How will the image of snowboarding be affected if more skiers & older people take up the sport?
As you may know, snowboarding is a sport that appeals to young males for the most part.
So how will the image be affected if older people take up the sport? Can the appeal of snowboarding be expanded to a more diverse audience?
Thanks for your responses!
Thank you all so much for your replies! I really appreciate it!
I think that the way snowboarding in marketed means that few older people are going to take it up. Just browse any snowboard mag. Most of the photos are of young male riders (and some young female riders) doing huge jumps, tricks, and backcountry riding (avalanche danger). That type of marketing makes most older people think it is not a sport for them. All the articles in the magazines tend to promote the more dangerous side of snowboarding. If the industry wants to attract older people it needs to change how the sport is perceived, and that can only be changed by adjusting the marketing campaign.
Some people my age frankly aren’t in good enough shape to learn to snowboard. They’ve had too many injuries when they were younger, or they are just afraid that they will get seriously injured snowboarding. I have yet to talk any of my friends into trying it. They always say, "I’ll fall and break something". To change that the marketing has to at least include articles that point out the benefits of snowboarding (great exercise, fun, addictive), and point out that you can make snowboarding just as safe as skiing.
How will the image be affected if older people take up the sport? I’m not sure, but I would think it will get more respect as a sport that even older people can do. Older people also have more $$ so if a large number of people my age started snowboarding it would bring different types of products and more expensive ones (and often better quality).
I started to learn to snowboard @ 38 years old. I was overweight, out of shape, and I was worried about getting injured (I think this alone keeps most people my age from trying it). But I stuck with it, and now I’m faster than most people going down the mountain (but not all). I don’t do jumps, ride the pipe, or the park. I wear a helmet, wrist guards and knee pads to help avoid injuries. Personally I feel snowboarding can be just as safe as skiing although it will always be easier to have a violent fall on a snowboard. I took my time learning to snowboard and thankfully have avoided any major injuries.
One thing to keep in mind is that snowboarding started in the early 80′s so there are lots of people out there that started snowboard when young and are now my age and still snowboarding. But young males are currently the biggest demographic and if you change the marketing to try to get more older people it might affect how young males view the sport. It might not seem as exciting. So care has to be taken to appeal to both types of riders. But then again, a little more emphasis on safety wouldn’t really hurt those young male riders either.
And FYI, my goal is to still be snowboarding when I’m 80. I hope I make it that long. I’ve seen skiers close to that age, but so far no boarders…
