For our fourth interview of the Frame of Mind Series, we spoke with Solitude Ambassador Harrison Hogan Holley. Harrison is hands-down one of the nicest guys you’ll find on the mountain and is very much responsible for helping the Spread Stoke crew fall in love with Solitude Mountain Resort. Born and raised in Park City, Utah, Harrison grew up competing in freestyle moguls on the Park City Freestyle Team. He then started competing on the Freeskiing World Tour and continues to compete on the Freeride World Tour this season. Between competitions and work, he also spends all season making us drool with his pow shots on Instagram.

Harrison Hogan Holley at Solitude, Utah | Photographer: Eric Dyer

Spread Stoke: Where is your hometown?

Harrison: Park City, Utah.

SS: Who can you usually find yourself on a chairlift with?

Harrison: My good buddy Eric Dyer aka Derr, Benny Mikes, the Spread Stoke ladies or any other members of the Solitude MYST.

SS: Conditioning off the mountain is an essential element to performance on the mountain.  Do you have any training techniques (whether physical or mental) you would like to share?

Harrison: Hate on it as much as you want, but CrossFit has gotten me in the best shape of my life. I haven’t been to any other gym other than Alpenfit in Park City so maybe other gyms fit the “bro” mold that is associated with CrossFit’s negative image, but the coaches at Alpenfit are nothing short of amazing! They focus on knowledge and progress in life outside the gym, making you a better athlete in whatever discipline you enjoy. If you want to get in shape for skiing give it a shot, I swear by it.

SS: What’s been the most challenging aspect of being an athlete?

Harrison: The mental aspect of competitions is by far the most challenging aspect. Nerves can really take over when you are competing. I always say that the worst feeling in the world is standing on top of a comp venue waiting for your start and the best feeling ever is being at the bottom after stomping a good line. Focusing on skiing and having fun in comps always seems to help me ski better.

Harrison Hogan Holley at Solitude, Utah | Photographer: Eric Dyer

SS: Besides shredding the white wintry wave, what else do you enjoy doing?

Harrison: In the summer I love to mountain bike and whitewater raft. Mountain biking helps me keep in shape and there is nothing like rafting to help escape reality.

SS: What is your life motto?

Harrison: “Send it before you send it”. The phrase was created while on tour with my good buddies Connor Pelton and Connery Lundin. It basically means don’t let the present hold you back from the future or vice versa, live life to the fullest, do it all!

SS: What fuel goes into your body before and after a day on the hill?

Harrison: Before skiing: Coffee and a smoothie. After skiing: Beer and mostly pizza.

SS: What does skiing do for your soul?

Harrison: I love getting away from crowds by exploring the mountains which is often the case while skiing (especially since there are no crowds at Solitude), but I don’t see skiing as anything ‘spiritual’ like many people talk it up to be. I think it was a quote in an old TGR or Matchstick movie that said something like “everyone talks skiing up to be this spiritual cleanse, but I look at it more of a funny concept that we hike up a mountain just to go back down and if we are lucky we will have sh!t hit us in the face the whole way down”. I guess I always try to keep things light and comical while on the hill. I’m not very mature.

Harrison Hogan Holley at Grand Targhee, Wyoming | Photographer: Jasper Gibson

SS: Solitude, it’s all in the name.  What are some of your favorite attributes of Solitude and how is it unique from other Utah resorts?

Harrison: More powder per person. There is never the powder panic you get at other resorts where people freak out, push and shove, cram like sardines into trams or track an entire mountain out in an hour. The overall atmosphere is laid back and fun, which is exactly what skiing should be. You can ski untracked snow in Honeycomb days after a storm or get into some of the steepest most challenging inbounds terrain offered anywhere in the world.  If you disagree go hike Fantasy Ridge.

SS: What goes through your mind before, during and after executing or capturing a technical line or feature?

Harrison: Before: Nerves. During: Blackout and/or concentration, I usually can’t remember. After: Stoke! Or a need for redemption. Or, where are my skis?

SS: When you’re not on the hill or working out, what can we most likely find you doing?

Harrison: I bartend at Highwest, so come stop by and grab a delicious Old Fashioned from me and I’ll tell you how much better of a skier I am than you. Just kidding. But really, the Old Fashions are delicious!

SS: Let’s talk 2017 Goals: What can we expect from you for the rest of the year?

Harrison: #1: Stay healthy. #2: Ski often. #3: Defend my title at the PCMR Chinese Downhill.

SS: As athletes, you serve as role models in the outdoor industry.  Any advice, reflections or ideas on the types of things you would like see the outdoor industry strive for?

