SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — Figuring out how to engage the next generations of skiers and snowboarders and addressing climate change's threat to the industry were among the dominant themes of the 43rd annual Mountain Travel Symposium (MTS), held here last week.
"There are some people out there who don't believe that this is a great industry for the future," Kirsten Lynch, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Vail Resorts, said in her keynote address. "Those people say this industry is not growing. Those people say this industry is only successful if it snows. Which is why innovation is going to be so critical for the future."
For the mountain travel industry to avoid decline, Lynch told the 1,100-plus MTS participants, it will have to embrace change.
In an interview following her address, Lynch said there are several ways Vail Resorts is addressing the industry's challenges and hoping to inspire that change. For example, in order to introduce more urban families to winter sports, Vail is investing in ski areas near densely populated cities. Examples include its acquisitions of Minnesota's Afton Alps, Michigan's Mount Brighton and Wisconsin's Wilmot Mountain, which serve the Twin Cities, Detroit and Chicago, respectively.
Additionally, the ski resort conglomerate has introduced a program called Epic SchoolKids that enables kids in kindergarten through fifth grade in Colorado, Canada and Utah to hit the slopes for free and includes a free lesson and free equipment.
Lynch said the program brings families into the sport "that might not otherwise have the means to get started." She also said that Vail Resorts has a series of women's programs to address the lag in female skiers and snowboarders when compared with men.
Olympic gold medalist and world champion skier Bode Miller, left, speaking about his career with outdoor adventure TV presenter Ryan Van Duzer. Photo Credit: TW photo by Michelle Baran
Engaging millennials
But in order for the mountain travel industry to continue to thrive, Lynch said, "It needs to be an entire industry effort."
John O'Neill, a market associate at Expedia, agreed.
"The year-over-year participation rate of millennials who are skiers is on the decline," he said.
O'Neill, himself a passionate millennial skier, proposed total disruption of the mountain travel industry in order to woo younger participants. He said the ski industry should take notes from low-cost air carriers and apps like Uber that have successfully engaged young travelers by making travel easy and accessible to them.
"Compare that to a ski vacation. We're trying to make millennials plan, and they're not going to," O'Neill said.
He proposed doing things differently on the mountains.
"Imagine a mountain where you don't pay by the days you ski but the runs that you take," he said, adding that the technology is already in place at many ski resorts that use RFID passes. "The next era of skiing will be a period of innovation."
Participants at MTS were ready to hit the slopes the day after South Lake Tahoe got a fresh layer of powder. Photo Credit: TW photo by Michelle Baran
MTS executives also said they needed to engage future generations to help carry the industry forward and remain relevant.
To that end, organizers launched the first Young Leaders Summit last week, a full-day event held here during MTS for people currently working in the mountain tourism industry who are under 35 and who, according to MTS, "have a passion for the mountain travel industry and are dedicated to growing their professional community and knowledge-base."
According to Eric Kertzman, a 32-year-old sales manager at Lake Tahoe's Diamond Peak Ski Resort and one of the Young Leaders Summit's first 15 participants, the challenges the industry faces in courting younger skiers and snowboarders include the financial hurdles that young working professionals face as well as negative perceptions about the safety, or lack thereof, of skiing and snowboarding.
"Sometimes skiing and adventure sports can take a back seat because in a millennial mindset they're not willing to sacrifice their bodies and the amount of money and resources it takes," Kertzman said.
Siani Nau, a 32-year-old community relations manager at Mount Rose in Tahoe who also participated in the Young Leaders Summit, expressed the belief that the ski industry can overcome some of its hurdles.
"Millennials say experiences are worth it," said Nau, who believes that there will always be people who love the outdoors and love to ski, and who will ultimately be willing and able to pay for it.
Addressing climate change
"By 2050, the ski season is going to reduce by half," Trevor Crist, CEO of Inntopia, told the MTS audience. "The glaciers are literally melting away under the lifts."
Andy Wirth, left, president and COO of Squaw Valley Ski Holdings, is interviewed by MTS’ Bruce Rosard. Photo Credit: TW photo by Michelle Baran
Squaw Valley Ski Holdings president and COO Andy Wirth was also blunt when it came to climate change. His company, which was acquired last year as part of the formation of the resort conglomerate Alterra Mountain Co., has invested millions in snowmaking technology and equipment as well as in avalanche mitigation systems. Its goal, he said, is to be carbon neutral by the end of this year.
"No. 1, let's rise above the politics and all that crap," Wirth said. "To ignore the fact that climate change is an exigent threat to our society and to our life is a fool's errand, period."
According to Wirth, not only does the industry need to be looking at ways to mitigate the impact on snow conditions, but it needs to be part of the solution, or at the very least, help to curb the problem.
"In our case, we built a good plan … to move to 100% renewables," he said. "That's our contribution. So we're going to do everything we can, on every single layer of input, to not be hypocrites."
The 2019 MTS will take place in Whistler, British Columbia, from March 31 to April 6. MTS is owned by Northstar Travel Group, parent company of Travel Weekly.