Merry Christmas to all my fellow skiers and snowboarders!
As a special holiday gift to you all I am giving you a sneak-a-peek at the first chapter of my new book, Winter Sport Tourism: Working in WinterWonderlands (co-written with hubby, Simon Hudson). If it doesn't miraculously appear in your Christmas stocking this week, then hopefully this excerpt will encourage you to go online and buy it for yourself:
 |
| Changbaishan Ski Resort |
The origins of skiing
are open to debate. In the Altay Mountains of China, a handful of petroglyphs
have been discovered depicting archaic skiing scenes, including one of a human
figure on skis chasing an ibex. But since petroglyphs are notoriously hard to
date, it remains a controversial clue in the debate over where skiing was born
(Jenkins, 2013). Chinese archaeologists contend it was carved 5,000 years ago,
but others say it is probably only 3,000 years old. The oldest written record
that alludes to skiing, a Chinese text, also points to the Altay, but dates to
the Western Han dynasty, which began in 206 B.C. Norwegian archaeologists have also
found ski petroglyphs and, in Russia, what appears to be a ski tip,
carbon-dated to 8,000 years ago, was recently excavated from a peat bog. Each
country stakes its own claim to the first skiers. What is widely accepted,
however, is that whoever first strapped on a pair of skis likely did so to hunt
animals (Jenkins, 2013).
 |
| Vintage ski photo at Lake Louise taken by Eddie Hunter |
 |
| St Moritz, Switzerland |
It is believed that
winter mountain holidays started after 1866, when an hotelier in St. Moritz,Switzerland, invited a small group of British summer guests to visit his
property during the winter months (Cockerell, 1988). On their return, this
group enthused so much about their trip that it soon became fashionable among
the British upper classes to take a winter holiday in Switzerland. In those
days there were no lifts, so considerable time was spent walking and climbing
mountains but, in the winter of 1910-11, Sir Henry Lunn managed to persuade the
local authorities in Mürren to open the Lauterbrunnen-Mürren railway line. The
Lauberhorn drag-lift opened the following year. Lunn was then responsible for
organizing the first-ever downhill race in Montana, Switzerland in 1911. Meanwhile
the 1905 Olympic games had included skiing in its program of activities despite
skiing not being a recognized Olympic sport. At this time, not only was there a
growing interest in skiing as a participant sport, but there was a desire on
the part of destination managers and developers to keep resorts operational for
an entire winter season. In the process of developing this strategy, the
concept of a broader set of physical facilities and a more sustainable market
base for skiing development is believed to have originated (Williams, 1993).
 |
| Mt Norquay, the oldest ski resort in Canadian Rockies, turns 90 this year |
By the beginning of the
First World War in 1914, there were at least as many German skiers in
Switzerland as there were British, and these two countries today still provide
a large proportion of outbound winter tourists. In 1924, skiing was introduced
as a formal event at the Olympic Games in
Chamonix, France, and was highlighted again in the 1932 Olympic Winter
Games in Lake Placid, U.S. These two events helped place skiing at
the forefront of winter recreational activity in both Europe and North America
and gave a further push to its development as a major contributor to
winter-based tourism (Liebers 1963).
 |
| Vintage Vail: Courtesy of Vail Resorts |
In 1929, the first
mechanically-propelled uphill lift designed solely for skiers was installed in
Canada, and within a few years most ski slopes of any significance in North
America and Europe had one or more such lifts in place. Snowtrains transporting
thousands of skiers to the slopes became commonplace throughout North America
in the 1930s.
In 1936 Union Pacific developed the first tourism-oriented ski resort in SunValley, Idaho. The resort became the prototype for world-class ski areas in North America. In Europe, the first real mountain ski resort was Megève in the Haute Savoie region of France, its development coinciding with the first ski lift in France in 1933. The Winter Olympic Games of 1936 held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany included both downhill and slalom races, and further raised the profile of the sport.
 |
| Sun Valley Idaho Roundhouse Poster |
In 1936 Union Pacific developed the first tourism-oriented ski resort in SunValley, Idaho. The resort became the prototype for world-class ski areas in North America. In Europe, the first real mountain ski resort was Megève in the Haute Savoie region of France, its development coinciding with the first ski lift in France in 1933. The Winter Olympic Games of 1936 held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany included both downhill and slalom races, and further raised the profile of the sport.
 |
| Old ski friends in Courchevel in the 80s |
The growth of skiing was
dampened by the Second World War but, after the war, skiing in a mass tourism
context began to emerge. Inspired by the military role that skiing played in
northern combat areas (my own father learned to ski in the army), skiing was
introduced to thousands of returning troops as a form of winter recreation. Meanwhile
better access to ski destinations was brought on by the development of family
automobiles and rising standards of living, and rapid improvements resulted in
safer and more comfortable ski equipment.
By the late 1940s and early 1950s,
the second phase of ski resort development took place in France with the
opening of resorts such as Courchevel, Méribel and Tignes. Off-slope amenities
for skiers began to emerge, with lodging, culinary experiences and
entertainment becoming important components of a ski vacation (Tanler, 1966). The
invention of snowmaking in the 1950s gave a further impetus to the growth of
ski facilities, a technological development that not only lengthened the
duration of a ski season, but also made the sport possible in areas where
natural snowfall was less than abundant.
 |
| Courtesy of Vail Resorts |
The 1960s saw the start
of the great ski boom. Europe witnessed the creation of a new generation of
fully integrated ski stations, while in North America, larger resorts in New
England, Colorado, California, the Canadian Rockies and the Eastern townships
of Quebec emerged to meet the growing demand for winter vacations. Wooden skis
and leather boots were slowly phased out and replaced by metal and fibre glass
skis and plastic boots. While the 1970s were a period of massive market and
product expansion, the 1980s presented a decade characterized by industry
consolidation and product management (Williams, 1993).
