Epic By Nature

Latest Episodes:

Ski & Ride for Life Feb 24, 2020

Show notes

Right now across our Company, our ski and snowboard instructors – our pros – are opening up our sport and mountains to guests across North America. From child to adult, from beginner to highly-skilled, our pros spend more time with guests than most of us and are therefore uniquely positioned to deliver an Experience of a Lifetime. Ski instructors have had a profound impact on growing my confidence and expanding my ability in the sport and I am excited to share their stories today. How did they find their way to teaching? What tactics and techniques do they use? What credentials do they need? How do they manage the logistics and the business of ski school?

The Magic of Snowmaking Oct 31, 2019

Show notes

Right now across our Company we are preparing for the North American winter season. Keystone has already opened, in Colorado we had record snow fall in October, we are welcoming our seasonal employees, anticipation is building, and our snow guns are fired up. So it is only appropriate that in this episode of Epic By Nature, we explore the story of our snowmakers and snowmaking. After all, snow is why we come to work every day. Where does the passion for snowmaking come from? How did it come to be? How does snowmaking differ across our resorts? What is the science and technology behind it? And what is the impact to our environment?

The Big Idea Aug 28, 2019

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The Epic Season Pass is the engine of our business, but once upon a time it was just an idea. Over a decade ago we drastically reduced the price of skiing when we introduced the Epic Season Pass. We were risking revenue, for stability for our company and flexibility for our guests. Today we are sharing the pass story. Why did we launch the pass? What was our strategy? What was the reaction of the industry, our guests and employees? How did we grow and diversify the product? What is our reaction to competition and what’s next?

Integrating a Winning Team Jul 15, 2019

Show notes

One of our four strategic pillars of our Company is Acquisitions & Integrations. Acquisitions build our geographic diversity to protect us from weather variability; increases the diversity of our guest experience adding value to our guests from our season pass programs; and broaden the breadth and diversity of our talent, allowing us to solve industry problems at scale that none of us could do alone. Acquisitions also grow our business and allow us to scale, create investment efficiencies and truly leverage data. But, to make all this possible, we must be more than just a collection of nice things, we need to come together as a true team - and that takes integrations - the process of unifying and aligning our resorts around a common purpose. In this episode of Epic By Nature, we are exploring integrations from every angle; how it feels to be an employee at an acquired resort, how it feels to be COO of a resort leading through the transition and how corporate gets it done.

Legends of Patrol Apr 24, 2019

Show notes

In this episode we are exploring what it takes to join patrol, to learn the skills and to come back season after season in sometimes arduous weather conditions. We are also exploring how patrol has evolved over the years, the pioneering history, the technical advancements and the stories of the people who have led the way.

Trailblazers Mar 07, 2019

Show notes

Having successfully navigated their way to the top of traditionally male dominated areas of our business, our pioneering women leaders in ski-industry operations roles have changed the face of an industry and paved the way for those coming behind them. In honor of International Women's Day, this episode of Epic By Nature celebrates their unique, sometimes challenging, but ultimately transformative and powerful journeys.

Redefining Dining at 10,000ft Feb 11, 2019

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The restaurant business can be challenging on any given day, but it becomes far more complex when that business is located in remote locations at 10,000ft. Join Rob Katz and some of our Executive Chefs and F&B leaders, as we explore just what goes into creating the mountain dining experience. How do we transport food to remote locations and then up the mountain each day? What adjustments do we have to make for cooking at altitude? What goes into the decision to build a new restaurant? How do we re-imagine the dining experience when the guests’ demands are evolving and how will things change as we look to the future?

From Eco-terrorism to Environmentalism Dec 18, 2018

Show notes

Our Company has been on a journey since October 1998 when Vail Mountain was subject to a fire-bombing attack by eco-terrorists. In the 20 years since, we have undergone a metamorphosis to one of the leading environmental companies in the world. This journey has not always been a clear and direct path and has been full of twists and turns. In this episode we are exploring the impact of the arson attack, our first forays into wind credits and why we eventually switched to forest fire restoration, the criticism we received for the political donations by our Political Action Committee, the acquisition of Whistler Blackcomb and the formulation of our Commitment to Zero, to what the future holds.

A Crossroads at Park City Nov 19, 2018

Show notes

On this first episode of Epic by Nature, Rob sits down with Keystone Resort COO Geoff Buchheister to discuss his Leadership journey - from being acquired at Park City, to helping launch the Urban Resorts, and finally to running Keystone.

What is Epic By Nature? Nov 06, 2018

Show notes

An introduction to Epic by Nature.

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