VAIL SUCKS

[FBGM]

The cleaning house of Mount Snow after Vail came in was the best thing to happen to that place. The entire structure of that place was just cancer. Blind leading blind. Vail is the best thing to happen to that resort.

 

[downdraft]

That is exactly why Les was the best, before the ASC days.... He skied 4-5 days/week, always wearing his nametag "Les Otten, President". He always talked w/ guest & employees in the lodges, in the lift lines and on the chair. He was a regular at our annual Refresher and always came to the Sat 5pm Patrol Mtng. always giving us the honest "inside scoop"

When Boyne took over 15 years ago all that disappeared instantly. Dana B was a no show 90% of time.... He'd ski (He'd ski (NO SR jacket) and never even talk to a guest. He'd intentionally stall or step out of the lift line to avoid riding up w/ Patrollers or other "on snow" employees

Dana B. is a ghost to guests at SR for at least the past 5 years. I don't believe he even skis anymore. Pretty much the guest facing management there is gone now. Boyne would do well to rethink that approach, IMHO. Meanwhile, still see Les on the hill, and he interacts with everyone just like when he owned the place.

 

[Harvey]

Well deserved shit, but I see your point.

An engaged CEO who actually gives a shit about something other than the stock price would want to hear from his customers good or bad. He was still CEO at the time and was paid pretty well. So hearing the good with the bad is part of the gig. I wouldn't have just torn into him like 469 pages of this thread. There are positives to the Epic Pass for a someone like me that lives near a small mountain like Roundtop. There are also things Vail could do better to engage folks with the sport at these small mountains.

Don't get me wrong I'm not defending him.

If I was, I'd probably say something like... he's not much different from the CEO of any publicly held company.

Not much of a defense really.

I'm surprised he skis at all.

 

[drjeff]

Agree with all this. She was amazing. And lots of people at Mount Snow at that time moved on to do great things! Heck even the girl that did the Mount Snow Minute a bunch in the 2009ish area is a great ski podcaster now!

And the wife of the CEO of Big Snow! I know Halley well, and heck even a number of years ago when her Mount Snow Snow reporter season ended, loosely offered her a job if she wanted to move to rural Northeast CT (she definitely made the better choice in turning me down! ) And aside from the fact she's a diehard NY Giants fan, I have nothing bad to say about her and her industry work ethic, and now her 3 young boys her and her husband are raising to be *ugh* snowboarders *ugh*

 

[drjeff]

You are comparing a ski area GM to the CEO of their publicly traded parent company, which to be fair, are very different roles.

The CEO of Vail is legally bound to do what the investors want, not customers. Sometimes those wants are the same, sometimes not.

I fully get that distinction...

Just wrongly read the room that this thread was pivoting to great GM's and their qualities vs corporate CEO's and boards. Unfortunately those 2 things are often in disagreement vs harmony

 

[Edd]

Vail is the best thing to happen to that resort.

A sentiment never uttered in the history of skiing

 

[FBGM]

A sentiment never uttered in the history of skiing

This is a rare case in which it can be used.

 

[thetrailboss]

The cleaning house of Mount Snow after Vail came in was the best thing to happen to that place. The entire structure of that place was just cancer. Blind leading blind. Vail is the best thing to happen to that resort.

"You're welcome! I love you too! You know, we're running a special promo--F*** Bob (Katz), Get Money!"

 

[joshua segal]

The best GM I have ever interacted with, Kelly Pawlak, who was the GM of Mount Snow up until 5 or 6 years ago (I believe is the proper time frame, before she left then Peak Resorts to go be the President of the National Ski Areas Association, where she still holds that position today) definitely had a bunch of those same qualities Les had.

