Bruce Schmidt, the vice president of Okemo Resort, recently spoke to members of the Ludlow Rotary Club (LRC), about the readiness of the Vail-owned resort for the 2022-23 ski season.
Jim Rumrill, the president of the LRC, and Bruce Schmidt pose together following Schmidt’s talk to the club.
Schmidt, a 37-year veteran at Okemo, indicated that snow-making and lift equipment had been upgraded to provide the mountain with improved snow making capability. He also noted the resort had devoted considerable effort to increase its housing for employees. Other key advances at the resort include a new parking plan to reduce traffic, a new bus drop area, no reservations required, a doubling of snowmaking staff, all restaurants open this season and more music performances around the resort.
When queried about the role of Vail in the operation of the mountain, Schmidt said that 95% of all decisions were made at Okemo, not at corporate headquarters at Vail.
He also explained his own growth in the organization and how the resort liked to train employees so they could advance to more challenging careers at the resort.
