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outdoor festival. (Squaw Valley hosted the first Wanderlust brings an impressive average of 7,000-plus people per day
in 2009; since then, it has been held mostly at ski resorts— to the resort (more than 60,000 total visits each year). To keep
the perfect peaceful, nature-inspired venue for such an event.) things fresh week to week, the team at Snowbird has developed
Although the audiences are very different for these two events, a series of events-within-the-event to help drive visitation on
both have grown well over successive seasons to the point weekends, when attendance has historically been light. These
where they each rival the resort’s busiest winter weekend levels include eating competitions, special musical acts, and crafts
of on-mountain occupancy, DeBerry says. fairs. Snowbird President Bob Bonar describes Snowbird’s
Another resort that utilizes events to help fill in visitation Oktoberfest as “One of Utah’s greatest cultural events,” and
“white space” is Snowbird in Utah. Although limited to what it has been recognized by Men’s Journal Magazine as one of
types of on-mountain events it can host due to the fact that the 10 best Oktoberfests in the country.
the resort is on protected state and federal lands, Snowbird still While bigger is better for most resorts, Powdr Corp and
finds ways to fill the resort’s lodging and parking lots at times its network of nine resorts seems to be swinging the pendulum
when they might otherwise be empty. One such event is the in the opposite direction, at least when it comes to event
Total Archery Challenge, a four-day outdoor competition that strategy. In 2015 Powdr acquired Human Movement, a
pits participants against target courses of varying ability levels. Colorado-based event production company known at the
According to Dave Amirault, Snowbird’s director of market- time for putting on huge mass-participation events such as
ing, “The Total Archery Challenge is awesome. It brings over the Dirty Girl Mud Run and Zombie Run events. In the
400 people to the resort midweek in a time when we don’t time since, Human Movement and Powdr have taken a
really have anything else going on. It fills our parking lots.” complete 180 in their thoughts and strategy toward events.
The resort’s legendary Oktoberfest is another event that “We’re not in the ‘hits’ business,” says Jeff Suffolk, co-
Snowbird uses to drive visitation during a slower period. founder of Human Movement, in describing the current
Celebrating its 45th year, Oktoberfest at Snowbird is less strategy for events. “We’re here for the long haul, and we
of an event and more of a season, Amirault says. Spanning believe the next generation of guests are looking for high-craft,
nine weekends from August through October, Oktoberfest authentic, experiential opportunities. Consumers are looking

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30 | NSAA JOURNAL | FALL 2018