J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by J2SkiNews

Vail Resorts have bought Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR) from owners Powdr Corp. for $182.5 million.

The sale ends an increasingly acrimonious period between the two US resort owning giants and comes just says after Powdr agreed to pay a multi-million dollar bond to be allowed to keep operating the ski area this season while litigation with Vail continued.

Vail had previously won a legal eviction order for PCMR earlier this year during an ongoing court battle which has its roots in PCMR's failure to agree a renewal of their lease on the land where the upper part of their ski slopes are located three years ago.

Powdr Corp said they did not want to sell, their CEO John Cumming explained their decision in a statement,

"Selling was the last thing we wanted to do, and while we believe the law around this issue should be changed, a protracted legal battle is not in line with our core value to be good stewards of the resort communities in which we operate …A sale was the only way to provide long-term certainty for PCMR employees and the Park City community. My family and I are extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to play a role in making PCMR what it is today, and we deeply appreciate the dedicated employees and all of the people who have supported us over the years."

Vail say it will be business as usual at PCMR this year under their ownership. There is now the potential for them to link PCMR to neighbouring Canyons ski area, which the company took over in 2013, to create the largest ski area in the US and the second largest in North America, behind Whistler.

Agreed on all the above. The drive should be exceptional but if its snowing can be quite extreme by European standards with closures if there are avalanches on to the highway so be prepared for unexpected stops if those are the conditions when you visit. Again (as mentioned in Steverandomno's excellent post above) I love Kicking Horse and Revelstoke you'll pass as mentioned, both have 'quirky' resort towns by the highway (Kicking Horse one is called Golden) that are worth making a stop in, if you have time, even if you don't bother to ski. Quite jealous! enjoy :)

As already reported in J2ski message threads in response to earlier versions of this story, it has been announced that the 4 Vallées ski area in Switzerland will remain intact following further negotiations. A renewed 18 year agreement has been signed by the previously opposed sides.

The ski area, which claims to be the country's largest with 400km of runs, had been set to split in two if agreement could not be reached. It includes the skiing above the neighbouring Swiss resorts of Nendaz, Veysonnaz, Verbier and Thyon

The dispute mirrors a similar one some years ago when the end of the 4 Valleys was also threatened and which was also resolved in time to start selling tickets for the next season.

A statement sent to J2Ski.com this morning from UK representatives of the area says:

"Aware of the importance of finding a solution for the 2014/15 winter season talks and negotiations between the four participating lift companies, Téléverbier, Télé-Nendaz, Téléveysonnaz and Télé- Thyon were conducted by State Councillor Jacques Melly."

"These further negotiations have resulted in the extension of the 4 Vallées agreement for a period of 18 years. An agreement has been signed and the partners have also committed to strengthening their collaboration. Discussions will continue in the coming months for this purpose."

Pierre-Andre Gremaud, Director at Verbier/Val de Bagnes – La Tzoumaz Promotion SA said,

"We welcome this positive outcome as this is great news for skiers holidaying in the Verbier 4 Vallées area. We are looking forward to welcoming all our British guests this winter to experience the vast ski domain."

The judge presiding over the dispute between Park City Mountain resort (PCMR) and Vail Resorts over the future operation of PCMR has named a figure of $17.5m for the bond that PCMR's operators must put up to be allowed to operate their slopes this winter.

The bond is required as security should PCMR eventually lose its legal case to be allowed to keep operating on the ski slopes above Park City ski resort, a circumstance that has become a possibility since the resort's operators failed to renew the lease they held on the land when it expired after which their landlords leased the land to Vail Resorts instead.

Vail ordered PCMR's eviction which the local court agreed, but PCMR are continuing to fight in the courts to retain control of the land, leading to a possibility that the ski slopes might not open this coming season. That is a circumstance that is causing great concern to businesses in Park Vity which estimate they cost lose $185m in lost business if the ski centre doesn't open.

PCMR had suggested a bond of $6.6 million be posted, Vail Resorts suggested $124 million. PCMR have not yet said whether the $17.5m figure named by the judge is acceptable to them and that they will pay and operate this winter, but their lawyer has said they are optimistic. The bond must be paid by this Friday.

Park City Mountain Resort employs around 2,000 people each winter and was host to snowboarding events at the 2002 Winter Olympics, it is also where word record breaking skier Ted Ligety comes from. Even if it is ultimately evicted from the slopes above the resort town, it owns outright the land, buildings and lifts right by Park City and has said it will not sell these to Vail, preventing the resort from one of the key attractions of controlling the land – direct access from the resort town.

Vail also owns Canyons ski area which is adjacent to PCMR however, and it may be able to connect this to the PCMR land, creating probably the largest ski area in the USA from the merger, although such a scenario is not currently being talked about.

