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More ski resorts going to RFID

tinymoose

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Blue in PA has had it for a few years now. Works OK most of the time. Sometimes I have to hop a bit to get it to read if the card is in my chest pocket because short. So far the only local hill I know of to use it..
 

Christy

Angel Diva
Crystal used to have it--I think they were the first place I went to that had it. But they pulled the gates out a year or two ago and went back to scanners. I'm curious why, it always worked fine for me.
 

marzNC

Angel Diva
Crystal used to have it--I think they were the first place I went to that had it. But they pulled the gates out a year or two ago and went back to scanners. I'm curious why, it always worked fine for me.
Interesting, wonder which company installed them.
 

alison wong

Angel Diva
:bump:

Not only for guest convenience, but also to get better statistics.

It's all about pulling data and doing data analysis, sas, sql, joining tables....

(I "cringe" when I see the word "data". Not a big fan of data coz I am not good at it.. However it is something very useful and must learn in this day and age....) :frusty:
 

bobolinx

Certified Ski Diva
We used them at Wachusett Mountain last year and this year. (Yes, they opened up earlier this week!) They eliminated alot of people scanning, but still have to manage the lines. I, too, am wondering about the data. Apparently the RFID eliminates pass-swapping between people, gives the mountain better "data" and speeds up the line. I would love to learn more about how they work and what data they use.
 

marzNC

Angel Diva
We used them at Wachusett Mountain last year and this year. (Yes, they opened up earlier this week!) They eliminated alot of people scanning, but still have to manage the lines. I, too, am wondering about the data. Apparently the RFID eliminates pass-swapping between people, gives the mountain better "data" and speeds up the line. I would love to learn more about how they work and what data they use.
There is a small company based in Long Island that supplies RFID gates and software to a number of places in the northeast, including Killington and Sunday River. Might cover Wachusett too.

The marketing points related to helping stop illegal lift ticket switching are interesting. Mountain Pass even has a system that scans skiers in order to automate the process of verifying that the same skier is using a RFID pass on a given day. Meaning even someone who is using a day ticket.

https://epc4roi.com/ski_lift_access

"Patented BodyBiometrics(TM)

Our system is able to verify that the skier that used the ticket in the morning is the same one that continues to use it throught out the day and thus prevent this costly ticket scam.

When the skier accesses one of our gates for the first time, our RFID reading system will read the RFID number of the inlay that is part of the lift ticket. This will allow access to the data base record that relates to the particular skier. Key biometrics are taken of the skier during first use that are stored in the database. The next time that the RFID ticket number is detected, the system will measure the biometrics again and compared them to what is stored in the database. For a near match, green lights turn on and the gate opens.For notable differences, the system will declare a biometric failure meaning that the ticket is being used by another person. The ski area can handle this situation in any way they feel is appropriate."
 

marzNC

Angel Diva
Discovered the company that recently installed RFID for Sugarbush. Turns out that Axess is the system that Alta has been using for quite a while. Also new at Copper for 2017-18. Bachelor started using an Axess system in 2006 and recently upgraded. Okemo is another Axess client. Axxess Americans Inc. is based in Park City while the home company office is in Austria. The introduction video for Mt. Hood Meadows uses video from Alpine Meadows.

Alta RFID from 2010

Mt. Hood Meadows introduction from 2012
 

marzNC

Angel Diva
A couple of videos that make it clear that analytics is a key reason for a ski resort to make the investment required to make RFID gates a reality. The first is a marketing video by a UK-based company. Presumably most of their clients are in Europe. The second is an interview in 2011 with Paul Major of Aspen. Aspen installed RFID by Skidata in 2008. In 2015, they implemented more RFID from a different company in their restaurants: "During the course of the past six years, the resort (owned and operated by Aspen Skiing Co.) has installed 165 RF IDeas pcProx readers, a type of low-cost USB-connected reader, at its restaurants and stores, as well as for use by its ski school and NASTAR race program." The Skidata readers run $450 each while the readers being used in retail outlets are $150 each. Apparently the software is provided by a Colorado company. Skidata is a global company with corporate headquarters in Austria. The less expensive readers are from a company in Illinois.


