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Last week's controversy about our governor's fiery
exclamation certainly illustrates the difference between
the old economy
and the new economy.
After touring various sylvan infernos, Gov. Bill Owens
stood before the television cameras and announced that
all of Colorado is burning.
He drew immediate
criticism from our tourist industry, whose spokesmen
hastened to point out that less than 1 percent of the
66,620,160 acres of Colorado was then under combustion (at
last report, it was up to 2.5 percent).
The governor's exaggerated statements, they said, were scaring people away from the entire state, even though popular places like Rocky Mountain National Park were far from the fires. This was hurting business as people canceled reservations or made other vacation plans, and tourists spend $19 million a day in Colorado.
In the old economy,
it really didn't matter what
people thought about you. If there was timber on the hills
or there was ore in the vein, then there were jobs. But in
the new economy,
perception is everything -- if
people think they're going to encounter a forest fire, then
your business is going to be hurt, no matter what the
actual fire danger.
Although I lacked the terminology for it at the time, I did notice this difference about 30 years ago, back when I lived in Greeley and my red hair cascaded down well past my shoulders (my hair is now gray, and there's not enough of it to cascade anywhere). Along with some friends, Martha and I took a trip to the mountains for a few summer days.
We were not welcome in trendy Aspen. Aspen was a resort
town and perception mattered to its new economy.
Having hairball hippies in town meant that free-spending
Eurotrash might change their minds about Aspen and go be
decadent somewhere else.
But in Leadville, then a gritty mining town, we were
quite welcome. Leadville had some big mine payrolls, and
it could afford not to give a damn what anybody thought of
the place. No matter how derelict you looked, you weren't
going to hurt Leadville's old economy,
and so
everyone was quite cordial.
Alas, the friendly old economy has pretty well vanished. But we should be able to salvage our new economy if we act quickly to adjust perceptions.
For instance, authentic adventures
are a big
player in the modern travel industry. People pay good
money to chase cows or pan gold. Plus, firefighters in
general currently enjoy heroic stature.
And so, some Colorado promoter should be able to profit
by offering a $1,500-per-week authentic fire camp
experience.
The vacationers would get lots of healthy
exercise rising from their tents at dawn to spend all day
cutting fire lines with chainsaws, axes, mccleods and
pulaskis.
Many wildfires are also spectacular, with awesome leaping crown fires and immense billows of smoke. And then there are the slurry bombers, bravely attacking the front -- how often do we get to see a real bomber in action?
An entrepreneur needs to build some viewing platforms, charge admission, and promote this spectacle. Since Americans gladly pay to watch pro wrestling and stock-car races, there's got to be a big market for wildfire-watching. And there could be helicopter and small-plane rides for those who were both daring and well-heeled.
What of the areas that have already been scorched? Well, it's been nine months, and people still troop to Ground Zero in Manhattan. People still went to Yellowstone after the devastating fires of 1988 -- they've heard about it, but they want to see for themselves.
The important thing, as far as our new economy is concerned, is that they hear about it so that they will be inspired to come and see it, and Gov. Owens has certainly been doing his best in that regard.
Consider that the Hayman Fire may burn for another 90 days, at least, which means we can market it all summer -- and it's likely that there will be many more fires before Labor Day. And we already have the Coal Seam Fire west of Glenwood Springs, the Miracle Complex that flanks Grand Junction, Missionary Ridge near Durango and a Trinidad Complex.
Deluxe motor-coach fire tours should be popular, and educational, too, as experts board the bus and explain historical fire regimes, drought cycles, how pinon-juniper woodlands differ from lodgepole forests, etc.
So, the opportunities are there for the tourist industry. And if the August monsoon rains strike hard this year, the resulting mudslides from denuded slopes could be another attraction -- especially if thrill-seeking X-gamers get a chance to surf the slides.
If our tourist promoters just had more imagination, they'd have been thanking the governor, instead of criticizing him.
Totally off topic here: Happy Father's Day to the other Ed Quillen, my dad in Longmont.
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