MOUNT SUNAPEE WINS ANOTHER NATIONAL FAMILY PROGRAM AWARD 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Mount Sunapee Resort
Newbury, NH
Bruce McCloy, Director of Marketing and Sales
(603) 763-3500 or bmccloy@mtsunapee.com

Newbury, NH – (September, 2009) – Mount Sunapee Resort has won a national Guest Service Award from the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) for MyPlace, an innovative skills development program for skiers and riders ages 13-17.  Annually NSAA presents industry awards for guest service and marketing programs that are designed to grow the sports of skiing and snowboarding.  The award was presented to Mount Sunapee at the NSAA National Convention and Trade Show at Marco Island, Florida on Thursday, May 14, 2009.

MyPlace is a fast paced two-hour session for intermediate and advanced skiers and snowboarders ages 13-17.  Participants are grouped by age and personal goals.  To make it “fun” the instructor captures the session on a hand-held video camera and then the video is posted on a MyPlace page on the Mount Sunapee web site.  While the video might be used as a teaching aid during the session it also is meant to capture the personality of the group.  Edited and put to music, participants can share their MyPlace video with friends and family on the Mount Sunapee web site.  Check out the video clip on the press kit CD.

In 2004 Mount Sunapee won a national award from NSAA for Families First.  Families First allows families (ages eight and up) to learn how to ski and snowboard together in the same class. If there is a mix of skiers and snowboarders, then two instructors are assigned to the family. “With a bunch of people who don’t know each other, the only thing they have in common is that they are beginners,” says Peter Ettenborough, Mount Sunapee ski instructor. “With a family, everyone is comfortable with each other. The parents know the kids are safe, and the kids know their parents are right here, so their confidence level is higher.”  Families First is one of Mount Sunapee’s most popular learning programs.

Other innovative family programs include Bring the Grandchildren and the Tag-A-Long Lesson.  Baby boomers, who have been the mainstay of the ski and snowboard industry for the past 30 years, are starting to have grandchildren that are old enough to ski or snowboard.  Anyone age 60 or over who purchases a full-price full-day lift ticket can bring a grandchild (ages 6–18) for half price. This offer is not valid during holiday periods and is limited to one grandchild per grandparent.  The Tag-A-Long Lesson is designed so an adult can accompany their 3- or 4-year-old in a private lesson and learn some of the techniques that are used to teach young children how to ski or snowboard.