With parking now a perennial problem, Arapahoe Basin has decided to end its Epic Pass partnership with Vail Resorts, where it is among a suite of resorts users enjoy. It also looks unlikely that the resort will attempt to correct this problem by joining another large suite like that offered in the Ikon Pass.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re willing to talk with anyone,\u201d COO Alan Henceroth told the Vail Daily on Monday. \u201cEvery company or group is potentially a candidate, but we\u2019re really looking for the right kind of partnership. If we are going to have another one, we\u2019re going to make sure it fits in the way that we can best manage this business and not get back into the same parking challenges we had before.\u201d<\/p>\n
Henceroth said while the resort has made headway in encouraging carpooling, off-site parking and use of the Summit Stage, it still needs to do more.<\/p>\n
\u201cA common comment people have is we just need to build another parking lot \u2014 the problem is, there\u2019s not room for another parking lot, so we have to come up with something else,\u201d Henceroth said. \u201cAnd we\u2019re a long ways off from a $100 million concrete parking garage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Henceroth has worked for A-Basin since before the original pass partnership with Vail Resorts was inked in 1997. Keystone, Arapahoe Basin and Breckenridge were owned by one company, and that company merged with Vail Resorts.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the process of that merger being approved, the Department of Justice forced a divestiture of A-Basin, so we were sold out of that larger resort group,\u201d Henceroth said.<\/p>\n
Arapahoe Basin was sold to a Canadian company but has maintained a pass partnership with Vail Resorts ever since. While the partnership has helped the resort attain unprecedented popularity, Henceroth said even he is not sure how profitable the Epic Pass consumer has been for A Basin.<\/p>\n
When asked if Epic Pass holders have been good spenders, \u201cthat\u2019s a good question,\u201d Henceroth responded. \u201cI don\u2019t know if I really know the answer to that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, \u201cWe\u2019re going to find out a lot of things here,\u201d Henceroth added.<\/p>\n
Henceroth writes the popular \u201cAl\u2019s Blog\u201d news and terrain updates and said feedback has been mostly positive since the news broke on Monday morning.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had a lot of feedback today,\u201d Henceroth said. \u201cNot everybody loves it \u2014\u00a0there\u2019s some people that really want us to stay on the Epic Pass, they\u2019re committed to being Epic Pass holders \u2014 but overwhelmingly the feedback we\u2019ve gotten has been positive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Henceroth said regardless of what happens, A Basin will always be focused on character.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really important for us to preserve the culture and the vibe of this place,\u201d he said. \u201cA lot of people really love hanging out here and that\u2019s both employees and guests, and we want to continue to do that, and we kind of think we need to make a change if we\u2019re going to be able to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
While partnerships with other resorts are still unclear, one thing that is for certain is A Basin will put its own season pass up for sale soon.<\/p>\n
The price has not yet been revealed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to start with an A Basin season pass,\u201d Henceroth said. \u201cOur passes are going to go on sale here in two or three weeks, and we\u2019re really hopeful that some of those die-hard A Basin skiers that happen have a pass that are in the Epic Pass family, we hope we convert quite a few of them.\u201d<\/p>\n