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After being absent for a few years the Grand Prix of Snowboarding is coming back to Park City Mountain Resort and the Eagle Superpipe.  Glad to see the Olympic halfpipe hosting an Olympic qualifier event.  Date is set as Jan 22-23, 2010.  I can’t wait to watch America’s best duel it out for slots on the Olympic team.  Here’s an excerpt from the press release.

The historic pipe where U.S. athletes swept the men’s podium and won gold in the women’s event during the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002 will entertain the masses with Olympians again. The Grand Prix makes its final stop at Park City Mountain Resort for back to back night competitions, after which the winners will be crowned and the 2010 Olympic halfpipe team will be named.

Among the athletes stoked to hit the Park City pipe is White who, after having dinner with PCMR owner John Cummings, took to his Twitter page to spread the good news.

“Had dinner with John Cummings,” White wrote. “Super nice guy, he told me Park City is having Olympic qualis mid Jan! booyeah!”

A reduced field comprised of the highest scoring athletes from previous tour stops will throw down the best tricks in their bag in an attempt to be one of the few named to the Olympic halfpipe team when the event is over.

“It’s the perfect place to close the story of the Olympic team selection,” Clark said. “The pipe has the tradition of being one of the best in North America. They put a tremendous amount of pride and energy into their venue. They are very excited to have this here.”

In addition to hosting the Olympic halfpipe competition in 2002, Park City also held a Grand Prix the following December in which the Olympic medalists all returned for competition in their glory stomping ground.

With well over 100 national athletes expected to compete for a shot at the Olympic team, the 2010 Grand Prix series will be the hottest series of halfpipe competitions across the U.S.

The whole story is available here:  http://ussnowboarding.com/news?storyId=1883

Looking for some extreme fun at Powder Mountain this summer?  Check out Pow-Zilla.

That’s right now you can shred Powder Mountain in the summer.  Powder Mountain will begin Summer Safari 4 X 4 Adventure Tours in mid-June.  Guided tours in an oversized four wheel drive vehicle will take guests to spectacular sites over the 10,000 acres within the resort that would otherwise be inaccessible to the public by vehicle. The Resort will also host a series of exciting sporting events including the Powder Mountain Hill Climb presented by Diamond Peak Mountain Sports on June 27 and the Powder Mountain Motorcross presented by Monster Energy August 27–30, 2009.

Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort announced today that due to recent warm temperatures, rain and rapid snowpack melting in the past week,  that they are closed for the 2008/09 season, and will not be reopening this weekend as previously planned.

Snowcat operators spent most of the day working on some areas of Little Cloud that had very little snow, large rocks and, in one case, a small river. Unfortunately, they were not able to ensure enough coverage for safe, skiable terrain. The Little Cottonwood Canyon resort received 621 inches of snowfall this season and offered skiing and riding for 194 days, the longest in Utah.

“Despite our plans and the hard work of our snowcat operators, we won’t be able to offer any more skiing and riding this spring. The recent rain and warm temperatures have dropped the snowpack more than we expected,” said Snowbird President Bob Bonar. “We thank our season passholders and guests for a great season, and look forward to an amazing summer line-up here at Snowbird.”

The Utah resort is currently offering summer Tram operations for foot passengers daily, with operating hours from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Summer activities including the new Wasatch Mining Company Gemstone Mine, Peruvian Chairlift and Tunnel, Alpine Slide, four-station climbing wall, ZipRider, Bungy Trampoline, Mechanical Bull and Inflatables, are scheduled to begin Saturday, June 13. Hours of operation will be 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. (except for the Peruvian Chairlift and Tunnel which closes at 5 p.m.) and activities may be limited. Horseback and ATV tours are tentatively scheduled to begin Fourth of July weekend, conditions permitting.

Thanks for a great season Mother Nature! We are eagerly awaiting another.

Stay tuned for Ski Utah’s new fitness blog containing details on how to stay in ski shape all winter long…

Until the Nagano Olympics I didn’t really realize how passionate the Japanese are about skiing and snowboarding. It’s big in Japan! It only makes sense then that a link between Salt Lake City and Tokyo be formed where skiers can make their way directly to Salt Lake from the slopes of Japan.

