The lengths to ski in the summer

I've never skied in the summer and was thinking about the lengths that soem people go to, to do it. Would you battle altitude sickness and pay a lot of money to go skiing in the summer? Have you considered Chile or Argentina? I know that if I had a little (or a lot) more money and perhaps some more time off, I would be done there in a second. As for the altitude, it would probably be an issue for a while, but I'd find a way to get through it. Of course I could just live in a place like Bend Oregon or Vancouver, BC and then I could go to Mt. Hood or Whistler respectively, but then again, what else would I do in one of those places?