Tom Aicher – ASDA Attorney and NSAA Special Counsel and Partner – Cleary Shahi & Aicher
Thomas Aicher was named Special Counsel to NSAA in 2016. A Vermont native, he is among the leading ski industry defense attorneys in the country. He was admitted to the Vermont Bar and Vermont Federal Courts in 1991 and mentored by ski industry icon David Cleary. He has been a strong voice on behalf of ski areas in operational and skier education programs, risk management and loss mitigation as well as in the defense of claims and suits. He sits as the NSAA liaison on the Board of Directors for Association of Ski Defense Attorneys (ASDA). Mr. Aicher’s litigation and trial practice includes among other areas, defense and risk management for ski and summer resort operators as well as other recreational business landowners, operators and equipment suppliers. He regularly presents to ski industry audiences on risk management and sporting injury litigation.
Brett Bagley – COO – SnowCloud
Brett is the Chief Operating Officer for SnowCloud. Brett began his career in resort operations at the age of 14 at Roseland Waterpark in Canandaigua, NY before relocating to work in operations at Mountain Creek under Intrawest. Brett stepped away from the industry to pursue a successful career in experiential marketing before returning to join SNOW Partners and the SnowCloud team in 2017.
Scott Brandi – President – SKI NY / Brandi Insurance Group
Scott Brandi has served as President of SANY since 2007 and has grown SANY’s presence and reputation through marketing and legislative efforts. Scott also serves on the TIC, NYSHTA and other boards and works closely with the NYS Legislature and Empire State Development. Scott also leads his own independent insurance operation and has served in the insurance industry for over 30 years. Scott’s greatest accomplishment is being married for 37 years to his wife Susan and father of three children Matt, Mike and Maddie.
Kathleen (Kathy) Brennan – CEO Professional Ski Instructors of America and the American Association of Snowboard Instructors – Eastern Region (PSIA-AASI E)
Kathy was selected to take the helm as the CEO for PSIA-AASI E last October. This dream job is the culmination of a lifelong passion for snowsports. As a 30 year member of PSIA-ASI E, Kathy has worked at various resorts in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and as an Examiner and Development Team Coach for PSIA-AASI E. Most recently she was the Technical Director at Waterville Valley. During the off season, Kathy was the CIO and Services Director for the Whale’s Tale Waterpark and Alpine Adventures zipline companies. In her early career, she worked in financial services and as a consultant helping organizations to define and implement new systems and processes.
Dave Byrd – Director of Risk & Regulatory Affairs – NSAA
Dave Byrd is the Director of Risk & Regulatory Affairs for the National Ski Areas Association. A former journalist and attorney practicing litigation defense, Byrd handles a range of risk management and legal issues that impact the ski resort operations, including employment law, immigration, health care reform, as well as regulatory and compliance issues.
Cindy Dady – AKA Safety Cindy
Cindy Dady’s career in the ski industry started at Greek Peak Ski Resort in New York in the 80s in various roles, then for Intrawest for another eight years as the Kids Ski & Ride Operations Manager at Stratton, VT and Winter Park, CO. She then moved to Echo Mountain, CO, as the General Manager. Cindy then took a position with Mammoth Resorts as their Director of Health & Safety. She made long-lasting changes for guest and employee safety and consistently drove safety initiatives. Her team’s achievements while at Mammoth were NSAA best overall safety program, resorts over 500,000 visits in 2018, and NSAA Best overall safety program in 2019. Cindy joined the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) for the State of New York as their Risk Manager in 2019. In 2020 Cindy was awarded NSAA Safety Champion and received the Excellence in Risk Management award from the Public Employee Risk Management Association. Additionally, in 2020 and 2022, Gore Mountain received NSAA Best Overall Safety Program for ski areas. Cindy oversees the risk management operations of Whiteface Mountain, Gore Mountain, Belleayre, and the Lake Placid Olympic assets.
She is known throughout the industry as Safety Cindy.
Dennis Eshbaugh – President and GM – Holiday Valley Resort
Dennis is President and General Manager of Holiday Valley Resort in Ellicottville, New York. He began his journey in the resort industry almost 50 years ago in the ski school and has enjoyed his tenure in resort operations and project management. Dennis is a Director and past Chairman of Ski Areas of New York, served on the USIA Strategic Planning Committee and served over 10 years on the National Ski Areas Association Board. He has served on various boards including the Ellicottville Chamber of Commerce, Five Star Bank, the Ellicottville/Great Valley Ambulance Service, Southern Tier West Development Foundation and other civic organizations. Dennis continues to have a passion for skiing and retains his Professional Ski Instructor Certification. In the green season his favorite sport is cycling and he has earned the nickname, “Boss Wrench” for his exceptional ability to fix bikes.