 
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marzNC

Angel Diva
RFID has clearly arrived in New England. There are five ski areas that added RFID for 2017-18: Gunstock, Smugglers Notch, Sugarbush, Sunapee, and Waterville Valley. Apparently Jay was the first back in 2010. The graphic is from a ski industry website. The article noted that "Though expensive to deploy, RFID in theory can decrease labor costs, as well as reduce theft of service. With RFID passes, returning skiers can pay for their passes online, thus reducing demand on ticket windows. In addition, with seamless lift gates, employees no longer need to manually scan tickets."

RFID Ski Pass Technology Growing in Popularity
Ten ski areas are advertising RFID ticket systems this season.
Tuesday, November 14, 2017, NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com

Screen Shot 2017-12-03 at 9.12.11 PM.png
 

just jane

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
So far I like it. We've been up to Copper three times this season, and it seems to be going smoothly. I love putting my season pass in the pocket of my ski pants and just forgetting about it! I love not having it flapping around outside my clothes, and it seems like the chances of losing it or forgetting it are so much lower.
 

QCskier

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
A few of the smaller mountains out here in Quebec have the RFID technology. It generally works pretty well and if you remember to save the card you can reuse it on future visits.
 

marzNC

Angel Diva
I was able to add a day online using an existing RFID card for Jiminy Peak. Since I was staying slope side, it was nice not to need to stop by a lift ticket office. Jiminy is a small mountain with a high-speed detachable 6-pack to the summit, plus several other chairlifts. There is an RFID gate only for the main Express lift. They don't scan in any way on the other lifts.

The other advantage of having RFID was that for an 8-hour ticket, it didn't start until I went through the gate for the first time. Jiminy has night skiing until 10pm. I was there for a snowstorm. Waited until after 10:30am to get started, which meant I could ride the lifts until close to 7pm. The heavy snow started around 2pm. I had great fun making fresh tracks after 3pm or so.

Anyone use RFID for the first time this season? If so, what did you think?
 

DianaNR

Angel Diva
We are at Alpine Meadows/Squaw Valley this year. My kids are on the rec team, and we all use the RFID passes. I like them. The kids all have pass pockets up about chest height, and so far (knock wood) they haven't lost them. I keep mine in a pocket in my glove, and my husband puts his in his chest pocket.

I did have a problem the first day I used it b/c I had it in my chest pocket, where I also keep a credit card and my phone, and I couldn't get through. The liftie let me know to keep the RFID pass separate, because the system will read all of those items, and I haven't had a problem since. And they can tell me how many days I've skied so far this season. My husband said he went through a while back and the liftie said "Hey, with today's visit you paid for your pass!" All in, we really like them.

You are able to link the pass to a credit card, which we didn't do. At least not yet. That would allow you to pay for food in the lodge and stuff in the gift shop, whatever. We can also put a limited amount of money on each kid's pass, and that could be a way for them to manage a pool of funds for hot chocolate and ridiculously overpriced muffins. Of course, everything is overpriced, not sure why I singled out the muffins! I'm not sure if we have the ability to check each kid's balance throughout the season, that would be ideal. I'll have to look more into it.
 

KarenD

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
The first place I ever ran into RFID was at Mount Bachelor years ago. This season I did one day each at Alta, Snowbird, and Steamboat and now have three cards I need to keep track of for future trips. I get why resorts are going this way, but I found I missed those little moments of personal interaction with the lifties that I get when they have to use a hand scanner. With the RFID, there was just a bored-looking liftie monitoring a screen as people passed through. I felt like more of a data point than a person.
 

Jilly

Moderator
Staff member
Because Whistler went epic, they put in the RFID gates. First time I'd used it was last year. I have the RFID for Tremblant, but you have to present the pass to the reader. So not as easy. Be interesting to see what IKON does next year.
 

Cascadia

Certified Ski Diva
Crystal used to have it--I think they were the first place I went to that had it. But they pulled the gates out a year or two ago and went back to scanners. I'm curious why, it always worked fine for me.
I ski with some founders members at Crystal, I mentioned this last weekend that I missed the RFID and wished Snoqualmie would get it. He said they took it out because they lost money on operating it. Turns out lift ticket papers, metal hangars and scanners are cheaper.
 

marzNC

Angel Diva
I was going to mention that. This also means Pico is going to RFID as well.
Do you think they will do all the lifts at Pico? For Killington, would it makes sense to only put gates on the lifts that start at a base?

At Snowbird, the mid-mountain lifts and the two in Mineral Basin do not have RFID gates. They didn't used to scan tickets/passes at those lifts before RFID was installed.
 

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