She was very out infront of the public and regularly seen doing everything from scanning passes/tickets to running lift line queues, to busing tables in the base lodge to even helping keep the bathrooms clean (my wife reports having had numerous converations with her as she was using the women's room and Kelly was in their checking on its cleanliness), as well as out on the hill skiing around (somtimes in her work coat with her nametag on it and sometimes in her "street coat" without her name tag on it to better get a handle of what the "regular customer" was experiencing. There really wasn't a job that Kelly wouldn't do if needed, and those who she lead regularly saw her hands on approach and appreciated it

I don't think it's a coincidence that numerous people in various departments that she oversaw during her multiple decade time at Mount Snow have risen up into various leadership positions across multiple parts of the ski industry all around the country. A great leader is such an incredible asset to have, and unfortunately can be taken for granted at times by boards of directors

I agree. One day, she was out picking up trash in front of the main lodge. When I found out who she was, I asked her about it. I don 't remember her answer but I could paraphrase it as "Lead by example."

 

[kendo]

. . . and in other news, some housecleaning going on at the mothership. Anyone with marketing experience want to earn $1.2M??

Vail Resorts chief marketing officer to exit in latest executive shakeup

Vail Resorts, in a securities and exchange commission report filed Monday, announced that the company's chief marketing officer will no longer be with the company as of...

www.vaildaily.com

 

[Domeskier]

. . . and in other news, some housecleaning going on at the mothership. Anyone with marketing experience want to earn $1.2M??

Vail Resorts chief marketing officer to exit in latest executive shakeup

Vail Resorts, in a securities and exchange commission report filed Monday, announced that the company's chief marketing officer will no longer be with the company as of...

www.vaildaily.com

Apparently a PhD in chemical engineering was sufficient. Is Vail abandoning its chemical-based marketing strategy?

 

[thetrailboss]

. . . and in other news, some housecleaning going on at the mothership. Anyone with marketing experience want to earn $1.2M??

Vail Resorts chief marketing officer to exit in latest executive shakeup

Vail Resorts, in a securities and exchange commission report filed Monday, announced that the company's chief marketing officer will no longer be with the company as of...

www.vaildaily.com

"HE WAS NOT EPIC-WORTHY!"

 

[SteezyRob]

The cleaning house of Mount Snow after Vail came in was the best thing to happen to that place. The entire structure of that place was just cancer. Blind leading blind. Vail is the best thing to happen to that resort.

you're welcome

 

[ThatGuy]

"HE WAS NOT EPIC-WORTHY!"

This is my new favorite shot of the Emperor, the chiaroscuro really brings out the douchebaggery

 

[kendo]

"HE WAS NOT EPIC-WORTHY!"

A close friend interviewed for the CFO job mentioned in the article. He declared himself not epic-worthy after meeting with them... !

 

[Harvey]

chiaroscuro

I knew college would come in handy some day.

 

[ThatGuy]

I knew college would come in handy some day.

Maybe I should apply for Vail…my Environmental Science and Natural Resource Management degree has more to do with skiing than Chemical Engineering

 

[BenedictGomez]

Houston, we have a new attempt at ancillary revenue generation. It's called, My Epic Gear.

Cost is a $50 membership fee each year & then $50 per day. I award them "Evil Vail" bonus points for overtly lying to their consumers (bolded below).

Sample from more than 50 of the most popular and latest ski and snowboard models. The My Epic Gear membership allows you to ski and ride on the most sought-after, premium gear this season. Pay a $50 one-time fee to enroll for the season and then simply pay $50 per day for the days you wish to use gear (that’s less than the average daily cost of owning or renting). Never have to haul your gear again with daily slopeside pickup and dropoff. You can also have gear delivered to where you’re staying in resort.

 

[jimmywilson69]

yeah the Bold is certainly BS, but for the 1 week a year crowd who goes to Vail or Brek, this might be something that sells well.

Again, the people in this forum are not their target marketing for really anything

 

[thetrailboss]

Houston, we have a new attempt at ancillary revenue generation. It's called, My Epic Gear.

Cost is a $50 membership fee each year & then $50 per day. I award them "Evil Vail" bonus points for overtly lying to their consumers (bolded below).

Yeah, we talked about this a while back.....

New Vail gear program

Interesting plan. https://investors.vailresorts.com/news-releases/news-release-details/vail-resorts-introduces-my-epic-gear-reimagining-gear-ownership

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