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Times They Are A-Changin' For U.S. Ski Clubs

By Craig Altschul
June 12, 2006

One thing is certain. Ski clubs book lots of ski trips. That can be a good thing. Or not. The problem, if it is a problem, is that there is little doubt that ski club members are graying. Further, as they age, their numbers are declining. Or, at least, growing only in spots.

"We had a successful marketing campaign targeting ski clubs' younger cohorts," Richard Davidson, president of SkiEurope, a large ski tour operator, told The Industry Report. "This determined that the same motivations that generated the creations of the ski clubs in their heyday of the ''60s and '70s still apply. That is, let's get a bunch of friends and go skiing."

Mike Sanford, President of the Far West Ski Association (FWSA), among the two largest in the nation (along with the National Brotherhood of Skiers), agrees. His region includes 158 clubs, with about 40,000 members.

"The social aspect is crucial," he says, as he readied to leave for last weekend's FWSA convention. "Demographics continue to be an issue. We're struggling to get a younger generation to join." But, it's not the younger generation that first might come to mind.

Sanford says his clubs are targeting those people, now in their 30s and early 40s, who grew up skiing with their families or perhaps got into skiing and snowboarding in college. Then, they got their wings clipped by heading into the working world, getting married, and having kids of their own. There went their disposable income and time. Targeting young families, he notes, has a difficult side by adding new dimensions to trip planning, price and location negotiations, liability, and much more.

Is older better? Bob Wilbanks, editor of the longstanding Ski Club News, says that the graying demographic, if nothing else, is benefiting some of the premium-priced resorts such as Aspen, Snowmass, Vail, and Beaver Creek.

"Ski clubs are buying more upscale and looking for more than just skiing every day of their winter vacations," Wilbanks said, backing up his comment with actual statistics. "The premium priced resorts now outsell all Canadian resorts two-to-one in this market and more clubs skied in Aspen (six percent market share) than in all of Utah (five percent market share) last season.

"Europe (where the clubs tend to take more expensive and longer ski tours) has remained at about 15 percent of market share for several years. But, the biggest winner in the ski club market is Colorado, where 42 percent of all ski club trips went last season," he noted. Wilbanks added that 16 percent of total ski club trips went to Vail and Aspen, while 7 percent each went to Steamboat and Telluride.

FWSA's Sanford thinks there's something to the Colorado premium. "I led the biggest trip we've had in the past six or so years to Aspen a couple of years ago. There were 760 of us." He said the other reason these more upscale resorts get the nod - other than their traditional popularity with West Coast skiers - is they tend to have halls large enough to accommodate big banquets or shows. That's important to the social aspect of the trips.

Are the numbers heading south? Davidson says that, while hard numbers are difficult to obtain, he has noticed that "ski clubs are having difficulty making group participation numbers, and that ski club councils generate a fraction of the numbers that they once did."

Sanford says the Far West clubs are "doing ok; we're probably just maintaining." He said that some of the losses in numbers might be misleading because they come from corporate ski clubs that either disband or merge into other clubs in the area when corporations are moved, sold, or employee numbers are significantly downsized.

Veteran ski journalist Ted Heck has long covered ski clubs for the Harrisburg, Pa. Patriot-News and has "a feeling that local ski clubs are declining in membership and undoubtedly getting older." Heck said the Susquehanna Ski Club in Central Pa., for example, used to have more than 1,600 members, but is now down to about 1,200. He said Toby Hannock, a ski club leader in the region and a frequent trip leader, confirms the downhill trend and the upward age climb. "Where have they gone?" Heck asks, but can't answer.

Meanwhile, Dick Healy, another longtime ski columnist with The Record in Troy, N.Y., disputes the trend, at least in his neck of the mountains. "Membership is up in all clubs and the New York Capital District Ski Council tops off at 5,000 members. I'd say the average age of members here is between 20 and 40 years old, though there are some members in their 60s and 70s."

Still, tour operator Davidson sums it up this way: "All these factors point to a basic issue. Many ski clubs were established on the basis, and continue to believe, that they can provide their members with the best prices. This, of course, is not the case. Clubs that see beyond that, offering their members a positive social experience, are the ones that have a better outlook."

We'll continue looking at the ski club world here at The Industry Report on Wednesday, June 14 with Part II of this discussion: How important has year-round adventure become on the club scene to members and resorts? Why won't Generation X join in the fun? Are the resorts still looking for the club business? More to come...

