Dear Sir:
I thought I should put together a brief look at the expenses of downhill skiing/boarding in the northwest in light of the season pass sale at My Mountain Co-op.
In the event that Shames Mountain should close, the nearest option to ski/board is Ski Smithers. I would assume that not too many people from Prince Rupert, Kitimat and Terrace would purchase seasons passes at Ski Smithers simply due to cost and travel issues.
I calculated the cost of skiing 20 days in a season for a family of four. This would assume an overnight stay in Smithers due to the travel time/distance. It would assume two trips to Shames on a weekend. Under a very conservative assumption of a fuel efficient car and an inexpensive hotel and restaurant in Smithers, the cost will amount to about $ 7,500 per season.
Skiing the same number of days at Shames will cost the family between $2,800 (Terrace), $3,100 (Kitimat) and $3,200 (Prince Rupert).
It is assumed that regular skiers would purchase a seasons pass for Shames Mountain and become members of My Mountain Co-op.
With moderate use throughout the season (20 visits; that is not even skiing every weekend, Christmas break, spring break, Easter) at the seasons pass price for members of $459.20 (adult) $ 380.80 (youth), a ski day costs about $23 for an adult and $ 19 for a youth.
For most of the ski season, travel to Smithers would involve driving early in the morning and into the evening with little to no daylight during travel.
Besides the obvious cost difference, time spent traveling to and from Smithers eliminates time for any other activities during these ski trips. Skiing at Shames leaves time on such weekends for some chores such as home work, house cleaning, shopping, snow removal, etc.
There are many other non-financial reasons to support My Mountain Co-op. So I encourage skiers/boarders to consider buying their shares and season passes to keep a less expensive option of winter sport available in our region.
John Krisinger, Terrace, BC