Challenge For The Ski Industry: ‘Diversity In The Mountains’

DENVER — The ski industry wants to lure more minorities to the slopes, hoping to cash in on the population boom of Hispanics, Blacks and Asians across the United States.

“I’m here to tell you that the time for diversity in the mountains has come,” consultant Roberto Moreno told business leaders and ski-industry officials meeting in Denver last month.

Moreno, a former ski patroller who owns Denver-based Moreno & Co., last year founded the group Alpino, which gives area minority kids a chance to ski and snowboard at Colorado ski areas.

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The challenges include finding transportation to the mountains from urban areas and changing what Moreno described as a “Euro-centric vibe” at ski resorts that makes some minorities feel unwelcome. Fewer than 8 percent of the nation’s skiers and snowboarders are non-White.

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