• EpicMix Mobile Application for iPhone and Android, Kids’ Website and Other Enhancements Will Be Available in Early 2011
BROOMFIELD, Colo. – Dec. 23, 2010 – Today, Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE: MTN) announced that the EpicMix™ website at www.epicmix.com is now live in Beta form and available for skiers and riders to view their ski and ride experience at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly mountain resorts. Also, Vail Resorts is extending the deadline to Feb. 22, 2011 for guests to activate their accounts and automatically be entered to win an Epic Holiday Gift of $100,000.
“We could not be more excited about everything that EpicMix will offer skiers and snowboarders at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly this winter, and guests can now begin to view and track their lift rides, vertical feet skied and digital pins earned in the live Beta site. We want to be certain that we take the time to ensure each new piece of EpicMix functionality is ready before it is launched. We recognize there remain a number of known issues surrounding the robust functionality of this ground-breaking online and mobile application and we intend to continue to work through them with real-time feedback from EpicMix users,” said Heidi Kercher-Pratt, chief marketing officer for Vail Resorts.
Anyone with a RF-enabled season pass or Peaks Lift Ticket can go to www.epicmix.com to register their account and view their information. They can also review a list of frequently asked questions and known issues with the website that will be remedied in early 2011 and can provide feedback through an online form. In addition, guests can call the Vail Resorts customer service line at 800-743-0242 to receive answers to their questions or report any issues.
EpicMix is a first-of-its-kind online and mobile application for the 2010-2011 ski and snowboard season. EpicMix allows Vail Resorts guests, at any of its world-class mountain resorts –Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly – to effortlessly utilize radio frequency (RF) technology to digitally capture their ski and ride experience and share it with friends and family. EpicMix captures the on-mountain activity of guests by leveraging Vail Resorts’ state-of-the-art RF scanners installed at the entrance to each of its 89 lifts across the five mountain resorts. An RF-enabled chip embedded in Vail Resorts’ season passes and PEAKS lift tickets will automatically track guests’ lift rides, calculating vertical feet skied and days on the mountain and will recognize special achievements and accomplishments by granting guests commemorative, collectible digital pins. EpicMix has hundreds of available digital pins for a multitude of unique experiences available at each resort.
EpicMix allows guests the choice to “opt in” and share their statistics and accomplishments through updates on Twitter and Facebook and guests can create special EpicMix leader boards with their Facebook friends. The free EpicMix mobile application, which guests can download to their iPhone, Android or other smart phone, will alert guests when any of their Facebook friends are skiing and where they are on the mountain. The application will also allow guests to send messages to their private groups of Facebook friends on the mountain. The mobile application will also provide trail and grooming information, snow and weather reports, as well as resort news and traffic updates.
Skiers and riders who activate their account by Feb. 22, 2011 at www.epicmix.com will automatically be entered to win an Epic Holiday Gift of $100,000. One lucky guest will then be selected at random. For additional details and contest rules, visit www.epicmix.com.
In early 2011, the free EpicMix mobile application, which guests can download to their iPhone, Android or other smart phone, will alert guests when any of their Facebook friends are skiing and where they are on the mountain. The application will allow guests to send messages to their private groups of Facebook friends on the mountain. The mobile application will also provide trail and grooming information, snow and weather reports, as well as resort news and traffic updates. Also early next year, EpicMix will have a special website for kids under the age of 14, which will allow them to connect with their parents’ accounts, but will have content designed specifically for them and unique pins only kids can earn. The kids’ site also will have special privacy restrictions. Parents will also be able to use EpicMix to track the lift rides of their kids in real time.
The basic functionality of EpicMix does not require Vail Resorts’ guests to do anything but ski and ride as they always have. There is nothing to buy, nothing new to wear and no required check-ins with their mobile devices. The application is embedded into Vail Resorts’ existing season pass and PEAKS lift tickets. EpicMix can be used by any guest at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly, whether they purchase a season pass or a PEAKS single day lift ticket.
The privacy of Vail Resorts guests is of paramount importance to the Company and no information collected through EpicMix will be shared unless a guest “opts in” and specifically chooses to share their information. All information collected through EpicMix is subject to the strict privacy policies of Vail Resorts. Guests can choose to disable the RF chip in their pass to prevent any scanning. Children under 14 participating in Epic-Mix will have limited features and a connection only to their parents’ account.
For more information and to watch a video about EpicMix, visit www.epicmix.com or www.snow.com.
For broadcast-quality video footage and photos, visit: public.me.com/vail.resorts. Please credit Vail Resorts for both the photos and video.
Media contacts:
Kelly Ladyga, (303) 404-1862, kladyga@vailresorts.com, @KLadyga
Kate Lessman, (303) 404-1871, klessman@vailresorts.com, @KathleenLessman
About Vail Resorts
Vail Resorts, Inc., through its subsidiaries, is the leading mountain resort operator in the United States. The Company's subsidiaries operate the mountain resort properties of Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone mountain resorts in Colorado, and the Heavenly Ski Resort and Northstar-at-Tahoe Resort in the Lake Tahoe area of California and Nevada, and the Grand Teton Lodge Company in Jackson Hole, Wyo. The Company's subsidiary, RockResorts, a luxury resort hotel company, manages casually elegant properties across the United States and in the Caribbean. Vail Resorts Development Company is the real estate planning, development and construction subsidiary of Vail Resorts, Inc. Vail Resorts is a publicly held company traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: MTN). The Vail Resorts company website is www.vailresorts.com and consumer website is www.snow.com.