Indoor Ski Slopes in North America

How would you like to go skiing or snowboarding in North Texas in the middle of the summer? Snow/Sport Entertainment Ltd. has preliminarily started a new project called Texas Alps in Grapevine. Texas Alps is described as a 590-foot indoor ski slope, part of a 250,000 square foot facility proposed near the Grapevine Mills shopping mall north of DFW Airport. In addition to the ski slope, Texas Alps would also have an indoor ice climbing wall and luge track. The $70 million project will take about two years to complete and is said to be the first phase of World Villages of Grapevine, billed as a “one-of-a-kind entertainment venue.” This isn’t the first “ski slope project” planned in the Texas. Several years ago, officals announced the BearFire resort, near Fort Worth. The project was slated for completion in 2009 although no recent developments have been announced.
Currently, three such operations are under construction in Las Vegas, New Jersey and in North Carolina. In addition, there are several indoor ski facilities in a number of foreign countries, including France, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom. Perhaps we are behind the times in creating indoor wintersports facilitiers.
As indoor ski slopes become a more accepted phenomena, I wonder how this will affect the ski resort industry. People, inparticular, Texans, may be less likely to visit their favorite resorts because of these man-made facilities. Another view is that these facilities will help novice skiers advance their abilities before the hit the “real” slopes. Thus, increasing safety and bringing a larger pool of winter sports enthusiasts to our North American resorts. I believe that making the sport of skiing more accessible for the “average joe” will have a positive implication on the ski industry as a whole. From increased tourist dollars to more ski rentals on the hill, the more popular skiing and snowboarding become, the better.

Tagged as: Heavenly Ski Rentals, South Lake Tahoe