Ski Area Vehicle Maintenance Institute

2009 SAVMI Conference & Trade Show Recap

This year’s SAVMI Conference & Trade Show was, once again, a huge success! Although the attendance was not record breaking, we did manage to attract 292 ski area and supplier personnel. “This number was very encouraging to us given the current economy and recent cut-backs in educational budgets,” said Johnny Green, SAVMI President. “But I think what impressed me even more was the fact that some individuals paid their own way. When faced with the sad fact that their company would not support their education, these folks came up with the funds themselves. That just goes to show you how important this conference is and the lengths people will go to just to attend.”

This year’s agenda provided more than 40 sessions on everything from mechanical/vehicle maintenance from the top manufacturers, to environmental issues to the latest technology available on grooming equipment. Click here for photos of some of these sessions.

Monday Night’s Barbeque was held at the new Prinoth shop; an impressive facility to say the least. Luckily, the new facility has an ample back yard and set the scene for the annual Horseshoe Pitchin’ Competition. First place was awarded to the team of Kerwin Knutson/Tim Knutson (who ironically are not related and didn’t even know each other prior to becoming a team.) Second place went to Darrick Zuber/Rodriquez Williams. The team of Carey Pinkerton/Russ West took third place with fourth going to Mike Gara/JP Bardley. Whether you were a participant or an innocent by-stander making valuable connections with others in the industry; a good time was had by all. Click here for photos of Monday night’s events.

Tuesday proved to be very busy, with classes and several annual events scheduled throughout the day. During lunch, SAVMI recognized and honored this year’s award winners. Joe Cuifo with Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation was awarded the Tim Crouse Memorial Award as the mechanic of the year. The Vehicle Maintenance Support Award was presented to Kassbohrer’s Greg Percival. The Safety Award was given to Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard’s vehicle maintenance department for their impressive 1845 day streak without a safety violation. The award luncheon ended on a high note when Rick Smarek from Breckenridge presented Paul Testwuide with the SAVMI Lifetime Achievement Award. Testwuide was recognized as a pioneer in the ski industry in the Vail Valley. Click here for photos from the award luncheon and here for more information on the award winners. Tuesday’s events were wrapped up with the annual trade show. It was the perfect opportunity for attendees to learn what’s new and make vital connections. This year’s show saw the addition of some new suppliers including Glenwood Springs Ford and Schauenburg Corporation. Click here for photos of the trade show.

Although the class schedule was pretty intense, attendees did find some time on Wednesday afternoon to take advantage of the many recreational offerings available in Grand Junction. This year’s activities included the annual golf tournament, trap shooting, fishing, mountain biking and the always popular kart racing. Click here for photos of attendees participating in these activities.

And of course we wish to extend a HUGE thank you to this year’s sponsors. SAVMI is very fortunate to have the support of our industry leaders. Their financials and in-kind contributions are essential to the success of our show. Additionally, their support helps keep the registration fees extremely affordable. This year’s sponsors and supporters include: Aspen Skiing Company, Beaver Creek Fleet Services, Beaver Creek Village Operations, BG Products, Collett Enterprises, Inc., Colorado Distributing, Colorado Motor Parts/NAPA, Diesel Services, Inc., FallLine, Gray Oil Company, Kässbohrer All Terrain Vehicles, Leitner-Poma of America, Lif-Tech Equipment, Mobil Delvac, Mountain Services Group - Division of Okner’s Supply Co., Inc., MTN Snow Equipment, Inc., Perma Groomer, and Prinoth. If you do business with any of these companies, please take a few minutes the next time you see them and let them know just how much you personally appreciate their support of the SAVMI organization.

The Board hopes you were able to get some good “take home” information from this year’s class offerings. We always try to provide a variety of sessions as we realize there are many different aspects involved in running an efficient shop. With that said, if there is a topic you’d like us to add to next year’s curriculum, please tell us about it. We will be meeting before the end of the summer to discuss the 2010 schedule and will consider all suggestions. Feel free to contact any board member. Click here for a list of members and their email addresses.

We look forward to seeing you at next year’s show, May 17-20, 2010!

Please feel free to contact info@savmi.org if you have comments, suggestions and or concerns.

In conjunction with the National Ski Areas Association