Winter Is Coming For Ski Resorts: Is That Good Or Bad?

Some of the first snowflakes of the season were spotted in Traverse City this week, which means winter is coming – and with it, ski season. Though it could be several weeks before snow accumulation allows for any true winter sports, area ski resorts and ski hills are already hard at work planning for the 2020-21 season. Unsurprisingly, COVID-19 is dominating those planning processes, with ski resorts looking at everything from new air filtration systems to touchless lift ticket purchases to minimize exposure risk.

For Nathan Noyes, executive director of Traverse City’s Mt. Holiday Ski Area, 2020 thus far has been a whirlwind. Mt. Holiday is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and relies on ski hill operations, bar and restaurant revenues, and zip line activities to pay for its annual operations. Other expenses – including the purchase, replacement, and upkeep of ski hill equipment and machinery – are typically paid for through fundraisers and donations. Noyes says that Mt. Holiday took a double hit this year due to COVID-19, which both hurt business operations and forced the cancellation of the Mud, Sweat, and Beers bike race – the annual event that serves as Mt. Holiday’s biggest fundraiser.

“Like so many seasonal businesses, we rely on the income of our busy time to get us through the slow portions of the year,” Noyes tells The Ticker. “That mountain bike race in the spring really gets us through the summertime. When we were unable to have that race, it immediately put us behind financially.”

Noyes is of two minds on the timing and impact of COVID-19. On the one hand, he’s thankful that the pandemic hit in March, just as ski season was wrapping up for the spring. On the other hand, he says Mt. Holiday’s capital improvement needs are growing every year, to the point where having an off year like 2020 could be hugely detrimental to the long-term sustainability of the organization. The problem is one of age: Mt. Holiday celebrated its 70th anniversary last year, and its two aerial chairlifts are decades old as well.

“Our newest aerial lift, our blue lift, is a 1961 model,” Noyes explains. “Our yellow lift is a 1959 Palmer lift. We got both back in the ‘80s. While they're absolutely safe, it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain them. The parts and pieces of those, they're not on the shelf anymore. We have to literally get them manufactured. Safety here is absolutely paramount, so we keep these lifts up to speed and safe, but it is increasingly costly to do it.”

Noyes adds that Mt. Holiday is “on the verge of launching a capital campaign in an effort to get to a place where we can start improving our infrastructure.” In the meantime, the organization is focused on getting ready for a winter season that could be challenging and unpredictable. While skiing, snowboarding, and tubing all provide ample opportunities for fresh air and social distancing, capacity limitations in the lodge could pose difficulties for food service, retail merchandise sales, equipment rentals, lift ticket purchases, and bathrooms. Noyes says that Mt. Holiday will be asking guests to buy lift tickets and make tubing reservations online to minimize the number of people indoors and the amount of time they have to be inside. Mt. Holiday will also be installing firepits, benches, and other additions around the property to create “cozy outdoor spaces” for sitting, eating, and resting.

Other ski resorts are making similar policy tweaks. Shanty Creek Resorts in Bellaire has moved its waivers online to cut down on touchpoints, tweaked its equipment rental policies to encourage contactless transactions, and added numerous opportunities for “grab-n-go” dining around the resort, including a new food truck and a to-go window at Ivan’s, one of Shanty Creek’s main restaurants. Boyne Mountain and Boyne Highlands are also doubling down on contactless mobile payments, including a new “Happiness Card” program that allows guests to reload their lift tickets with new reservations online, with no need to stop at the lift ticket window upon arrival. Crystal Mountain in Thompsonville has focused much of its efforts on ventilation, adding portable HEPA air purifiers in some indoor areas, opening ventilation dampers to bring in more fresh air from outside, and investing in state-of-the-art air scrubbers, a NASA technology that uses ionization to destroy bacteria or viral particles in the air.

Despite the hurdles and modifications, Noyes is confident in at least one thing: Skiers will be ready to hit the slopes when the time comes – no matter the precautions they have to take to do so.
“Skiers are about the most avid group that you're going to find,” Noyes says. “Skiers will find a way to get out on the snow. I think that, especially with the lack of events and activities throughout the summer, people are very excited about the ski season. There was an abrupt end to ski season last year, and it made all of us that are avid skiers, snowboarders, or just outdoorspeople want it even more.”