Ranking Ski Resorts

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mj4cy

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It still kind of kills me that you are finally giving Utah a shot and planning on sticking only to Park City. Since I know you are used to Colorado, I'm not sure Park City will give you a whole lot outside of what you are used to in Colorado with its expensive tickets, food, lodging, and Colorado comparable snow. Yes, it is a VERY cool ski town. However, if you are going to Utah for Utah runs and Utah snow, you just aren't really going to get it there. Those are found up at the Cottonwood resorts mostly. Therefore, if I can at least plead anything with you, it would be to use that last day of skiing as a trek over to Snowbird (Alta is no-boarders). Truthfully, I'm not sure how you can ski Utah without skiing Snowbird for a day. Plus, you'd get your first tram experience too. There is none of those in Colorado.


The group decided Park City. I'm honestly fine with anywhere. Just fun to get away and not have to worry about keeping 3 kids alive for a few days :)

I think the last day we might trek over to one of the Cottonwood resorts. If the weather is bad, worst case scenario, we decide if we want to do Park City again or Deer Valley and make the boarder ski ha!
 
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Triggermv

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The group decided Park City. I'm honestly fine with anywhere. Just fun to get away and not have to worry about keeping 3 kids alive for a few days :)

I think the last day we might trek over to one of the Cottonwood resorts. If the weather is bad, worst case scenario, we decide if we want to do Park City again or Deer Valley and make the boarder ski ha!

Snowbasin is also a decent possibility for you guys based on your location. I've never been there, but always wanted to go. Hear it is really good.
 
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Chitownclone2

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I heard the following joke from a lift ticket operator out in Keystone back in the mid 90's before they allowed them:

"What does a vacuum cleaner and snow board have in common? They both have a dirt bag attached to them."
 

Cyclone.TV

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Hilarious video from the 80s about how skiers hated snowboarders at first.....eerily similar to videos I've seen from the 50s/60s of white people down south.



Holy. Crap. That one dude is amazing. “They don’t listen to our side”. Hahaha so good.
 

Cyclone.TV

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This thread makes me want to watch the movie Ski School.

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Ski patrol is way better.
 
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ClonesFTW

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A little dramatic... sure. However, there is a pretty drastic difference in look and feel alone between Park City and Snowbird. The terrain is fairly different. It would almost be like comparing A-Basin to Vail. Even the difference in terrain between the little and big cottonwood resorts is fairly noticeable.

Agreed. We leave for our Utah trip in 2 weeks; we're doing Snowbird twice because we liked it so much last year. Park City is great for a casual riding and multiple stops for brews.
 
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SolarGarlic

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I haven't been to more than a handful of resorts outside of the midwest, but as for Rocky Mountain trails, The run from the top of Mary Jane all the way down to the bottom lodge at Winter Park was as enjoyable of a ride I've ever been on.

The top of that run is my phone background. The snow isn't always great, but I struggle to branch out beyond that run because it's so much fun.
 

pulse

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Skiied Jackson Hole a few days ago. Lots of great times there over spring break with the ISU Ski club. Skiied Grand Targhee the next day for the first time, great fresh powder. Deer Valley yesterday. Sorry to report it's thin out here in Utah. Park City today, maybe Alta or Snowbird tomorrow.
 
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randomfan44

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Just finished three days of skiing at Keystone with some buddies. The new condo worked out great and we logged a crap ton of runs. I think we hit 95,000 vertical feet. Got a few inches of snow today while we skied, great week.
 
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Tri4Cy

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Heading to Steamboat next week. Really wish I was going to be there over the next few days. Forecast looks great!
 

ClonesFTW

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Agreed. We leave for our Utah trip in 2 weeks; we're doing Snowbird twice because we liked it so much last year. Park City is great for a casual riding and multiple stops for brews.

Got back from the trip yesterday, Snowbird was great. We spent one day on the front and the other day on the backside (Mineral Basin). Park City was not in great shape, it was as icy as Seven Oaks in early March. If anyone is heading there soon I would recommend a different mountain.
 

DurangoCy

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CO is finally getting some good snow. The weekend saw a fair amount up north and today the San Juan's are getting hit pretty good. Should be good skiing for the next few days.

