Ted Johnson and Dick Bass built a recreation legacy. Snowbird’s millionaire oil tycoon and financier Dick Bass was an outdoor icon. Bass jet-setted the world’s highest peaks, summiting seven of them in his fifties. Bass not only set world records, he also started a trend that other aging, adventurous multi-millionaires would follow. John Krakauer’s famous Everest expedition … [Read more...]
Mountains of Money: What Happened to Utah Ski Resorts?
For better or for worse, our beloved ski resorts are full of high-speed quads, trams and gondolas. They race skiers atop mountains in less than half the time of the old rope tows or clunky, slow regular chair lifts. But there is just one downside ... Powder days have become powder mornings or even powder hours. With a huge abundance of skiers on the mountains (thanks to the … [Read more...]
Old School: A Kitschy Throwback Restaurant Comes to Snowbird
Back in 1971 I was playing in a couple of garage bands with names like The Devil’s Advocate and Phunn. Some of the hits we were covering from that year included Lee Michaels’ Do You Know What I Mean, Color My World by Chicago, and Sweet City Woman by The Stampeders. The Exorcist and Love Story were best selling books in 1971 and at the cinemas, Fiddler on the Roof, The French … [Read more...]
Utah Ski Resort Roundup
Alta The 2019-20 is Alta Ski Area’s 82nd ski season serving up lift served skiing. Alta started out as a mining town and in 1938 the first chairlift was scooping skiers up to earn powder turns. A nightly booking at all lodges includes breakfast and dinner. Alta receives an average yearly snowfall of 547” inches with 2,614 skiable acres. “If you can see it, you can it.” With … [Read more...]
High West Whiskey Dinner at Stanza
Martinis & Oysters at Under Current Bar Big Gin is named in part to honor Ben Capdevielle’s father, Big Jim. Capdevielle — owner and founder of Big Gin — began distilling gin as a hobby with his dad, who in turn had learned distilling from his father. Ben Capdevielle will entertain guests with the story of Big Gin and Captive Spirits Distilling. The public is welcome (21 … [Read more...]
Utah Sips: This Week’s Updates on Local Beer and Wine Happenings
Bohemian Brewery and Salt City Brew Supply This Saturday, March 3rd, at 2:00 PM Bohemian Brewery & Grill will team up with Salt City Brew Supply to host a lager class for homebrewers. Guest speaker Paul Konopelski from Bohemian Brewery will be on hand to help attendees understand what lagers are along with tricks and tips for brewing great lager beers. Paul is a brewer for … [Read more...]
Junior Bounous – A Lifetime on the Slopes
The Bounous family is a skiing legacy. Junior Bounous, now 90, started skiing with homemade skis made from barrel staves. When he was around 8, his mother gave him his first pair of “real skis” which he used on the hills of Provo Canyon. There were no ski resorts at the time and so skiing involved a lot of hiking. Junior competed for the first time in High School in cross … [Read more...]
ONE Wasatch – Controversial Ski Lift Proposal
Get ready for more fighting over ONE Wasatch, the controversial proposal to connect Wasatch Mountain ski resorts with a plethora of new ski lifts. The battle has been escalating ever since Ski Utah—the marketing firm for all of Utah’s snow resorts---held a press conference last March to announce the ONE Wasatch concept. ONE Wasatch calls for connecting seven ski resorts … [Read more...]