decreasing trend in skiing?

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dear all,
I do need your HELP!!!

I am going to write an exam about the SKI - Industry! to be more specific about VÖLKL and its competitors.


I was wondering whether YOU - since you are very into this topic - could help me.

is it really the case that there is a decrease in the popularity of skiing? or is that only due to climate changes?

have you ever heard of the german ski-producer völkl? how popular is it in the US?

would be great if I got any response from you!!!

greetings from germany!

ann
 
VÖLKL is relatively well known in Canada, I am pretty sure it's the same in the US.

Yes. there is a decreasing trend in skiing.

It might be an effect of global warming (it's was -28c in Ottawa this morning, High -21c) :? . :?: :?:

But it's more a question of demographic. Most of the average age of the population is increasing (in Western Countries) , the baby boomer represent a large part of the skiing public. New skiers/boarders are not making up for the declin from the older age group. Skiing is not as accessible for family or immigrant population coming from Un-skiing countries.

Alot more information of this aspect of skiing in one or two chapters of Downhill Slide book by Hal Clifford.
 
volkl is definitely well known and is generally considered a high end ski. as a volkl owner, i definitely feel partial to the brand for on piste skiing after owning two pairs of volkls. not sure how volkl relates to the ski industry and popularity in general though??

i don't think skiing is less popular, but rather other indoor activities are more popular. this isn't just the trend with people who like to ski, it's been noticed in the clubbing culture over here in the US too. most people would rather sit home with a few close friends, grab a brews, and watch a DVD, play PS2 or video games, or watch their tivo, or do home improvement than get out into the outdoors and work hard at getting good at skiing or other winter sports. most people think it's a cold sport in which you fall a lot and get hurt. i think it helps if you were born into a family that skis, especially since school and community ski programs are on the decline... especially with the local smaller hills failing.
 
Hello Ann,

I used to work at a ski area in the eastern US and Volkl is very well known here... I would say close to 5% of skiers use their skis, at the time I worked there they were most popular among the more experienced skiers who wanted a longer ski (around 2m in length) for more speed.

I do think skiing is in slight decline, for some of the reasons already mentioned by others here, and for one more reason I would like to add: cost. It can be very expensive unless you are knowledgeable with buying used equipment, have family and friends close to the mountain you can stay at overnight, and have enough vacation time available off work (a decreasing trend in the US in general).

I am 28 and very few of my friends and coworkers my age participate in snow sports, a few of us snowboard and I am one of the only skiers. No one in my family is a skier, I was fortunate enough however to grow up close to several small resorts and I was able to learn the sport through my high school's ski club.

-Adam
 
According to some stuff on CNN about a week ago, skiing usage, as measured by the number of skiing user days (total number of lift tickets purchased, I think) has been steadily increasing for about a decade. The story listed shaped skis making it more accessile to more people.

There is a ski association of north america sight that lists this type of info.

So you might want to be careful in how you present this. It might be that the percent of the population listing themselves as "skiers" has declined, but the industry has had pretty sustained growth.
 
Anonymous":vtku6t2d said:
According to some stuff on CNN about a week ago, skiing usage, as measured by the number of skiing user days (total number of lift tickets purchased, I think) has been steadily increasing for about a decade. The story listed shaped skis making it more accessile to more people.

There is a ski association of north america sight that lists this type of info.

So you might want to be careful in how you present this. It might be that the percent of the population listing themselves as "skiers" has declined, but the industry has had pretty sustained growth.
Click to expand...

Yes, this is what is generally seen presently in North America (ski-visits), however studies have shown that an average skier tend to ski more in their low 40s, but after that number of ski-days has a sharp drop. In the last decade, many baby-boomer are or have been in their low 40s explaining in part the high numbers.

HOWEVER, as the baby-boomers reach into their 50s project forecasts seemed to indicate a decline in number of ski-days / skiers. The number of Gen Xer and others will not be enough to prevent the decline. This is complicated by the fact that a higher percentage of the younger generation aren't from skiing family (ie. immigrants population where skiing is none existent or/and don't have the income to pratice a sport that has been pricing itself out of reach for many of these families).

As for the initial comment, average age of the European countries is generally older than in the US, so I presume that the downward trend as already started.

Patrick, part-time demographer.
 
THANK YOU very much for your replies! that will give me some more ideas about what to write in my exam next week!
have a great winter!
ann
 
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