Hot Sheet: X expansion, Forzani’s tire sale, Boyne adventures & more
The Hot Sheet is back, with breaking news about the X Games expansion, Forzani's Canadian Tire sale, an Olympic hero in New York, and a lawsuit in Vermont.
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ESPN announced the X Games will double in size in 2013, adding three new events alongside the existing lineup of the Summer X Games in Los Angeles and the Winter X Games in Aspen, Colo.; and Tignes, France. The new event locations will be decided via an Olympic Games-styled bidding process beginning in 2012.
Scott Guglielmino, senior vice president of programming and Global X for ESPN, said the new locales will adhere the existing competition format of big airs and new school sports. He said, “What we are going to do specifically is build around and embellish the cultural elements.” ESPN has committed to distribute 130 hours of live programming internationally around the six events.
Canadian Tire rolls up Forzani for $800 million+
As SNEWS® reported on May 9, Canadian Tire Corp. will take full ownership of Canada’s Forzani Group Ltd., the country’s largest sporting good chain, for a reported$771 million Canadian (USD $798.5 million). The company announced the move as part of its strategy to compete with a recent influx of competition from chains based in the U.S. “The transaction will establish Canadian Tire as Canada’s ultimate authority in sports, with more than 1,000 combined retail sports outlets across the country,” Chief Executive Stephen Wetmore said in a press release.
(Conversion of Canadian dollars into into U.S. dollars is for information only and is based on the currency rate as of May 9, 2011.)
Boyne launches adventure vacation brand
Boyne Resorts unveiled a new adventure vacation brand on May 17, 2011, offering up the chance to do everything from going sea duck hunting in Maine to playing golf in Bermuda with members of its management staff. The adventures, which also include saltwater fishing and caribou hunting expeditions, will all be led by senior Boyne staff, and list on the new brand’s website for anywhere from $1,500 to $2,100 per trip. In the future, there are plans to add ocean travel and alpine skiing to the list of trips.
Condo owners sue Stowe Mountain Lodge
About 300 condominium owners have filed suit against affiliates of insurance giant American International Group, owners of Stowe Mountain Resort, according to a report by the Associated Press. The condo owners claim their service fees are astronomically higher than what they had agreed to when they put down their deposit, rising from what was reported to be an original annual fee of $410 a year to about $8,000. The owners are suing Spruce Mountain Realty and Stowe Mountain Lodge. “This case is about a Wall Street-owned Vermont condominium hotel developer’s attempt to mislead and defraud residential unit purchasers out of millions of dollars,” the suit claims.
Skier Demong inducted into Saranac Walk of Fame
Hometown hero Billy Demong was honored as the first inductee into Saranac Lake’s Walk of Fame in upstate New York on May 13, 2010. The four-time Nordic combined Olympian captured both gold and silver medals in Vancouver at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
In other news…
The continuing powder days in Lake Tahoe are making it hard for the 2011 Amgen Tour of California to start. After snow led organizers to cancel the race’s grand start to circle Lake Tahoe on May 16, wet weather the following day meant the Stage 2 start planned for Squaw Valley with the peloton to ride over snowy Donner Pass was instead moved to Nevada City at 2,500 feet on the Western slope…Nearby at Alpine Meadows, the area announced plans to open for skiing and snowboarding on Independence Day Weekend, with the lifts turning beginning July 2…In Colorado, A-Basin will add at least two more weekends of riding, with the area open seven days a week through June 5, then opening for the following two weekends after that…Emily Summers has been promoted to the position of Communications Manager at Deer Valley Resort.
— Peter Kray
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