Vail Resorts Allocates $10 Million for Youth Ski and Snowboard Programs

Vail Resorts, Inc has added another layer to its Epic for Everyone strategy. “Epic” is the catch word for Vail’s extensive ticket sales platform. The publicly traded company has announced a major expansion of its current youth access efforts, with plans to launch new programs at more than a dozen resorts serving major metropolitan areas, including New York City, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Boston, Cleveland and Seattle. The company recently acquired 17 resorts many of which are near these large urban areas.

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Vail will provide free lift tickets, ski school, equipment rentals and other services to local non-profits, who will combine those services with youth mentorship for enriching, on-mountain programs across the company’s growing portfolio. 

Vail Resorts Chief Executive Officer Rob Katz and his wife, Elana Amsterdam, will personally donate $10 million, over the next five years, to participating non-profits to help develop and expand programs, fund transportation and support other needs necessary to provide mountain access and engaging experiences. The goal of the new initiative, which is expected to launch during the 2020-21 winter season, is to enhance access to winter sports for underserved youth and inspire the next generation of skiers and riders. 

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“I am incredibly proud of the work our company has already done to broaden engagement in the outdoors and am very excited about the opportunity to dramatically grow our reach with our expanded footprint of 37 resorts,” said Katz. “There is already incredible enthusiasm for getting kids on the mountain, and Elana and I feel fortunate to be able to support and accelerate these efforts”.  

The Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust will immediately work to identify non-profit partners so that the new and expanded programs can begin next season. The Trust will be looking for non-profits that work with underserved urban youth and are passionate about the benefits of getting kids outside.  

Vail Resorts already has an expansive program in the industry focusing on youth access that supports nearly 4,500 underserved kids across Colorado, Utah, Lake Tahoe, Chicago, Detroit and Minneapolis-St. Paul. With the new programs in place, Vail Resorts plans to host more than 10,000 underserved kids and teens annually by expanding to its resorts that serve the cities of Akron-Canton, Baltimore, Boston, Cleveland, Columbus, Kansas City, Louisville, Milwaukee, New York City, Philadelphia, Seattle, St. Louis and Washington, D.C.

Other  Epic for Everyone Passes include the Epic Day Pass, a discounted pass product for new and occasional skiers and riders; the Military Epic Pass; and Epic School Kids, which offers free days of skiing for kids in kindergarten through fifth grade in certain regions like Colorado, Utah and the Pacific Northwest.  

Read Vail’s full press release HERE.