Page 92 - 74752_NSAA_LowRes

Lifetime Achievement Award

By Tyler Fairbank & Steve Rice

to expand the sustainability of the sport of skiing. The organization
provided a vehicle for its resort members to gain some of the same
benefits and efficiencies as larger national conglomerate ski entities,
including increased purchasing power, inter-resort season pass
Brian H. benefits, and sharing business growth initiatives and best practices.
Fairbank He also served on the NSAA Board of Directors from 1990 to
2004, and served as board chairman from 2000 to 2002. (For his
TH E FAI R BAN K influence and distinguished leadership, NSAA awarded Fairbank
G ROU P with the Sherman Adams Award for an Eastern resort operator in
2005.) And for the last 15 years, Fairbank has served on the board
of directors for the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame.
Fairbank is also deservedly recognized as a ski industry
pioneer in green energy and sustainability. In 2007, he drew
national acclaim when Jiminy Peak installed a 1.5 megawatt wind
turbine—and was recognized by NSAA when Jiminy Peak received
the Golden Eagle Award for sustainability in 2008. In 2016, the
Fairbank Group constructed a 2.3MW solar facility, making Jiminy
A distinguished industry leader both in New England and across 100 percent powered by renewable energy.
the country, Brian Fairbank has accomplished a remarkable At the age of 71, Fairbank is still developing industry-leading
number of achievements within so many different aspects of the ski initiatives. His lifelong fascination with snowmaking innovations and
industry that have separated him from his peers. From champion efficiencies—including obtaining a patent for an early snow gun—lead
of sustainability to developer of snowmaking innovations—not to him to launch Snowgun Technologies LLC in 2015 with son Tyler
mention his successes as a multi-resort owner—his approach to and partner Joe O’Donnell, following years of experimentation with
life and his career is celebrated for his enthusiasm for the sport, low-energy, high-production snow guns, resulting in one of the
his passion and commitment to the growth of the industry, and his most energy-efficient guns on the market today. Fairbank converted
overall zest and infectious good humor. The ski industry is proud to Jiminy Peak and the other Fairbank Group resorts to the use of 100
honor the amazing accomplishments of Brian Fairbank as NSAA’s percent of this new on-hill technology for the 2016 season.
Lifetime Achievement Award recipient this year. Given his start in the industry as a ski instructor and his
A lifelong skier, Fairbank has led Jiminy Peak Ski Resort in lifelong commitment to PSIA, it’s no surprise that Fairbank has
Western Massachusetts for nearly five decades. He began skiing been one of the industry’s leaders in growing the sport. During
at age 6, and grew up visiting ski areas throughout the Northeast, his lengthy tenure on the NSAA Board of Directors and as
predominantly in western New York at Kissing Bridge and Holiday chair, Fairbank was instrumental in the development and launch
Valley. He became a PSIA-certified ski instructor in his teens, and by of NSAA’s Model for Growth in 1999, which was designed to
the age of 23 became the general manager of Jiminy Peak in 1969, increase participation in the sport of skiing. Jiminy Peak was
where the resort thrived under his leadership. selected as a demonstration resort for advancing new skier
Even with his duties managing the resort, Fairbank still retention initiatives through the adoption of Beginner Learning
maintained his ski teaching credentials, serving as a PSIA examiner Centers, which became the model adopted by many resorts
from 1971 to 1986 and serving as a member of the PSIA Demo across the country. And recently, the Fairbank Group’s three
Team. Fairbank became co-owner of Jiminy Peak in 1985 with resorts have been among the first to adopt Snow Operating Inc.’s
Joe O’Donnell of Boston Culinary Group. In 2008, he launched Terrain Based Learning™ model to help increase participation in
The Fairbank Group with his son, Tyler, added historic Mount skiing and snowboarding.
Cranmore in New Hampshire in 2010 and Bromley Mountain in For his lifelong commitment to conservation and renewable
Vermont in 2011. energy initiatives; for building an enormously successful resort
Throughout his career, Fairbank has been a leader in growing company that includes Jiminy Peak, Cranmore, and Bromley ski
the sport and nurturing the broader ski industry. In 1997, he was areas; and for his enduring example of leadership and passion for
the driving force and chief architect of Mountains of Distinction, an the growth of the broader ski industry, NSAA is proud to present
affiliation of 21 ski resorts in the Midwest and East that collaborated Brian Fairbank with its 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award.

C28 | CONVENTION 2017 | NSAA JOURNAL