As we reported in May SAM, both national sports participation reports — National Sporting Goods Ass’n. (NSGA) and American Sports Data (ASD) — found fewer skiers in 1991: alpine down 8.2% and 3.8% (NSGA/ASD); cross country down 14.9% and 19% (NSGA/ASD). As always, NSGA methodology counts U.S. skiers who participated twice or more; ASD once or more.
These two studies measure consistently year to year, so the trendline results are significant, even if one disputes their absolute numbers. Equally interesting is to see the distribution of alpine skier visits generated, by age and gender:
| Age | Mean days Skied | % of all skiers | % of all skier-days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7-11 (M) | 7.5 | 3.3 | 2.9 |
| 12-17 | 8.2 | 8.5 | 8.0 |
| 18-24 | 10.5 | 14.2 | 17.1 |
| 25-34 | 7.8 | 14.3 | 12.8 |
| 35-44 | 9.7 | 10.1 | 11.3 |
| 45-54 | 9.8 | 5.6 | 6.3 |
| 55-64 | 9.5 | 1.3 | 1.4 |
| 65+ | 17.2 | .6 | 1.3 |
| 7-11 (F) | 7.0 | 3.3 | 2.6 |
| 12-17 | 8.4 | 7.0 | 6.7 |
| 18-24 | 10.7 | 8.1 | 10.0 |
| 24-34 | 6.1 | 10.5 | 7.3 |
| 35-44 | 8.3 | 8.5 | 8.1 |
| 45-54 | 9.1 | 3.7 | 3.9 |
| 55-64 | 3.7 | .6 | .3 |
| 65+ | 2.0 | .2 | – |
Comparing these numbers with those from 1988 clearly shows the impact of population aging. Alpine skiers 45 and older accounted for 13.2% of all skier visits in 1991, compared to only 7.5% in 1988. That’s a 76% bump!
The affluence of skiers is, as always, very apparent: NSGA shows 58.6% alpine households with incomes of $50,000 and over — 21.7% over $75,000. X-C skiers are not far behind with 48.3% and 18.1% respectively.
Both studies showed snowboarding up sharply in participation.
To get the complete sports participation data, contact NSGA, 1699 Wall St., Mt Prospect, Ill. 60056-5780; and ASD, 234 N. Central Ave., Hartsdale, N.Y. 10530.
