Deer Valley Resort President and Chief Operating Officer, Bob Wheaton to Transition to Senior Strategic Advisor at Alterra Mountain Company
Todd Shallan to Assume Deer Valley
President/COO Role in September 2018
Bob Wheaton, Deer Valley’s President and Chief Operating Officer, will be transitioning away from the position after more than 45 years in the ski industry and almost 38 years at the resort. Wheaton will move to an advisory role at Alterra Mountain Company in January 2019 where he will help guide the vision and future of the company.
“I feel so fortunate to have spent my career in this industry and especially at Deer Valley. It’s been one of the biggest joys of my life to watch it evolve into a place for both our staff and guests to create so many experiences,” said Bob Wheaton. “Together we created almost four decades of memories in these mountains. I am proud of what we have built here as a team and am grateful to leadership at Alterra Mountain Company for the opportunity to stay engaged and involved as I move into a new phase in my life.”
Stepping into the leadership role at the destination is Todd Shallan. Shallan has as a 35-year track record in the resort, hospitality and recreation industries. Todd is currently the Chief Operating Officer at iFly Indoor Skydiving in Austin, TX and was previously the Director of Asset Management for KSL Capital Partners in London. Prior to that, he was Vice President and General Manager at Hotel Del Coronado & Beach Village at the DEL in Coronado, CA. Other properties in which Shallan has held leadership roles include; Claremont Resort and Spa in Berkeley, CA; Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa in Phoenix and Boca Raton Resort & Club in Florida. He began his career in hospitality with Westin Hotels and the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company after graduating with a B.S. in Hotel Administration from Cornell University. Shallan will begin at Deer Valley on September 24, 2018 and work alongside Wheaton through the end of the year.
“There are a handful of ski veterans and true pioneers who have contributed greatly to our industry, and we have been fortunate enough to have worked with one of them since the starting months of Alterra Mountain Company. Deer Valley’s Bob Wheaton is one of those people, and today we announce his transition from Deer Valley President and Chief Operating Officer to Senior Strategic Advisor for Alterra Mountain Company “ said David Perry, President and Chief Operating Officer of Alterra Mountain Company.
“I could not be more excited to join the team at Deer Valley and to be taking up the baton from Bob Wheaton, a true legend in the ski industry,” said Todd Shallan. “The opportunity to lead an organization with a reputation and brand of this caliber is once-in-a-lifetime. Working alongside the teams at Deer Valley and Alterra Mountain Company, I look forward to continue building on the tremendous legacy of Deer Valley well into the future.”
Wheaton has been a part of Deer Valley from the beginning and has held a variety of positions. He was appointed General Manager in 1988, Vice President of Operations in 1989 and President in 1997. In 2015, Wheaton successfully led the negotiations and purchase of Solitude Mountain Resort by Deer Valley Resort Company, acting as their President until October of 2017 when Deer Valley was acquired by Alterra Mountain Company. Alterra Mountain Company purchased Solitude Mountain Resort in July of 2018.
In addition to his responsibilities at the resorts, Wheaton has been very active in community organizations during his tenure. He was a past member and president of the Board of Directors for the Park City Chamber and Visitor’s Bureau, as well as president of the Intermountain Ski Areas Association Board of Directors. He was a two-time past president of the Utah Ski Association and has served on the Board of Governors for the Salt Lake Area Chamber of Commerce and the Utah Symphony and Opera. Bob received the Outstanding Contribution Award from the Intermountain Ski Areas Association and was awarded Park City Rotary Club’s Professional Citizen of the Year. In 2011, Bob was inducted into the Utah Tourism Hall of Fame. Deer Valley was a venue site for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, in which Wheaton worked closely with the Salt Lake Organizing Committee to ensure all facets of the events were carried out with the highest standards. Wheaton now serves on the Olympic Legacy Board and has been instrumental in Deer Valley’s reputation as a mecca for Freestyle skiing by hosting over 20 Freestyle Ski World Cups and three World Championships. Under Wheaton’s leadership, Deer Valley not only earned a spot in the top three ski resorts in North America as voted by the readers of SKI Magazine for 20 consecutive years, the resort was also voted the #1 overall resort an unprecedented eight times.
Originally from Michigan, Wheaton is a graduate of Macomb College and has been a certified ski instructor since 1976. He currently resides just outside of Park City in Woodland, Utah with his wife Marion.
A legend indeed; Big boots to fill… Thank you, Bob!
What a great guy. Bob helped teach me to ski in Michigan. Once visiting the Park City area, Bob invited me to go skiing with him for the day at Deer Valley. Able to see outside operation’s and meet some of the hospitality employees. You could tell his employees both admired and respected Bob. After a day at a great resort, went back to the house with Bob and visit a bit more with Bob and his with Marion. Such a kind individual. What a great way to spend a day with a long time friend that had a big impact on my life. I always new Bob was destined for success. He has always had that passion and drive for the ski industry and to be out west. Bob’s drive for perfection has served him well over the years and will continue in his new adventure. My brother, who worked around Bob in Michigan was able to meet up with Bob at Deer Valley in 2016 and turn the boards for a bit would say the same.
Way to go buddy.
Dear Bob and Todd,
Many seniors are very upset with you for letting Alterra discriminate against seniors . You should not eliminate the ICON for senior season pass holders. It is the grandparents that pass on the skiing legacy to their grandkids. Upset seniors will create bad will. This will be a PR mistake. It is too easy to go to EPIC.
Hi Gladys,
Thanks for the feedback. Our team has reached out with the email address you provided addressing your concerns.
I too am writing to let you know that I am very disappointed in the decision by Alterra to not offer a complimentary Ikon Base pass to the senior season pass holders. Especially when it is being offered to the young adult and college season pass holders. This is definitely a case of age discrimination. I have had a season pass at Deer Valley for years, and I also have an Epic Pass. I will be looking at Epic locations to ski at next winter. I sincerely hope Alterra rethinks the decision and reinstates the complimentary Ikon Base Pass to the seniors.
Hi Van,
Thank you for your message. For 2019-2020, it was decided to align the resort pass products and benefits more closely with the Ikon Pass structure–the Ikon Pass does not offer a senior pass and therefore there is not a pass to bundle with Deer Valley’s senior passes.
The Deer Valley senior and super senior passes were combined for 19/20 to offer one senior option starting at 65+ and the price was reduced to the super senior level for this year–$1,100. That is a substantial discount (54.5%) off our full adult senior pass, that only seniors qualify for. If you were to purchase a Deer Valley senior season pass and an Ikon base pass ($1100 + $649) the total is $1,749, still a 26% discount on a full Deer Valley season pass.
I hope this helps clarify some of the changes for you. We really appreciate that you took the time to share your concerns with us.
Hello Mr.Shallon,
my name is Harald Schoenhaar I have been living in Park City since Spring of 1974. I worked for the USST since we moved the office from Denver,Col. to Park City. I saw this town move from a amall, almost forgotten mine village, to the greatest skiarea in the world. I was very fortunate and very thankful, to enjoy all these years a sponsorship from Deer Valley in form of a complementary skipass. This, of course, can not be the case anymore and it seems to be quite understandable. I am still a enthusiastic skier and love to ski in Deer Valley and need some Ideas of how to buy myself into skiing on your mountain.
Thanks for the time
Harald Schoenhaar
Hi Harald,
Thanks for reaching out. You can get more information on Deer Valley Season Passes here: https://www.deervalley.com/plan-your-trip/tickets-and-passes/season-passes You can also call the Ticket Office at 435-645-6626. Let us know if we can help with anything else.