Ski Inc. 2020: Alterra Counters Vail Resorts; Mega-passes Transform the Landscape; the Industry Responds and Flourishes; for Skiing? a North American Renaissance Hardcover – October 29, 2019

This book and the one before it are great. I learned all I wanted to learn about the industry and more, and it was entertaining as well!

The four star rating is really a compromise between a 3 star for those not familiar with the history and some of the basics of operating a ski area: a five star rating for those that are familiar. As for myself being brought up skiing and have skied for 73 years (fifty of which were spent either teaching or patrolling for the greatest ski area of them all...Aspen. As a skier and ski mountaineer I have skied the US (east, west, and AK), Canada, South America, Aussie, NZ, South America, the Caucasus, and Annapurna. I grew up learning to ski in the Catskills of New York on rope tows attached to old trucks. I still have a hard time viewing skiing as an business or industry. I must say that I have been a life long "ski-bum" who leaned toward viewing ski-area management and owners as being on the "other side of the fence." Cris Diamond's, "Ski Ink 2020, has been enlightening for me in two areas: His description of the new ways of marketing skiing, especially thru the Epic and Ikon passes is eye-opening, but even more so is his portrayal of his friends, partners, and acquaintances in the ski industry. Those people live in a different ski world than the "ski-bum," a world that I could never before fathom; but, they people genuinely love skiing and are ready to risk their fortunes to enable the public to share their love of the sport. I can only admire their courage and risk taking in order to (mostly by new marketing approaches, and snow-making) bring it to the general public. Without Chris's book I would have never known any of this. Thank you, Chris, I wish I could have given it 5 stars, but I don't feel it is a book for those not at least somewhat knowledgeable of the ski industry.Sincerely,Bob BognerAuthor: Wilder: A Social Justice Phantasy

This is a great read! Amazing to really see how the ski industry operates and adjusts to today’s economic climate.

Even though i have been in the resort bussiness for quite some time this is pretty slow reading.

If you’re into the ski industry this is a great book!

Fascinating book of the mega passes and resort companies as well as a good focus on the smaller companies and resorts. Great read for those interested in the ski industry or resorts in general. As a skier, I appreciate resort design and focus after reading this book and ski inc.

I found this book very informative as it relates to the current competitive market as well as the history of regional ski resorts. I highly recommend if you want to know more about current themes within the industry.

Interesting stories and description of the radical change sweeping the ski area industry. As an insider, Diamond is well-suited to explain the reasoning and results of consolidation. But much of this reads like it was written by Vail Resorts investor relations department. Diamond is an unabashed fan of Rob Katz and the VR model. A bit less cheerleading would improve the book.It would also be interesting to see if/how the consolidation of resorts is affecting other parts of the ski industry--equipment manufacturers, independent business in ski resorts (lodges, retail, restaurants).