Steamboat to host the US Olympic Team Trials in Freestyle Skiing!

What a great way to spend New Years week in Steamboat Springs Colorado . . .

STEAMBOAT TO HOST U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM TRIALS IN FREESTYLE SKIINGThree Reigning World Champions, Two Defending World Cup Champions & Three Reigning Olympic Medalists Scheduled To Compete In Steamboat This Winter STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, CO-September 6, 2005-The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Association, the century-old organization which serves as the national governing body of Olympic skiing and snowboarding, and Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation announced that the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for aerials and moguls skiing will take place Dec. 30-31, 2005, in Steamboat-Ski Town U.S.A. ® NBC Sports will televise the event with a 90-minute show, including aerials and same-day coverage of moguls airing on New Year’s Eve day at 2 p.m. EST. "The Steamboat Springs community has a strong skiing spirit and established Olympic heritage. To bring the U.S. Olympic Team Trials here is exciting for us and our athletes,” said Bill Marolt, USSA president & CEO. "It allows us to give back to a community that has supported the Team for so long and to provide some exciting ski competition for athletes vying for the 2006 Olympic Team.” The U.S. Olympic Team Trials is essentially a wild-card opportunity for athletes to make the Olympic Team, as two winners (male and female) from each freestyle discipline (aerials and moguls) will be named to the 2006 U.S. Olympic Freestyle Team. The remaining athletes will qualify for the Olympic Team through a season-long series of existing World Cup competitions. The entire 2006 Olympic Freestyle Team will be named Jan. 25, 2006. The U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Ski Town, U.S.A. will include men’s and women’s aerials under the lights at historic Howelsen Hill on Friday, Dec. 30th, and men’s and women’s moguls on the Voo Doo trail at the Steamboat Ski Area during the morning on Saturday, Dec. 31st. "Freestyle is clearly one of the hottest sports in all of skiing, consistently generating some of the highest television viewership ratings in the sport,” said Andy Wirth, vice president of marketing & sales for Steamboat. "Freestyle skiing always has been, and remains a huge part of Steamboat’s claim to Ski Town USA, and we are excited to be hosting the U.S. Olympic Team Trials.” Three reigning World champions, two defending World Cup champions and three reigning Olympic medalists are just part of the unprecedented depth on the 38-member U.S. Freestyle Ski Team who are expected to compete for an early Olympic Team spot. Among the top competitors will be 2005 World Cup champions Jeret 'Speedy’ Peterson (aerials) and Jeremy Bloom (overall, moguls), along with World champions Nate Roberts, Hannah Kearney and Toby Dawson. While this is the first official Olympic Team Trials event for the U.S. Ski Team, Steamboat athletes are no strangers to early selection to Olympic Teams. Both Ann Battelle and Travis Mayer secured their spots on the U.S. Olympic Team during wild-card competitions. A discretionary pick for World Cup action to start the 2002 Olympic season, Mayer clinched an Olympic berth on New Year’s Eve and went on to win an Olympic silver medal in moguls less than two months later. Steamboat has a long tradition in the sport of freestyle skiing and is currently home to freestyle athletes and coaches such as Nelson Carmichael, 1992 Olympic bronze medalist; Ann Battelle, 1999 World champion and four-time winter Olympian; Kris Feddersen, three-time Olympian and World Cup winner; Ryan St. Onge, World Cup winner and two-time U.S. aerials champion; Travis Mayer, 2002 Olympic silver medalist; Don St. Pierre, current U.S. Ski Team moguls head coach; Jeff Good, former U.S. Ski Team head coach, who coached four Olympic medalists; and Park Smalley, athlete, former U.S. head coach and driving force behind the Olympic status freestyle skiing enjoys today. In addition, Steamboat hosted the U.S. Olympic Freestyle Team’s 10-day pre-Olympic camp in 2002 before the Team came to Salt Lake City and won three Olympic medals. To stay up to date on the performance, news and event schedule of U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team athletes, visit ww.usskiteam.com.

