Skiing your brains out has its rewards

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Skiing your brains out has its rewards
By Peter Oliver

Skiing is going corporate. In the past three years, large conglomerates have been swallowing up independent resorts at a dizzying pace. What's in it for you? Perhaps the best payoff comes in reward programs for frequent skiers. Ski a lot at a resort near you and earn free or dirt-cheap lift tickets (and other discounts) for your vacation. Here's how the programs stack up:

American Skiing Co.

Resorts: Attitash Bear Peak (NH), The Canyons (UT), Heavenly, Killington, Mount Snow (VT), Steamboat, Sugarbush, Sugarloaf/USA, Sunday River
Program: Get a free ticket with as few as five visits to ASC resorts.
Payoff: By definition, people who go on a Sierra Club trip are attuned to the outdoors. And on any given trip, half of them come alone.
The Catch: Roughly twice as many points are awarded for midweek ticket purchases as for weekend and holiday purchases.
Info: 800-668-7669; www.peaks.com

Booth Creek Ski Holdings, Inc.

Resorts: Bear Mtn. (CA), Cranmore (NH), Grand Targhee, Loon Mtn. (NH), Waterville Valley, The Summit at Snoqualmie (WA), Northstar-at-Tahoe, Sierra-at-Tahoe
Program: Earn freebies by purchasing lift tickets with the company's Vertical Value Card.
Payoff: Get a free ticket after the first five visits and subsequently after every three visits.
The Catch: There is a one-time enrollment fee of $9.95.
Info: www.boothcreek.com or any Booth Creek resort

Boyne USA Resorts

Resorts: Big Sky, Boyne Highlands (MI), Boyne Mtn. (MI), Brighton (UT), Crystal Mtn. (WA)
Program: Season-pass holders get free lift tickets or discounts at companion Boyne resorts.
Payoff: Get as many as 10 free tickets per pass.
The Catch: You have to be a pass holder at one of the Boyne USA resorts.
Info: www.boyne.com or any Boyne resort

Intrawest

Resorts: Copper Mtn., Mammoth Mtn., Mountain Creek (NJ), Panorama (BC), Snowshoe (WV), Stratton, Tremblant (QUE), Whistler/ Blackcomb, Mont Ste. Marie (QUE)
Program: Season-pass holders at any Intrawest resort earn generous ticket discounts at other Intrawest resorts.
Payoff: Fifty percent off lift tickets at all Intrawest resorts.
The Catch: You have to be a pass holder somewhere in the Intrawest world to cash in.
Info: www.intrawest.com or any Intrawest resort

Vail Resorts

Resorts: Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Vail
Program: Earn points in the Peaks program with lift-ticket purchases, private ski lessons, and rooms and meals at participating lodging and dining establishments.
Payoff: Sample payoffs: 10 lift tickets — or five lift tickets and five private lessons — earn a freebie.
The Catch: Only four resorts are in the program, all in Colorado. Also, nothing in Vail comes cheaply. Expect to spend $400 or more before earning a freebie.
Info: 303-504-5870; www.snow.com