2023 - 2024 Far West Skier's Guide - 70

Ski Pass Updates
Epic Pass
The Epic Pass is the world's largest international
ski pass, offering access to 66 mountain
resorts in 8 countries, including North
America, Canada, Europe (5), Australia (3),
and Japan (2).
More information is available at
https://www.epicpass.com/.
Ikon Pass
Palisades Tahoe completed their new 2.4 mile gondola that connects Palisades Tahoe
(formerly Squaw Valley) and Alpine Meadows, making it the largest ski resort in California,
with more than 6,000 skiable acres. The $65 million project was decades in the making.
The gondola has 96 cabins (8-person). Photo Credit: Palisades Tahoe
happen for over 30 years. Award finalists were
recognized and the winners announced at
NSAA's 2023 National Convention & Tradeshow
in Savannah, GA on May 10, 2023. Established
in 1993, these awards are the highest
honors bestowed on a resort for environmental
performance.
n Overall Environmental Excellence
- Wild Mountain, MN
n Community and Partnerships
- Arapahoe Basin, CO and
Big Sky Resort, MT
n Climate Change Impact
- Vail Resorts, CO
n Hero of Sustainability
- Jeff Grasser, Copper Mountain, CO
Far West Ski Association has endorsed
the NSAA's Sustainable Slopes Program.
The most recent annual report can be found
at this link: www.nsaa.org/NSAA/Sustainability/Sustainable_Slopes/NSAA/Sustainability/.
Protect
Our Winters
POW has been lobbying at both the state
and federal levels since 2013, giving the organization
the opportunity to build relationships
with lawmakers and staff on both sides of the
aisle. Bi-partisan work can be a challenge, but
this approach is critical to advocating on behalf
of POW's constituents. Over the last three
years POW has been lobbying for many of the
policies that were included in the " Inflation
Reduction Act (IRA) " and the " Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), " marking a
huge win for the POW advocates. On June 20
and 21, POW held its first Lobby Trip of 2023
in Washington D.C. with 14 Athlete, Science,
Creative Alliance members and five Brand Alliance
partners to meet with the Biden Administration's
agency officials.
POW's key talking points included:
n In order to reach our clean energy
goals and address climate change, we need to
responsibly develop and deploy renewable
energy.
n Renewable energy needs to reach
communities, so we also need to rapidly build
transmission lines to deploy affordable energy
across the country.
n Communities that host transmission
and other energy infrastructure need real incentives
to come to the table and work with
developers and other key stakeholders to build
and operate this energy infrastructure.
n Responsible deployment of renewable
energy and transmission development must
tangibly support local communities.
n Community participation will help alleviate
the growing backlog of permit applications
and ensure projects can move forward.
n POW's proposal would build a fund
to support communities, which requires no additional
government spending.
More information regarding POW's activities
can be found at their website:
www.protectourwinters.org.
7O Far West Skier's Guide 2O23 - 2O24
The Ikon Pass has three levels to choose
from: The Ikon Pass, The Ikon Base Pass, and
The Ikon Session 4-Day Pass. The Ikon Pass
is the most expensive and offers unlimited skiing
at 15 destinations with no blackout dates
and up to 7 days at 40 destinations. The Ikon
Base Pass excludes Steamboat, CO and has
some blackout dates at the 14 destinations
with unlimited skiing and it offers 34 destinations
with up to 5 days skiing. The Ikon Session
4-Day Pass offers more limited benefits.
More information is available at
https://www.ikonpass.com/. ss
SKI HILL RESOURCES
FOR ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT
RESOLUTION (SHRED Act)
90th Annual
FWSA Convention Resolution
approved by assembled delegates -
June 18, 2023
by Randy Lew
Past President, FWSA
WHEREAS, the 124 ski areas operating
on US Forest Service lands across the country
pay an average of $40 million annually in operating
permits and these ski areas support
about 64,000 full and part-time jobs nationwide,
and
WHEREAS, the 2022 revenue was more
than $57 million, all which goes to the Federal
Treasury where very little is budgeted back for
use by the US Forest Service, and
WHEREAS, US Senators Catherine Cortez
Mastro (NV), Michael Bennet (CO), and
John Barrasso (WY) introduced the Ski Hill
Resources for Economic Development Act
(SHRED Act) that would support local ski resorts
that are operating within Forest Service
boundaries by keeping ski fees local and using
those funds for local year-round recreation opportunities,
and
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https://www.epicpass.com/ https://www.ikonpass.com/ http://www.nsaa.org/NSAA/Sustainability/Sustainable_Slopes/NSAA/Sustainability/ http://www.nsaa.org/NSAA/Sustainability/Sustainable_Slopes/NSAA/Sustainability/ http://www.nsaa.org/NSAA/Sustainability/Sustainable_Slopes/NSAA/Sustainability/ http://www.protectourwinters.org

2023 - 2024 Far West Skier's Guide

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