Top Five Fridays: June 6, 2025
Mountain biking has been a staple of the community at Sugarloaf Mountain, ME for a long time. Now, starting in just a month, the resort will offer lift access for the first time ever. Image: Sugarloaf Mountain on Facebook
#1: One Week into His Second Tenure, Katz Reclassifies Vail’s Resorts. The Opportunity to Do so Likely Came About in Part Due to the Actions of a Guy in His Basement:
“Experience” is everything at Vail Resorts, even the basis for their new internal resort classification system. Image: Vail Resorts
Hello, and welcome to Top Five Fridays, the June 6, 2025 edition! If you read along with us last week, then you already know that we had the pleasure of bringing you some pretty epic off-season news. This week, while we can’t quite match the same levels of shock and intrigue, we do have a selection of stories that are sure to keep you nearly as entertained as we make our way into the first month of summer. From a newly released FIS viewership survey, to updates regarding the growth of bike parks at ski resorts, and a full interview with Mr. “Take a Lap” himself, this week’s edition of TFF is packed with fun topics! Before we get into all of that though, let’s start by catching up with some followups to last week’s groundbreaking news from Vail Resorts.
First things first, in case you somehow missed it, the one fact that you absolutely need to know from last week’s news is that Vail Resorts relieved Kirsten Lynch from her position as CEO, and reinstated Rob Katz as the new CEO. There’s obviously a ton to unpack with this story, and we did our best to do so in last week’s coverage. This week, we want to share two quick updates that’ve happened since the announcement.
The first update is that Katz has wasted no time implementing change at the company. This week, we learned that he sent a letter to Vail employees, notifying them of four changes being made with how the company operates. Now, to be clear, we haven’t seen a full copy of that letter as it was only sent to employees, so we’re only able to share what’s already been reported by other news outlets. That said, we know that amongst these changes are “tweaks to HR”, as well as the creation of new “Centers of Excellence (COEs) that focus on patrol and snow surfaces.” Again, since we don’t know the details of these programs yet we can’t share any further details, but our best guess is that they’re meant to address recent pushback that Vail has received in the ski patrol and snowmaking departments at resorts across North America.
In addition to these plans, Vail has also reorganized the way it classifies its resorts. Previously, Vail used a regional classification system with resorts being placed in either East, West, or Rockies groups. Effective August 1st however, Vail will begin using an “experience” based categorization system consisting of four categories: Destination, Regional Destination, Local, and Europe & Australia. In making this internal adjustment, Vail has also appointed a COO for each group, hopefully giving each type of resort better representation at the higher levels of leadership. While we’ll have to wait and see what effect this new structure has when skis hit snow next season, the concept does bring some promise that it will enable Vail to better meet the needs of each of its resorts. To see a full breakdown of which Epic resorts are in which of the four new categories, check out the coverage from Powder.
The second update we have for you in regards to the Vail news is one that we actually find kind of hilarious. As you’ll recall, we mentioned last week that there was a chance that a letter sent to Vail Resorts by an investment group called Late Apex Partners back in January was one of the catalysts for the leadership change. In that letter was a list of complaints regarding Vail’s recent business decisions, followed by a list of demands from Vail. Underscoring all of this was the notion that Vail’s leadership was failing its stockholders. Not being financial wizards ourselves, we simply accepted the “Late Apex Partners” was probably some investment firm we’d simply never heard of. As it turns out, it looks like every media outlet from the Vail Daily to the Wall Street Journal also accepted the news with similarly shrugged shoulders.
This week, Stuart Winchester of StormSkiing.com did the ski industry the favor of reaching out to Late Apex to learn more about them and to get an idea of who was behind the “firm” that played such a disruptive role in last week’s news. As it turns out, Late Apex Partners is actually just a guy named Taylor Schmidt who trades stocks in his basement in his free time. For Schmidt, part of his stock trading strategy is to learn about companies by reaching out to them directly. In order to optimize his response rate, Schmidt created “Late Apex Partners” so that he could reach out under an official sounding Email address rather than something like “[email protected]”. For us, it’s a pretty hysterical revelation, that this level of disruption was at least in part caused by a guy in his basement who felt like Vail needed a swift kick in the pants back in January. While StormSkiing.com does have a full interview with Schmidt, you’ll have to become a paid subscriber to read it in full. Either way, you can check out the first half of their report here.