Sorry for slow reply only just reading this. The only thought I have is that a tour operator called Ski Safari, has announced it will offer ski trips to Korea this winter. http://www.skisafari.com/Ski-South-Korea.aspx It organises trips from the UK of course but it puts together packages to suit individuals so may be able to help. As you'll know there are several ski areas in Mongolia incl: www.skyresort.mn

A French appeals court judge if Chambery has found against British tour operator Le Ski in the company's appeal against their prosecution for ski hosting in France.

The judge's decision came despite Le Ski's lawyer arguing that as some groups of people, including school teachers, were allowed to lead groups on French ski slopes without having top level French ski instructor qualifications, it was discriminatory and therefore in breach of European law, to stop British tour operators from allowing their staff to host clients free of charge.

Le Ski say they hope now to appeal to the High Court in Paris and, if necessary, the European Court.

Ski hosting is a service offered by British tour operators in ski resorts around the world, with a similar service offered by many resorts themselves, which essentially allows skiers employed by the company who know the resort well but do not have formal ski teaching qualifications, to 'host' groups on a tour of the easy slopes close to the resort at the start of their holiday to give them advice on the main attractions of the ski area for their ability level.

Le Ski has been backed in their court case, which began with the arrest of members of their staff in early 2013, by a group of ten British tour operators, including the country's three largest ski tour operators, who have all ceased hosting activities, although some now operate similar services in conjunction with some French ski schools, and/or have non-skiing staff positioned at key points in the lift network at French resorts to give advice.

The French National Ski School, the ESF, has been keen to distance itself from responsibility for the legal action, but the courts have made cash awards in damages to the ESF, apparently implying that if Brits were not given free tours they'd pay French ski instructors to take them round. However the appeal court is reported to have reduced the initial award.

"We are very disappointed to report that Le Ski's Chambery appeal against the ski hosting ruling has been rejected. The court did uphold part of the appeal referring to Le Ski's insurance policy which it confirmed did cover the company for ski hosting. The court also substantially reduced the amount of damages which had been awarded to the Ecole du Ski Français (ESF)" said a statement from the group of British tour operators supporting Le Ski, who are Alpine Elements, Crystal Ski Holidays, Esprit Ski, Inghams, Mark Warner, Neilson, Ski Olympic, Ski Total, Skiworld and Thomson Ski.

The case, and other separate French court cases against the Ski Club of Great Britain and others, has been reported as a France v Britain issue in some media outlets, but there are reports of court actions against clubs and companies from other countries, and from within France, under the same or similar circumstances, including for other outdoor activities besides snowsports, and while the issue is mostly confined to France, at least one Austrian area is known to be taking a similar stance.

With heavy snow on glaciers in the Alps over the past 48 hours, the biggest accumulation of 30cm reported on the already-open Molltal glacier, it is looking promising for autumn skiing when more glaciers begin to open later this month and in to October.

Snoworks have courses for all abilities launching this autumn from October 18th on the extensive, snow-sure, Tignes Glacier.

The company lists quiet slopes, cheaper prices, guaranteed snow and the very best of British ski instruction as the reasons to book one of their courses before the main ski season kicks off.

All-Terrain courses, geared towards intermediate skiers, right through to advanced and expert enthusiasts and instructors will be staged weekly from mid-October to the end of November.

Costing £300 including five days with a Snoworks instructor, the courses are aimed at skiers keen to take their skiing to a whole new level and ready to begin learning to tackle steeper slopes, off-piste, bumps, to ski faster with more control and cope with variable snow and terrain.

The company also offers a Race Carve program in Tignes between October 25th and the final course starting on November 22nd, also priced at £300, and other courses available on the above dates include Pro Race Camps, Snoworks GAP and Eurotest training for ski instructors.

Additional holiday prices for seven nights half-board accommodation with afternoon tea including airport transfers from Geneva start from £290 per person in a catered chalet based on twin occupancy. Return flights to Geneva are not included.

Snoworks coaches include Phil Smith, Emma Carrick-Anderson, Lee Townend, Mike Barker and Nick Quinn. www.snoworks.co.uk

I did a 10 day trip from Calgary, drove down to Fernie, then up to Kimberley, Panorama, Kicking Horse, Lake Louise, Marmot Basin, Banff and Nakiska! They were ALL great but marginally I actually liked Kimberley the most like a perfectly formed private ski area. Panorama has a low cost (ish) heli skiing operation on site. The most spectacular part of the trip was the 100 mile plus drive from Lake Louise up to Jasper through the Icefields Parkway which is some of the most amazing scenery on earth. Nakiska was the Olympic base when Eddie the Eagle was jumping and also the film Inception was filmed nearby so had to pay homage to both. We did take our kids so you could always leave it until after you had a family. Whistler is OK but not much character as the resorts above, though more towards la Plagne scale.