I don't understand the reference? And if I don't, then I'm sure many others don't either, conforming the disconnect between those in the ski industry and those we are trying to interest in the sport.
It's ski culture fun
I don't understand the reference? And if I don't, then I'm sure many others don't either, conforming the disconnect between those in the ski industry and those we are trying to interest in the sport.
@Goose Today's poorly behaved demographic is tomorrows core skier. A lifetime of skiing doesn't begin with a commitment to care about really learning to ski and to stay in the sport long term. It begins with discovery.
The kid with the mom taking him skiing is not the one who needs a "urban ski area" to discover skiing. Its for the kids who don't have a parent who skis and who maybe don't know anyone who has ever skied before. The kid who can't get 100 miles from town to go skiing at a feeder hill and who want to give the sport a try. When they grow up maybe they can take up that passion to a real mountain on their own independently. But today they need to discover the sport and maybe reinvent it in a way that will be totally different and awesome.
View attachment 31491 View attachment 31492
This is what gets people on the hill- always had, always will.
Of course its being quantified. Partly because it requires those very resources of disposable time and money that your not buying as an excuse. That is real imo. And so with that, people want it to be worthwhile as much as possible. Skiing (as for the general masses) never really was a poor mans recreation. it always required time and some money even when cheaper. Though relatively speaking was never really a cheap thing to do.The demise was foretold in Curtis W Casewitt's book "Ski Racing - advice by the experts"
View attachment 31490
Far far too much of skiing is being quantified. Sorry I'm not buying the time / money / millennial argument.
Skiing has been boiled down to " I'm not going until the conditions are perfect and I have the perfect ski and I know that I will have the perfect time.....".
I know far too many people who are never pleasantly surprised because they're constantly searching their phone for the right snow conditions, crowds and lift reports.
At the same time I see far too many resorts failing to offering fun experiences that focus on ski culture.
Of course its being quantified. Partly because it requires those very resources of disposable time and money that your not buying as an excuse. That is real imo. And so with that, people want it to be worthwhile as much as possible. Skiing (as for the general masses) never really was a poor mans recreation. it always required time and some money even when cheaper. Though relatively speaking was never really a cheap thing to do.
Part of what you speak imo also comes down to what I mention earlier as for the general interests of society always evolving and changing as life itself evolves and changes as well. Part of which I mentioned is due to modern tech and everything so readily available. Its also due to busier lives in general too. One of the negatives with modern tech (the computer age) as well as generally busier lives is that we as a society have lost our patience. For the most part we no longer have any. Nowadays everyone wants/needs and searches for the best and most immediate results. Hence we quantify just about everything. Anything less than good as for being worthwhile of our time, money, and efforts is not good enough anymore. Right, wrong or indifferent, we've become somewhat spoiled in that sense. Or perhaps times have just changed to no fault of our own. Hence society always evolving. No one said its always for the best. None the less its just the way it is.
And so these things you mention are indeed not helping the sport. But such is life nowadays. Right or wrong, can we really say which?
Let me say..... (in my neck of the woods) its about Poconos skiing. Unless I make the treck to Vermont (which I cannot do but maybe once per year) its about poconos.
If I'm going to (and through the years I have many times) spend the time and money and efforts to bring the fam for a daunting day trip or overnighter I'm going to think twice about conditions and crowds. I have to imo. The money, time and efforts spent have to equate to something worthwhile.
Honestly its sometimes not much fun nor worthy in certain scenarios..
For example......One is normally already on a smaller hill and already crowded weekend or holiday. Ok so it is what it is and you deal with that zoo it and enjoy. But trust me its somewhat disappointing when on top of that you also find chunks of an already relatively small crowded hill closed making remaining terrain even more over crowded. Mobbed slopes, lift lines, and common areas( like the lodges). And poorer conditions on what is open. Thats all far too much sacrificed for a terrible return on the investment. I mean we do this for fun. That's why we spend the resources and make the efforts.....to have fun. So yes imo we look for a quality return.
haha yea I'm kind a with ya as for certain things nowadays. As said evolving and changes are not always for the best. With all the greatness that comes from modern tech there are also negatives of course. For one thing , people dont have social skills anymore. As for busier lives? It ise to be people looked forward to getting together with friends and family and nowadays its like an unwanted obligation. Spending holidays together was looked forward to. Now? again as said its almost an unwanted obligation. sad really..But it is what it is. things are much different today. life is different. In many ways I wish the 70's (the era I grew up in) was still here. lolGreat points. I grew up in the Poconos & can relate to all of what you assert.
My aim in anti tech angle was/is that I was way happier skiing Shawnee on my 3G's because there was a sense of culture & anticipation.
Now, I live in Vermont & can hardly blast ppl out of bed unless 'all the boxes are checked'. Most locals hate skiing & everyone I do chat skiing with wants measure up over who has the most days, verical or widest skis.
It used to be a day skied, now I feel like it's obligatory Garmin/FaceBook/GoPro time. Over the last 2 seasons I see all these folks with selfie sticks & helmet mounts creating edits no one will ever watch whilst almost being run over my others trying to max out their iPhone app speedometers on 170's.
The connection that will bring ppl back is not WiFi.
I'm likely the only fossil left who chats ppl up in line.
The ski areas that realized that people are social beings & creates an environment around this will do best.
*i think this officially makes me a retro grouch
Selfish, disrespectful, loudmouth morons who lack common courtesy is not at all imo the demographic the sport needs.
The driving trip to see the national parks is a story that most immigrant families learn quickly. The stories about skiing are not shared with them. Having completed a big national park tour these families are crossing that off the bucket list, it's not intuitive for that person to say let's comeback to jackson next winter for skiing.
We should avoid talking about fixies while I'm here...Or go for 1.3 mile rides on their fixies to the thrift store to look through old record albums. That's solid exercise there man!
I wonder how many selfish, disrespectful, loudmouth teens turn into reasonable humans once the hormones level out and life experience makes its mark.
I walked into a Starbucks a couple of years ago - it happened to coincide with some sort of high school event. The sheer volume of all these teens talking to each other - it was sensory overload, like when you walk into a Vegas casino. They're not trying to be obnoxious. But awareness of how your actions impact other people (beyond, say, not punching other people in the face) comes later.
I’ve been thinking that one of the biggest challenges facing any new skier is getting a good fitting boot. If I ran the zoo, I’d have a boot like Apex as standard rental equipment, so that getting a comfortable boot that works
There are a lot of alpine teams, WC down to American Ski Academies training right now, indoors in Europe. They are heading to the glaciers soon, but many are sending a week or two indoors. In the icebox, the freezer, whatever nickname they attach. Is it skiing? Maybe not what we all like, but it's making turns in man make snow. A lot of turns. These facilities are located far away from the mountains. Cities like Munich. Holland.
Who knows? They appeal to me more than the artificial mats, and other no snow trainers. But, at some level, it's all fun and all skiing. But the first time I saw the inside of one, it was a bit shocking. No natural light, let alone sun. AC on....cold.