Hangover Effect?
I am sure we are all familiar with the term “Hangover”; it’s your body’s way of saying “What the heck were you thinking? Why don’t you sit on the couch for the next 10 hours and think about what you’ve done!” But what exactly is this “Hangover Effect” everyone is talking about now? It’s the carryover from last years below average snow levels. There is a lot of buzz going around, questions about how last year will effect this year. Will people come out and ski this winter, will they wait till there’s a ton of snow to book their vacation, will they stay home, more local? Will they quit the sport altogether and take up bowling or knitting, or just sit home staring at old ski photos and GoPro footage from “the good old days”?
These are all legitimate questions to ask this year, well except the last one. It was a very, very, very, very weird winter last year and there is no doubt that it could have a carryover or “Hangover” to this year. But I think the big thing that everyone is missing is this: Skiing is not just about the snow! It’s about family, it’s about being away from the “real world”, leaving in your wake all the stress of work, life, bills, political ads (I know they will be done by ski season but I am going crazy with them right now, apparently Colorado is an important state). There are great things to do in all these resort towns to pair with the skiing. There is the theater, the multitude of local events going on, the art galleries, the parks, the restaurants, the dinner table, where you aren’t late to because you were held up at work. Make skiing bigger than the snow.
While we do need snow, it’s what our resorts live off of, there is more to it. Epic snow year or average snow year, skiing needs to be looked at from more than one angle.