Influenced by changing
demographics, ski markets began to mature. By the mid-1980s ski facility supply
had in many regions outstripped demand, and many poorly managed ski destinations
were experiencing financial difficulties (Kottke, 1990). In response, destinations were forced to address both product and market issues in a more
business-like fashion, and a more tourism-focused approach to ski area development
commenced. Larger ski centres with tourist, rather than resident, ski markets
continued to grow, while many small centers faltered. Consequently, between
1980 and 1990 the number of ski areas dropped by 18 per cent in North America.
Counteracting this trend, ski area capacity expanded by approximately 50 per
cent during the same period.
 |
| Fernie - Courtesy of Fernie & District Historical Society |
 |
| Me (right) skiing Meribel in the 1990s - no hat, no jacket, tie-dye fleece and long straight skis! |
In the 1990s the
greatest impact on the ski industry came from the snowboarding boom. One of the
disadvantages of skiing at the time was that it was technically very demanding at a high level of
performance. Unless they started at a very young age, the average recreational
skiers taking an annual week’s ski holiday could not develop the skills necessary
to ski steep, fast runs, big bumps and deep powder snow expertly. However, a snowboarder
could learn to stay upright and turn after one morning, and tackle powder within
a week. Such a high learning curve led many skiers to cross over to snowboarding,
with over 60 per cent of snowboarders in North America in the 90s having skied
before they adopted boarding (Spring, 1997). Snowboarders now represent around
30 per cent of the market for most ski resorts.
 |
| Rossignol Experience 88/Blake Jorgensen Photography |
The arrival of ‘shaped’
skis on the market was another big influence on the industry in the 1990s, dramatically impacting the learning curve for skiers. Deep
sidecuts to help skis carve short, clean turns had been sneaking up on the
industry for a century, but in 1991 Elan came out with a Sidecut Extreme (SCX) ski that had
a 22.25mm sidecut, three times what most racers were using for slalom at the
time. The ski performed extremely well on the race circuit, and then in 1993
Elan sent out the prototype SCX to ski instructors in American resorts and the
reaction was extremely positive. The instructors couldn’t believe what a
fabulous teaching tool the new skis were – beginners and intermediate skiers
were able to carve turns almost immediately after trying shaped skis.
 |
| Courtesy of Rossignol |
Manufacturers like Rossignol, Atomic,
Fischer and Head followed suit, designing sidecut skis
of their own, and by 1997 shapes had proliferated in all directions. It was
possible to buy deep shapes, moderate shapes, race shapes, carver shapes,
powder shapes, expert shapes, learn-to-carve shapes and learn-to-ski shapes. In
fact, shapes were so radical by the turn of the century that the International Ski Federation had to
impose limits on the size of sidecuts used in ski races.
 |
| Niseko Japan/Niseko Photography |
The 2000s witnessed a
general maturity of the industry. Total skier visits fluctuated around the 400 million
mark during this decade, with the 2006/07 season characterized by particularly
weak demand due to unusually warm weather in the Alps. Visits were steady as major
mature markets (like the U.S., Canada and the Alpine countries) stagnated or
declined, as was the case of Japan, while other markets were emerging, such as
China and Korea.
 |
| Niseko Japan/Niseko Photography |
The 2000s were also
characterized by diversification in the industry. An increasing proportion of
those taking winter sports holidays on a regular basis were not skiing at all.
Secondly, even avid skiers were typically skiing less. On average they were
somewhat older, and new high-speed lifts enabled skiers to attain their
physical stamina quotient much more quickly. So winter resorts realized that
they had to offer more activities than just skiing and boarding, both on- and
off-snow. The more progressive resorts began to expand the range of activities
they offered, such as ice-skating, snow-scooting, sledging and dog-sledging,
ice-driving, paragliding, snowmobiling, and tubing (the increasingly popular activity
of sliding down the slope on the inner-tube of a truck tire). Many resorts –
Verbier in Switzerland is one example – also looked to
enhance the efficiency, quality and profitability of their restaurants and
shops. The market for in-destination services in general is vast.
According to Euromonitor
International (2014), it accounted for almost $2,000 billion
globally in 2013 - significantly larger than the transportation and travel accommodation
markets - and it is expected to record a strong eight per cent CAGR
(compound annual growth rate) in the 2013-2018 period, to reach
$2,800 billion.
 |
| Stowe Mountain Resort, Vermont |
In addition to
diversifying their product offerings, destinations are also positioning
themselves as more than a place to visit, attempting to expand economic
development by attracting new businesses and new residents. Stowe in Vermont,
for example, is currently regarded as one of the most tech-friendly towns in
the U.S., according to Google. In its second annual award program, Google named
Stowe as the 2014 eCity for the State of Vermont. The eCity
Awards recognize the strongest online business
communities in all fifty states, communities that are embracing the web to find
new customers, connect with existing clients and fueling their local economies.
Stowe is now home to a robust array of businesses that have created growth and
advanced the digital economy in the state. Stowe’s recognition as Vermont’s
eCity is also built upon the many small businesses that are participating in
e-commerce and the technology industry throughout the community.
 |
| Stowe Mountain Resort, Vermont |
