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Skiers caught with bogus lift passes By BILL KETTLER Steer clear of anyone trying to sell you a bargain pass to Ski Ashland. At least five forged season passes have surfaced at the Mount Ashland ski area since March 1, and more bogus passes could materialize this week as skiers flock to the mountain during spring break. "`I wouldn't be surprised if I see more," said deputy district attorney Mike Thornicroft, who is handling the cases for Jackson County. Thornicroft said five people, all in their 20s, apparently paid about $150 each for a forged pass. All five have no previous criminal record and appear to have had no direct contact with the forger. They apparently passed money and a photograph to a middleman who delivered the bogus passes. "They thought they were getting a good deal," he said, "and they ended up charged with forgery and theft of services." Thornicroft said the misdemeanor charges could cost each of the five far more than the $390 price of a legitimate season pass. Making restitution and paying fines could easily cost them $600 per person. Ashland police are still investigating the bogus passes and declined to release any information about the cases, said detective Lynn Parlette. Ski Ashland lift operators were the first people to notice the passes, said area manager Jeff Hanson. "They weren't looking for forged passes," said Hanson. "They were just making sure the passes belonged to the people who were using them." Hanson said the counterfeit passes looked "pretty good, but obviously not good enough." "The colors were different. The printing was different, the shadows (around the photographs) were different." The fake passes were laminated between two layers of clear plastic. Genuine passes are printed on a solid sheet of plastic. Hanson said fake passes have surfaced from time to time at Ski Ashland, but generally they have not been a problem. Season passes are printed on a plastic card by a computer using a computer-based dye sublimation process that makes them relatively difficult to reproduce. "They're like the new Oregon drivers' licenses," he said. Hanson said additional distinguishing marks could be set into season passes to make them more difficult to counterfeit if forgery were to become a serious problem. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA