I’m not skiing again until we get snow. I did my three “beginner days”, the snow is as hard and slick as a frying pan now and, seeing as how I am in desperate need of edges, I can make good use of these in-between days.
It was a blast to hit Alta on opening day, Nov. 20, 2015. They have the most coverage of the five resorts presently open for biz so it was fun to feel the burn under Collins and play around on natural snow (the groomers are down to the manmade).
The backside is open but anything other than the main groomer is roped off and Sugarloaf has yet to spin. It’s Collins, Wildcat, and Sunnyside lifts. Wildcat is wild. Nothing groomed, fluffy bumps with rocks, twigs and dirt showing in the troughs. Careful where you romp. I watched a skier take a toboggan ride to Goldminer’s. It’s too early to end your ski season, Folks. Jumping and traversing will send your skis to the grave as well. One friend’s bases looked like a cheese grater at the end of the day.
The weather is coming. I promise. It’s been hovering around 50 degrees since Saturday and it looks more like May than November. But it’s going to get colder in time for a storm to stretch across the Wasatch on Wednesday night.
Powder Day Thursday!
Snow is forecast by Wednesday afternoon so that gives me two days to play with my new Tecnica ski boots and get my rock skis tuned. Park City doesn’t have nearly enough snow for anything newer.
We don’t know how much snow will actually drop and if this is a true El Nino year we can expect to watch the Sierras suck out most of it before sending it east. If Lake Effect takes hold, the Cottonwoods could see about a foot but if it not we’re talking dust on crust.
It was relatively easy to find my stuff. You know- the skis, the helmet, the boot bag, the boots, the neck gaiter, the goggles, gloves and the pass. After all, it’s only been seven months since last I gathered them. Rachael and I pulled into the Brighton Resort parking lot at the crack of noon. Okay, so maybe it was closer to 1 but this was one of those opening days. There are like three lifts and four trails to ski. After a few runs you’re done anyway. The wind was kicking up a mist of snow and ice particles and buffeting our car. We looked at each other. If it was any other day but opening day we might have turned around and gone home. But this day is different; unique. It signals to all the world as well as to the atoms in your body that this is the first day of the ski season.
You Can Relax On Opening Days
When you’re getting your ski legs under you, there’s no better time than opening day. Everyone is in the same boat. If I started 10 days into the season I’d be the lame one surrounded by those who had a week to warm up. This day, we are all a bit rusty.
You know what I’m talking about. As you ride that chair lift you wonder, “Will I remember how to turn?”, “How sharp were my edges at the end of last season?”, “Is there any natural snow left or am I just skiing on man made at this point?”, “Do I remember what to do if I hit an icy patch?”, “Am I in shape?” Despite being plagued with these newbie questions, however, there’s one thing that stands out about opening day. That day is all you.
You drop everything to be there. Even as you make those turns with those questions in your head, they’re all questions pertinent to that very moment. You’re not thinking about homework; about accounting; about phone calls you need to make. All you’re thinking about is that moment on the hill… and there is no better moment no matter what the snow conditions. Opening days are also a time to reconnect with your ski buddies; the ones who mysteriously disappear after the mountains close.
Detes of the Day
We hit the Explorer Lift for a warmup. It was damn chilly after the unseasonably warm weather just a few days prior. The runs were wide open as most of the opening-day riders actually caught the first chair of the morning. They had come and gone by now. There was no waiting in line. There was no fighting for a spot on the hill. Don’t get me wrong. It’s Brighton so there were the occasional buzzes by rushing snowboarders. But definitely not as scary as it would have been at 10 a.m. The run was firm but still grippy. There were icy patches but in most places we had purchase. After our fourth lap we even darted through a shot down an ungroomed area. There were little land mines (aka rocks) everywhere and if you didn’t pull back on the throttle you were destined for base damage. But where you avoided those rocks, you had soft, natural, teasingly good snow.
I played around with my turns. Long, short, fast, slow, wedges, outside foot weighting. In the days to come I’ll worry about my knees, my hands; am I looking ahead enough. All sorts of things are starting to come back to me; an inner ski dialog I haven’t had with myself since April. It’s my ski instructor’s brain firing up.
It was a late start not just today but for the season in general. I was making the same turns, on the same runs, one month earlier last season. The Utah resorts decided to bide their time and open when they could count on more consistency in the weather. That time is here.
What’s to Come
Alta and Snowbird already had their opening days. Park City’s opening day is Saturday and the rest of the resorts (except for Deer Valley) should be open by the end of next week. The season is here and all we can do is make turns on what’s available and do a little snow dance, praying to the snow gods. More storm systems are starting to roll in and we do have that precious time to work our way back into ski shape before we’re charging Peruvian laps off the Hidden Peak Tram.
Oh, and one more thing about opening days- You get to find the things you’ve been looking for all summer. Like your iPod, buried in a pocket of your stowed-away ski jacket.
It’s month #2 for my Cairn monthly subscription box. The company delivers outdoorsy type products for adventurers for a flat $25 per month. Every month is a surprise because you never know what’s in the box from month to month.