Lindsay DesLauriers
Lindsay is the President & CEO of Bolton Valley Resort in Bolton Vermont. She is a charismatic, pragmatic, and driven leader with business and policy experience, and a lifetime in the ski industry. She enjoys community involvement and finding ways to give back.
Dave Gibson – Founder – Propeller Media Works
Dave is the founder of Propeller Media Works, a 26 years old web development company and Accessibility.Works, which provides digital accessibility and ADA compliance consulting. An avid snowboarder in winter, Dave enjoys the off-season on the water, flying drones, photography, gardening, and tinkering around the shop.
Andrew Halmi – General Manager – Mount Pleasant of Edinboro
Andrew has been working at Mount Pleasant of Edinboro for nearly 20 years, starting as a ski instructor and elevating to General Manager. On his free time, he enjoys skiing with his son Ryan.
Jamie Ippolito – Dirigo Valley Systems – jamie@dirigovalleysystems.com
Jamie is the Owner of Dirigo – a ski CMS and ecommerce platform company. He has over 25 years of ski industry experience.
Aaron Kellett – General Manager – Whiteface Mountain
Aaron’s career at Whiteface started in 1998 as a Freestyle coach but it has always been his home. Early on Aaron spent time coaching, building terrain parks and pipes, and working various World Cup events. In 2008 Aaron transitioned to Operations Manager and In 2012 he became the General Manager.
Jim Kelly – Partner – Roemer Wallens Gold & Mineaux LLP
Jim is a partner of the Firm, overseeing all litigation, and is a member of ASDA and IALDA. He began his legal career as Staff Counsel to the New York Public Service Commission from 1979 to 1983, and has been in private practice since that time. Jim has tried over one hundred civil and criminal cases to verdict throughout New York State in all four Departments of the Appellate Division and in the U.S. District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts. He was appointed to the Governor’s Judicial Selection Committee for the Third Department by Chief Judge Hon. Judith Kaye and reappointed by Chief Judge Hon. Jonathan Lippman. He has also been appointed to the Character and Fitness Committee of the Appellate Division Third Department by Presiding Judge Hon. Karen Peters, and reappointed by Hon. Elizabeth A. Garry. He has served as President of the Albany County Bar Association and on the Executive Committee of the New York State Bar Association. He has received awards from The New York State Bar Association and American Bar Association for his creation of the Diversity Internship Program for minority law students.
Dana Kent – Owner and Founder of Dana Kent Coaching – danakentcoaching.com
From the picturesque slopes of Cochran’s Ski Area in Vermont to the expansive Rockies, her love for the great outdoors and skiing has been unwavering. Raised on a farm in Jericho, Vermont, values of hard work, dedication, and resilience were ingrained in me early on. With over 26 years in the skiing industry, Dana spent significant periods in Park City, Vail, and Stowe, navigating operational excellence and safety for both guests and employees across the country in the complexities of 25 different jurisdictions.
Her journey has seen her successfully integrate almost 30 ski areas into the Vail Resorts network, breaking barriers as the inaugural female president of the Intermountain Ski Areas Association and often being the sole female voice in many industry discussions. As we progress, Dana’s mission now centers on championing the empowerment of women in the outdoor sector, ensuring they align with core values, and assisting companies in creating environments that nurture this growth. Passionate about the sustainable evolution of the ski industry and the prominence of smaller ski areas, Dana remains dedicated to educating and advocating for the future. With her wealth of experience, She aims to pave the way for the next generation, especially those women looking to make their mark in this exciting field.
Evan Kovach – General Manager – Mountain Creek
Evan is a lifelong ski area operator. Having got his start in the industry while still in High School, Evan has worked his way up through the Mountain Creek organization holding leadership positions in Accounting, Sales, Marketing and Lodging prior to becoming the resort’s General Manager in 2020.
Michael Lane – Director of Technical Services – National Ski Areas Association
Mike received his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Michigan Technological University. Before entering the ropeway industry, his past work experience consists of construction, structural engineering, mining, mine design, and mine feasibility studies. Mike then worked as a project engineer/manager for Doppelmayr for almost nine years and was involved in over 100 major ropeway installations. Mike then moved to the Forest Service as a member of the National Ropeway Services Team for nearly 18 years managing the ropeway programs in regions 1, 2, 3, and 9. Mike is now at the National Ski Areas Association as the Director of Technical Services.
