Solving Our Riddles

Our industry is in an interesting position right now. Demand is high for skiing and snowboarding. Crowds of people are flocking to ski areas big and small across the country despite inconsistent snow. This is good news. Right? 

In general, yes. However, while consistently exceeding capacity during peak periods drives revenue, it also deteriorates the guest experience. If the experience doesn’t improve, over time, people will stop coming. So, do you build more lifts and clear more trails to accommodate extra demand, and if so, does that create still more off-peak excess capacity, driving a need for still more demand in order to … ? 

Ultimately, it comes down to finding balance, which requires good planning. For a refresher on planning for capacity, density, and balance, read “By Popular Demand,” p. 20. 

This season, we’ve pondered over whether the preponderance of inexpensive mega passes has been good for the industry. Converting occasional skiers into committed passholders has benefits (see some in Bill Jensen’s break down of the NSAA Economic Analysis, p. 62). The need to build volume to protect investment—capital, new acquisition, and shareholder—
presupposes sustained growth, though. 

Is this growth sustainable? In a past issue, my dad, founding publisher David Rowan, observed, “Natural growth is one thing: steroid popping is another.” Now, not everyone is popping steroids. There are many in our industry, especially the smaller operations, who have said, “Leave us out of this overcrowding issue.” And their ability to build on the success of these pandemic winters may depend on not fixing a thing that ain’t broken. 

Still, with negative news about overcrowding prevailing, we had to ask: Do these mega passes create value for customers? This mega question—and the potential fallout if the answer is no—is discussed on p. 10.

Things Old and New

As you can see from our cover, the grooming machines of today are badass. Read all about the latest in grooming technology in our annual “Groomer Report,” p. 54. As Peak Resorts founder Tim Boyd once put it, groomers are like Ferraris. So, we asked Elia Hamilton to share some summer maintenance tips to keep these supercar-like machines in top shape, p. 32. 

Speaking of summer, SAM has long supported the serious business of summer operations through our annual Summer Ops Camp (coming back this fall!) and in the pages of SAM and our sister publication, Adventure Park Insider. Here, we cover glamping, mountain bike conversion, and the maturing of resort summer ops in a special section, starting on p. 66.

Now in our 60th year in publication, SAM continues to be with you during the best of times and the worst. Through the interchange of ideas and knowledge, we help (and sometimes challenge) ski areas to prosper and be resilient. If you’ve found SAM helpful, please share that with others and encourage them to subscribe. Thanks for reading this far.