OGDEN -- The snowsport lifestyle is bringing people back to resorts, even when money is tight.
This season, about 75,000 more people than last season came to Utah slopes to ski and snowboard -- a 2 percent increase, said Jessica Kunzer, Ski Utah spokeswoman.
Although the 4.05 million skier days in the 2009-10 season were well below the record set in 2007-08 of 4.25 million, the increase is a good thing for the industry and shows that skiers and boarders love what they do, she said.
"Snowboarders and skiers are passionate about snowboarding and skiing," she said. "It's not a discretionary expense for them. It's a lifestyle and a hobby and tradition with their friends and families."
Powder Mountain President and CEO Gregg Greer echoes Kunzer's sentiments.
He said a significant increase over last season's pass sales are proof of the loyalty and passion of those heading to the mountains.
Season pass sales for children and young adults were up 45 percent from last year, and passes for those older than 60 went up 35 percent.
While Greer said pass holders are a small part of the overall skier population, they ski a lot, so the resort was up overall in skier days.
"The skiers who love to ski and ride came. They didn't stop coming. People who come to Powder Mountain and Ogden Valley love to ski and ride. They probably made trade-offs in other areas to make sure they got their skiing," he said.
"People skied. I'm not saying it's recession-proof, but we did not see a decline like you would expect."
Kunzer said resort officials think people were coming off a conservative travel year and were now feeling more confident financially, so were more prepared to take a vacation.
A slow start for snowy weather kept Snowbasin's numbers static, said Jodi Holmgren, resort spokeswoman.
She said preseason pass sales were strong, but with winter getting off to a slow start, people lost enthusiasm. The Dew Tour gave the resort a boost, but it wasn't enough to push numbers above the previous year.
"After we closed, we got an additional 60 inches of snow, but at that point, more people were interested in their golf game than in skiing. So even though we had great snow at the end of the season, interest dropped off," she said.
"People were ready for spring to come. It was an exceptionally strange snow-condition year."
Although Snowbasin didn't have as many skier days as hoped, Holmgren said resort officials are optimistic about the coming season, especially after seeing the line when season passes went on sale last week.
Despite the state receiving its annual average of 500 inches of snow, Powder Mountain saw only about 350 inches, Greer said.
Holmgren said Snowbasin got about 270, but the resort supplements natural snowfall with snowmaking on the mountain, while Powder Mountain depends entirely on natural snowfall.
Both Greer and Holmgren are confident that people will turn out at resorts in the coming year because of their love for the sport.
"Even in challenging economic times," Holmgren said, "it's something that passionate skiers and boarders aren't willing to compromise, and it's also a great stress reliever."
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