Part 1: The rant.
Pretty much every culture I've seen that developed in snowy areas devised some method to more efficiently travel over snow. Some figured out that when you mix gravity with this slippery white stuff, you can have a hell of a lot of fun (see the Altai:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aAMrTIzsnU).
One of these was skiing. Early European settlers brought it to my neck of the woods. Since they didn't have an English word for it then, they just formed "Snowshoe Clubs". The US Ski Hall of Fame is not far from my home.
Then, the culture that brought you the F-350 dually for commuting purposes got ahold of skiing.
At this point, skiing has gone completely off the deep end. It could quite possibly be the least efficient means of transport over snow now. Take a mountain, rip all the trees of one side, put a bunch of chairlifts in, make snow, then groom it with giant snowcats. Can't groom it? Drop bombs on it or SHELL IT WITH A HOWITZER!! FUCK YEAH! AMERICA! Don't forget to then surround this mountain with way overpriced hotels, restaurants, and vacation real estate.
But wait! There's more: your special little place in this growing disaster! Buy yourself some skis and gear, at least every 3 years. God forbid you be seen rocking rear entry boots, straight skis, or an unfashionable ski coat. Then get on a plane and fly someplace snowy. Check into your hotel, eat an expensive meal, then pay nearly a hundred bucks to ride those chairlifts. Do this a lot? Spend a thousand bucks on a season pass and get yourself a timeshare! Be sure to go heli-skiing because sure, why the fuck not at this point? Then just keep hitting that endorphin/adrenaline button over and over again by chasing more and more agressive lines. Continue until you suffer some debilitating injury.
But I'm a sensitive new age viking! Me and mother nature are best of pals! I'm a cross country skier!
It's too late, we've ruined that already too. You can't just put on a pair of skis and shuffle off into the woods! Good god man! You need to MAXIMIZE YOUR PERFORMANCE. First, adopt a skiing technique that requires two lane roads be bulldozed through the forest. Then groom them constantly with the same giant snowcats from the downhill area (god forbid we break trail or set tracks ourselves, we're not animals). Get yourself a quiver full of skis that all look exactly the same with different flex and base grinds. Sign up for races. Realize you suck. In a vain attempt not to suck, get on a plane and fly someplace snowy for early season training. Engage in all the shenanigans the downhill folks do without the adrenaline.
Someplace, in all this craziness is a quiet moment in some beautiful winter surroundings, a good hearty physical challenge, maybe a few thrills, and some good times with friends. Maybe we can do this in at least a partially sustainable way. If not for the earth's health, at least for that of our budget.