With 60 the new 40 and 50 the new 30, ski areas are seeing a lot of “new” 30- and 40-year-olds on the slopes. Whether they ski as couples, with their kids or grandkids or groups of friends, it seems like good business to cater, but not condescend, to them. All of them.

Boomers are not made equal. Some boomers are price-sensitive, others are not. Still, some characteristics apply to most: On-mountain programs and vacation packages that equally emphasize skiing and socializing keep Boomers on the slopes, while resort amenities keep them comfortable and coming back.

This crowd especially appreciates some creature comforts that weren’t built specifically for them. Dodge Ridge, Calif., in the snow-rich Sierra, built its new base lodge with a portico at the skier drop-off area. Deer Valley’s attended skier drop-off is welcome for folks who are tired of shouldering skis across parking lots at the beginning and end of the day. When Vail rebuilt its on-mountain Eagles Nest lodge, the stairs were designed with lower risers and deeper treads than normal—to provide comfort and security for ski boot wearers.

Boomers have their own modest wish list of little things they’d still like to see: trail maps and menus in table-service restaurants with larger type for those without their reading glasses, a mirror in the season pass office so they can primp a bit before their photos are taken, and an après-ski spot where the sound system isn’t ear-splitting and migraine-inducing. These little things can be a big deal.

In the meantime, here’s a look at how some areas are already addressing the big-picture issues.


On The Mountain
On-snow catering is job #1. There are ski (and ride) programs galore, and they are well used.

For the 60-is-40 crowd, first among equals is Bumps for Boomers, an Aspen-based ski lesson program that quickly teaches intermediate skiers to handle moguls and powder confidently and safely (“you’re not getting older, you’re getting better”). For the mogul clinic, skiers begin on short skiboards and graduate to conventional skis. Developed by Boomer Joe Nevin, the program is offered as two- and three-day clinics and as private lessons. It’s not cheap ($560 for two days, $840 for three days, $665 for a full-day private), but Aspen being Aspen, price tends not to be an issue. Nor is age: Nevin says that 87 percent of his customers are 50 or older.

Waterville Valley, N.H.’s Silver Streaks claims to be the oldest such program in the country. Skiers “50 years young and over,” in the resort’s parlance, meet Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday on non-holiday weeks from early December through late March. For $80 a season ($65 for Nordic skiers), members get reserved parking in Lot #1, coffee and pastries at the Silver Streaks meeting area in the base lodge from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., a warm-up run with Waterville staff, complimentary snow­sports clinics, a weekly après-ski party, reduced-price racing on Wednesdays, banquets and other special events throughout the season.

Okemo, Vt.’s Mountain Masters for skiers and riders age 50 and older offers eight two-hour sessions over the course of 11 weeks. Designed for PSIA level four and up, classes are conducted by what the resort calls “a mature Learning Center pro.” Participants receive a discount lunch coupon and discounted access to The Spring House fitness and aquatic center at Jackson Gore for each session. The series costs $185, plus lift ticket or season pass. Additional sessions or the Bring a Friend option are $30.

In Utah, “mature” instructors conduct Brighton Resort’s Senior Workshops, geared to those 50 and older. Once-a-week sessions on three consecutive weeks focus on snow conditions, terrain, weather, physical conditioning, equipment needs and motivation as they relate to mature skiers. The cost is $145 for full-day lift passes, lessons (all levels), light breakfast the first morning and a light meal and social event following the last class.

Back in 1976, when the Over The Hill Gang was launched at Copper Mountain, Colo., 45 really might have seemed just pre-geriatric. Now the moniker seems almost tongue in cheek. OTHG has now segmented itself into several interest, energy and ability groups—Club Incline tackles anything on the mountain, Club Decline skis moderate bumps and powder but usually stays on marked trails, Groomed Zoomers cruise groomed black and blue terrain. True Blue sticks to blue terrain, stopping along the way for on-slope socializing, and No Worries Mae chills on green and blue terrain. In addition to season memberships, resort guests can ski with the Gang for $20 a day, or $50 for four consecutive days when the OTHG skis, which is Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.

