• by June 12, 2001

Americans plan on doing more jogging, but their interest in playing ice hockey is on the decline. Active vacations such as swimming and hiking are on the rise, but Americans’ interest in racquetball and surfing is not as great as it once was. Americans are using the Internet more as a leisure activity, but they also have an increased desire to remain physically fit.

Those are just some of the findings of Bear Stearns’ exclusive leisure trends survey. The survey, conducted in conjunction with Yesawich, Pepperdine & Brown, attempts to shed light on how Americans spend their leisure time and money and predict leisure trends moving forward.

“A survey like this is invaluable to our leisure industry research and our investment clients,” said Jason Ader, Bear Stearns senior managing director and leisure analyst. “It provides us with a great tool for predicting customer interest and company success.” Peter Yesawich, CEO of Yesawich, Pepperdine & Brown, a leading market research firm, added, “The survey represents one of the most comprehensive studies of Americans’ use of leisure time in many years, and the implications of the findings for companies that market products and services consumed by Americans at leisure are fascinating to say the least.”

The leisure survey polled more than 1,000 American consumers above the age of 18. The questions focused on past and future participation levels for a variety of leisure activities. Using the data, the analysts were able to calculate an anticipated “net gain” for each activity. For a given activity, the net gain is the difference between the proportion of American adults who expect to participate more frequently minus the proportion of American adults who expect to participate less frequently. The difference is expressed in percentage terms.

According to the survey, the majority of Americans feel they do not have enough leisure time, want more pleasure out of life and say they try to engage in new experiences. About one-half of the adult population reported that when they have spare time, they like to relax and do nothing at all.

The majority of Americans tend to enjoy more passive leisure activities, such as watching television or going to the movies, as opposed to vigorous activities like aerobics, jogging and weight training. However, the survey did find participation levels for physical activities could increase significantly during the coming years. “Americans clearly enjoy relaxation as a leisure activity, but they also claim they want to be more active in the future,” said Marc Falcone, Bear Stearns leisure analyst. “It will be interesting to see if that desire to get off the couch turns into a reality.”

The survey also evaluated which spectator sports are well-positioned for future growth. Professional football and basketball top the list, while sports such as college baseball, women’s professional basketball and professional soccer could face a decline.

The majority of Americans responded favorably to the concept of travel and made it clear that they do so whenever they get the opportunity. Americans also hunger for new experiences, which could lead to significant increases in the travel business.

The survey found active vacations appear to be on the rise for many Americans. Swimming, jogging, hiking, fishing and boating should all experience net gains, according to the survey. However, nearly 50% of all other sporting activities studied will have an expected loss in participation by adults on vacation during the next two years, including many popular sports such as snowmobiling and surfing. “This does not come as much of a surprise,” said Joseph Yurman, Bear Stearns leisure analyst. “Americans only have so much time on their hands; they can’t do everything.”

Finally, the survey found most Americans rank visiting a beach or a lake or just spending time with family and friends at the top of their lists for vacation activities—a trend that bodes well for companies that serve those needs.