The end of Ski Magazine is on the horizon

[Tony S]

As a freelancer writer who happens to ski, I have long wondered why the US + Canada market wasn't able to sustain a ski magazine. At this point I think there is at least a market for a quality quarterly along the lines of Racquet mag for tennis, which is doing quite well. Look at that mag's subtitle for a key to its success: celebrating the art, ideas, style and culture that surround tennis. Imagine how fun it'd be to think up the same for skiing!

That has definitely been done before. Remember Snow Country? Unfortunately it's never been done in a way that speaks to my particular kind of skiing obsession. Typically it has been all about luxury houses, trendy hotels, yadda yadda. Presumably that's where the money was. Yawn.

 

[fatbob]

That has definitely been done before. Remember Snow Country? Unfortunately it's never been done in a way that speaks to my particular kind of skiing obsession. Typically it has been all about luxury houses, trendy hotels, yadda yadda. Presumably that's where the money was. Yawn.

There's plenty of "culture" around skiing but it doesn't mesh well with documenting in a print format in a way that will attract advertisers. No equipment company wants to advertise next to a major photo essay celebrating the joys of duct tape or thrift shop quivers; no real estate wants to advertise next to stories of bums dirtbagging in old trailers or shacks in the wood.

Heck even the best way of documenting some of ski culture is in short films or edits, thinking of things like this

 

[Teppaz]

I never saw Snow Country. But I agree that in general the emphasis on luxury has been an issue. It’s something that many of us are interested in at all and there’s so much more to skiing. I get it, advertisers and all that, but focusing on it is way too limiting.

I do feel there’s an untapped wealth of ski subjects out there, so a new mag can cast a wider net than has been previously done.

 

[Laurel Hill Crazie]

The golden age of ski magazines, the 1980s. Ski, Skiing, Powder, Snow Country, I had subscriptions to them all. Now Ski is down to 2 issues I receive as a complementary subscription because I also subscribe to Skiing History. I glanced through quickly and found nothing of interest.

 

[Snowflake2420]

Here's my favorite skiing specific mag at the moment

 

[David]

I've been patiently waiting for someone to post a thread that they have received their last buyer's guide from SKI, which tended to happen in August or September in past years.
This year the calendar kept changing and no one posted, then lo and behold a few days ago I received this in the mail. Frankly, I thought my subscription had lapsed and I missed it.
After sitting in the library flipping through the pages, I realized what a shell it is, of what it used to be.

Gone are the days of anticipating the magazine landing in the mail box. Gone are the authentic reviews.

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Freeskiing has a decent buyer's guide and Blister has a big one but it didn't include any Stockli at all which made me wonder who else was left out.

 

[Tricia]

Here's my favorite skiing specific mag at the moment

View attachment 183111

I have always loved Ski Journal. The key difference is that its almost like a coffee table book on a quarterly basis, but doesn't do any kind of gear review.

 

[James]

Maybe doing gear reviews is a waste of resources and unsustainable for a monthly.

 

[Philpug]

Maybe doing gear reviews is a waste of resources and unsustainable.

Now you tell us.

 

[pais alto]

As a freelancer writer who happens to ski, I have long wondered why the US + Canada market wasn't able to sustain a ski magazine. At this point I think there is at least a market for a quality quarterly along the lines of Racquet mag for tennis, which is doing quite well. Look at that mag's subtitle for a key to its success: celebrating the art, ideas, style and culture that surround tennis. Imagine how fun it'd be to think up the same for skiing!

Um, Ski Journal? That’s exactly what it does. But yeah, no equipment reviews.

Edit: never mind, @Snowflake2420 got it.

 

[Teppaz]

I feel the focus is a little narrow, based on what I’ve seen of it. That’s just my personal taste, obviously.

 

[Tricia]

Um, Ski Journal? That’s exactly what it does. But yeah, no equipment reviews.

Edit: never mind, @Snowflake2420 got it.

I can see @Teppaz's point in that there is a very different view of skiing outside of North America.

That being said, Ski Journal is incredible and I love what they do, but it's very different than "just a magazine". It's deep and very engaging.

Ski had it's hayday but never really transitioned to a sustainable source of quality information.

I remember going to Warren Miller Movies and getting a free copy of Ski. I was so excited.

Powder is gone, SkiMag is gone, and now Ski is gone on a physical level. From what I gather, they will continue on a digital platform, but they are staffed by only 2 people.

The premise of my bump is that things have changed since I started participating on forums, even since we launched SkiTalk/Pugski.
We used to have an excitement when Ski landed in mailboxes in August. We haven't seen that kind of excitement for several years.

I'm not sure Ski will be missed as much as the stoke that it enticed when it landed in the mailbox.

 

[David Chaus]

Yeah, if you let go of the sense of nostalgia, what are we really missing out on?

 

[James]

…if you let go of the sense of nostalgia, what are we really missing out on?

Going to run on that slogan?

 

[Rod9301]

Good riddance to the magazine.
All the cared about was advertisers.

They forgot that the most important people were their readers.

A lot of content was advertorials, thinking they would fool their readers.

They dug their own grave. I used to read it in the 80s, then it went downhill.

 

[Lorenzzo]

Yeah, if you let go of the sense of nostalgia, what are we really missing out on?

Charlie Chaplin? RIng Dings? Bazooka bubble gum? Henny Youngman? Is this a trick question?

 

[Philpug]

Good riddance to the magazine.
All the cared about was advertisers.

the old magazines were much thicker ... with more ads too.

A lot of content was advertorials, thinking they would fool their readers.

Sadly thats what we are seeing now, regurgitated rhetoric, manufacturer speak.

 

[David]

I'm not sure Ski will be missed as much as the stoke that it enticed when it landed in the mailbox.

Knowing the buyer's guides were coming is what got me through to the end of summer!

 

[David]

Yeah, if you let go of the sense of nostalgia, what are we really missing out on?

The excitement & anticipation of the new gear coming out. Reading the stories & reviews while sitting on the deck as the feel of fall was in the air.

 

[David Chaus]

My feeling is that reviews of new gear coming out already happens way before ski publications are printed, especially at this site, so I already was over the excitement and anticipation, and I usually feel I know more about a ski than the print reviews describe. Well-written stories related to skiing I miss, but those have been gone for a while. I have been bored and unimpressed the the last few years of Ski mag.

So what I missed about the fall editions of the Ski mags was gone long ago.