On September 15th our class took a field trip to Sunday River Resort in Maine for the New England Winter Sports Summit. While I can't say I was particularly a fan of waking up, having to dress up nice, and being ready to leave at 5 in the morning for the 2+ hour trip, I was excited for the opportunity to meet people within the industry I plan on starting a career in. I think that networking is one of the most useful tools for career building and I'm very good at it so I was excited to go. As a task for the conference, each student in the class needed to come up with 5 different questions to ask during the event. When we first got there, I think that each student was impressed at how many different vendors there were. I know that I was. We walked around and got to see all of the different booths, what they had, as well as snag some freebies. I had the opportunity to talk with quite a few individuals and learned quite a bit.
The first vendor I was able to talk to was RAMP Skis. I spoke with Mike Kilchenstein, owner and founder of the company, and Suzy Anderson, an employee for the company. RAMP is a brand new ski company that Mike started when he left Rossignol after working there for 35 years. When I asked him how he got into the industry, he told me about how he used to work at Rossignol making skis, and that he used that knowledge to improve upon it with the products hes making today. He told me about how RAMP is doing things like direct to consumer shipping with a re-usable ski bag and how he spent 5-6 years on product development alone before finally feeling comfortable with the product he is delivering.
The second person I talked to was Mike Berry, President of the National Ski Area Association. After I sat through his seminar about the current state of the industry, I was able to stick around afterwords to ask him a few questions. My first question was that given the state of the economy, how did business go last season? He replied by telling me that despite economic woes in the US, the industry set new records for skier/rider visits last season at 60.54 Million visits. He says that, "these are the golden days of skiing. The advancements in gear, shaped skis, and lift transportation make skiing more fun now than ever." The second question I asked him is if he had any advice for someone trying to to start a career in the industry. He told me to volunteer for the worst jobs there are. He told me to work hard and make myself indispensable. He said to be the first one in and the last to leave and that if I have a skill to highlight it. I think that the advice he gave me was excellent. I completely agree that in order to have a successful career in this industry, you need to be versatile. Working in all different parts of a mountain resort greatly increases your understanding and knowledge of the mountain, how it works, and it makes you a better worker because of it.
The third person that I talked to was Steve Daily who was a representative for Techno Alpin, a snow-gun manufacturer. I asked Steve how he thought the industry as a whole was doing and he gave me an interesting answer. He explained to me that the Ski Industry and the economy do not necessarily go hand in hand. He said that even in times of economic hardship, people still need to and will continue to recreate. Just because you can't take a trip to Vail doesn't mean that you can't ride local. Either way, you're still going. I thought this was an interesting thought, that people will spend their money on leisure even when cash is tight simply because relaxation, stress relief, and fun are necessities in life as well.
The last vendor that I spoke with was Frank Tansey, creator of the Mountain Dew Vertical Challenge. I asked him what his favorite part of the industry was. He told me that, for him, it was the people and the lasting relationships you make in the industry. We agreed that the people who stay involved in this industry truly love what they do and are willing to support each other. Frank also told me that there are rewards found in the commitment to quality and the satisfaction of a job well done. I enjoyed my conversation with Frank Tansey, because I could tell that he was a nice guy and he had a very positive view of the Ski Industry.
Overall I think that the trip to the New England Winter Sports Summit was a great experience for myself and the rest of the Sophomore Ski Practicum class. The ability to meet and make connections with people already in the industry, who also have connections of their own, is a wonderful opportunity for us and probably my favorite part of this course. I'm a strong believer in the benefits of networking, and I think that attending the NEWSS in Sunday River, Maine was a great way to add on to my future business network. I hope to take more trips like this through the next semester.
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