Culture, Care, Compensation

History marks the winter of 1979-80 as one that nearly destroyed the mountain sport industry in the East. At a time when snowmaking was largely a means to open a few trails during low-snow periods, nature held back almost completely, and the result was catastrophic. Every ski resort in the eastern United States qualified for federal economic disaster assistance; about a quarter of them had to close shop despite that help.

But that crisis led to a massive investment in modernized snowmaking and grooming, which has helped ski areas survive subsequent low-snow years.