By many counts, the ski industry is booming.

In Wyoming, Alterra’s Jackson Hole has sold out of day passes. Colorado’s Vail Resorts limited ticket sales to help with overcrowding. In two decades, China’s ski industry has swelled from 100 resorts to 800+.

But as the climate changes and energy prices rise, the business of snowy mountains is increasingly becoming an uphill battle, per Bloomberg.

The challenges ahead

For one, global snow coverage is forecast to drop 8% for every degree the world’s temperature rises.

By the 2080s, nearly half of the Winter Olympic Games host regions may not have reliable snowfall. By then, some French ski regions may not have enough snow to function.

Technological innovations have helped reduce the water and electricity needed to make artificial snow — used by 95% of ski resorts globally  — though surging energy costs and warmer temps have canceled out some of the benefits.

Some resorts are diversifying. In France, where resorts spend $42m-$69m on snowmaking annually, Compagnie des Alpes has expanded to amusement parks and gear shops. Chamonix, which hosted the first Winter Olympics, sees 40% of its lift revenues in the offseason, according to Bloomberg.

For larger, profitable resorts…

… especially those at higher altitudes, it’s easier to weather environmental changes. One tactic has been building up a geographically diverse portfolio of resorts and selling seasonal multi-access passes.

• In 2008, Vail debuted the Epic Pass. Last year, it sold 2.1m passes and posted $347.9m in net income.

Another tactic, for larger resorts, has been raising walk-up prices — at ~6x the rate of inflation since 2012.

By day, Bruce Pascal is a successful commercial real estate executive who brokers multimillion-dollar deals in the nation’s capital.

By night, he buys $5k Hot Wheels cars on eBay.

Pascal owns what is considered the world’s most valuable Hot Wheels collection, a staggering array of 7k rare toy cars that are collectively insured for $1.5m.

• Many are prototypes that were acquired from former Mattel employees, including a pink 1969 Rear-Loading Beach Bomb valued at ~$150k.

Pascal is one of a handful of super collectors, dealers, and middlemen who pay top dollar for the rarest cars. It’s a colorful group that includes an ex-BMX stunt rider, an auto mechanics teacher, and a man who owns a geese-removal business.

How did one-time 59-cent toy cars become five-figure collectibles? And what drives grown men and women to spend princely sums chasing them?

Remember when the Biden admin tackled the $1.6T student debt problem by canceling $400B of it?

That plan hinged on the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students (HEROES) Act.

It allows the secretary of education to change federal student loan terms to stop borrowers from being worse off financially in the event of a national emergency — in this case, the pandemic.

But the joy borrowers felt was short-lived…

… as lawsuits rolled in and stalled relief. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard two such cases:

• Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, and South Carolina allege that the Biden admin overstepped its authority.
• Two borrowers, upset they didn’t qualify for forgiveness (though one did get a $48k PPP loan mostly forgiven), argue they should have been able to provide comment on the decision before it was made.

The court must now decide if the plaintiffs have “standing,” or the right to sue at all, and if the HEROES Act gives the Biden admin sufficient power to act as it did.

The takeaways

After over three hours of testimony, conservative justices seemed “skeptical” of Biden’s authority, per CNN, but all seemed to question whether plaintiffs face harm and, thus, have standing.

No standing, no case. But, per Forbes, the court could still rule on whether the forgiveness program was implemented legally, and Congress could still pass other programs.

What now?

The justices will vote in the upcoming days, but may not make a decision until June. Regardless, student loan repayment will resume 60 days after litigation is resolved.

By many counts, the ski industry is booming.

In Wyoming, Alterra’s Jackson Hole has sold out of day passes. Colorado’s Vail Resorts limited ticket sales to help with overcrowding. In two decades, China’s ski industry has swelled from 100 resorts to 800+.

But as the climate changes and energy prices rise, the business of snowy mountains is increasingly becoming an uphill battle, per Bloomberg.

The challenges ahead

For one, global snow coverage is forecast to drop 8% for every degree the world’s temperature rises.

By the 2080s, nearly half of the Winter Olympic Games host regions may not have reliable snowfall. By then, some French ski regions may not have enough snow to function.

Technological innovations have helped reduce the water and electricity needed to make artificial snow — used by 95% of ski resorts globally  — though surging energy costs and warmer temps have canceled out some of the benefits.

Some resorts are diversifying. In France, where resorts spend $42m-$69m on snowmaking annually, Compagnie des Alpes has expanded to amusement parks and gear shops. Chamonix, which hosted the first Winter Olympics, sees 40% of its lift revenues in the offseason, according to Bloomberg.

For larger, profitable resorts…

… especially those at higher altitudes, it’s easier to weather environmental changes. One tactic has been building up a geographically diverse portfolio of resorts and selling seasonal multi-access passes.

• In 2008, Vail debuted the Epic Pass. Last year, it sold 2.1m passes and posted $347.9m in net income.

Another tactic, for larger resorts, has been raising walk-up prices — at ~6x the rate of inflation since 2012.

By day, Bruce Pascal is a successful commercial real estate executive who brokers multimillion-dollar deals in the nation’s capital.

By night, he buys $5k Hot Wheels cars on eBay.

Pascal owns what is considered the world’s most valuable Hot Wheels collection, a staggering array of 7k rare toy cars that are collectively insured for $1.5m.

• Many are prototypes that were acquired from former Mattel employees, including a pink 1969 Rear-Loading Beach Bomb valued at ~$150k.

Pascal is one of a handful of super collectors, dealers, and middlemen who pay top dollar for the rarest cars. It’s a colorful group that includes an ex-BMX stunt rider, an auto mechanics teacher, and a man who owns a geese-removal business.

How did one-time 59-cent toy cars become five-figure collectibles? And what drives grown men and women to spend princely sums chasing them?

Remember when the Biden admin tackled the $1.6T student debt problem by canceling $400B of it?

That plan hinged on the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students (HEROES) Act.

It allows the secretary of education to change federal student loan terms to stop borrowers from being worse off financially in the event of a national emergency — in this case, the pandemic.

But the joy borrowers felt was short-lived…

… as lawsuits rolled in and stalled relief. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard two such cases:

• Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, and South Carolina allege that the Biden admin overstepped its authority.
• Two borrowers, upset they didn’t qualify for forgiveness (though one did get a $48k PPP loan mostly forgiven), argue they should have been able to provide comment on the decision before it was made.

The court must now decide if the plaintiffs have “standing,” or the right to sue at all, and if the HEROES Act gives the Biden admin sufficient power to act as it did.

The takeaways

After over three hours of testimony, conservative justices seemed “skeptical” of Biden’s authority, per CNN, but all seemed to question whether plaintiffs face harm and, thus, have standing.

No standing, no case. But, per Forbes, the court could still rule on whether the forgiveness program was implemented legally, and Congress could still pass other programs.

What now?

The justices will vote in the upcoming days, but may not make a decision until June. Regardless, student loan repayment will resume 60 days after litigation is resolved.