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Home / Washington Business - April 2006 / Industry Profile: Skiing Industry On Top of the World |
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Industry Profile: Skiing Industry On Top of the World |
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Written On: April 2006 |
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Written By: by Daniel Brunell |
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The 2004-2005 ski season went down in the record books as a catastrophe. The Washington Cascades had it lowest snowpack since 1940-41. Most ski areas remained closed well into December. At best, they were open for a day or two before the snow melted. The belated winter storms of March and April helped salvaged some portion of the spring skiing season, but the damage was done.
"We were open only 25 days last year," said Kathleen Goyette of White Pass Ski Area. "We only had 18,000 people visit the mountain where we would normally get more than 100,000. It was really hard to get through."
It just wasn't one ski area, either. Ski areas from around the Washington had a tough time going through this literal dry spell. The total snowfall for the region was half that of a normal year, leaving brown hills and desperate people in the ski lodges praying for the white stuff. The lack of a snowpack led Gov. Christine Gregoire, in one of her first acts as governor, to issue a declaration of a drought emergency. Luckily the wet spring bailed us out of the potential drought, but was too little, too late for the ski industry.
The skiing industry in Washington lost big time during that long winter. "If you think in terms that for every one dollar that is used on the slopes is five dollars spent on the surrounding community, the impact of having no snow was tremendous," Goyette said. "Luckily most of our long-time investors are Yakima Valley farmers...they know what it is like to have nature ravage their business and how to cope."
What a Difference a Year Makes
Fast forward to this year. The 2005-2006 season got off to a great start with cold temperatures and heavy snowfall starting in October and lasting into mid-November, building a snowpack well above normal and helping to erase memories of last year's misery. Most ski areas in the Washington Cascades opened in early November, marking their earliest openings since 1994. For some ski areas it was the earliest opening ever. Ski areas from around the Northwest are on course for an above average year.
"We are running about 10 percent above normal and the season isn't even over yet," said Tiana Enger with Crystal Mountain Ski Area. "We would have had a record-breaking year if a severe rain and wind storm did not ruin the week between Christmas and New Year's, our busiest time of the year. Outside of that, it has been wonderful."
"Right now we are on track for our second or third best year ever," Goyette said. "Judging how we do during the spring, we might even top 135,000 at White Pass."
Even with abundant snow and great attendance, it takes time to recover from a lost season. "There is no way to make up for what happened last year," Enger said. "However, this year helps get things back on track."
With as good as this year is, many are looking towards the future. In 2010, the Winter Olympics are coming to our neighbors to the north in Whistler and Vancouver. Those cities are already working to construct the event venues, Olympic Village and other infrastructure for the games. Even with all the build up, there will not be enough room on ski slops for all the athletes to train.
"The 2010 Winter Games presents a tremendous opportunity for the region," said Ian Burkheimer, president of the FiveTwoTen. FiveTwoTen is an organization charged with promoting Pacific Northwest Economic Development leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics. They have focused on several areas, to include bringing world-class athletes to train and winter sport competitions to the Pacific Northwest. Also, they have focused on assisting Northwest communities with information about the Winter Games and how they can use it as an economic opportunity through tourism, athlete training and a multitude of other positives that come from having the games in the region.
"Because of Washington state's geographic relationship with where the Olympic Games are, many of the athletes will be looking to Washington state to train," Burkheimer said. "Also, event organizers will look to the Northwest to hold events since we have similar type of snow and ski runs as what the Olympians will be facing in Whistler."
Events are already to coming to Washington. During March, Crystal Mountain held the North American Alpine Snowboarding Finals. This is the first major competition for this event since the Torino Olympics. It will feature many of the Olympians from the games and many aspiring athletes whom we will see in 2010. Many are hoping that this is the first of many competitions that Washington will see over the next few years.
With last year's disaster behind them and one really good season just now coming to a close, many are hoping for several repeat years. With the world stage coming to the Washington's doorstep, we all better be praying for snow.
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