#2: The FIS Wants to Know What You Love, Hate, and Would Change About Their Event Coverage:
Want to share your thoughts on FIS media? Take the survey!
Next up this week is what we think is a particularly fun highlight as it’s a story that you can participate in! As you know, we tend to cover a ton of competitive results here on Top Five Fridays over the course of the winter, spanning from Alpine Skiing to Freeskiing and Freeride, as well as the occasional coverage of XC Skiing and Ski Jumping. Typically when we do so, it’s the result of researching results and finding whatever highlights we can. Rarely are we able to watch full replays of events, and if you’ve ever tried to do so yourself, you probably know how hard it is to find coverage of the events you care about. It’s not a new issue, and it’s one that’s been known about for at least as long as Johan Eliasch has been at the helm of the FIS. In fact, it’s one of the issues he campaigned on when running for President, and one that he’s ruffled quite a few feathers with as he’s worked to shore up the international broadcasting rights. While we don’t know the current status of that project, or when we’ll ever be able to watch full FIS event replays on demand here in the U.S., we do know that the FIS wants your feedback on their event coverage.
This week, the organization released what they’re calling a fan survey to get a better idea of how their audience currently interacts with FIS media coverage, as well as what they’d like more of. Being investigative journalists ourselves, we decided to take the survey to see what kinds of questions were being asked. After getting some basic information about our demographic and interest in specific sports, the survey quickly moves into several more detailed questions regarding how we consume FIS content (ie streaming services, blogs, influencers, etc), as well as questions about what we like, don’t like, and would like to see more of in regards to coverage.
Perhaps the most interesting part of this survey though, is that based on which disciplines you say you’re the most interested in, you will receive questions that ask for your feedback regarding potential alterations to event formats. For example, in our initial survey, we stated that we’re most interested in Alpine Skiing and Freeskiing. As such, we were asked our opinions on concepts such as letting fans vote for the start order in alpine races, new race formats like “Downhill Sprints”, and new freeskiing competition formats - one of which sounded somewhat similar to SLVSH. Interestingly though, on our second go at the survey, we simply answered questions at random in order to advance through and revisit the questions in order to write this highlight. In doing so, we said we were avid Snowboard Cross fans. This time, rather than being asked about Alpine Skiing and Freeskiing competition formats, we were asked for our input on Snowboard Cross format alterations, such as adding tricks to the races.
So what’s the takeaway here? Well, there’s a couple. First, it seems as though the FIS is looking to strengthen its media presence and build stronger relationships with its fans. To do so, no idea is too farfetched, and the FIS is at a point in the process where they’re willing to consider everything. This leads to our second takeaway: you should probably take the survey. Not only is it interesting as a fan to see what types of changes they’re considering, but it’s also an excellent opportunity to let them know the types of content you want to see. We’ve already submitted our answers, and we encourage you to do the same - right here.
#3: Trend Watch: Two More Ski Resorts Adding Lift Service Biking to Round Out Four-Seasons Operations:
A look at what we presume is a portion of Sugarloaf’s new machine-built flow trail. Image: Sugarloaf
Moving right along, our third highlight this week can be filed under the “trend watch” category, as we bring you a tandem of stories that both contribute to the growing number of ski areas introducing lift service mountain biking as a means of achieving year-round operability. Here in Vermont, it’s something that we’ve seen have great success at mid-size ski resorts like Bolton Valley and Burke Mountain, as well as at larger resorts like Killington. Even the non-profit ski area Cochran’s has a lively mountain bike scene in the summer - albeit with no lift. As it turns out, that story isn’t local to us - it repeats all across North America, and this week we’ve learned about two more ski resorts joining in on the fun.