Mike Lannen – Founder – Eternity Marketing
Mike Lannen is the Founder of Eternity, a web and digital marketing firm in Burlington, Vermont. As an Eagle Scout, Mike is wholeheartedly committed to making the web a more user-friendly space. He takes pride in building close relationships with all of his clients while keeping a watchful eye on team culture and employee satisfaction. In his downtime, Mike cherishes moments spent with his loving wife and indulging in LEGO-building adventures with his two daughters. Additionally, Mike is deeply passionate about the world of smart homes and the ever-evolving realm of artificial intelligence.
Ryan Lavoie, CSP, Director Of Risk Management & Education – MountainGuard
Ryan joined the MountainGuard team in December of 2020 as the Assistant Director of Risk Management & Education, and in April, 2021 was promoted to Director of Risk Management & Education. He is responsible for the development and delivery of the educational content and consultation to our insureds and to continue the development of our loss control service for MountainGuard’s Workers’ Compensation line. Ryan entered the ski industry with the American Skiing Company, as the Risk Manager for Mount Snow in Vermont. Shortly thereafter, Mount Snow was acquired by Peak Resorts where he soon served as their Director of Risk Management and was eventually promoted to the Vice President of Risk Management overseeing the risk management programs for 17 ski areas in 7 states and nearly 8,000 employees. Ryan holds a B.S. in Industrial Safety and has been practicing in the field of occupational safety for nearly 20 years. He is a member of the Board of Certified Safety Professionals, holding the Certified Safety Professional (CSP) designation, and is a member of the American Society of Safety Engineers. He is a member of the NSAA Education/Insurance and Risk Management Committee and a subcommittee chairman on ANSI B77.1. Ryan continually shows his passion for the ski industry by presenting at a variety of NSAA conferences and conventions.
Aaron Madison – Northeast Sales Manager – TechnoAlpin USA
Aaron is formally educated in recreational property management, diesel mechanics, and agronomy. He has worked in the golf industry for 20 years and was on the maintenance side of USGA and PGA tour events. Aaron was the project manager for a large golf course construction project with extensive irrigation, automation, and pump upgrades. Also a golf course superintendent and director of facilities for seven years. Aaron has worked for TechnoAlpin for four years and has been passionate about snowmaking since he was nine when he built his first snowgun. Aaron brings extensive experience with infrastructure, automation, and pump stations.
Dempsey Mendrzycki – Director of Risk Management – SNOW Partners
Dempsey is the Director of Risk Management for SNOW Partners overseeing risk, insurance, legal and compliance related issues for their various businesses. Dempsey is a graduate of Colorado University in Boulder and was recognized as an NSAA Safety Champion for his work in helping to instill a culture of safety at both Mountain Creek and Big SNOW.
Kelly Pawlak – President, National Ski Areas Association
After graduating from Champlain College, Kelly joined Mount Snow, VT in 1985 and was named Mount Snow general manager in 2005. She has 30 years of experience at Mount Snow and held a variety duties, including vice president of marketing and sales and vice president of resort operations. Kelly served on the Vermont Ski Area Association board where she was chair until 2017. She also served on the Vermont Chamber of Commerce board, the Dover Planning Commission and Dover Development Review board. In November of 2017 Kelly accepted a position at National Ski Areas Association as the president/CEO.
Ladora “Lori” Phillips – PSAA President and General Manager Ski Big Bear
Craig Raphaelson – Northeast Sales Manager – DemacLenko of America
Craig is the North East USA Sales Manager with DemacLenko. He has been working for DemacLenko for 9 years. Prior to joining DemacLenko Craig worked in mountain operations for over 30 years with positions at Vail/Beaver Creek, Winterplace Resort WV and Gunstock Mountain Resort in New Hampshire.
Dave Reed – Northeast Sale Manager – SMI Snowmakers
Dave has been making snow/been in the business for over 15 years. Dedicated to helping customers with their snowmaking needs and equipment. He always puts the customer and work first, every customer from SMI gets a guaranteed snowmaking product.
Hugh Reynolds – Partner – SNOW Partners
Hugh is a business partner and oversees marketing and sales for all of SNOW Partners’ various businesses. Hugh brings more than 20 years of marketing and sales experience to the SNOW team. Prior to joining SNOW in 2014, Hugh was the Director of Marketing & Sales for Mountain Creek where he got his start in the industry in 2009.
Sam Rufo – nxtConcepts Ltd.
nxtConcepts was started in 2003 by Samantha Rufo after working in the ski industry managing both marketing and technology programs since 1996. Sam had developed numerous successful and award winning permission based & online marketing programs for ski resorts, she decided to take the “next concepts” in marketing to other businesses with the same needs. As the President of nxtConcepts she has been the driving force behind developing the company’s goals, objectives, policies, and initiatives for the short term and long term growth and profitability of the organization. Besides keeping a hand in the day-to-day work, she also directs the business development, marketing, sales, and human resources.
