Peak Resorts
The ski area operator’s Drifter Pass is way tastier than avocado toast
Peak Resorts
The ski area operator’s Drifter Pass is way tastier than avocado toast
WORDS • ARIELLE GORDON-ROWE | FEATURED IMAGE • MIKE DAWSON
If you’re a college student or in your twenties and pinching pennies to buy a season pass, fear not, Peak Resorts is bound to have your skiing solution. That’s because it has a mission to keep you, the lifeblood of the sport, in the game. While other passes are appealing to an older demographic with more dis- posable income, Peak Resorts’ Drifter Pass focuses on skiers ages eighteen to twenty-nine, offering an unbeatable park and après scene at an affordable price point of $399 with feasible payment plans.
A big part of Peak Resorts’ draw for college students and skiers in their twenties is its firm belief in the power of a strong slopestyle scene—a skiing discipline coveted by younger shredders, for the most part. Mount Snow and Big Boulder, both on the Drifter Pass, are hot spots for eastern park skiers. “What’s cool about Mount Snow and Big Boulder is that both areas are progressive,” says Greg Fisher, director of marketing at Peak Resorts. “You can go if you are a beginner or a professional. As a newer rider you can go to these parks and not feel intimidated.”
]Mount Snow is home to Carinthia Parks, which is widely known as one of the premier parks in North America. With events like the Carinthia Open and the Minus Zero music festival, along with the recent construction of a $22 million base lodge slated to open for this season, the park and après scene is sure to cater to young folks looking for a good time.
Big Boulder is another resort renowned for its park scene and laid back vibes. “We always use the term #beboulder here because the attitude and mindset is definitely one of over-the-top pride and confidence,” says Pat Morgan, terrain park manager at Big Boulder. “Skiers are proud to say they’re Boulder riders and to wear our apparel or interact with us on social media. Not every resort can say they have such a die-hard subculture.”
According to Ryan Stevenson, a professional park skier and Big Boulder native, the best part about Big Boulder’s park design is the diverse terrain and features it offers. “It’s cool that they have these different parks that give you the chance to progress,” says Stevenson. “You don’t need to go straight to the gnarly stuff. You can ease yourself into it, especially if you are a new skier with the Drifter Pass.”
In addition to its world class parks, Peak Resorts operates Wildcat and Attitash, both iconic local mountains with a more free-wheeling, old-school soul that cater to those interested in a relaxed atmosphere, but with challenging terrain. “Wildcat has a hometown feel. It’s a super fun, lighthearted, no-frills ski area, but it also has great lift-access and out-of-bounds glades,” says Grace Bird, a Wildcat local who grew up skiing there. Bird raised the next generation of Birds on Wildcat’s slopes, too, who are now in their early twenties and continuing to shred their home resort. “Plus, you look out onto Tuckerman Ravine the whole time. My kids and their friends ski Tucks in the morning and then Wildcat in the afternoon.”
While Peak Resorts is at the forefront of the core millennial market, the company makes sure not to neglect its less-experienced patrons. Peak Resorts offers a host of opportunities for newer skiers, carrying out its mission to make skiing accessible to all, regardless of skiing experience. This ethos prompted the company to design the Peak Discovery program, offering three lessons, three rentals, and three lift tickets all for $139, transferable between its seven Northeast resorts. From promotions like this to the expansion underway at Hunter Mountain in New York—which will increase the resort’s skiable terrain by eighty acres of predominantly intermediate skiing—Peak Resorts is actively working to cater to skiers at all levels.
From the avid park shredder to those embarking on their inaugural ski trip, Peak Resorts’ affordable passes, epic terrain parks and progressive slopes have garnered a dedicated following of skiers always eager to return to these ski areas. Young adult shredders, go ahead and splurge on that avocado toast at brunch, because the Drifter Pass will far from break your bank.
Note: Just as we were hitting print on this publication, Peak Resorts announced the aquisition of Pennsylvania’s Liberty Mountain, Whitetail Resort and Roundtop Mountain Resort for $76M, bringing its resort total to 17.
Resorts on the Drifter Pass
Paoli Peaks, Indiana
Hidden Valley Ski Area, Missouri
Snow Creek, Missouri
Attitash, New Hampshire
Crotched Mountain, New Hampshire
Wildcat Mountain Ski Area, New Hampshire
Hunter Mountain, New York
Alpine Valley Ski Area, Ohio
Boston Mills, Ohio
Brandywine, Ohio
Mad River Mountain, Ohio
Jack Frost, Pennsylvania
Big Boulder, Pennsylvania
Mount Snow, Vermont
