A Mt. Bachelor employee tells us pass fraud has been rampant at the resort this year. And the mountain is not sitting by and just letting it happen.
If you’re thinking about sharing your pass with someone else, you should think twice.
Reporter note from Morgan Gwynn: Over the weekend, I witnessed a snowboarder get caught for using someone else’s pass. The lift operator pulled him out of line and law enforcement handled it from there.
When asked about the situation, a lift operators said Mt. Bachelor is offering bonuses to employees who catch pass fraud.
When we reached out on Facebook, multiple people claimed catching fraudsters will secure a $75 bonus.
RELATED: ‘Jr. Snow Ranger’ outdoor education event returns to Mt. Bachelor
RELATED: The Great Outdoors: Adaptive winter sports
The official word from the resort?
“A guest who chooses to fraudulently use a pass that is not their own will be asked to leave and could face penalties,” said Mt. Bachelor spokesperson Stacey Hutchinson.
These penalties include being escorted from the mountain; paying the current day’s ticket price; paying a restitution fee; and being handed off to authorities over “theft of service.”
One skier says she can see both sides.
“I get it. The mountain needs to make money. But I don’t know that it’s going to deter anyone. I think people will just figure out another way to do it,” said skier Brittany Wagner.
She says she understands why people would split a pass.
“If I didn’t have a good job that I knew would continue and be steady, I don’t think I could afford to ski,” said Wagner.
Another skier says Bachelor is a business.
“It seems fair, right? I mean the mountains are a business and it just seems fair that you should have to buy a pass to do it,” said pass holder Ian Maccoll.
The mountain says if someone agrees to share their pass, both the borrower and the sharer will face consequences.
