Alpine-X Management Team
The Alpine-X management team is comprised of seasoned entrepreneurs with vast experience and diverse skills across many disciplines. We have a common goal—to develop unique experience-based sports entertainment destinations that capture the imagination, invigorate the senses, and build family memories.
John Emery, Chief Executive Officer
John Emery currently serves as CEO of Alpine-X. He is an experienced international consumer-sector executive and also the Managing Member of Stone Circle Holdings, a privately held company focused primarily on lifestyle real estate-related investment opportunities. John has also served as a senior advisor or board member of several high-growth companies.
John previously served as CEO of Great Wolf Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:WOLF), a family entertainment resort company, where he led the company’s expansion to a nationally-recognized brand and IPO. He was also President of Interstate Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:IHR), a global independent hotel management company with more than 400 hotels. John is a frequent guest lecturer at several universities and is a graduate of Virginia Tech.
Jim Calder, Chief Financial Officer
Jim Calder currently serves as CFO for Alpine-X. He is currently a private investor and a member of the Investment Committee of Stone Circle Holdings, a privately held real estate investment firm. With more than 30 years of financial experience as an executive in public and private companies and a demonstrated history of success in growing real estate and hospitality companies, he has overseen the financial structuring and operation of organizations with revenues under management of up to $2.5 billion.
Jim previously served as CFO of Great Wolf Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:WOLF), including at the time of the company’s IPO in 2004 and its sale to Apollo Global Management in 2012. He was also CFO of Interstate Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NYSE:IHR), a global independent hotel management company with more than 400 hotels. Jim is a Certified Public Accountant and a graduate of Penn State University.
Ryan Bennett, Senior Marketing Advisor
Ryan Bennett is an influential business leader with a track record of driving breakthrough growth, and he brings deep experience from the skiing and riding industry. Ryan most recently served as the Chief Marketing Officer of Vail Resorts, where he was responsible for driving growth of the business while building best-in-class data-driven marketing capabilities. During his tenure, he achieved breakthrough growth in the Epic Pass business while also leading the strategy and execution of many industry-shifting initiatives for the company.
Prior to joining Vail Resorts, Ryan was a Partner and Managing Director of The Boston Consulting Group (BCG). He was a core member of the Consumer and Strategy practices, where he developed robust growth strategies that drove impact for many leading Fortune 100 companies. Prior to BCG, Ryan earned a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
“I’m thrilled at the opportunity to join the talented team at Alpine-X to bring indoor snow experiences to North America. Skiing and snowboarding are truly amazing sports, but sadly most people have not had the opportunity to experience these activities due to the lack of convenience and affordability. I believe Alpine-X will create a whole new category of entertainment that will introduce millions of new people to snowsports through an unforgettable experience that is close to home and has great snow conditions all year long.”
Bode Miller, Chief Innovation Officer
Bode Miller is the most decorated male American alpine ski racer of all time, with 33 World Cup individual victories, two overall World Cup titles, four World Ski world championships, and six Olympic medals. Since his retirement in 2017 from ski racing, Bode has been an active participant in the success of many innovative and transformative companies including SKEO, Revo, Flowcode and more. Bode and Andy Wirth are co-founders of M BAR W Enterprises, LLC a strategic consulting firm.
As an investor in Alpine-X and our Chief Innovation Officer, Bode will be working closely with our team to establish a strategy for making snowsports more accessible in new and innovative ways.
Andy Wirth, Strategic Advisor
Andy Wirth is an experienced executive in the mountain resort and hospitality sectors with over three decades of executive-level leadership roles at iconic resorts around the world. Recently, he served as the CEO of Neom Mountain Region in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and as President and CEO of Squaw Valley Ski Holdings, the parent company of Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows Resorts. At Squaw Valley, working with the region’s utility company and Tesla, Andy led the initiative to develop renewable energy sources and utility-grade energy storage for the resort and the entire community. Andy is an investor in Alpine-X and will serve as a Strategic Advisor to the company. Andy and Bode Miller are co-founders of M BAR W Enterprises, LLC, a strategic consulting firm.
Niels ten Berge, Chief Development Officer
Niels W. ten Berge is an entrepreneur with ten plus years of sales, marketing, negotiating, analyzing and consulting experience in worldwide energy and commodity trading and market development activities. Throughout his career he has supported startups in a wide variety of capacities.
Niels graduated with a Bachelor and Master of Science in International Business from Tilburg University in the Netherlands. Niels is an enthusiastic skier and aviator.
Tom Scheffer, Design & Development Lead
Mr. Scheffer has been in operational management and leadership roles in attractions for 24 years. He is an active member of IAAPA, WWA and IMATA, and has been a speaker as a keynote on local and international levels and supported industry education programs as a faculty member on operational subjects. In 2013, Tom was awarded the IAAPA Attractions Executive accreditation, one the first of 70 professionals with this accreditation in the Leisure and Entertainment industry. His major experience and enthusiasm are with worldwide indoor snow projects.
Tom has more than three decades of experience in the Leisure & Entertainment industry. Some of his better-known projects include a new immersive attraction called Illuminarium Experiences in Atlanta, Georgia; a museum expansion; municipal beach resort advisory and music festival in Texas; and international snow-based attractions in Australia and the Middle East; and consulting on the operational and design aspects of “The American Dream” snowdome in New Jersey (later renamed to “Big Snow America”).