Earl Saline – Director of Education Programming – National Ski Areas Association
Earl has been the Director of Education Programming for NSAA since 2014, and prior to that, Earl served as the Education Manager for PSIA-AASI from 2009 to 2013. In his role at NSAA, Earl organizes educational content for NSAA winter regional conferences, national convention, the NSAA Downhill Bike Park Summit, and Mountain Technology Symposium. In addition, he works with NSAA members and others developing ski area and guest education resources and safety initiatives for NSAA.
Gordon Santry – Northeast Sales & Tech Support – HKD Snowmakers
Gordon has been with HKD Snowmakers since 2017. Prior to joining the Sales and Tech Support team for HKD, Gordon operated HKD’s industrial dust suppression business, HKD Blue. Gordon is committed to supporting the New York market through personal service and the representation of HKD’s line of products that promote safe, efficient, and effective snowmaking.
Kim Shulver – Director of Product – OnlySky
Director of Product for Snowsports at OnlySky and have both a ski and technology background. With over 40 years at King Pine Ski Area in NH, I made my way through the ranks of the Ski School. Started out as an apprentice and worked my way up to Director. PSIA member for over 30 years and current level 3 Alpine certified.
Technology background spans 30+ years, with a strong focus on Quality Assurance and Process Improvements. Highlights include being part of the IT Transformation team at Fidelity Investments and Test Environment Standardization for TJX Companies. Certifications include Lean Six Sigma Green Belt and Scrum Master.
Ryan Triffit – Dirigo Valley Systems – ryan@dirigovalleysystems.com
With more than 20 years of experience in tourism, the ski industry, and marketing, Ryan brings an insider’s perspective to the day-to-day management of all website development.
Beginning his career making late night updates to Sunday River’s Snowphone, Ryan has seen the evolution of ski industry marketing and evolved along with it. As the Marketing Director for the Mt. Washington Auto Road, he revamped their marketing efforts with new emphasis on digital channels. Ryan has been a speaker at number of conferences, including the National Ski Areas Association, the Midwest Ski Areas Association, Ski New Hampshire, and the Cross Country Ski Areas Association.
Tim Wang – Senior Project Engineer – Ratnik Industries, Inc.
Tim has been working with Ratnik Industries since 1991 in various levels of engineering for ski area projects and snowmaking product development, primarily in mechanical and electrical design.
He has worked on numerous snowmaking systems in New York, across North America and some international areas. Specialties include water pump station design including prefabricated skids, Compressor stations and associated cooling systems, pipeline system design and snow gun development. Tim as well as Ratnik Industries are native to New York State and are proud to serve and support New York ski areas along with other North American and international customers.
Ayden Wilber – VP of Operations – Greek Peak Mountain Resort
Ayden is the Vice President of Operations at Greek Peak Mountain Resort with over 15 years of experience in the ski industry. Having a passion for snowmaking ignited during his tenure at Greek Peak, he is currently at the helm of a transformative effort to modernize snowmaking and elevate mountain operations at Greek Peak.
Stuart Winchester – Editor & Host: The Storm Skiing Journal & Podcast
Stuart Winchester is the founder, editor, and host of The Storm Skiing Journal and Podcast, a newsletter and interview series exploring the world of lift-served skiing in the United States and Canada. Winchester grew up in Michigan. He began skiing as a teenager, exploring the state’s many ski areas before moving to New York in 2002. He is a member of the New York Ski Museum and Hall of Fame board of directors, and a member of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame Selection Committee. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two children.
Tim Woods – Owner/GM – Woods Valley Ski Area
Steve Zweig – Zweig Law Team
For 37 years, Steve has worked as a trial lawyer. He has defended ski areas, other recreational facilities, and recreational product manufacturers and distributors throughout New York in state and federal court. He has also prepared and argued more than 25 appeals in state and federal court.
Steve is a past President of the Association of Ski Defense Attorneys. He was selected again by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2024 (Copyright 2013 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, S.C.) in the field of Insurance Law. Steve has been named a Super Lawyer in Upstate New York for Personal Injury Defense: General, by Super Lawyers magazine, since 2009.
He is admitted to practice in all state and federal courts in New York, the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, and the United States District Court for the District of Colorado.
Steve frequently presents on risk management and other issues to industry groups, including the Ski Areas of New York and the National Ski Areas Association. He is an avid skier, hiker and snowboarder. Steve splits his time between New York and Colorado with his wife and law partner, Maryjo, and their combined six children.