Industry News
The ski industry faces many challenges just like any other business or industry in the world. Some of those are rising costs, more people working remotely, and finding and retaining good employees. There is a current need in the ski industry to find more lift maintenance technicians. To try and find a solution to this problem, Colorado Mountain College (CMC) and Alterra Mountain Company have teamed up to create a program that will find and train new lift mechanics and lift maintenance technicians.
The four-week program includes 12 college credits and gets students ready to start working as lift mechanics. Ski industry partners will work with CMC to support this program and hire strong students into their lift mechanic teams at the end of this intensive. CMC offers opportunities to gain an industry-endorsed Ropeway Maintenance Technician Level 1 Certification in intensive and hybrid formats. The Level 1 Certificate aligns with the NSAA’s Lift Maintenance Resource Guide’s Level 1 Lift Mechanic Guidelines and learning outcomes. “I guarantee you after this four-week program these students will walk out with a job they want,” Ben Cairns, Vice President and Campus Dean of the Leadville and Salida campuses, said.
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The origins of the program began when Hannah Barrego, Director of Operations, and Mark Brownlie, Chief Operating Officer at Alterra spoke about the need for such a program. Barrego was asked to find more employees to work at the resorts, train them faster, and retain them longer by Brownlie. “We are seeing individuals age out, leave for other industries, and living in a mountain community can be challenging; we have seen attrition,” Barrego said.
At the same time, Alterrra’s “councils,” which Barrego described as centers of excellence, are comprised of subject matter experts from Alterra’s resorts and were also in discussion with Steamboat Resort and Colorado Mountain College about creating a training program for lift maintenance. “Partnering with higher education to develop programs that solve real-world problems or gaps in the industry can help train staff, and by paying for their education we can show a long-term investment in personal growth and development that hadn’t widely existed in the industry previously. We are excited to grow this program and partnership,” Barrego said.
Ski industry partners will work with CMC to support this program and hire strong students into their lift mechanic teams at the end of this intensive. CMC offers opportunities to gain an industry-endorsed Ropeway Maintenance Technician Level 1 Certification in intensive and hybrid formats. The Level 1 Certificate aligns with the NSAA’s Lift Maintenance Resource Guide’s Level 1 Lift Mechanic Guidelines and learning outcomes.
Colorado Mountain College covers 7,500 square miles, three national forests, six wilderness areas, and most of Colorado’s major ski resorts. CMC has three full-service residential campuses and eight community campuses in eight Colorado counties. This summer, 22 students participated in the program and the majority were from Alterra resorts, with 4 students from other mountains. That number was up compared to last year when the pilot program had 14 students.
There is also a challenge within the industry in retaining workers in the middle demographic aged 25-50 years old. The struggle to find a career in a mountain community where the cost of living is high is a challenge for employees who work at ski resorts. Alterra and CMC understand this and are trying to create careers for employees in this age bracket that are not just a job, but an actual career path. This program is geared at solving that challenge.
This year marks the second year CMC and Alterra are joining forces to offer an industry-endorsed Ropeway Maintenance Technician Level 1 Certification in an intensive format. This intensive program is meant to rapidly train students and get them straight to work on the mountain. The course is offered from mid-May through mid-June at the CMC Leadville campus. The four-week program includes 12 college credits and gets students ready to start working as lift mechanics. Alterra Mountain Company has been working with CMC to support this program and hire strong students into its lift mechanic teams at the end of this intensive.
This year, the curriculum has been refined to focus more on rigging and basic electrical as well as adding some welding practice. The sessions are taking place at CMC’s Leadville campus, with in-person labs at Copper Mountain and Ski Cooper and some teambuilding events at Arapahoe Basin and on the Arkansas River. Instructors are making the curriculum increasingly universal as they teach it across different mountains and lifts. The Level 1 Certificate aligns with the National Ski Areas Association’s Lift Maintenance Resource Guide’s Level 1 Lift Mechanic Guidelines and learning outcomes.
This program is also offered in a remote modality and is taught by CMC instructors in real-time online classroom experience, and lab work is carried out on the job each week through an agreement with an employee’s home mountain. Students or mountains interested in this option can indicate interest and work with CMC to set up this unique learning opportunity. It does require close collaboration between the employee’s mountain and CMC to facilitate the lab-based portion of the learning.
The Ropeway Maintenance Technician program is affiliated with several ski industry professional organizations to enhance the student’s understanding of this industry. The following is a list of professional memberships:
- NSAA – National Ski Areas Association (Member) – A professional organization for ski areas and ski area equipment supplies.
- CSCUSA – Colorado Ski Country USA (Member) – Marketing and education for member Colorado ski areas.
- RMLA – Rocky Mountain Lift Association (Member) – Education and networking of passenger tramway operators.
- SAVMI – Ski Area Vehicle Maintenance Institute (Member) – Education and networking for ski area vehicle maintenance departments.
In this type of learning environment, being on the mountain and getting hands-on experience is key to any student being successful. Colorado Mountain College’s epic locale and hands-on philosophy give students the chance to actively work on some of the most notable slopes in the nation. “It is the piece that has been missing historically, and it is the piece that we built into the program, and it is the piece that differentiates it from other programs,” Barrego said.
Students will have hands-on opportunities to:
- Work on major ski competitions such as the World Cup races
- Be involved in large-scale international events
- Network with high-level ski and snowboard professionals
- Intern at any winter resort in the world
- Learn about the wide range of mountain conditions
- Use state-of-the-art equipment and cutting-edge technology
The overall cost per credit varies based on where the students are from in the same way that other colleges in the country operate. However, being able to take a four-week course and knowing that a guaranteed job will be waiting for you is something that cannot be found in a lot of places. If you like working outdoors, love skiing or riding, and want to work in the ski industry, then this could be the opportunity for you.
For more information visit Colorado Mountain College’s website.
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