Flyover country? The Heartland? The Rust Belt? However you refer to our region of the country, understand this, it is the new hotbed of skiing expansion for corporate investment and the ski pass industry. Vail, Alterra and the Indy Pass have made this the new industry battleground.
In the past year, IKON and Epic have made inroads never seen before in this region. It seems like almost daily they reach agreements with new ski hills, usually targeting the Indy Pass, although Indy Pass too has added resorts this year.
In the land where we count laps over vertical and have produced the likes of Lindsey Vonn, Jesse Diggins, Cindy Nelson, Nick Goepper and David Chodounsky, the business is healthy and recognized as ripe for corporate investment.
In the past 4 months alone, Lutsen, Granite Peak, Snowriver, Buck Hill, Wild Mountain, Giants Ridge and Devil’s Head have now become part of the IKON family to compete with the 9 Vail resorts and the 40 Indy Pass resorts. Expansion continues but at what price?
Greg Snow and I started the Senior Ski Bums Traveling Roadshow page on FB 2 years ago with the primary objective to highlight Mom and Pop family owned areas, to celebrate The “Soul of Skiing” that exists in the Midwest and to retain that independence.
The best example to illustrate this is Lonie Glieberman, owner of Mount Bohemia in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Every year “Boho” is expanding territory, the accommodations, its back country and cat skiing (yes, in the Midwest) and keeps operating independently.
The future is bright despite the changes to the norm, corporate investments prove it. Time will tell if we lose our identity, can the “Soul of Skiing” stay affordable and retain its identity? The Midwest may not have the mountain vistas of the West or the East’s culture and history. What do we have? Affordability. No lift lines. Free parking and that Midwest hospitality that keeps us warm.
As a lifelong Midwesterner hope is we can find that balance of corporate and identity, if you haven’t had the chance, c’mon out and ski, have a Bloody Mary with a snit (beer chaser), a PBR or Leinenkugel’s or the famous Brandy Old Fashion’s and enjoy the hospitality. The Midwest rocks it and is trending up, just don’t tell too many people.