Since we’re on the topic of East Coast ski areas offering biking, let’s start by sharing news from Sugarloaf, Maine, where the resort’s first ever lift access bike park will open in just about a month, on July 4th. There, the story is similar to that of Bolton Valley’s, as the ski area has had a strong mountain bike scene for several years, but is just now expanding its operation to include lift service. In doing so, they’ll open new revenue streams riders can now elect to pay for lift tickets for ease of access to the park, as well as take advantage of the resort’s freshly relocated bike shop which offers everything from demos and tunes to retail products. As far as the bike park itself, the debut grand opening will feature one new machine built flow trail, offering jumps and berms targeting intermediate riders. Beyond that, the new lift access will make the myriad of handbuilt downhill trails already existing at the mountain far more accessible. All told, our gut tells us this is going to be a massive win for the region’s already vibrant mountain biking community. To learn more about the grand opening plans, click here.
In other “ski resort looking to add lift access to become a four season destination” news, we also caught wind of similar plans from Hatley Pointe Mountain Resort in North Carolina, where we suspect year round operations are even more essential to a healthy business model. There, new owners are pushing forward with plans to build out a comprehensive network of trails at the 700’ vertical mountain. While Sugarloaf has a network of pre-exiting trails and is planning to debut with one new machine built trail, Hatley Pointe is starting from scratch and therefore has teamed up with regional trail builders Elevated Trail Design to create a network of nine trails, anchored by three primary lines reflecting beginner, intermediate, and advanced abilities. In other words, the concept is to designate lines for each skill level, but create the network in such a way that riders can bop in and out of each primary line, allowing them to “choose their own adventure” down the mountain. While the new bike park won’t be open for another year, with a planned opening date of Summer 2026, it’s an exciting time for locals in the area as Hatley Pointe will be the first lift served mountain biking within 2 hours of the city of Asheville. To read more about this, check out the press release from the mountain itself.
#4: We’ve Shared His Edits Countless Times, Now Let’s Get to Know Sage Cattabriga-Alosa a Little Better:
Give yourself a quick 1:27 history lesson, with this story of how Sage burst onto the scene with TGR back in 2001.
Finally, now that it’s June and we’re more or less officially in summer mode, it means it's time for ski news to include more athlete profiles than we typically have a chance to cover during the winter. This week, we have a great opportunity to do exactly that as Ski Magazine has shared an interview with Sage Cattabriga-Alosa. What we particularly liked about this story isn’t necessarily getting to know Sage or the interview itself, but that it put a spotlight on a veteran of the freeski world who might not get the recognition he deserves at this point in his career.
Back in the early 2000’s, Sage was one of the pioneers of bringing park style tricks into the backcountry, right alongside names like Tanner Hall, Mike Douglas, and Mark Abma. Over the course of his career, Sage appeared in 25 films and won 4 Powder awards. In other words, in his prime, Sage was equivalent in name recognition to guys like Markus Eder and Sam Kuch today.
In recent years, Sage has popped back onto the scene, albeit in a slightly different manner. If you’re a regular reader of ours, then there’s no doubt you’ve caught a “Lets Take a Lap” edit or two as we tend to share them multiple times each season. These edits are Sage’s creations and they show us a side of skiing that’s rarely shown elsewhere. That is, the local’s perspective, and what it’s like to shred a run or two with a world class athlete - often at their home mountain. From former FWT athletes like Andrew Pollard and Craig Murray, to park skiers like Colby Stevenson, and up and coming athletes like Lucas Wachs and Miles Kemph, the “Let’s Take a Lap” series is the perfect blend of fun times and incredible skiing. Most importantly though, it’s all through the lens of what feels like a proud parent in Sage Cattabriga-Alosa.
As for the interview from Ski Mag? Well, more than anything it confirmed what we’ve come to suspect about Sage, which in this case is a great thing. Now that Sage is one of the elder statesmen of freeskiing, he shares that he’s shifted his mindset from being the type of skier who’s eager to film parts and chase winter, to being the type of skier who’s in it simply because he loves skiing. When you watch an episode of “Let’s Take a Lap,” it shows. You can tell that Sage is having the time of his life simply chasing the younger generation of skiers around different mountains - hooting and hollering at their antics the entire time. At this point in his career, Sage has nothing left to prove, so instead he’s put himself behind the camera and embraces the fun aspect of skiing. In a sport that can be entirely too competitive in formal settings, on social media, and even amongst locals, Sage Cattabriga-Alosa is cementing his legacy by reminding us all that at the end of the day, skiing is just meant to be fun, plain and simple. To read his interview in full, check out the article from SkiMag.com.