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Press Release by ALPINEZONE.COM in Sports
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Northeast Ski Resorts Accept Another Challenge
View all releases by ALPINEZONE.COM
This press release is about: alpinezone, challenge, resorts, ski, members, killington, northeast, skiers, resort, representatives, information
2005-06-06, ALPINEZONE.COM - In its second year, the AlpineZone Ski Area Challenge continues to redefine the relationship between skiers, riders, and resorts.Oakville, CT (PRWEB) June 6, 2005 -— Only the most dedicated skiers and riders spend a warm, sunny, June day talking about winter and snow. You know them – they`re the ones who cleverly amend the term "sick days" to "ski days" in their job contracts or think nothing of driving in excess of five hours to put their feet down on snow. They`re the loyal fans who show up in the parking lot of their favorite mountain at the crack of dawn with skis, boards, and big smiles. About a year ago they first got a direct line of communication to Northeast ski area management with the AlpineZone Ski Area Challenge. This summer, ski areas large and small are again accepting the challenge.
The AlpineZone Ski Area Challenge was the brainchild of two regular members in the Skiing and Riding Forum on the AlpineZone.com Message Board (http://forums.alpinezone.com/). Bill O`Brien, posting as "Chilemass" began a topic entitled "…And Now, Let`s Hear From the Marketing Department…" discussing ski area snow reports and Web sites and how he wished that ski area management would pay attention to what folks were saying online. In response, fellow member "Joshua B" suggested that the Web site invite representatives from ski areas for an online interview. The site`s founder and administrator, Greg Blasko, ran with the idea.
"Once the system was in place programmatically, I was almost fanatical about getting new question request threads started and posting the ski area reps` responses," reflected Blasko.
In the program`s first year, 2004, AlpineZone members had an open dialogue with 32 Northeast ski areas ranging from Pats Peak, with only 710 vertical feet and 22 trails, all the way to Killington, the largest ski resort in the East. Regardless of size or reputation, each of the participants was subject to a round of questioning. Blasko then chose ten questions to send to the resort representative and after the responses had been returned and posted on the AlpineZone Web site; members assessed and commented on the answers.
But after the success of the 2004 Challenge, there were doubts that it would go forward. Would it be seen as redundant by both members and the resorts? Could people come up with new questions? Would resort representatives again take the challenge so seriously? To gauge interest, the forum moderators started a thread for members to express their opinion about the challenge. The response was overwhelmingly positive with many people asking, "Can you invite my mountain?" Blasko also contacted industry representatives and those who had participated in 2004 and the feedback was equally enthusiastic with many using adjectives such as "revolutionary" and "unique" to describe the program.
After completing the survey this year, Killington`s Tom Horrocks said, "Yes, I do think that the Challenge adds credibility to the Web site," before adding that he "visited AlpineZone frequently" to gain input on Killington and its operations. "We always take input and from numerous sources to evaluate our position."
Alex Kaufman, Resort Communication Manager for Attitash in Bartlett, New Hampshire, echoed Horrocks. "We`re always interested to hear from our guests and those that have yet to ski here. The Challenge has proven to be another useful tool in gauging what our guests are most concerned about."
Ski resorts are usually wary of chat rooms and message boards frequented by skiers and riders. "Rumors are a problem as many members will state what they heard at a bar or read on another chat room as if it were fact. Occasionally, these posts will build into large conversations about a single untrue post, with all acting as if it were the truth" Kaufman said. On his experience with AlpineZone, he adds, "The news section of AlpineZone and the proactive approach of the Ski Area Challenge make it a reputable source for snow resort industry information."
Dedicated skiers and riders are excited by the prospect of once again getting an opportunity to speak directly to their favorite resorts. After posting the very first question in the 2005 Challenge, posed to Attitash, member "Bob R" offered his thoughts about the program. "The challenge offers a marketing department the chance to get a resort point of view across in a non press release form. It also lets them know what is on the skiers` minds,” he said.
Bob should know. Besides being an active skier, he once worked in the ski industry and said that the Challenge allows resorts to speak directly to their target audience. "It really is progressive and I don`t think anyone else does it. It gives the reader info on resorts they might never have gone to," he added.
Another AlpineZone member, posting as "kickstand," reflected on his experience thus far with the Challenge. "I think it`s a great idea for areas that don`t have forums to answer questions from the online community. Your average skier can`t just walk into the VP of Communications office at a favorite resort and get straight answers like this."
In "kickstand`s" view, AlpineZone is quite reliable for ski resorts, skiers, and riders alike. "It`s a central location to go for information about resorts you may or may not find by going to other sites," including the Challenge answers from resorts and sometimes the "brutally honest reviews of those resorts from other skiers."
Fellow member "ga2ski" frequents other Web sites including dedicated sites for Sunday River and Killington, but admitted, "The Challenge is why I joined AlpineZone. The Challenge allows you to `hear it straight from the horse`s mouth`. I like the fact that you can interact with mountain reps. I appreciate their time."
"Bob R," "kickstand," and "ga2ski" are only a small sample of dozens of enthusiastic skiers and riders who, in the opening three weeks, have posted 214 comments or questions to the first ten resorts, both large and small, creating quite a buzz. These ten resort challenges have received over 6,000 hits alone, with Killington garnering a whopping 1,300 by itself. All of this activity comes during the slowest time for ski areas and within the first month of the 2005 AlpineZone Ski Area Challenge.
During the opening days of the 2005 Challenge, AlpineZone members asked Attitash about their 40th Anniversary Celebration; quizzed Killington management about rampant rumors that the 2005-2006 Season was going to be much shorter than normal (which Killington assured members was not true); asked Mad River Glen to allow snowboards for one day; and asked Sunday River if it could start a new season pass program that included both skiing/riding in the winter and golf during the summer. While other winter sports enthusiasts could only speculate as to what was happening at these resorts, AlpineZone members now have solid information.
According to Blasko, "everyone benefits; the skiers and riders, the smaller independent ski areas, and even the larger more popular resorts."
The AlpineZone Ski Area Challenge results can be found on the Skiing section of the AlpineZone Web site (http://skiing.alpinezone.com/). Visitors can see a list of resorts that are being questioned and read the responses from earlier challenges. Anyone can submit questions for consideration by first completing the simple and free forum registration.
Ski resorts interested in taking the AlpineZone Challenge can contact Greg Blasko at .
About AlpineZone.com:
AlpineZone.com is a popular Northeast snow sports Web site located at http://www.alpinezone.com/.
About the author:
Michael Stahler is an avid skier, snowshoer, and hiker originally from the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. He is the skiing and gear moderator for AlpineZone.com and is a coordinator for the 2005 AlpineZone Ski Area Challenge. He can be contacted for more information or with article ideas at .
Contact:
Greg Blasko
203-206-9147
Source: PR Web™
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