Highway West Training Manager & Supervisor Of Palm Canyon Resort In Calfornia Talks To Buzz About Intention & Perception
Understanding the identity of a property and honing its human resources, energy and the ability to find balance in its location is a truism for Virginia Therrien, the Training Manager for Highway West Vacations who also oversees the Palm Canyon RV & Resort Property in Borrego Springs, California. The logistical texture inherent in the position is about vision and foresight. Therrien sat down with The Buzz at the Cruise Inn Conference, of which they are a member, in Fort Worth, Texas to discuss inspiration, operations and intentions.
The Buzz: Can you talk about coming into Palm Canyon and how you perceived it...
Virginia Thierren: I have over 38 years in the hospitality industry with a previous company and I have worked with Michael Beckelhymer for over 25 years. In 2014, I entered the Highway West Company and I was heading for the Palm Canyon Resort. When Michael asked me to come to Highway West, it wasn't just going to Palm Canyon but it was going to be my base. I was hired as a Regional Manager for 8 resorts at the time which developed into 12 very rapidly. My Regional Manager position enhanced and expanded plus we also have the Bighorn Bar & Grill at the resort in Palm Canyon. When I went there, it was just to base out of that resort. In 3 months though, they said “We are not going to go the route we were going. We are actually going to put the bar and restaurant on you as well”. Then December of last year they bought another hotel down the street. So they said “I'm going to have you manage Borrego Valley Inn”. So all three properties are in season at exactly the same time. It is not like you do one and then do the other one and you're off season.
The Buzz: When dealing with multiple tiered properties....do they function as a different mindset?
VT: One of the biggest challenges is getting everything in sync...because I travel. I help Mike...and I most recently was gone over 2 months going to all the other properties and training their staff with customer service. As new managers come on board, either I go to them or they come to me and spend a week or so to get that under their belt before they land at their property so they know how to do things. So it is customer service training for over 100 people a year in 2 months. Fortunately that is during the slower time of the year but it is also an opportunity to get projects and everything done on my own home base.
The Buzz: You spoke about Palm Canyon during the conference. Can you talk about what makes it unique in your mind?
VT: It is its own world. [Our resort is next to] the largest state park [Anza-Borrego Desert] in the United States. It is about the size I think it was said of Maine. It is really large...over 600,000 acres. And the Visitors Center is less than a half a mile from us. One of the unique things out in the desert is Ricardo Breceda who is a sculpturist and he has put over 100 large metal sculptures all over the desert. People drive up and take pictures with them. It is like an adventure...a day adventure to seek out the sculptures because they are all over the Anza-Borrego desert. The archeologists also always come here because of digs going on [out there]. They uncovered a mastodon and now the head and the skull and the tusks are all displayed at the Visitors Center.
VT: We also have to be sensitive year round to what kind of lighting we offer. Right now at our hotel, we are “amber gold”...many people consider them like bug lights but they basically show and create very little light pollution because people view stars year round there and not just when a new moon hits. There are also a lot of plain air artists that come. They set up in the desert...groups of cars and vehicles will be all along the road and over the desert painting the mountains...the plants...all sorts of things. The rare sighting [though] is rain. We barely get any rain. We had 3.86 inches last year so it is not very often. But when it does rain there is an aroma which lights up in the desert with smells that you have never smelled before. Flowers that have been dormant just pop out open overnight so the next day you have a floral that is unbelievable in the desert.
The Buzz: The clientele, as I discussed with Michael [Beckelhymer] is changing. What have you seen in terms of how that has evolved?
VT: Well in the summertime, international travelers hit the desert because it is their wintertime. We have people from all over...a lot of countries...come in and they are on an adventure so they will be staying three night, four nights...everything they can do in our area...before they move on. We're not always just a snowbird destination, we're also a staycation destination. That is what everybody from San Diego calls it because we are a couple hours away...and if something happens, they can get home very quickly. Sometimes [people from San Diego] get the “June gloom”where it gets cloudy. Everybody runs away from San Diego and hit the desert. They head in with their familes. We also have vans come in ...when we do have the “Dark Skies”...from Los Angeles. The kids call it...they come to see “the lights”. These kids have never seen stars because they've been in LA too long and you can't see any [there]. The closeness of the stars and the Milky Way feels like it is a blanket right above your head. It's a weird feeling but it is amazing.
The Buzz: There are exacting standards for Highway West but also for Cruise Inn which you guys are also a part of, could you talk about that balance...
VT: Highway West, when I came on with them, we weren't part of the Cruise Inn package so we were under our own brand and we had a lot of items with our brand on it...and we all have standards that we have to follow. That is another thing I do...I go around to all the resorts and do a facilities standards review and make sure everyone is higher than the minimum level for Highway West. That also blends very nicely with the Cruise Inn brand [in terms of] everything we offer. So in December after I came in [to HW in] August, we went on the RMS [reservation] system so we were relying on the Cruise Inn brand to help us pull through this new system. That is how it all started. So we have our mission and they have their mission and we kind of meet in the middle a little bit. There's some things that Cruise Inn does that we don't do because we already have staff in place that does that. [But] it is like a sister partnership. That's how I look at it. I have so much fun with everybody from Cruise Inn but we also have our group and team members at Highway West. It's nice.
The Buzz:You seem to have a real passion for this industry. For you, where did that build from?
VT: I started off in Ohio. I went with a company called Thousand Trails in 1984. I was working in recreation...some of their food services...and I was a ranger many days out of the week...and it was so well rounded because I had a lot of areas that I worked in. I could work in sales and marketing very easily so it was a vast array of different things all at one time. And I was like “This is not like working in a factory where you process widgets.” It was great because there were a lot of facets with the hospitality industry. I became a supervisor and then a manager and then a district manager. I had 5 parks. I did a lot with that and I moved around. I worked in different locations. I lived in Indiana, Ohio, Oregon, California...different parts of California...and I used to work at a lot of different resorts at different times in my life. It kind of grows on you. And it is kind of neat when you go into a property because you see the things you don't want to change very quickly because they are working well. But there are other things you need to address to get them better. And then you kind of put your stamp on it and your personality starts reflecting on your property. You start to build a really good team and together it turns into a well oiled machine.
Tim Wassberg
A graduate of New York University's Tisch School Of The Arts with degrees in Film/TV Production & Film Criticism, Tim has written for magazines such as Moviemaker, Moving Pictures, Conde Nast Traveler UK and Casino Player. He enjoys traveling and distinct craft beers among other things.
Make Sure To Stay At:
Palm Canyon RV Resort, where you can unwind in unique accommodations such as vintage trailer rentals, Airstream rentals or in the comfort of your own RV. Enjoy California's best kept desert secret with on-site amenities including swimming pools, an on-site bar and grill, and complimentary Wi-Fi.