This Wednesday, June 3, 2009 Delta Air Lines is launching its inaugural nonstop flight from Salt Lake City to Tokyo, Japan. While it’s a big win for Utah skiing to welcome more Japanese skiers to the Greatest Snow on Earth, I’m looking at it as a great way for me and other Utah skiers to also check out the slopes of the Pacific Rim that I’ve heard are pretty amazing.

But the first Utah skier to take advantage of the direct flight is none other than Nathan Rafferty, Ski Utah’s President who will be on the Delta flight Wednesday morning, won’t have any snow to slide on when he arrives. Sushi anyone? I’ll take a spicy yellow tail please…

Which has me thinking, will they serve sushi on the flight?  Now there’s a brilliant idea that I’m sure someone has implemented - the 30,000′ sushi bar.  Sake, sushi and skiers - watch out Delta.

What do Japan skiers think of Utah?

Some Japanese skiers have already migrated to Utah, like ski legend Yuichiro Miura, who has skied Mt. Everest and completed a host of other alpine feats.  He currently owns a home in Park City, UT and even named his son Yutah (pronounced Utah).

“My love of Utah is profound and deep,” said Miura. “As a professional, I have skied all around the world, but the variety of terrain and the Utah people make it the best overall ski destination anywhere. I would encourage skiers, from beginners to world class athletes, to come and experience what Utah has to offer.”

If you’ve been to Snowbird, you know which run this is. I can remember being in the Tram and seeing some skiers charging this run for all it was worth and the whole Tram erupting in cheers. Good times.

Super athlete Chris Waddell completes a 103-mile Southern Utah trail ride in less than 3 days

Chris Waddell, the most decorated male skier in Paralympic history, has set another world record.  Waddell just returned from a groundbreaking trip to Southern Utah’s popular White Rim trail.  Waddell used a handcycle to propel himself across 103 miles of dirt road in less than three days. The previous record was six days.

Waddell spent three days peddling himself through the dirt and sand roads of the White Rim Trail.

“It is a huge deal,” explains Waddell. “What this means to me on a social level is that I can do this on my own. That feasibly I could go on this type of a ride and keep up with able-bodied friends on mountain bikes.”

Waddell spent three days peddling himself through the dirt and sand roads of the White Rim Trail. The last and most difficult leg of the trek requires a 1500-foot climb and a 12- mile uphill ride back to base.

Waddell’s determination, spirit and strength are an inspiration to many.  “Never have I seen someone put their head down and dig so deep from within,” comments Dave Penny, Waddell’s trainer and coach.  Waddell’s next and most challenging expedition is set for the fall of 2009 in Africa. This is where he plans to summit the 19,340-foot Mt. Kilimanjaro.  If successful, he will become the first paraplegic to summit the tallest free-standing mountain, unassisted.

Waddell, who was involved in a skiing accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down, was determined to get back on the slopes.  He mastered the monoski and spent 11 years on the U.S. Disabled Ski Team where he won 12 Paralympic medals over four years. The Kilimanjaro climb is just one facet of Waddell’s new concept called One Revolution (www.one-revolution.com).  While in Africa, Waddell and his team will be donating handcycles to disabled individuals in Tanzania.

The purpose of One Revolution is to change preconceived notions about the disabled community.  “One Revolution means so many things to me,” says Waddell. “One revolution of the handcycle, one revolution to change the way people see the disabled community and one revolution of the globe, which symbolizes steady, fundamental change.”

From a US Ski Team Press Release

CAVTAT-DUBROVNIK, Croatia (May 22) – Utah’s Deer Valley Resort continued its preparations for the 2011 FIS Freestyle Ski World Championships with a presentation of its draft schedule to the International Ski Federation’s Freestyle Committee. The meetings were a part of the annual FIS Calendar Conference in Cavtat, near Dubrovnik, Croatia. It will mark the second time that Deer Valley has held the major international event.

A provisional event schedule for the Feb. 2-5, 2011 World Championships was accepted and will now go to the governing FIS Council in June for its final approval.

Since being named as the host by the FIS in 2006, Deer Valley has continued to hold an annual World Cup, including special test events for two of the newer freestyle disciplines of ski cross and halfpipe. A year ago, Deer Valley held a test in ski cross down its Solid Muldoon run. American Casey Puckett (Aspen, CO) finished second. Ski cross will make its Olympic debut in Vancouver next February.

Deer Valley partnered with Park City Mountain Resort to hold a skier halfpipe event last January as a part of its annual World Cup. While not yet an Olympic event, ski halfpipe and ski cross have both been conducted in the FIS World Championships. American Jen Hudak (Park City, UT) took bronze at this year’s World Championships in Japan.

