It's showtime for Connecticut's four ski areas, even though much of state has no snow on the ground.
Two of the four areas, Mohawk Mountain in Cornwall and Mount Southington, opened full operations on Saturday. The other two ski areas, Powder Ridge in Middlefield and Ski Sundown in New Hartford, are scheduled to open over Christmas weekend, just in time for the week-long holiday school vacation.
After having the 2019-2020 ski season end abruptly in March 2020 with the arrival of COVID-19, the industry in Connecticut and beyond has experienced a dramatic resurgence. The 2021-2022 season saw 10.7 million people hit the slopes around the country, according to data compiled by the Colorado-based National Ski Areas Association.
Laura Loffredo, director of sales and marketing at Powder Ridge, said skiers returned to slopes in a big way "after the start of COVID because it was an activity that you could do safely because it is outdoors."
"People really came out in droves and all signs are it's going to be another strong season for us," Loffredo said. "Our (equipment) leasing is selling out, our lessons are selling out and these things are early indicators for us."
While the pandemic led to renewed interest in skiing, ski areas in Connecticut still must deal with the uncertainty that climate change has wrought upon the industry.
"The last few winters have been a little difficult to get going because the windows for making snow are getting shorter and shorter," said Ulla Jacobs, marketing director for Ski Sundown. "Snow making is really important for us because in terms of natural snow, we're lucky if we get six inches or more a couple times during the course of a whole winter."
Jacobs said Ski Sundown has invested in additional snowmaking equipment for this winter, which will allow for 10 of the resort's 16 trails to be open this weekend. Ski Sundown has also added a new machine for grooming the slopes and getting around the mountain while also replacing a wooden patio at one of the mountain's dining areas with a 10,000 square foot space with radiated heat, she said.
Loffredo said Powder Ridge has boosted its snowmaking capabilities and improved light on the mountain's skiing and tubing sections. The ski area has also expanded its food concession hut located on the slopes.
While ski areas in some parts of the country, like the Pacific Northwest, don't rely heavily on snowmaking equipment, for resorts in Connecticut and the Northeast, "it's an insurance policy," said Adrienne Saia Isaac, director of marketing and communications for the National Ski Areas Association. About 88 percent of the nation's ski areas have some kind of snow making capability, Isaac said.
While the snowmaking equipment allows resort operators to maximize the amount of trails they can open, a critical element to drawing people to the mountains involves how much of the white has fallen in skiers' own backyards, said Brian McCloskey, guest services and marketing manager at Mount Southington.
"If they don't see any snow in their backyard, they don't think there's any snow at the mountain," McCloskey said.
The cost of skiing, both for the owners of resorts and the average skier, continues to rise. And that can put smaller ski areas at a disadvantage.
"What's tricky for the small ski areas is the capital investment," Isaac said."It's a high overhead operation."
In some cases, although not here in Connecticut, large companies have bought up smaller and mid-sized resort, according to Isaac. The National Ski Areas Association defines the size of the resorts on the number of ski lifts and their capacity.
One such conglomerate is Colorado-based Vail Resorts Inc., which owns 37 ski areas outright, according to a 2020 study produced by Dartmouth College's Tuck School of Business. Seven years ago, the company only owned 11 ski areas.
Isaac said large ski area conglomerates have the financial resources to keep up with the infrastructure demands that it takes to run a successful ski area.'
"If consolidation can keep a ski area open, that's great," she said. One recent example of that, according to Isaac, was the acquisition of Vermont-based Jay Peak, which was acquired during a September auction by a small ski area ownership group, Pacific Group Resorts,
But she said small ski areas have an important place is the industry, particularly when it comes to serving value-conscious skiers.
"Small ski areas can have big personalities," Isaac said. "They are critical to getting people interested in the sport, which is the lifeblood of skiing. A small or medium ski area are going to have the cheapest pricing."
Often, guests can find cheaper tickets by purchasing online in advance, as part of a package, or early/late in the season. Also note that the sample size has changed over the seasons, and the heightened focus on season passes or multi-day products has significantly changed the ticket average over the past 10 years.
The average weekend lift ticket price for small ski areas last winter was $74.52 compared to a cost of $194.88 at extra large resorts, according to Isaac.
Since the winter of 2012-2013, the average weekend lift ticket price has nearly doubled to $164.96, she said. In the northeast region, which includes New England, the increase over the same period has been slightly lower, increasing 73 percent to $128.92.
"We look at the most expensive possible ticket for this average – the ticket you’d buy last-minute at the ski area ticket window<" Isaac said. "Often, guests can find cheaper tickets by purchasing online in advance, as part of a package, or early/late in the season. Also note that the sample size has changed over the seasons, and the heightened focus on season passes or multi-day products has significantly changed the ticket average over the past 10 years."
luther.turmelle@hearstmediact.com