This Valentine’s Day and throughout the rest of the winter, if you want to meet people and have a great time, don’t head to the beach where the boys are; go to the mountains where the men are.
If the sheer number of beach-themed movies (including the 1960 “Where the Boys Are”) is any indication, Hollywood has perpetuated the myth that romance and true love are mainly to be found someplace warm and sandy.
Not so! Thousands of ski enthusiasts know that if you’re looking for amour or just a great workout combined with a rollicking good time, you’ll find it in places that are cold and snowy. Ski resorts throughout the U.S. and Canada are often easy to reach and filled with fit and friendly people who love the outdoors.
And, as icing on the cake, ski areas are often in some of the most beautiful places in the world and provide unbelievably romantic settings. Hurtling yourself down a frozen mountain might not seem the most obvious way to meet Mr. Right, but ladies, black diamonds sometimes lead to a diamond of another sort.
The odds are good
More than 10,000,000 go skiing or snowboarding in America every winter (more than half of them in the 25 to 45 age range, and 60 percent of them male). And of those snow enthusiasts, 33 percent are single, according to figures provided by SnowSports Industries America (SIA).
Let’s face it, the prevalent image of skiing is macho. Think Bode Miller or Herman Maier going upwards of 100 m.p.h. in the Olympic downhill. Cold weather, steep and deep snow, Volkswagen-sized moguls (bumps in the snow), glaciers, leaping into couloirs. That seems to be what many men are thinking even if they’re just taking some nice easy turns down a gradual slope.
The truth is, you don’t have to be macho to ski. Most trails are wide and groomed to perfection. Lodges are warm and cozy. New equipment makes it easy to carve turns. And the clothes are warm and sexy, too.
Not to burst any guy’s bubble, but skiing is one sport that women can do as well as men if they choose to. That’s the conundrum. They don’t always choose to. Fewer women take up skiing and more women drop out of the sport, leaving… more men for those smart and hardy women who are left.
‘The Dating Game’ mountain style
Opportunities to meet abound at ski resorts – in your condo hot tub, in a bar, with a ski club, at the lodge, on the lifts, in ski school lessons, waiting in line, or even tumbling down the trails.
The chair lift conversation. Talk about three-minute dating. Get on a chair lift with someone who looks appealing to you and you have just about that amount of time to determine if your first-glance impression is correct or to make an indelible impression yourself. Riding a chairlift is very social – you’ve got a captive audience. It’s more awkward not to talk to someone.
Find ’em or leave ’em. Skiing also lends itself to “accidentally” running into (not literally, of course) someone who looks interesting by taking the same trails or arriving at the lift line at the same time. And, conversely, being on the slopes also works well when you want to lose someone. Notes a ski vixen, “You can just ski a little faster and lose them, or ski behind them and head a different way and when you run into them again, innocently say, ‘I don’t know how I lost you.’”
The damsel in distress. Though not recommended as a planned option, you might meet a guy when he comes to your rescue after you’ve fallen. Skiers tend to stop to make sure their fallen comrades are not hurt and to help gather up equipment if someone has experienced a particularly dramatic yard sale fall.
Vodka vamps. On-slope encounters aside, bars rank as the most common spot for meeting new people at a ski area. One woman commented that picking up a guy at the Hyde Away (top watering hole near Sugarbush) is like shooting fish in a barrel. From an informal poll, this holds true for almost any bar in skidom.
Shacking up. The other way skiers meet is by staying together in a hotel, condo complex or ski house together. Often, meals are communal, weekend parties de rigueur, and camaraderie runs rampant.
So many mountains…
Skiers have almost too many choices. Unless money is no object it’s good to start slowly and make sure this is a sport you’re going to enjoy. Skiing isn’t cheap – hence, the more than 50 percent of skiers with salaries way above the national average. And, you can’t fake it. It’s not like the guy you might meet is going to give up the sport once he starts dating you.
Hands down the top singles ski area in New England is Killington in Vermont with its legendary access road lined with rowdy and steamy apres ski bars. Skiers come from everywhere to fly down this beast of the East. Also in New England, Sugarbush and Mad River Glen in Vermont rank high. The nightlife is quieter and concentrated in only a couple of bars. The good news: down-to-earth guys who can afford second homes in the Mad River Valley.
Look for really dedicated skiers at Sugarloaf or Saddleback in Maine; two of the best skiers’ mountains in New England. Their remoteness means most people stay for a few days at a time and know how to make their own fun. Be ready, though. You’ll probably meet a lot of men in plaid shirts with beards.
Easy-to-reach mountains that abound with men include Alta, Snowbird and The Canyons near Salt Lake City in Utah. If you’re looking for some international romance, plan to meet people from all over the world at Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia, North America’s most popular ski area. This will also hold true at Jackson Hole in Wyoming and the well known Aspen or Vail in Colorado.
For smaller and more exclusive pickings, try Telluride Ski Resort in Colorado, Taos in New Mexico, Schweitzer in Idaho or Fernie Alpine Resort in British Columbia – all known for being steep and challenging (read: macho, i.e. lots of men).
If you’re not quite ready to venture far, think about trying out a mountain closer to you. Even so-called family mountains will still have singles – after all, they are the ones who can actually get away to go skiing.
Snow is good
Once skiing enters your life blizzard, Nor’easters, and “storm of the century” predictions start sounding good. No more dreading the cold. For the winter months, skiing and good times will go together, guaranteed. Even if you don’t meet your perfect match, you’re bound to experience more just plain fun than you would hibernating all winter.
And, hey, you actually don’t have to ski to enjoy the nightlife.
Get out there!
After several decades working in a variety of jobs as a newspaper writer, event publicist, communications specialist, and marketing director, Karen Cummings is now “retired” and working on Travelers United’s social media and newsletters in addition to occasionally contributing a travel-related article to TU’s blog. She lives close to her family in Fryeburg, Maine, and travels as often as she can.