“Deer Valley is proud to be the host of the World Championships a second time,” said Deer Valley Events Manager Carrie Budding. “We feel very close to the freestyle community through our annual World Cup events and it’s an honor to be hosting this event.”

While Deer Valley is the host, it is partnering with Park City Mountain Resort for the halfpipe event. Aerials and moguls events will be at Deer Valley on the Olympic courses, along with ski cross on Solid Muldoon. The skier halfpipe event will be at the site of the 2002 Olympic snowboarding superpipe.

“Deer Valley is the premiere stop on the FIS World Cup for freestyle skiing. Combining with Park City Mountain Resort in 2011 only will elevate this status,” said Chief of Competition Konrad Rotermund. “Our experienced team of volunteers that have supported so many local events, give us great confidence that we can continue to push to achieve our best.”

Deer Valley is also partnering with Park City community, with support from the Park City Chamber/Bureau and the Utah Sports Commission.

“Deer Valley has become a real favorite of athletes and team officials from around the world,” said U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association Vice President, Events, Calum Clark. “The Teams had a great Championships in Japan this past season and are now looking forward to returning to Deer Valley in less than two years.”

The full event will span from Sunday, Jan. 30 through Sunday, Feb. 6. Competitions are scheduled Wednesday through Saturday, Feb. 2-5 with a mix of daytime and night finals.

The U.S. Ski Team had a strong World Championships in Inawashiro, Japan this past season. In addition to Hudak’s bronze in the halfpipe, Patrick Deneen (Cle Elum, WA) won gold in moguls while aerialist Ryan St. Onge (Winter Park, CO) also won. World Cup moguls champion Hannah Kearney (Norwich, VT) took bronze in dual moguls.

Deer Valley will play host to an important Olympic qualifying World Cup this January before the U.S. Ski Team heads to Vancouver for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

Snowbird will remain open Fri., Sat. and Sun. until June 14 (also including Mon. May 25 – Memorial Day), conditions permitting.

Snowbird is currently offering skiing from the Tram, Little Cloud and Mineral Basin Express on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Memorial Day. Starting May 29, Snowbird will have the Tram and Little Cloud open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at a reduced ticket price of $49 (sold at the Snowbird Tram ticket office, entry 2). The resort will reevaluate opening for additional weekends after June 14, to be determined by weather and snow conditions. Snowbird has received 621 inches of snowfall this season, well above the resort’s average of 500 inches annually.

Check out some highlights from Snowbird.  Skiing in the middle of May.  Better snow and less people= good times for you.  June anyone?

Do you think there should be trains which go up Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons? Would you like to see more bike paths in the future? Would you like to have input in the future of the canyons you call home? Then NOW is your chance to participate in the Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow process.

The Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow process will help update Salt Lake County’s 1989 Wasatch Canyons Master Plan. This plan guides policy for City Creek, Emigration, Red Butte, Parleys, Millcreek, Big Cottonwood, and Little Cottonwood Canyons. The canyons provide more than 50% of Salt Lake City’s water supply, and significantly add to the quality of life for residents of the Salt Lake Valley. With the doubling of the county’s population in the next 30 years, Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow will strive to ensure the long-term health of these treasured canyons, balancing land-use, recreational, transportation, and environmental concerns.

Workshops (May 12th, 13th and 14th 2009)

Educational workshops will inform the public about canyon issues, stimulate informed participation in the process, and seek public input. Interactive keypad polling gauges reaction to planning strategies in real time; participants will anonymously vote on survey questions. Workshops will begin at 6:30 p.m. To RSVP, contact canyons@envisionutah.org

May 12th

-Alta High School Media Center: 11055 S. Hawk Highway (Sandy)

-Hunter High School Cafeteria: 4200 S. 5600 W. (West Valley City)

May 13th

-Skyline High School Cafeteria: 3251 E. 3760 S. (Mill Creek)

-Sandy City Hall (2nd floor): 10000 S. Centennial Parkway

May 14th

-Westminster College Concert Hall: 1840 S. 1300 E. (Salt Lake City)

-West Jordan High School Media Center: 8136 S. 2700 W.

Those who miss a workshop can participate online through an interactive and educational survey by visiting www.wasatchcanyons.slco.org starting May 7th.