“I rarely repost articles, but ski journalist Heather Burke said it so well I didn’t see the point of trying my own hand at a topic I was so clueless on. In case you haven’t bumped into Heather before, here’s her full bio.

Heather Burke started skiing at age 3 at Gunstock, N.H., taught skiing in college at Smugglers’ Notch in Vermont, and has since raised two skiing kids with her husband Greg (a professional ski photographer). Heather has been writing about family skiing for two decades, reviewing resorts all over the country, Canada and Europe. Heather is editor of two ski travel review sites,www.familyskitrips.com  and www.luxuryskitrips.com, and contributes regularly to Boston.com’s ski blog as well.”

Before I had kids, I thought you had to have a high speed quad to be a worthy ski resort. Upon review, and after raising two skiing kids, I now recognize that you need a mascot to be the real deal.

Mascots really do make a difference. It took the ski industry a while to recognize what Walt Disney knew from the start. That is, resort employees come and go, mascots stay, make the kids want to play, and give the resort a happy identity.

Fuzzy friends breathe life and loyalty into otherwise basic base lodges and standard ski schools. Kids adore characters (expect for the occasional timid toddler that finds a 6-foot mouse terrifying).

Mascots make people smile with their warm fur and big paw waves. My kids loved Sugarloaf’s Amos the Moose when they were 5 and 6, we even skied to Amos’ cabin on the mountain along Moose Alley. Our kids just couldn’t get enough of Amos and Blueberry the Bear – so they insisted on going back to ski school the next day, no hesitation – no bribery needed. Sister resort Sunday River now has Eddy the Yeti – with his own chalet located along the Kids Adventure trail, trying to keep up with Sugarloaf’s Amos.

Smugglers’ Notch Resort has a cast of cuddly characters, including the big cheese Mogul Mouse (perhaps Mickey’s cousin to the North). Smugglers’ band of bear and oversized mice make a child’s experience playful and positive in an otherwise unfamiliar, even unnerving, environment. Smuggs’ furry friends have helped earn the Vermont resort a reputation as “the best ski resort for families.”

One weekend at Ascutney, our kids insisted upon going to kids’ happy hour since Cheddar the Mouse had invited them. So my husband and I “had” to go to grown up après ski in the lounge without them and enjoy a cocktail without crayons or crying about the entertainment.

Ski Utah has the Ski Utah Yeti, and Deer Valley has mascots Bucky
the deer, Quincy the Bear, Ruby Racoon and Silver the Eagle. Vail Resorts have Ripperoo mascots – oversized pounder hounds that travel around Vail, Beaver Creek, Keystone Resort, and
Breckenridge. Mammoth in California has, of course, Woolly the Mammoth mascot, and Big Sky Montana has Freemont the Moose.

As a parent, I also appreciate that a mountain mascot can use his (or her – equal opportunity amongst the four legged) magical power to pass along safety messages. Who would you rather listen to: a white Bengal tiger on a snowboard, or a scary ski patrol with an ice pick and an icy beard?

My advice to ski resorts: if you don’t have a mascot – create one, or adopt the National Ski Area Association’s Snow Monsters. Of course, having a 6-foot furry costume in a ski school locker is not sufficient. Characters need to be out and about, pressing their furry flesh, welcoming families on arrival, waving to kids at daycare and ski camp, appearing at resort events.

My advice to parents, take your kids online to SnowMonsters.com. This is one of the few indoor surfing sites I condone. Snowboard Beavers and Powder Pigs reinforce the skiers’ responsibility code. They tell tales of bad things that can happen when you ski closed trails, ski too fast, or without a buddy. Also teach your kids the Legend of Ullr, the god of snow.

When it comes time to plan your family getaway, seek out ski areas with silly mascots like Gunstock’s Gunny the Bear and C-more the Penguin at Cranmore. Don’t under estimate the power of a powder pig or a penguin. Mascots can make a ski vacation a little more magical.

About Gregg & SlopeFillers
I've had more first-time visitors lately, so adding a quick "about" section. I started SlopeFillers in 2010 with the simple goal of sharing great resort marketing strategies. Today I run marketing for resort ecommerce and CRM provider Inntopia, my home mountain is the lovely Nordic Valley, and my favorite marketing campaign remains the Ski Utah TV show that sold me on skiing as a kid in the 90s.