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and intermediates. All of these factors are important to each can reach. As you look at developing the senior skier
convey to seniors (and other skiers) so they can be reassured market, ask yourself these five questions:
that the area takes their safety seriously. 1. What programs do we have that incentivize grand-
While there will always be an element of risk and parents to bring their grandkids to your area?
personal responsibility, there are ways to deliver the 2. What are we doing to attract and bring the lapsed skier
message that skiing and riding are fun for all ages despite to our area?
the inherent risk. For example, when was the last time 3. Where can we find active seniors who want to try skiing?
you saw a ski film with major segments about senior skiers 4. Besides lift ticket discounts for senior skiers, what
of all abilities or a clip showing more than a few fleeting kind of on- and off-snow programs can we offer to
moments of seniors on a well-groomed beginner or inter- senior skiers?
mediate slope? 5. Are the facilities—not just the slopes—senior skier and
child friendly?

Why not portray skiing for what Remember, like any one of us, senior skiers love to share
it really is, not a macho fantasy? their sport with others and bring newcomers into the fold.
They can also help reach lapsed skiers and those who want
In short, we need to find ways to learn the sport. The potential for keeping senior skiers
engaged and bringing new skiers to skiing is undeniable
to change the high-risk image and clearly worth the effort.

of our sport to one that every Marc Liebman, a senior skier himself, is an author with seven
generation can enjoy. published novels and a contributor to SeniorsSkiing.com.
Liebman was an associate editor of SKI Magazine in the 1970s,
and wrote equipment testing and ski instruction articles.
The sport tends to have a macho image, showing
skiers—generally under the age of 30—jumping off rocks
or skiing down slopes that are closer to vertical than hori-
zontal. Or, outrunning an avalanche.
Many, if not most of those reading this article (including
the author) have done the above and lived to tell about it.
Let’s face it, we no longer jump off 50-foot cliffs or ski slopes
in that, due to the steepness, one drops 20 feet between
turns. As we age, family, financial, job responsibilities, and
common sense prevail.
Why not portray skiing for what it really is, not a
macho fantasy? In short, we need to find ways to change
the high-risk image of our sport to one that every genera-
tion can enjoy.

The Senior Skier Marketing Conundrum
By definition, a conundrum is a confusing or difficult
problem or question. For ski areas, attracting the lost
skier and gaining new participants is just that, a conun-
drum. However, through the senior skier, there are avenues
to explore.
The question of how an area can mine this lucrative
market varies by ski area, of course. Those whose lifts are
an easy 90-minute drive from a major metro area have
different challenges than major destination resorts. Most
areas can’t take on the entire market, but there are segments

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