Hopefully the snowpack can turn it around Feb, March, and April.

upload_2018-2-12_16-9-50.png
 

dahliaclone

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I started a thread on this last year after my trip to Utah, and since I've taken a new ski trip to Lake Tahoe this year (skied Heavenly and Kirkwood), I figured it would be worth updating and resurfacing this topic for some fun discussion for all you avid skiers out there. With that said, the following is my updated rankings of all the ski resorts I've been to in my lifetime and a bit of why I chose them that way. Feel free to post your own lists as well or simply just critique mine.

1. Alta (Utah) - Best snow, Best Terrain (especially extreme terrain), Best for Expert Skiers (everything is harder at Alta... greens, blues, blacks, double-blacks), No boarders allowed
2. Keystone (Colorado) - Best Tree Runs, Best Lifts, Best Night Skiing, Fun Snowcat Skiing
3. Vail (Colorado) - Biggest Resort by Far, Nicest Resort, Great Runs, Best Back Bowls, One of the Best Ski Towns, Too Many Catwalks
4. Brighton (Utah) - Very Simple and Laid Back (I like), 2nd Best Snow, Great Tree Runs, Smallest Lines, 2nd Best Value (I call Brighton Alta-Light)
5. Kirkwood - new (California) - Almost an exact blend of Alta and Brighton, only with not as good and consistent of snow and too many slow lifts, 2nd Smallest Lines, 3rd Best Value, Very Laid-Back, Fairly Challenging Terrain, Worst Lifts
6. Heavenly - new (California) - Best Views by Far, 2nd Nicest Resort, One of Best Ski Towns, 2nd Largest Resort, Great Runs, Great Lifts, Good Tree Runs, Best for Skiing in T-Shirt, Worst Consistent Snow
7. Copper Mountain (Colorado) - Best Value, Nice Runs Overall, Smaller Lift Lines, Free Snowcat Skiing, More Laid-Back
8. Park City Mountain Resort (Utah) - Coolest Town Setting, Big Resort, Good Lifts, So-So Views, Decent Snow
9. Breckenridge (Colorado) - Decent Overall, Very Busy, Too Many Boarders, Good Lifts, Cool Ski Town
10. Sunrise Park (Arizona) - Fun Place, Not Colorado or Utah, Still Lots Better Than Iowa
11. Chestnut Mountain (Illinois) - I Like the Runs, Resort Area, and Views Better than Sundown, Little further drive than Sundown, Underrated for being in Midwest
12. Sundown (Iowa) - Closest Ski Resort, Best in Iowa

Big Sky
 

cybychoice

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Some friends and I are loading up to drive out to Breckenridge from Ankeny friday. We have an airbnb and we are going to explore the town saturday/sunday. Plannning on going to copper mountain to ski though as it's cheaper. Any suggestions or tips for this trip?
 

cyclonedave25

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Some friends and I are loading up to drive out to Breckenridge from Ankeny friday. We have an airbnb and we are going to explore the town saturday/sunday. Plannning on going to copper mountain to ski though as it's cheaper. Any suggestions or tips for this trip?
Moose Jaw in Frisco has some amazing burgers.
It’s like a small local bar/restaurant.
We make sure to go there once every trip when we are in the area. Would be perfect to hit up after a day on the slopes on your way back home.
 

mj4cy

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So I didn't realize it but I'm leaving in 2.5 weeks for Utah. I've done literally no pre-skiing workouts to get the legs in shape. Any quick tips as to what to do even around the house the next 2 weeks? I've read to just do wall squats and side to side box jumps.

I meant to do more working out but chasing around 3 kids and choosing to drink beer and watch hoops has really cut into my personal health time :)
 

RedDog

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Some friends and I are loading up to drive out to Breckenridge from Ankeny friday. We have an airbnb and we are going to explore the town saturday/sunday. Plannning on going to copper mountain to ski though as it's cheaper. Any suggestions or tips for this trip?
We skied Copper in late January. Good base, only saw a couple rocks, and they have been getting good snow since.
 

pulse

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So I didn't realize it but I'm leaving in 2.5 weeks for Utah. I've done literally no pre-skiing workouts to get the legs in shape. Any quick tips as to what to do even around the house the next 2 weeks? I've read to just do wall squats and side to side box jumps.

I meant to do more working out but chasing around 3 kids and choosing to drink beer and watch hoops has really cut into my personal health time :)

Just do squats everyday for the next 2 weeks and you'll fine. You can even multitask and do it while drinking beer and watching hoops.