CNL Lifestyle Properties finally closed a deal with Och-Ziff Real Estate (OZRE) to sell off its 15 U.S. and Canada ski resorts, and Brighton Resort was part of the bundle. But the swap leaves Boyne Resorts still in charge of the day-to-day at the Big Cottonwood Canyon area so don’t expect to see a difference.

Boyne has cared for Brighton since 1986 and not much has changed with the family friendly resort. The last significant improvement was the opening of the Milly Chalet at the base of the Millicent high-speed quad in 2008. But you can’t fault Brighton for staying true to its roots, keeping prices low and being the only area in Utah that lets kids 10 and under ski free.

The other ski areas managed by Boyne:

1. Big Sky Resort, Montana
2. Brighton, Utah
3. Crystal Mountain, Washington
4. The Summit at Snoqualmie, Washington
5. Cypress Mountain, British Columbia
6. Boyne Mountain, Michigan
7. Loon Mountain, New Hampshire
8. Sugarloaf, Maine
9. Sunday River, Maine

Brighton Resort & the M.A.X. Pass

In addition to Brighton’s low lift ticket prices, season passholders have the option to add on the 2016/17 M.A.X. for $349. The pass, created to compete with the Mountain Collective, offers skiing at 39 mountains for the 16/17 season, including Brighton.

What’s on the MAX Pass List

The Max gives you five free days at the resorts below but unlike the Mountain Collective once those days are used, you can’t return for a discount.

Powdr Corp is finally climbing out from wreckage of the implosion that rocked Park City, Utah in 2014. The sale to Vail Resorts forever changed the course of ski history in Utah and the Powdr path. The former owners of the iconic Utah ski area are rebranding themselves after the epic loss. Powdr Corp is now an “experiential adventure lifestyle company.”

“The new POWDR brand image more accurately and authentically represents who POWDR is today,” explained John Cumming, founder and CEO. “Our company has gone through a significant transformation and diversification over the years, and we’re excited to have our brand identity aligned with our growth and the company we are now.”

POWDR’s adventure lifestyle platform includes a diverse portfolio of “experiential” businesses like the Woodward sports action camps in California, Colorado and soon Utah. They also run the Gorgoza Tubing Park in Park City, several mountain resorts including Copper Mountain and Killington, Outside TV for media production and distribution, and Human Movement Management for festival and event activations.

Turning Lemons Into Lemonade

“Any company hoping to have a long track record of success needs to evolve to remain relevant in today’s fast changing marketplace,” continued Cumming. “We’re not only jazzed about the new POWDR image, we’re thrilled with the transformation the company has undertaken, and pleased to offer experiences that are in line with today’s adventure lifestyle seeking customer.”

More recent examples of POWDR’s transformation include several major acquisition announcements made last June, such as the expansion of Woodward with plans for Woodward Park City, Woodward Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Riviera Maya, Mexico; and Woodward Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic; the purchase of Adventure Outfitter Sun Country Tours based in central Oregon; and the purchase of Eldora Mountain Resort in Colorado. Visit www.POWDR.com for a peek at the rebrand.

Photos courtesy @marseille

In an age where everything feels crowdfunded- from frat parties to feature films- it was only a matter of time before the ski biz opened the wagon gate and asked us to climb aboard. RED Mountain, the oldest ski resort in Western Canada, and the first stop on B.C.’s famous Powder Highway is using the StartEngine funding website to seek an injection for their next capital investment. The goal is set at $10 million with a minimum buy-in of $1000.

You Don’t Have To Pay To Play Just Yet

Red Mountain’s platform is simple- help keep us from being swallowed by Evil Corp. According to the Canadian resort’s website close to 40 ski resorts are owned by just three corporations and nearly 75 percent of those acquisitions happened in the last 14 years. Red is using Vail Resort’s latest engulfment of Whistler/Blackcomb to highlight the eclipsing need to keep local hills out of the hands of “The Man.” But because this is a first of its kind, RED wants to gauge the public’s interest. All you have to do is log on and imply that you might want to invest. There’s no legal commitment whatsoever. After 90 days, if it looks like enough people could fund the campaign, then it goes live and you can chip in or not.

Selling Points Of A Ski Resort

With the advent of new crowdfunding rules that now allow for equity in exchange for ‘donations,’ an entity like a ski area can offer perks beyond a lift ticket or T-shirt. Those who help to raise the $10 million goal will have an equity stake/shares in the company.

Last year was the best financial year in RED’s history and they want to keep the momentum going in “a way that supports our beliefs of community and sustainability for a place that we believe is special within the ski resort world. We are doing this by bringing forward an extremely unique opportunity to like-minded individuals and adventurists that believe places like RED are important to keep around,” states the resort on their website.

“We have the snowfall, vertical drop, world-class terrain and 4-season fun to go boot-to-boot with the BigGuys, but have consciously maintained our mom ’n’pop/weird uncle feel for over 100 years. We’re tired of seeing families priced out of a premier ski vacation by Mega Resorts. It’s time for a change.”

If you do want to buy the bridge, er resort, you’ll have a chance at a piece of one of the largest ski areas in North America- ahead of Jackson Hole; ahead of Snowbird and Copper.

You Want In

The “Test The Waters Phase” involves six investment tiers. Amounts range from $1000 to $25,000 with potential investors not only getting equity shares but “perks” like season passes, custom-designed skis and buddy lift tickets. It’s an interesting idea that might just work or perhaps Red gets the money they need, makes a few improvements then flips and sells to VR and all of the equity partners make out like bandits.

In a landscape where local independent areas are getting Pac-manned by giants that would rather stick a Starbucks at every base than let the local roasters woo guests, and who see no issue with $150 lift tickets and $1000 ski lessons, core skiers might want to ask themselves, “Why not try to invest your ski dollars rather than spike it across the bottomline of some corporate entity? What’s to lose?”