A skier grabs fresh during a rare break in the El Gordo action at Silverton Mountain last weekend. The extreme ski area north of Durango recently hired on former K2 CEO Tim Petrick to help with day-to-day operations./ Photo courtesy Silverton Mountain

New kid on the mountain

Former K2 head exec joins Silverton Mountain as chief operating officer

by Missy Votel

Silverton Mountain has a new name on its roster this season. The extreme ski area north of Durango has announced Tim Petrick, most recently of K2 CEO fame, has signed on as the ski area’s new chief operating officer.

“I am thrilled to be able to bring someone of Tim’s caliber to join us in building our business,” Silverton Mountain owner Aaron Brill said in a statement. “We think Petrick is uniquely qualified as our COO because he not only knows the business side, he has been an active leader in adventure skiing and the backcountry as a participant and product developer. We couldn’t think of a more perfect fit.”

Petrick, who plans to spend November through April in Silverton and the rest of the year at his home in Seattle, has spent the majority of his career working in the ski industry, including stints at Powder Magazine, Rossignol and Booth Creek Resorts, a property management company based in Vail.

Still serving as an ambassador for K2, Petrick said he is excited about the chance to get back to his skiing roots on the snow. “It’s exciting for me; it’s a fun project and a fun mountain,” he said.

Since arriving in Silverton on Dec. 11, he said the community has welcomed he and his wife, Michelle. “I love the town of Silverton. People have been really friendly and hospitable,” he said.

In addition to its operations in Silverton, which includes guided, unguided (over until April) and heli skiing, Silverton Mountain also operates three heli skiing bases in Alaska – the latest of which, in Seward, opened last month.

Tim Petrick

Jen Brill, who splits operational duties with husband, Aaron, said they began entertaining ideas of hiring someone to help out with day-to-day operations after the birth of their son, Cole, six year ago. “I wanted to be able to spend more time with him,” said Jen. “Basically, if it was a weekend in February, I was working.”

She said they began putting feelers out a couple years ago, and she mentioned the position to Petrick – a longtime friend – after running into him at a trade show last May. Petrick gave them a few leads, which never worked out, when suddenly last September, the lightbulb went off.

“I was coming to a time in my career at K2 when it was time for a change,“ said Petrick who has two sons, 23 and 25. “I called them up and said, ‘What about me?’”

Although Jen admits to not being able to match a K2 CEO’s salary, she said it’s a boon to have someone of Petrick’s track record on board. “Over the years, there’s been so many missed revenues and missed opportunities,” she said. “It’s great to have somebody with experience to be able to make these plans come to fruition.”

In the meantime, Petrick said he is learning the ropes while Jen gets the Seward base up and running. “I’ve been doing anything and everything,” he said, “making fires, shoveling snow, selling tickets, checking transceivers.”

And so far, he likes what he sees. “I’m really impressed by the professionalism of the patrollers and the guides,” he said. “They do a really fantastic job.”

As for Michelle, she secured a job ski instructing at Purgatory, almost immediately upon arrival. “We got in at 1 a.m. on Fri., Dec. 11 and the next morning she went to an orientation and was hired,” he said.

For the two, the transition from metro area to small town has been seamless. Petrick has a fat bike for commuting and is in the process of setting up an office upstairs in the Miner’s Hall, a three-minute bike ride from his home. “We’re both from small towns, so we’re used to small town life,” he said. “Michelle said, ‘It suits us.’”

And that goes for the copious amount of snow as well. “El Gordo is here,” he said, before stepping back into his new COO role. “It’s going to be a wonderful weekend.”

For more on Silverton Mountain, go to: www.silvertonmountain.com