What is going on at Crystal? Management change at the top March 2026

M

MarzNC

Active member
Of all the resorts owned by Alterra, the one that seems to has had the most issues that make headlines outside the PacNW is Crystal. As of this week, Crystal has a new President, a promotion of a VP. The last President was also a promotion of a VP, which happened a few years ago.

I paid attention to Crystal after John Kircher decided to buy it outright from Boyne Resorts. He brought it into his family's company back in 1997. Back then he was in charge of Big Sky and Boyne Resorts in the west, while his brother was in charge in the east. By 2018, John's family decided to sell Crystal to Alterra, which was just getting going.

Any thoughts from someone who skis in the PacNW?

April 2017

September 2018

April 2023
www.saminfo.com

Darbous Named Crystal Mountain (Wash.) President and COO

SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., April 26, 2023—Alterra Mountain Company named Matthew Darbous president and COO of Crystal Mountain, Wash., effective immediat
www.saminfo.com www.saminfo.com

March 2026
www.saminfo.com

Hansen Promoted to President and COO of Crystal Mountain (Wash.)

SAM Magazine—Pierce County, Wash., March 27, 2026—Linnea Hansen has been named the new president and COO of Washington’s Crystal Mountain, effective immedi
www.saminfo.com www.saminfo.com
 
MarzNC said:
Of all the resorts owned by Alterra, the one that seems to has had the most issues that make headlines outside the PacNW is Crystal. As of this week, Crystal has a new President, a promotion of a VP. The last President was also a promotion of a VP, which happened a few years ago.

I paid attention to Crystal after John Kircher decided to buy it outright from Boyne Resorts. He brought it into his family's company back in 1997. Back then he was in charge of Big Sky and Boyne Resorts in the west, while his brother was in charge in the east. By 2018, John's family decided to sell Crystal to Alterra, which was just getting going.

Any thoughts from someone who skis in the PacNW?

April 2017

September 2018

April 2023
www.saminfo.com

Darbous Named Crystal Mountain (Wash.) President and COO

SAM Magazine—Denver, Colo., April 26, 2023—Alterra Mountain Company named Matthew Darbous president and COO of Crystal Mountain, Wash., effective immediat
www.saminfo.com www.saminfo.com

March 2026
www.saminfo.com

Hansen Promoted to President and COO of Crystal Mountain (Wash.)

SAM Magazine—Pierce County, Wash., March 27, 2026—Linnea Hansen has been named the new president and COO of Washington’s Crystal Mountain, effective immedi
www.saminfo.com www.saminfo.com
Click to expand...
Another ski area CEO that has a background in food and beverage if I remember right, Vails ex ceo also had a background in food and beverage.
I know I’m not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but does anybody else see a problem with this ?
 
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jasoncapecod said:
Another ski area CEO that has a background in food and beverage if I remember right, Vails ex ceo also had a background in food and beverage.
I know I’m not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but does anybody else see a problem with this ?
Click to expand...
Not really comparable if you are talking about the Crystal top leader vs the Vail Resort CEO before Katz took over again.

Operational leadership and corporate leadership are quite different. I say that based on experience working for 15 years for a company after grad school. It was a startup when I started (40 people) and grew into a publicly held company (17,000) company about 7 years later. The primary entrepreneur and co-founder stayed out of operational decisions. The sole VP of Operations when there was only one office eventually became the Pres. of the American division. By the time he retired from corporate life a few years after the company went public and became a professor, quite a bit had changed for him as he was pushed farther and father away from day-to-day operations into executive management. The entrepreneur was one of our professors when he and I were grad students together.

