You may be familiar with the rivalry between Baseball and Soccer. Two extremely popular sports loved by millions. A similar rivalry exists packed in snow and ice, skiers and snowboarders have had beef since the creation of snowboarding when two skis were bolted together to make a kind of snow skateboard. While in 2025, the rivalry is more of a generational joke than actual hatred.
The question still remains, which one is better? When you take price, skill, availability, and generational factors into account, will you be able to find one that really is better?
It does seem that the rivalry is rooted into every skier and snowboarder. Kai Fujishiro, intermediate skier, and student at iSchool, sees skier only resorts as unnecessary division between the two sports, saying: “I think you should be able to ski or snowboard freely. Some people are better at snowboarding, and not as good at skiing, everyone should have freedom on public mountains to do whatever snowsport they like.” While beginner skier Ravi Below says, “I think it’s nice cause I can just have a hill to only skiers without snowboarders causing chaos.”
When you think about winter sports you might think about the expense. It’s no secret that skiing and snowboarding alike are expensive, but is one of them cheaper? When you ski you are paying for boots, skis, and poles. With snowboarding, you are only paying for the boots and board. Does that small price difference actually have an effect on the skier to snowboarder ratio at resorts? Kai says, “I rent my gear every time I go.” but then continues with: “I learned with poles but now they feel like extra weight that I don’t need.” In this case the price point doesn’t seem to be a turn away from skiing, but instead the removal of poles, in Kai’s case, seems to be more of a technical preference.
Sports rivalries influence all sports. Take Baseball versus Soccer, most of the time there’s generational influence. If your parents are a fan of baseball you are more likely to grow up watching baseball and eventually consciously or subconsciously being on the baseball side of the rivalry. The same goes for skiing and snowboarding. If your loved ones ski you are more likely to learn to ski therefore ending up on the skiing side. But how many people are actually influenced?
Ravi speaks on the generational influence, saying: “The very first time I went skiing I took a basics lesson but now I just learn things and review with my dad.” Indicating that his dad skis, which led him to learn how to ski. While on the other side of the rivalry, Roston Willingham, a beginner snowboarder, has less of an opinion on which is better, but more believing each can benefit differently: “Skiing takes less time to get on the trails while with snowboarding you have to practice balance and learn how to turn, which can take a while. If you have better balance, snowboarding might be better, but if you want to get out there quickly… Skiing would be the way to go.”
Approximately 60% of winter sport participants in NY ski, while the other 40% snowboard. Is that obvious difference noticeable at people’s local resorts? Kai seems to believe that there are multiple factors that result in seeing more skiers or snowboarders. “I see more skiers than snowboarders, maybe due to time of day? Most of the time it’s a decent 50/50. Harder trails seem to have more skiers, while blues mostly snowboarders.” Kai believes one factor might be the difficulty of the trail. While Ravi sees the opposite, “I usually see more skiers just because I mostly go on green and blue trails which tend to be predominantly skiers.”
The variation in answers and contradictions really does bring light to the knowledge that both sports are very different, and every person is different. Snowboarding wouldn’t have been created if people thought it was bad. Neither of the sports are bad, and participating in one or the other doesn’t make you less of a snow sporter.
Phil Teare, a writer for ‘The Ski Gathering’, a company focused on connecting solo snow sporters, and creating holiday travel groups, speaks on the classic debate through interviews with many of their clients. He says “In a nutshell, skiing is easier to learn but harder to master.” Which basically sums up a lot of what has been said!
The article also touches on which sport is easier to ride lifts on, which one is more popular, price range, personal fitness, and even “cool factor”! Phil says: “Yes yes I know, I’ve kind of dodged giving a definitive answer. For me, it really can be either.” Which is basically where I’m going too.
As a skier myself, of course I’m going to say skiing is better. But that’s not without reason. It goes back to the generational influence. My immediate family never did either snow sport, but my grandpa did. I have always looked up to my grandpa, so when he dragged me out of bed one morning on holiday break and helped me through my first run I was determined to learn and grow as a skier.
Now in 2025, 10 years later, I work on Ski Patrol at Belleayre mountain, located in Catskills NY. I work with both skiers and snowboarders, and while it is called “Ski Patrol” there are things my snowboarding co-workers are better at! The weight of a patient sled is a lot, and slowing down on skis with that weight is challenging to say the least. It is in fact humbling to see my snowboarding co-workers easily slide down on the back of the board and manage their speed effortlessly.
Both winter sports are very personal, down to the form, to family, and the style you choose. And there’s a reason both sports are in the winter olympics. People love both, if you ask a snowboarder which one they think is better they’re going to say snowboarding and the same is with skiers. In this day in age the rivalry is more joking than legitimate hatred, and I like to think it brings us together. We joke, we tease, and we definitely poke fun at one another. But it’s all laughs. At the end of the day we all share the same passion. Passion for the cold, passion for the snow, and passion for that wonderful adrenaline that nothing compares to.
