<\/p>\n
Snowboarding could be going the way of Bill Clinton, the rock band Pearl Jam and Yahoo Mail \u2013 still around, but not quite as relevant as in the 1990s.<\/p>\n
Snowboarding\u2019s popularity has slipped across the nation as younger skiers embrace modern twin-tip skis that are easier to turn and more maneuverable.<\/p>\n
Snowboarding participation fell 4.5 percent during the last five years, while skiing grew 6.7 percent, according to the National Ski Areas Association. Snowboarders fell to 30 percent of resort visitors in 2011-12, down from a peak of 33 percent in 2009-10.<\/p>\n
Ski industry insiders attribute the drop in part to ski manufacturers taking some pointers from snowboard makers. Modern skis are wider, with rocker shapes, deep side cuts and other innovations that originated in snowboard designs. Twin-tip skis have curved-up tips and tails.<\/p>\n
\u201cDefinitely, skiing has benefitted from snowboarding,\u201d said John Agnew, owner of Boarding Haus, a Durango retailer of snowboards and skateboards. \u201cThey saw how we were floating around, playing on top of the snow, moving through the trees, and they kind of took notice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rosanne Pitcher, vice president of marketing and sales at Wolf Creek Ski Area, agreed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt really made the ski manufacturers look into their products more,\u201d she said. \u201cThe skis have just really changed, and they\u2019ve made it a lot more fun. They\u2019re almost like snowboards on each foot.\u201d<\/p>\n
At Wolf Creek, sales of the snowboard beginner\u2019s special fell 16.5 percent last winter after rising the previous season.<\/p>\n
Snowboarding, although it still makes up a significant chunk of the market, lately seems to be missing some of its cool.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince snowboarding has been around for a little while now, maybe it doesn\u2019t quite have the hype it used to have,\u201d Pitcher said.<\/p>\n
Snowboarding first reached mainstream notice in the 1990s, but its roots trace back at least to the 1970s. Burton Snowboards, an industry pioneer, was founded in 1977.<\/p>\n
Snowboarding\u2019s growth rose sharply in the 1990s and early 2000s before plateauing in the mid-2000s, according to National Ski Areas Association data.<\/p>\n
Early snowboarders fought for acceptance amid fears that descending a mountain sideways on one plank somehow was malign or dangerous.<\/p>\n
Agnew grew up ski racing, but he switched to snowboarding about 20 years ago and never looked back. That was when snowboarding was not widely accepted.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do recall being a third-class citizen when I started,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople were yelling and cussing at me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Early on, some resorts banned snowboarding, but most eased off when the sport attracted more paying customers. Now, only three resorts still ban snowboarding: Alta and Deer Valley in Utah, and Mad River Glen in Vermont. Taos Ski Area was a notable holdout before relenting in 2009.<\/p>\n
Agnew said snowboarding has \u201ckind of flattened out a little bit,\u201d and local shops have noticed the trend.<\/p>\n
Ski Barn employee Rick Macewen said he\u2019s renting \u201ca lot more skis than snowboards.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the advent of twin-tip skis, a lot more kids are interested in using skis than snowboards,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Ron Thompson, general manager of Second Avenue Sports, said skiers increasingly have gravitated toward park tricks.<\/p>\n
Skiers \u201ccan add one more step of gnarliness when you\u2019re doing tricks,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can flip and spin, but with skis you can cross them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Snowboarding has one advantage: a lower entry price.<\/p>\n
Decent skis cost about $650, but a comparable snowboard can be had for about $300, Thompson said. Ski boots cost about $600, while snowboard boots run $150 to $300.<\/p>\n
Thompson said he couldn\u2019t explain the price difference between skis and snowboards.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt really doesn\u2019t make much sense,\u201d he said. \u201cThe construction\u2019s the same, the materials are the same. Somewhere in the industry, they decided skiers were supposed to be rich. It\u2019s an expensive sport. I blame it on Aspen and Vail.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dave Byrd, a spokesman for the National Ski Areas Association in Lakewood, said snowboarding may see a resurgence after the Sochi Winter Olympics in February. Olympian Shaun White has been perhaps snowboarding\u2019s most notable ambassador.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is going to be renewed interest in snowboarding, particularly if the American athletes do well, and they\u2019re expected to,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Thompson said it boils down to personal preference.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s all fun, man,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s just whatever way you want to be facing when you\u2019re sliding down the hill.\u201d<\/p>\n