It's All Downhill: The seasons, ranked

[View web version]( [It's All Downhill. The latest from the slopes of New England and beyone by Matt Pepin] Friday, July 13 | [Follow Matt Pepin on Twitter]( NEW ENGLAND'S CHARM It's All Downhill is sent once a month during the skiing offseason, and weekly from October to March. There are a lot of places in the United States I think I'd like to live. Colorado or Utah for the big mountains, amazing snow, and endless outdoor sports possibilities. Southern California for the sunny and 80s every day weather. Northern California for the wine. South Carolina or Florida for the golf. Hawaii just because. But I'm pretty sure New England is the place for me, and the seasons have a lot to do with it. Each is great in its own way, and the variety of them and the activities associated with each give the year a certain rhythm and flow. But inevitably in each I find myself debating which season is the best with someone. It's a great debate than can be tainted somewhat by the point you have reached in whatever the current season is. Spring looks awfully good at the end of a harsh winter. Winter is so appealing when the ski areas really get up to speed and have more than just a couple trails open. I always put winter first in my rankings, obviously, because of skiing. Except for the most brutally cold days, I don't mind the temperatures, and I'd gladly take clearing snow with a snowblower over lawn and yard work any day. I pass the time by thinking of my next trip to ski country. For whatever reason, on a hotter-than-heck run recently, I started reviewing season rankings in my head. This is my list, and reasons: 1. Winter: Skiing, holidays with family, and my annual buddy trip (to go skiing). 2. Summer: My annual week at the beach, summer evenings at the ballpark, playing golf until 8 or even 9 p.m. in June, and home-grown tomatoes. 3. Fall: Football, Octoberfest beers (especially Sam Adams), and it's almost ski season! 4. Spring: Honestly, spring can feel like a slog. It's muddy, there's post-winter cleanup to do, and a long way from the next ski season. What is your favorite season? [Cast your vote on my Twitter poll](. CLICKWORTHY SPEAKING OF SUMMER ... : The Ski Diva website [recently outlined seven reasons why summer is good for skiers](. I'd add that distance makes the heart grow fonder. COMING ATTRACTION: An indoor skiing complex is scheduled to open in New Jersey next year. The website [New Jersey Family reported that Big Snow America is expected to open in March of 2019]( as part of the American Dream Meadowlands complex. “It’ll offer year-round, real-snow skiing and snowboarding all within a constant climate-controlled environment,” Hugh Reynolds, the company's vice-president of marketing and sales, [told njfamily.com](. It definitely sounds like something worth checking out, although probably not when the real ski season is underway. SUMMER WATCHING: Miss ski season? [Check out Bretton Woods's recap of the 2017-18 season.]( CONGRATS: In June, [the SkiNH association bestowed its annual awards](. The winners were Bebe Wood of Ragged Mountain (Lifetime Achievement), Selden Hannah (H.H. "Bill" Whitney Award for contributions to the industry), Jim Rodrigues (Al Merrill Award for contributions to cross-country skiing) and Annie McLane Kuster (Chandler/McLane Government Service Award, which was previously the legislator of the year award). [A full story with details on each recipient is on the SkiNH website](. A GOOD GIG: Ski Vermont is looking for a communications director, [according to its website.]( I'd put in for this one for sure if I didn't have such a good thing going in Boston. [Here's the full job description.]( BY THE NUMBERS: The Burlington Free Press has [an interesting analysis of the stats]( reported by Ski Vermont about the 2017-18 ski season. Here's the big takeaway, according to Free Press reporter Art Woolf: "The primary challenge is that the number of skiers is not growing. Skier visits have been essentially flat for the last 30 years and the recent numbers are well below the peak levels of the mid- and late 1980s," [Woolf writes](. POINT OF PRIDE: Its appearance on [the website urinal.net]( (yes, that's really a thing and I guess I shouldn't be surprised) led to probably [the ski tweet of the summer by Mad River Glen](. "MRG makes a lot of lists and gets a lot of superlatives but "the trough" garnering accolades on is next level kind of stuff. Most MRG guys have a fond recollection of the famous trough and its equally famous "No Diving" sticker!" [MRG wrote](. [Subscribe to BostonGlobe.com]( [Like It's All Downhill? 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