July 15, 2024

This paid piece is sponsored by SDN Communications. 

Great Bear Ski Valley’s 2024 snow season was over in 35 days after an unseasonably warm winter, but thanks in part to SDN Communications, the UPTIME lasts year-round at the recreation area.

Great Bear Recreation Park hosts events year-round, including weddings in the summer. Photos courtesy of Great Bear.

From hosting weddings and other events to its hiking trails, Great Bear is much more than skiing and snowboarding.

“Our facility is awesome. We have the right people in place to take care of guests. And tech is the backbone behind all of it,” general manager Dan Grider said.

A year ago, the tech backbone at Great Bear Recreation Park was weak, however. Grider shared his pain points with SDN Communications, from lack of connectivity in certain areas of the chalet to increased use of the network by employees and guests.

“They asked, ‘What can SDN do to help?’” said Megan Greenfield, Great Bear’s network account executive at SDN Communications.

“One of the great things about SDN’s service is that our sales engineers can take a look at any situation and offer a solution.”

Great Bear Recreation Park has miles of hiking paths, some of which are used as cross-country ski trails in the winter. 

‘If you don’t (have connectivity), people will go elsewhere’

SDN mapped out new locations for additional wireless access points in those hard-to-reach places in the concrete building. SDN also increased the bandwidth to ensure everyone at the park could stay connected. An upgraded network and firewall added to the security.

“The whole park is accessible for phones, tablets and laptops. Not just in the winter but in the summer too,” Grider said.

Last year, Great Bear hosted 32 events, Grider said, without actively promoting the facility as an event site. Now with a sales force in place, he hopes to see the number of events increase. Knowing that in today’s world, almost every event requires technology to share some type of audio and video, he said Great Bear is up to the task.

“Connectivity and security are everything. We have that. And you have to have it. If you don’t, people will go elsewhere,” he said.

The back deck at Great Bear Recreation Park is shown set up for a summer wedding.

Great Bear has ‘to keep growing’

Of the 220 acres that make up the park, only 20 are used for the ski area. The remaining space includes walking trails that ares used by avid hikers as well as day care field trips, Grider said. People come out to work their hunting dogs or hold picnics. Cross-country skiing trails also can be found during the snow season. A 24/7 high-definition webcam shows weather at the park. Viewers can watch the Great Bear team make snow, and sometimes local news stations share the webcam too.

Grider has been part of Great Bear since the mid-1990s. Major improvements were made in 2000 with an addition to the existing chalet, as well as the bunny hill and terrain park. Grider said the work isn’t done, however. A Sioux Falls Parks & Recreation Department survey in the past few years asked residents what they wanted to see more of in the community; outdoor recreation was at the top, Grider said, and Great Bear fits the bill. There are opportunities to add to the amenities at the park and continue to improve both the guest and team member experiences, he said.

Great Bear Ski Valley offers skiing, snowboarding and tubing.

“We provide a product that is a great experience,” Grider said. “If we’re not growing, we’re falling behind — in the team, in infrastructure, everything. We have to keep growing, and we’ve been able to do that.”

For information about holding events at Great Bear, visit greatbearpark.com.