Warm weather gives ski season a cold shoulder

The nation’s ski resorts had one of their worst seasons in over a decade — and there’s no relief in sight.

Dozens of resorts are closing early, saying skiers have given up and are breaking out bikes and golf clubs.

“It will be a terrible year,” says Greg Ralph, marketing director at Monarch Mountain in Colorado. “Hopefully it’s an anomaly.”

Annual ski resort visits could be down more than 15% — the lowest since the 1990s, says Troy Hawks of the National Ski Areas Association.

Erik Ryden, 22, of Burlington, Vt., has packed up his snowboard to focus on warm-weather activities such as running and hiking. “I packed in the season weeks ago,” he says.

Vermont, the third-largest ski state behind Colorado and California, had 15 of its 18 resorts close in March. Usually, they’re open into April, says Parker Riehle, president of Ski Vermont, which compiles in- formation on resorts and conditions.

Monarch Mountain closed a week early after a season with just over half the average snowfall and 17% fewer visitors, Ralph says.

“Snow trumps all — bad economy, gas prices,” Ralph says. “With good snow, people are going to come up.”

The problem isn’t getting snow on the mountains — possible but expensive by machine; it’s getting people into a winter mind-set.

“It’s known as backyard syndrome — what people see in their backyard will determine their enthusiasm level,” says Greg Sweetser, executive director of the Ski Maine Association.

Northern California and the Northwest from mid-oregon to Alaska were exceptions to the bad news. Many resorts there extended their seasons thanks to storms in March and April, says Charles Greer of Skitown, a national guide.

Says Eric Doyne of Ski Lake Tahoe: “All it takes is a couple of storms to change everything.”