The MAX5 ski/ride lesson program, inaugurated at Smugglers’ Notch, Vt., for the 2007-08 season, is a 2 1/2-hour class with a maximum of five students. It appeals to boomers who appreciate the combination of a smaller-than-average group. This format leaves ample time for questions—and for practice.

Sunday River, Maine’s annual River Go50 week, exclusively for skiers and riders ages 50 and over, is one of several popular January specialty weeks. Attendance is up 16-fold since 2005, and nearly 40 percent this year alone, to 1,000 lift/lodging vacationers (packages started at $269 per person), plus skiers who joined for just one or two days. Activities include organized group skiing, après-ski socials, free Perfect Turn clinics, dinner specials, boot fitting, wellness clinics and even a sock hop. Entertainment geared to Boomers this season included the “Mama’s Night Out” comedy show and a trivia night with suitable questions. It was such a hit that Sunday River may expand it to two weeks in 2009.

Throughout the season, especially weekends and holidays, Sunday River’s loosely organized Prime Time Club of regulars 50 and older make North Peak Lodge their home. Flyers, guest services and concierges alert vacationing skiers to the group, which welcomes resort guests to join them.

Oh, and did we point out that some Boomers have money to spend? Sun Valley, Idaho’s three annual Prime Time Ski Weeks include seven nights’ lodging, five-of-six-day lift ticket, welcome party, mountain tour, ski race and race awards party. Two-tiered per-person pricing favors leading-edge Boomers: depending on lodging, cost runs $603 to $2,044 for those 60 and older; youngsters 59 and under pay $720 to $2,134.


In the Resort
Indoors, resorts and lodging properties are providing the furnishings and amenities Boomers have come to expect. These range from more accommodating accommodations to full-service spas.

For instance, armoires and conventional televisions are being replaced with high-definition, flat-screen TVs and WiFi access. Students on spring break might be happy to hang at an Internet café, but not Boomers. These laptop-toting guests expect WiFi everywhere.

Guests with the wherewithal to invest in resort real estate are responsive to upmarket units, whether whole or fractional ownership. The ability to make a favorite a home away from home, including on-site storage of personal belongings, makes coming and going much easier—and assures a steady repeat business from this generation and their families.

In short, Boomers want a little pampering. They may ski as hard as they ever did, but they pay for it with little aches and pains they didn’t have when they actually were 30 or 40. That’s why Telluride’s Inn at Lost Creek has replaced its plain-vanilla rooftop hot tubs with the latest high tech versions: colored lights, ergonomic seating and water jets for a great thermomassage.

High-end hotels are adding full-service spas, both for guests and visitors, and day spas have popped across the snowbelt, with après-ski massages, especially sports massages, heavily booked. Profits are rising at resort and urban hotels with full spa operations—9.6 percent and 11.3 percent respectively last year, according to a PKF Hospitality Research analysis of 46 resort spas and 17 urban spas. According to PKF, massages, body scrubs/wraps, and facials drove these increases.

Resorts that also operate lodging properties have caught on. Solace Spa, Michigan’s largest spa facility, is located in Boyne’s Mountain Grand Lodge. It offers a full range of spa services, plus special programs such as the Snow and Glow Package (ski or snowboard lesson, one-day spa use and one treatment for $150 with a private lesson, $125 for a group lesson), plus gentle yoga, snowshoeing and other kind-to-the-body fitness classes.

At the Keystone Lodge’s new RockResorts Spa, the $200 100-minute men’s treatment called The Outdoorsman includes an après-sports massage and a re-energizing High Country Gentleman Facial. Women who don’t like what they see in the mirror book beauty treatments like Apeel to Your Senses, a natural herbal facial peel, and Energizing Eyes, both of which reduce the evidence of years. These are sure bets: if there’s anything the new 30s and 40s don’t want, it’s to be reminded of their years.