Companies choose profit over experience
I have been skiing since I was too small to walk in ski boots. Every winter, my family would drive to Mammoth and drop me off in ski lessons while they skied on the actual slopes. Those trips became a constant in my life, and skiing is still one of the few things that makes me feel completely free.
This winter break, my family made the five hour drive to my grandparents’ condo in Mammoth and woke up early to beat the crowds. When we walked into the lodge to pick up our tickets, I looked outside and stopped in shock. The entire area near the lifts was packed. My mom, who has been skiing at Mammoth for nearly 50 years, said she had never seen the mountain that crowded, and the reason soon became clear. Days earlier, a ski patroller had tragically died after being caught in an avalanche. In response, Mammoth closed large portions of the mountain, keeping most skiers near the bottom with only a few lifts open. Many ski patrol members were attending the memorial, leaving the resort understaffed. Despite this, the mountain stayed open and lift tickets were still sold at full price, cramming thousands of skiers into a small area and creating hour-long lift lines.
Skiing is a sport where risk is expected, and skiers sign waivers acknowledging this. However, Mammoth’s decision to stay partially open while limiting access to the mountain, worsening the experience and continuing to profit makes me wonder whether these choices were made for skier safety or to protect the company from financial loss.
Situations like my Mammoth experience are not unique. Large companies often operate in ways that prioritize protecting themselves from lawsuits while still maximizing profit, even if it means delivering a worse experience. From amusement parks to concerts, companies often limit experiences rather than allowing people to make informed choices. For example, amusement park rides are often closed or restricted after incidents to reduce liability, even while ticket prices remain unchanged, and concert venues limit crowd movement and sell tickets with obstructed views, prioritizing capacity and profit over the quality of the experience. In each case, companies protect themselves while customers pay full price for less than what they expected.
When companies choose legal protection and revenue over meaningful experiences, it changes how people interact with the world around them. Lawsuits are an important part of accountability, but when fear of them becomes the driving force behind every decision, the experience being sold loses its value. If corporations continue to prioritize profit while limiting what people can do, the question becomes not whether customers are protected, but whether they are truly being served at all.
