Snowsports Industries America Releases New 2019-2020 Participation Study

November 11, 2020

The SIA Participation Study 2019-2020 is a comprehensive look at participant demographics in skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, sledding, touring and cumulatively across all winter sports.

Park City, Utah (November 11, 2020) – Snowsports Industries America (SIA), in participation with the Physical Activity Council (PAC), releases their annual participation study report.

The SIA Participation Study 2019-2020 is a comprehensive look at participant demographics in skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, sledding, touring and cumulatively across all winter sports. The study covers demographics, frequency, regional representation, crossover activities, and more.

The study is also a good indicator of the work that still needs to be done to make the winter community more inclusive and welcoming to more diverse winter enthusiasts.

A few key takeaways from the study include:

• Winter participation overall increased slightly last year by 1.9%
• Participation across winter sports by ethnicity has remained flat for Asians (7.7%) and Whites (67.5%), decreased by 0.5% for Blacks (9.2%) and increased by 0.4% for Hispanics (14%)
• The largest segment of skiers are 45-54 years old (19%) and the largest segment of snowboarders are 25-34 years old (23%)
• Cross country skiers favored private cross-country centers over public lands
• Snowshoers tend to also participate in snowboarding, cross-country skiing and hiking
• Alpine Touring had 705k participants and Snowboard Touring had 652k

“Participation is a critical data point for our industry. This study is a must-read for any winter outdoor business that wants a better understanding of our current participant base, opportunities for growth, and the need to build a more inclusive winter community,” says Maria McNulty, SIA COO.

Free to SIA Premium members, who can click here to login and download. Non-members are able to purchase the report here.

For more information on this report and/or SIA research please reach out to Maria McNulty at SIA: mmcnulty@snowsports.org

Consumer insights and engagement is one of six key initiatives for SIA in 2020-21. Other research products include monthly in-season retail data, annual winter sports and recreation participation, and custom research.

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About SIA 

Founded in 1954 and based in Park City, UT, Snowsports Industries America (SIA) is a non-profit, member-owned trade association representing the winter outdoor industry including suppliers, retailers, sales reps, and resorts. SIA provides value to its members through continuous education, insightful research, creating a path for an inclusive winter outdoor community, growing participation in winter outdoor sports, and developing consumer events that drive business, while advocating for pressing issues that face the winter outdoor industry such as climate and tariffs. We are United By Winter. For more information and to become a member, visit www.snowsports.org