Steamboat Rated #1 Family Resort in the West

This award tends to be the norm for Steamboat - - I would argue that the snow at the Steamboat Ski Resort should be ranked in the top 5 every year - - but if we keep that a secret, it will mean more fresh snow for you and I!

STEAMBOAT RATED #1 FAMILY RESORT IN THE WEST BY SKI MAGAZINESki Town, U.S.A.® Known For Kids Ski Free™ & Kids Fly Free, Steamboat MountainWatch, Kids’ Vacation Center & Family Packages STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, CO-September 15, 2005- SKI Magazine recently recognized Steamboat as the #1 Family Ski Resort in the West in its Annual Top 50 Resort Guide. This is the 17th year that SKI Magazine subscribers have surveyed North America's resorts. "Steamboat’s commitment to providing top-notch, affordable family products and programs really makes the resort stand out in the travel industry,” said Chris Diamond, president of the Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation. "Steamboat’s industry innovative Kids Ski Free and Kids Fly Free programs, top notch ski & snowboard school, nationally recognized Kids’ Vacation Center and cutting-edge resort technology system, Steamboat MountainWatch, all combine to make Steamboat the only choice for families.” Steamboat’s family programs were ranked 1st in the west and 2nd in North America. The resort has earned a reputation in the industry as the leader in family programs with trend-setting innovations such as Kids Ski Free, Kids Fly Free and its dedicated children’s center with both day and evening programs. For example, Steamboat’s Kids/GrandKids Ski Free program enables children 6-12 years of age to ski free the same number of days as their parents or grandparents when a parent or grandparent purchases a 5-or-more-day lift ticket. "This marks the 8th time Steamboat has been ranked in the top four in North America for family programs by SKI Magazine,” said Andy Wirth, vice president of marketing & sales. "You won’t find another major destination resort offering as diverse a variety of family programs, packages and options as Steamboat. This survey comes at a perfect time, when families start planning their winter resort adventures and, I believe, places Steamboat as the top choice for their family vacation.” Families continue to give the resort high marks for its state-of-the-art resort locator system, Steamboat MountainWatch. The program, which debuted at the resort last season, makes Steamboat the only ski resort in the world to offer this level of service and convenience to guests. The locator devices are provided complimentary to all Steamboat Ski & Snowboard School participants 16 years of age and younger. In addition, to keep the program affordable for families, Steamboat MountainWatch offers the option of parents or groups to purchase their own Steamboat MountainWatch devices for less than a dollar a day. In addition, Steamboat offers a full line of vacation packages that combine family value with the ultimate mountain experience. Steamboat Central Reservations (SCR) offers families the most competitive airfares and largest variety of air travel schedules available. Using its latest technology iCORIS, SCR searches for all types of fares, including negotiated pricing, companion fares and Steamboat exclusive specials, like Kids Fly Free™. Competing head on with Travelocity, Orbitz and Expedia, iCORIS is sure to return the best options available for your family’s travel needs. Steamboat One-Call Vacations offer the greatest value and convenience with packages customized to include any or all of the following: air transportation, lodging, lift tickets, rentals, clinics, mountaintop dining, ground transportation, off-mountain activities, and travel protection insurance. Ensuring that you get the most value for your vacation dollars, SCR offers easy online booking at www.steamboat.com/packages. Famous for its authentic western atmosphere, friendly locals, variety of terrain and Champagne Powder® snow, Steamboat-Ski Town, U.S.A. ® in northwest Colorado encompasses 164 trails, 3,668 vertical feet, and nearly 3,000 skiable acres with six peaks filled with world-class groomed cruisers, bumps, steeps, open meadows and legendary trees. Steamboat’s skiing heritage dates back to the early 1900s and is a place that has produced more winter Olympians than any other town in North America, a record 56 and counting. Steamboat, the most conveniently accessed ski resort in Colorado, is just 22 miles/35kms from the Steamboat/Hayden Airport (HDN) and is accessible by nonstop air service from eight major U.S. cities in addition to one-stop connecting service nationwide and worldwide.