Ski Bums

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Ski Bums (SKI BUMS) is a travel and social club for LGBT skiers and snowboarders, based in New York City. It hosts social events and group trips to ski resorts throughout North America and Europe. It is the largest gay and lesbian skiing and snowboarding club in the United States.

1 History
2 Social Events
3 Trips
4 Charity Work
5 Gay skiing / snowboarding events and organizations
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

[edit] History

Ski Bums was founded in December, 2003 by Chris French, who created the club in the hopes of finding a small group of gay friends for skiing and snowboarding trips. [1] Within one year, the club had grown to over 150 members, as word-of-mouth spread through New York City’s gay community.

Ski Bums took its first trip in January, 2005, and followed that winter with a series of daytrips and a weekend trip to Vermont. In winter, 2006, the club took its first international trip to Zermatt, Switzerland, and expanded its series of daytrips, adding vacations to Utah and Colorado. Today, the club has grown to over 1,600 participants, with more than 400 paid members, from states around the country.

[edit] Social Events

Ski bums hosts Avalanche, a party for its members and friends, at therapy, a gay bar in New York City. In addition, Ski Bums hosts a series of charity fund-raising events each year. An up-to-date listing of social events can be found here.

[edit] Trips

Ski Bums is hosting thirteen trips in its 2007 season, with trips to Vail, Whistler-Blackcomb, Salt Lake City, Lake Tahoe, Stratton, Vermont, Mount Snow, Vermont, and a series of seven local daytrips. The full trip schedule can be found here.

[edit] Charity Work

In 2005 and 2006, Ski Bums was one of New York City’s top fund-raising teams for AIDS Walk New York, benefitting GMHC raising over $10,000 each year. Ski Bums has also donated to the Chill Learn-to-Snowboard program, sponsored by Burton Snowboards, and the Empire State Pride Agenda.

[edit] Gay skiing / snowboarding events and organizations

Ski Bums is part of a growing trend[2] in the LGBT community, as ski resorts around the country appeal to the LGBT traveler and plan events to cater to them. Beginning in 1977 with Aspen Gay Ski Week, there are now more than 16 gay skiing and snowboarding events, which routinely draw from 2,000 to 5,000 participants, and more than two dozen GLBT skiing and snowboarding clubs around the world.[3]