Is skiing popular in SLC as it is in Denver (Salt Lake City: spring break, rentals)

[ferner1]

I know there is good skiing, obviously. But I'm wondering if the people are so into it, like the hype around Denver you hear about. Are there people who live to ski like in Denver and the whole culture that comes with that? I am curious-mainly because it doesn't seem like Utah is quite like that (at least from the outside), but I may be wrong...

[kletter1mann]

Originally Posted by ferner1

I know there is good skiing, obviously. But I'm wondering if the people are so into it, like the hype around Denver you hear about. Are there people who live to ski like in Denver and the whole culture that comes with that? I am curious-mainly because it doesn't seem like Utah is quite like that (at least from the outside), but I may be wrong...

I'm not sure what the Denver ski hype is exactly, except that CO has lots of good skiing. But you're very wrong, Utah is like that. The whole outdoor culture is fanatical and that includes skiing. On top of that there's more snow, the snow is better and the proximity is VASTLY better than Denver. My SIL (from Seattle) commented that it's as routine, and close, as going to the grocery store. That's just a slight exaggeration. There are zillions of skiers that go up after breakfast and are home for lunch or after lunch and home for dinner. Denver isn't even close.

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by ferner1

I know there is good skiing, obviously. But I'm wondering if the people are so into it, like the hype around Denver you hear about. Are there people who live to ski like in Denver and the whole culture that comes with that? I am curious-mainly because it doesn't seem like Utah is quite like that (at least from the outside), but I may be wrong...

I've known a number of people who visited Salt Lake City to ski and ended up moving here specifically because of the skiing. This includes people from Michigan, Pennsylvania and Oregon. One man I know moved here from Philly, got a job teaching math at the community college here and managed to get a schedule teaching only a couple of early morning classes. The second he's out of school, he's up on the slopes. My guess is that he skis at least five days a week.

Skiing and snowboarding are absolutely huge here, and like kletter1man said, the mountains are so much closer to the city than the ones near Denver are to that city. I remember the first time I ever went to Denver. It seemed to take literally forever to get from the airport to downtown Denver and I kept wondering, "Where the hell are the mountains?" Finally, I realized they were out in the distance at the horizon. In Salt Lake, skiers get off the plane, collect their skis and gear, and can be getting on the ski lift in less than an hour. When you arrive in Salt Lake, you definitely don't have to ask, "Where are the mountains?"

[kletter1mann]

Originally Posted by Katzpur

I've known a number of people who visited Salt Lake City to ski and ended up moving here specifically because of the skiing. This includes people from Michigan, Pennsylvania and Oregon. One man I know moved here from Philly, got a job teaching math at the community college here and managed to get a schedule teaching only a couple of early morning classes. The second he's out of school, he's up on the slopes. My guess is that he skis at least five days a week.

Skiing and snowboarding are absolutely huge here, and like kletter1man said, the mountains are so much closer to the city than the ones near Denver are to that city. I remember the first time I ever went to Denver. It seemed to take literally forever to get from the airport to downtown Denver and I kept wondering, "Where the hell are the mountains?" Finally, I realized they were out in the distance at the horizon. In Salt Lake, skiers get off the plane, collect their skis and gear, and can be getting on the ski lift in less than an hour. When you arrive in Salt Lake, you definitely don't have to ask, "Where are the mountains?"

And you don't have to wonder what I-70 and the tunnel will be like. Some canyons can get congested but nothing like I-70.

[SWFL_Native]

It seems that more people that are from Utah are less interested in Skiing than people that have moved here. I think generally people that have moved to SLC for jobs are more motivated to pursue skiing that the "locals". There is a time + cost component that is prohibitive as well when you look at the price of season tickets & lift passes have risen over time.

When we first came in around ~2010 (ish) Park City Mountain Resort offered a program to Salt Lake Co residents for "learning to ski" program. It was something like $500 / person and included 5 lessons + lift passes + equipment rentals and then at the end of your lessons you got a season pass. It was quite the deal for us and of course there were black out dates (Christmas week + MLK Week + Pres Week + spring break) but those programs are all gone.

[English Ivy]

Ditto to everything posted so far.

[forsheamountain]

I've never gone skiing but I've ridden an inner tube pulled by a horse.

[mountainlocal]

Skiing is big business here and the city has many skiers/riders. It's a very lucrative market for the Ikon and Epic passes. Huge resorts like Deer Valley employ about 2500 workers.

Screenings for Warren Miller movies draw large audiences at symphony hall, and Banff Film Festival at Kingsbury Hall. There are tons of ski gear shops. There is a huge outdoor community here, though it's spread out throughout the valley and not in any one specific area.

From the outside, people have no idea what Salt Lake is really like. Seriously. I've lived in several other states and when I bring friends to Salt Lake for the first time their jaws drop. Most think it's going to be like Des Moines or a place where everyone is wearing white shirts and ties and riding around on bicycles. People have no idea what's here.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by ferner1

I know there is good skiing, obviously. But I'm wondering if the people are so into it, like the hype around Denver you hear about. Are there people who live to ski like in Denver and the whole culture that comes with that? I am curious-mainly because it doesn't seem like Utah is quite like that (at least from the outside), but I may be wrong...

I am much more familiar with Utah and Utah skiing than Colorado skiing. However, having recently visited Denver and the surrounding areas twice (having driven across the state twice too), I would be hard-pressed to believe, barring some compelling statistics, that Denver is more ski-oriented than Salt Lake City.

There are nine major ski areas within an hour of Salt Lake City's center, including a handful that are within Salt Lake County itself. Denver County doesn't have any ski areas within its limits, and I think only Loveland is remotely within an hour. You definitely do not see the concentration of ski shops and rental locations in Denver's core that you do in Salt Lake City.

As far as people, I think Salt Lakers and other people on the Wasatch Front are probably more interested in skiing because it is so accessible. Denver is a significantly larger and more cosmopolitan city when compared to Salt Lake, and many people, likely most, move to Denver with outdoor recreation like skiing as a secondary interest over other economic and social factors. Hardcore ski bums are more likely to find themselves in the foothills or the actual mountains versus Denver.

[parentologist]

Salt Lake is mecca for skiiers. Fantastic skiing within easy drive of the city. Used to be the world's best-kept skiing secret, but my son reports that since Ikon and Epic, the areas are very crowded. He said that a recent Ikon blackout day (over President's Day weekend) was like heaven, since no crowds.