If you’re hunting for a killer gift idea this Christmas and you have the money, go for a three to 12-month subscription to be sent to your adventurous friend or family member. They will love it!!
As you will seewhen you watch this latest review, however, not every box is a hit but it’s still fun to dig through the offerings. But your friends won’t care because they didn’t pay for it. 😉
It all started when a pencil pusher in a mountainside cubicle forgot to send a renewal letter. Back then (2014), Vail Resorts – with the backing of Talisker Land Holdings Corp- slipped the tablecloth out from under PCMR leaders and became owners of two of the three ski areas in Park City. Since then, Talisker, VR’s landlord, has gone belly up in the Wasatch and so the Park City drama continues this week.
It’s anyone’s guess who’ll be vying for the Talisker’s tony land holdings up for auction Tuesday morning. Wells Fargo foreclosed on a patchwork of the company’s properties peppering Wasatch and Summit Counties and those will be up for grabs at 10 a.m. at the 3rd District Court building in Silver Summit. This will be one of the most significant property sales since the original Talisker upheaval.
Wells Fargo filed a lawsuit last February on behalf of itself and another lender and secured a $165.9 million judgment against Talisker. Real estate developers, lawyers, private parties and spectators are expected to attend as undeveloped parcels in Tuhaye, Empire Pass, and undeveloped land in Summit County will be sold to offset that amount.
There’s a decent chance that Wells Fargo itself will place a “credit bid” (the bank bids the amount owed) and send other bidders packing. Park City attorney Joe Wrona told the Park Record that he has several clients who want a piece of the action. “The land has been bottled up and held captive by Talisker,” Wrona said. Talisker sat on the property because it lacked the money to build so developers may now be anxious to seize the freed-up land and capitalize on its location near the “nation’s largest resort.”
Winning bidders have until 5 p.m. Nov. 17 to transfer funds to the County Courthouse.
UPDATE:
The auction went as expected. Wells Fargo submitted the credit bid of $35 million and took ownership in the property at stake. No one wanted to bid more as much of the 2100 acres is unrelated to each other. So now Wells Fargo will parcel it out and sell it. There are several developers already in negotiations with WF. Today’s close was legally significant because this massive amount of real estate and Talisker’s last vestige of its holdings in the Park City area have been extinguished. So now, to a large degree, the drama is done. There are rumors that Jack Bistricer is trying to find a financier to reacquire the property he’s lost but that’s a longshot.
I woke up to new snow Tuesday. The biggest dump so far in Utah. Ski Utah called it their signature “Monster Dump” in Little Cottonwood Canyon during their annual ski press conference. The irony is that in every single past year, I was skiing instead of attending the conference. This year no one’s open yet.
After last ski season’s lackluster year – 41 percent of average according to Ski Utah- the resorts aren’t in any hurry to open. Last season showed the second lowest snow totals in 24 years. Sigh. Poo poo global warming all you want but something’s going on. There were 324 inches of snow at Alta; a far cry from the average 551 inches. That said, Alta still had the most total snowfall of any other resort in North America. Neeners! Even when it’s not our best, it’s better than most.
The guests kept coming too. We had nearly four million visits- only down 5 percent from the year before. Also, take a moment to appreciate that figure. That’s a lot of tourism dollars showering this state. Skiing is still big business regardless of weather. Back in 1976/77, we had about the same snow totals but the skier visits were off 53 percent! You can thank snowmaking for saving the ski industry. Though bookings are seriously off at the moment, Ski Utah is remaining positive. “If you’re not an optimist in the ski industry,” said Ski Utah President Nathan Rafferty, “You’re not going to be in the industry very long.”
Most people who did come out last winter weren’t turned off by 45 degree weather and blue sky. They were in the mountains on vacation. They shopped, ate, ziplined, spa’d and had fun with their families. Ever since those snowmaking The resorts have accepted that winter isn’t always all about the snow. How can it be any worse? Just look at what happened in the Sierras with resorts super early or not opening at all.
The good news is that statistically speaking we are destined for a better season. Everyone’s going to want to experience North America’s largest ski area, right? Or pee in a luxurious bathroom on top of Hidden Peak (personally I’m hoping for a view but others might want more privacy); or ride a high-speed quad to Honeycomb Bowl at Solitude. And anyone with kids under 10 should flock to Brighton for their 80th Anniversary. They ski free this season.
The countdown to opening is on. After a clear weekend, more snow is expected in the West next Monday and Tuesday with a stronger storm on its heels by late next week.
Northern Utah and other areas to the north are still below normal so careful out there is you choose to make backcountry turns. Remember- even skiing on resort slopes right now is considered backcountry. The extremely low snowpack may be just barely covering deadly rocks; use caution. No need to rip out your hamstring on a boulder before you ever get to use your pass. Once the resorts open, stick to the groomers until we’ve got a decent base. Tree stumps and logs are your worst nightmare.
Here are the (dare I say “tentative”?) opening dates for Utah’s 14 resorts:
