing and social media).

In short, the ski industry for the most part has become a monopolistic juggernaut. It may serve the short-term financial interests of Wall Street on a quarter-to-fiscal quarter-basis, but anyone with a lick of common sense can see that it’s not sustainable in the long-term.

Like the dinosaurs, it’s too big for its own circulatory system, and like the dinosaurs, it’s going to go extinct in its present form, perhaps when the next bubble breaks on the handful of giant real estate investment trusts that now control most of the base area real estate at resorts around the country. (more…)

Filed under: business, Colorado, economy, Environment, ski industry | Tagged: , , , | 6 Comments »

Alternate vision for ski industry manifests in Maine

Posted on August 24, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

A new future for skiing is dawning at Mt. Abram. Photo courtesy Mountain Rider’s Alliance/Mt. Abram.

Sustainability, and people before profit, will be the guiding principles for a partnership between the Mountain Rider’s Alliance and Mt. Abram

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — The Mountain Rider’s Alliance is one step closer to manifesting its long-term vision for an alternate model for ski resort ownership and operation.

This week, the organization announced an agreement to partner with the Mt. Abram ski area in Maine to try out a new ownership and management model aimed at boosting regional visitation, increasing awareness of sustainability issues, and focusing on the core values of skiing.

MRA is currently raising funds for the deal through crowd-sourcing and social media with the Support the Future of Skiing campaign at indiegogo.com.

When the details are finalized, potentially next spring, the ski area will sell membership shares to the public, loosely based on a co-op business model. The membership shares  will offer a variety of benefits and privileges. Members will hold elections and be represented in a dialog with ski area management. (more…)

Filed under: business, economy, Environment, recreation, ski industry, Ski Resorts, skiing and riding | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Breckenridge Peak 6 expansion wins Forest Service OK, but community concerns, and some hard feelings, remain

Posted on August 21, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

45-day appeal period starts when the decision is formally published

Community interest led to a Forest Service-led site visit last summer, attended by dozens of Breckenridge residents and visitors.

By Bob Berwyn

* Background and stories detailing the four-year process at this Summit Voice page.

* More details on the decision here.

SUMMIT COUNTY — White River National Forest supervisor Scott Fitzwilliams said Tuesday his decision to approve a 550-acre expansion at Breckenridge Ski Resort is an appropriate balance between resource conservation and recreational use of the forest, but some critics of the expansion remain unconvinced.

Fitzwilliams acknowledged that the expansion will affect 81 acres of habitat for threatened lynx, but promised that the Forest Service will work with community partners to improve the overall conditions of surrounding forests, with an eye toward restoring important wildlife habitat.

“No question, there are impacts, and I think we’ve disclosed them in a fair and balanced manner … and through mitigation and design criteria, we can mitigate them to the point where they are acceptable,” Fitzwilliams said during a media conference call on the Peak 6 decision.

The expansion has been in the works since 2008, when a scoping open house in Breckenridge drew about 200 critical comments that questioned the basic rationale for the expansion and outlined concern about impacts to the environment and the local community, including parking, housing, childcare and overall resort growth. (more…)

Filed under: biodiversity, Breckenridge, Colorado, Dillon Ranger District, endangered species, Environment, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news, US Forest Service, White River National Forest | Tagged: , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Skiing: Courts define limits of season pass liability waivers

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

The extent of season pass liability waivers are being tested in Colorado courts. PHOTO BY BOB BERWYN.

Judges rule that waivers don’t exempt ski areas from meeting requirements of the Ski Safety Act

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY —Judges in Colorado ski towns are starting to carve out a little bit of room for skiers to claim damages when ski areas are found to violate specific provisions of the Ski Safety Act.

At issue are the broad liability waivers that skiers and snowboarders sign when they purchase season passes. Daily lift tickets also include a waiver, but the season pass waivers have included an additional liability waiver under which pass holders give up their rights to sue for negligence.

Resorts have consistently used to waivers to counter lawsuits, asserting they are protected from most claims by boilerplate waiver language like this:

“The Undersigned expressly ASSUME ALL RISKS associated with Holder’s participation in the Activity, known or unknown, inherent or otherwise … “

It’s that added layer of legal insulation that’s being challenged in court, and on May 10, Pitkin County District Court Judge Denise Lynch ruled that the waiver doesn’t protect the Aspen Skiing Company from claims made by Ryan Bradley, who was injured Feb. 20, 2010 when he was hit by a jake table, installed on a chairlift to transport injured skiers. (more…)

Filed under: Colorado, recreation, ski industry, skiing and riding, Summit County Colorado, Vail Resorts | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Vail skiers visits drop 12 percent, revenue holds steady

Posted on June 6, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Ticket sales, international visits help stabilize business in tough season

Vail Resorts had a tough season, but managed to sustain revenues with season pass sales and high lift ticket prices.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Vail Resorts reported a 9.8 percent drop in skier visits for the third quarter of the fiscal year, as poor snow conditions across the West kept skiers home in droves. For the season, skier visits at Vail Resorts were down 12.1 percent.

But the resort company, with major holdings in Colorado and California, was able to increase ancillary per-skier skier revenue by more than 11 percent and total mountain net revenue over last year, with increases in ticket-sales revenue and ski school operations. (more…)

Filed under: Colorado, ski industry, Ski Resorts, Summit County news, Vail Resorts | Tagged: , , , | Leave a Comment »

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