From 2005 to 2015, Mr. Scheffer worked in several roles with Majid Al Futtaim, a Dubai-based company. Tom led Ski Dubai as General Manager achieving positive financial results and implementing new amenities through challenging financial and political times. His famous projects are the Snow Penguins, Snowbullet, and The Mountain Thriller v2. Up to his departure to the United States, Mr. Scheffer held an executive role within the organization overseeing the management of Ski Dubai as well as leading the conceptualization, space planning, and operational preparedness of Ski Egypt, the first snow dome on the African continent. He was also part of the design team of Snow Oman, Majid Al Futtaim’s third snow-based attraction in its portfolio, and “Wahooo Waterpark Bahrain.” Tom began his career in several roles with a major indoor snow operator SnowWorld Netherlands NV, a Netherlands-based company.
Jeff Hokenson, Partner
Jeffrey Hokenson, founder and CEO of the Hokenson Group Inc., creates, invests in, works with, and grows portfolio companies in multiple sectors, including Digital Technology, Finance, Clean/Green Technologies, and Active Lifestyle and Entertainment. Under the leadership of Jeff, the Hokenson Group has developed a proprietary, multi-phased process for establishing and growing portfolio companies by utilizing proven methodologies.
Hokenson Group has co-founded several successful companies including Concentric Ag, 495 Digital, and Alpine-X.
Jeff is a graduate of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.
Brad Ryan, Partner
Bradley Ryan is an experienced entrepreneur who has operated across a number of different industries throughout his career. Brad has been involved in starting and managing business operations in technology and entertainment as well as consulting with a diverse set of businesses worldwide in fields ranging from solar power, restaurant management, and the development and launch of mobile applications. Brad is a member of the Montgomery County, Maryland Parks and Recreation Advisory Board which advises a county with an $80 million+ recreation budget. Brad studied at the University of Maryland, College Park where he obtained his baccalaureate degree.
Hank Isaac, Partner
Hank Isaac leads creative and branding initiatives at Alpine-X. He has been a regarded as an insightful leader in the branding and digital space in the Washington DC area for more than 20 years, leading teams at both large creative agencies and small boutique firms. His branding and design work has been recognized in respected design annuals such as Print, and Communication Arts magazines. Hank has been involved in the launch of many digital and physical products and cross-media branding and marketing campaigns.
He has worked with National and global brands such as the Smithsonian Institute, Ford, The World Bank, Audi USA, and many others.
Hank holds a degree in Communication Arts & Design from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA, and enjoys winter sports and other active pursuits.
An Phung, Senior Financial Advisor
An Phung has over 20 years of finance and accounting experience including reporting, budgeting, financial analysis, and business process improvement. She has quickly turned around a $100MM+ troubled company and successfully marketing it for sale and has extensive experience with initial public offerings, mergers and acquisitions. An has served as an interim and permanent Chief Financial Officer and VP of Finance for several companies including Interstate Hotels and Resorts, Great Wolf Resorts, and Startec Global Communications. She previously served as a Senior Financial Consultant to Allied Capital, a private equity firm based in the Washington DC area. An started her career as a Senior Auditor at KPMG.
An is a graduate of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, where she majored in Accounting and Finance. An speaks English, French, and Vietnamese and currently resides in Arlington, Virginia.
Tom Arehart, Partner
Tom Arehart is a proven entrepreneur with 28 years of business experience. His expertise has focused on the real estate and sports-recreation industries. Tom is the founder of The Tom Team LLC, a highly successful real estate firm serving the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. Over a span of 17 years, his team has been involved in more than $500 million in transactions, including large-scale commercial and residential projects.
Another of Tom’s companies partnered as a contractor with multiple government municipalities and park authorities, including Fairfax County, to provide inline skating, skateboarding, hockey camps, and leagues throughout the DC metro area and the East Coast. Tom is a seventh-generation Washingtonian and received his degree from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Mike Chervenic, Partner
Mike Chervenic is a hands-on business builder with over 30 years of success in the engineering, technology, and professional services industries. He has launched three companies and helped scores of C-Level leaders from global health care, technology, sports and entertainment, and public sector clients identify and implement sustainable growth, profitability, and mission effectiveness breakthroughs. Mike combines real world pragmatism, deep understanding of business, and laser focus on outcomes to develop aggressive strategies that can be implemented within the constraints of a given situation.
Mike is an expert facilitator and problem solver, capable of decomposing the most complex and sensitive issues into actionable, measurable steps and building both consensus and shared sense of urgency and ownership. He has successfully turned around failing services and manufacturing companies, grown a consulting company from three to seventy people in three years, dramatically improved the profitability of several technology companies, and supported over twenty startups. He has also successfully managed complex engineering and development programs including planning, acquisition, negotiation, and vendor management.
Mike earned a B.S. Chemical Engineering from Penn State and an M.B.A. from the Simon School of the University of Rochester. He learned to ski as kid growing up in Western New York and has never lost his passion for winter sports.