Vail Mountain's top leader, Beth Howard, comes from a F&B background. There are others who moved from senior management positions in F&B to mountain ops successfully. I could argue that coming from ski patrol is a harder route because the people management component probably involves far fewer people and personality types than F&B. The other common background for Ops leaders is ski school.

insideuni.uni.edu

UNI alum Beth Howard’s ascent to COO of Colorado’s famous Vail Mountain

In 1985, Beth Howard traded Iowa corn fields for Colorado mountains when she took a college internship at Beaver Creek Resort. At the time, she was a University of Northern Iowa student, majoring in food and nutrition and business, completing her internship requirement to graduate. Her...
insideuni.uni.edu insideuni.uni.edu
 
LOL

Gone!

www.alterramtn.co

ALTERRA MOUNTAIN COMPANY ANNOUNCES CEO TRANSITION

Alterra Mountain Company announced that Jared Smith, the company’s President, will be promoted to Chief Executive Officer, effective August 1, 2022. At that time, Rusty Gregory, the company’s current Chief Executive Officer, will step back from day-to-day operations to become Vice Chairman of...
www.alterramtn.co www.alterramtn.co

Denver, Colorado - May 25, 2022- Today, Alterra Mountain Company announced that Jared Smith, the company’s President, will be promoted to Chief Executive Officer, effective August 1, 2022. At that time, Rusty Gregory, the company’s current Chief Executive Officer, will step back from day-to-day operations to become Vice Chairman of the Board.

Smith joined Alterra Mountain Company in June of 2021, tasked with operating and further developing the company’s Resort Division. Over the last year, he has focused on identifying opportunities for growth and efficiency of the operations as well as developing plans to better utilize data and technology to advance the guest experience. Smith joined Alterra Mountain Company after more than 15 years at Live Nation Entertainment where he served as President and Global Chairman of Ticketmaster. While overseeing the world’s largest ticket marketplace and the global market leader in live event technology and services, he led the company through a reinvention of its approach to client, artist, and fan engagement and transformed its sales, support, product, and technology organizations. Smith will continue to be based out of Alterra Mountain Company’s headquarters in Denver, Colorado.

The eventual Alterra IPO?! Lolzzzzzzzzz :p:cool::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::eusa-shhh::eusa-shhh:




More LOL

Anyone want to wager Vail departure dates on betting markets (below)? There is no way for her drive revenue in passes after this disastrous ski season. It will be remembered by the ski community - once in a generation Western North America horrible season. I am sure her bonus structure will be completely out of whack with what is possible (revenue growth/stock/etc). I would assume Vail will stagnate for the next couple of years.

Women's yoga pants and athleaisure is a sure fit for the average Vail skier.


Nov 21, 2025
Vail Resorts Appoints Celeste Burgoyne as Chief Revenue Officer
Seasoned business leader and lululemon executive joins the Company to help drive the next chapter of growth

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"We are thrilled to welcome Celeste, a proven business leader with a long track record of driving growth and long-term guest loyalty at lululemon," said Vail Resorts Chairperson & Chief Executive Officer Rob Katz. "Celeste's deep appreciation for the connection between brand, guest experience, and revenue will be critical as we continue to reimagine how we connect with our guests, reignite our resort brands, and accelerate growth in both lift revenue and our ancillary lines of business."

At lululemon, Burgoyne currently oversees all channel and customer-facing aspects of the company's North American business, including e-commerce, customer relationship management, marketing, retail store experience, and real estate, and is directly responsible for over $7.5 billion in revenue. She also leads guest experience innovation for lululemon globally and recently launched the company's membership program. Burgoyne joined lululemon in 2006 and held numerous leadership roles over nearly two decades. She began her career at lululemon as the first General Manager of the U.S. business when there were less than 10 stores. From there, she played a key role in scaling the business and building the brand from its infancy to where it is today – more than 750 stores and over $10 billion in revenue globally. Prior to lululemon, Burgoyne spent 10 years at Abercrombie & Fitch during a time of significant growth.

"It is an honour to join Vail Resorts, not just because of the respect I have for Rob, the management team, and this incredible business which has so much opportunity ahead, but also because of the passion that my family and I have for the experience it provides," said Burgoyne. "I have spent countless days enjoying Whistler Blackcomb, in both the summer and winter, so I know firsthand what the Company's mission of Experience of a Lifetime means to skiers, snowboarders, and all their guests. I look forward to being a part of the Vail Resorts team and this next phase of growth and transformation."

Burgoyne will be based in Vancouver, British Columbia where she and her family currently reside.
 
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