Amidst a flurry of openings in the northeast, Win Smith stole the headline with the announced sale of Sugarbush Resort in Warren VT to Alterra Mountain Company, which operates some 14 other resorts including Aspen. Alterra is an amalgamation of what was once a collection of Intrawest Resorts, and properties owned by the Henry Crown Company of Chicago. The Crown family remains a majority shareholder. Smith, who originally retired from Merrill Lynch nearly 20 years ago and isn’t getting any younger, knew that his stewardship wouldn’t last forever and had long been contemplating the future of the resort. “The recent acquisition of Peak Resorts by Vail was the tipping point in my decision,” he said in an e-mail blast this afternoon. His father, Win Smith Sr., was the namesake in Merrill, Lynch, Pierce, Fenner, and Smith. Win Jr. will stay on as president to ensure a “smooth transition” and “to maintain our commitment to our guests and to the entire Sugarbush community, and to prepare the next generation of leaders to succeed me when I decide to move on to a third career.” We definitely wish him the best…now on to the openings, but first up the photo above taken yesterday morning at Shawnee Mountain in the Pennsylvania Poconos. Current cold snap in the east has them getting a jump on things; rumor is nearby Big Boulder is going to open some kind of hike up park this weekend…sister resort Hunter Mountain in New York State opening Friday…sister resort Mount Snow in Vermont opened today…and if you think about how all of ’em are part of Vail Resorts Inc., Mr. Smith’s reason for selling is understandable…Vermont neighbor Bromley opening this weekend as well, that’s uncharacteristically early for them…their sister resort Cranmore Mountain NH also planning to spin this weekend, said to be their earliest in history…as we welcome our friend and former midwest correspondent Gustave Sexauer to the northeast, he reports that his very first “born from ice” experience was this past Saturday at Sunday River, sez he was probably standing in that long snaking line that Sam photographed and gave us in our last report. “It may have been the longest lift line that I’ve ever been in, but everyone was in good spirits since it was opening day. Conditions were not too bad considering the circumstances.” Speaking of sister resorts, we hear that Riv’s neighbor and sister Sugarloaf is going to fire up the Super Quad this weekend…turning midwest, Trollhaugen Wisconsin reopening tomorrow afternoon…and Lutsen Mountains opening Saturday and Sunday spinning the Ullr Chair, Magic Carpet and 10th Mountain Chair with 6 runs; next weekend adding the Caribou Express. Photo below from Lutsen shows how much easier it is to crank out the machine made snow in northern Minnesota…