Saturday, June 17, 2006

State Ski Resorts Set Record

Colorado ski resorts set a record this past season with 12.53 million skier visits, easily besting the previous high mark set nearly a decade ago.

Molly Cuffe, spokeswoman for the Colorado Ski Country USA industry group, said Thursday that last season's total was 500,000 more than the record set during the 1997-98 season. It was also 712,000 ahead of last year.

The figures were announced at the trade group's annual meeting in Steamboat Springs.

Nationally, the number of skiers and snowboarders in the United States reached a record 58.8 million last season, up 3.3 percent from a year ago, according to preliminary data from the National Ski Areas Association, based in suburban Denver.

Industry growth is being spurred by the popularity of skiing and snowboarding with a younger crowd and equipment improvements that allow aging baby boomers to stay on the snow longer, NSAA president Michael Berry said.

A skier visit represents one person buying a lift ticket and using it to ski or snowboard.

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