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Comments

	Huh? Are Ski Clubs, in general, declinig--well thery are called SKi CLubs! I still have never heard th phrase SnowBoard Club and considering that SnowBoarding now represents, at least, 30% of our industrys business it's only common sense that the number of people invovled wiht "Ski Clubs" would be declining. It's just ocmmon sense - BW
	Posted by: Bernard Weichsel BEWI Productions, Inc. | June 12, 2006 03:29 PM

San Diego Council of Ski Clubs has several "Ski and Snowboard" Clubs who consider their members to be skiers, boarders or both! However, those members who board are either existing members who are nearing retirement (or retired), or are children or grandchildren of existing members. If there is a "snowboarders" club, I haven't heard about it and I would encourage one or more to join the Council to take advantage of our numbers in putting together snowboard trips! The observation is that our numbers are declining and the median age of our members is growing. Check us out! Cheryl

Posted by: Cheryl Riess | June 13, 2006 04:49 PM

I have many clubs that are declining in membership and some clubs that are growing. Those that are growing seem to have a common thread of providing value not low price. More upscale trips tend to better attract the young professionals that quite frankly don't want cheap lodging. Best practice seems to be to providing trips at different price points to hit different pocketbooks. The common thread among declining clubs seems to be that they are doing things the same way they have been for 25 years with little desire to change.

Posted by: Michael Agnew | June 15, 2006 02:51 AM

One of the reasons for declining club membership is that many of the current club members are actively opposed to bringing younger people into the fold. Almost every club I know of has a policy of accepting only those over the age of 21. Within my own club, I have often brought up the question of opening up our club to people of all ages. Or at least to accept younger people as guests on our ski trips. Many established members regularly oppose both suggestions. The reason given most often is that alcohol is often consumed at out club functions and/or trips, and we don't want to be liable for children. I feel this is mainly a convenient excuse. The real reason is that people don't want to be bothered with "kids". Well, you reap what you sow. If we keep younger people (kids) away from our clubs until they are 21, we can't expect that they will suddenly want to join us when they are 21. By the time they turn 21, we've already missed the best opportunities for the young ones to bond with our club. In spite of this, our club has been steadily growing during the past 5 years. The main reasons for the growth are that we provide a mix of offerings, something for every taste. We might not be able to attract people with cheaper group prices, but we do attract them with the following: 1. VARIETY OF CLUB ACTIVITIES: a) Winter trips b) Recreational racing c) Social gatherings (parties) Half of our members are avid racers, but never go on any trips. Another large segment goes on trips but would never dream of racing. On top of that, some people are mainly seen at parties, TGIFs and other social events; but very rarely on the slopes! 2. INFORMATION. Information is power. Information is useful to our members. People feel attracted to good sources of information. For example, good deals at local ski stores or at the ski resorts. Our club strives to provide as much information about the local ski scene as possible. We do this via our web site and our monthly newsletter. These are not just a collection of flyers for upcoming club events, but are also sources of information about anything and everything ski and snow-related. Too many ski clubs are focused exclusively on their own club offerings, to the exclusion of everything else. We believe that if it is of interest to local skiers, it has a place in our newsletter (even if it is not club related). Our members appreciate being well-informed. 3. ENTERTAINMENT. People like to be entertained. So, we add humor to our newsletter. We tell jokes and stories, and play games on our ski trips. The ancient Romans had a saying: "Give them bread and games." People are looking for entertainment. So, give them some. Take your club members to a movie. Warren Miller movies are a good choice. Our small club had about 45 members show up for dinner followed by a Warren Miller movie show last Fall. This was also a rare opportunity to flex our group muscle and get discounted group tickets for the movie (that were about $5 cheaper than regular tickets). 4. SOCIALIZING. Parties, TGIFs, picnics, bowling nights, etc. are all useful additions. But, these are mainly "fillers", i.e. something to do in between our main snow-related activities. And they will happen automatically, as long as the first 3 factors are present and working well. In our club, we found that the social element worked for us almost automatically, all by itself. People bring their friends into the club. They, in turn, bring other friends. But, even though this social aspect is what really ends up building up our membership in the end, ... it is secondary in nature, because people will only bring other people in if the club has something good to offer in the first place. In other words, you have to have the activities (trips, racing), and good information to offer, and good entertainment to offer, ... and then people will come. Now, if only we could make our club a little more open to the younger folks (those under 21)!!!

Posted by: Emilio Trampuz Mountain High Snowsport Club, Portland, OR | June 22, 2006 07:56 PM

I live in Houston which is a geographically challenged city - Too big! I tried starting a ski club on the north side of the city and met a luke warm reception. To me the aging of the clubs is two fold out here in the ‘burbs. First, we suburbanites are hauling children around as a second full time job, splitting time between school activities and sports. Secondly, many suburban families when not working or stuck in traffic are evolving close circles of friends around their children’s activities. Because of these factors the time available for a ski club is slim during the mid late twenties to the mid forties. While personally I’m looking forward to semiretirement in my children’s taxi service I am looking forward to once again setting my own agenda in social and free time activities. While I have enjoyed baseball, football, softball, rugby, cheerleading competitions, band, choir, plays, math club, and science club. My love is snow skiing and everything else I can do outdoors in between. To me the virtual ski club /social club idea is perfect for many parts of the U.S., but I would stress outdoor lifestyle and adventure as the year round attraction for the sports oriented group. By stressing the year–round sports you completely miss the skier vs boarder war and get to the heart of the matter -- FUN. So, however we slice, it lets remember the objective - finding a like minded group of people to hang out with on occasion, go on weekend getaways and memorable trips to incredible resorts. BJ Baker

Posted by: BJ Baker | June 27, 2006 07:20 AM