Harrison: Being from Utah, I would love to see the state recognize the value of its open spaces. This article by Black Diamond Founder, Peter Metcalf perfectly sums up my point.

Harrison Hogan Holley at Solitude, Utah | Photographer: Eric Dyer

SS: What’s bumpin’ in your earbuds?

Harrison: I like my beats like I like my cereal, crunchy.

SS: Spread Stoke’s values are: Do what you love, leave this world a better place than you found it, and spread stoke to those around you.  How do you demonstrate these values?

Harrison: On the mountain I always strive to be the person who brings the morale of the group up. That may be pumping a buddy up on a cool line or most often cracking terrible jokes. Everyone talks about not leaving a footprint on the world insinuating a footprint is a bad thing. I think everyone should strive to leave a footprint on the Earth, but have that footprint be an improvement in whatever you enjoy.

SS: Do you have any shout-outs to sponsors?

Harrison: Sego Ski Co., Soul Poles, Solitude Mountain Resort and Spread Stoke for putting this together. Looking at the list above, I guess anyone else that has a company that starts with an “S” please contact me for sponsorship.

We hope you enjoyed our Frame of Mind interview! Be sure to say “What’s up!” to Harrison on the hill this season and give him a follow on Instagram @harhoghol (seriously though, he ALWAYS gets the shot!).

Stay tuned for our next Frame of Mind interview. If you know someone who should be featured, let us know.

The Kitten Factory crew and friends do some skiing around Utah’s Wasatch.

For perspective we are only at about 95% of average for snowfall so far this season.  These powder shots are just “average” or even slightly “below average” for Utah.   I’n the past month I’ve  done lots of resort riding, splitboarding and even some pow surfing.  I have been so lucky to ride so much with my family and friends.  It’s nice for a  41 year old weekend warrior like me to have the storms line up with my holiday vacations.  Let’s just say I took advantage of my time off!

RESORT RIDING

They call this zone “Hokkaido” at Brighton. Obviously named after pow zones of Japan.

My teenage son throwing up pow plumes at Snowbird.

Snowbird can be frustrating with closures, crowds, angry tourists and locals, but sometimes you will have the run of your life that keeps you going back!

My wife rips Snowbird! Give it up to the mom shredders out there!

Avalanche danger had many frustrating closures at Snowbird and I wasn’t about to venture out in the backcountry either.

The catwalks made for some fun jumps at Snowbird!

Snowbird

Brighton

Brighton

POW SURFING, NO BINDINGS

About to drop without bindings.  Yes my heart is pounding.  You really have to think about your line.  It is not like you can come to an instant stop like you can on your snowboard.  You really have to surf the mountain, think ahead even more than usual.  It is super addicting.

You can see my line in the center.  Not to brag but I think it is so much more fluid than the ski and snowboard tracks to my skiers left and right.

Deep powder turns on a board without bindings might be the ultimate high in powder snowboarding and skiing.

Self portrait

SPLITBOARDING

Always grateful to get a shot of me.  I invested in an airbag this season.  Float 22 BCA.  Good day pack, but pack light.  the Float 32 might be better for those that like to pack a bit more than the essentials.

Wasatch Mountain Arts Presents Wasatch Mountain Film Festival Line up

In February of 2014, Sasha Yakovleff decided to mix things up and leave the comforts of his New Hampshire hometown to make a cross-country move for a job opportunity in Salt Lake City, Utah. The decision wasn’t too hard since he knew Utah was a world-class biking destination and the new surroundings would offer plenty of choices to fuel his two-wheel addiction.

“You’re only young once, might as well travel around a bit and explore,” says Sasha. “Utah has opened my eyes and put things into perspective. I miss New Hampshire dearly and I’ll be back home permanently at some point, but until then I’m not sure where life will take me. However, I know I’ll be aboard a bike wherever I go.”

Moving your life can be tough. Making new friends and getting familiar with a new neighborhood can be a daunting experience and humbling to some, but Sasha sought to make it a quick process. His love for bikes and an incredible motivation to challenge himself have helped him settle into his new home and explore the limitless riding options waiting out the backdoor.

“Riding a bike is the ultimate sense of freedom for me. It doesn’t really matter where I am or what mood I’m in, riding always makes me happy and I have to thank my sponsors for helping me with that – Scott Bikes, Deity Components, Kenda Tires, Mavic, G-Form, Bern Unlimited, TRP Brakes, Five Ten, Darn Tough Vermont. My motivation though is pretty simple – keep myself challenged physically and mentally. There is always something new to learn or ride, whether at the dirt jumps or way out in the woods on some remote mountainside.” – Sasha

The constant desire for something new is a driving force behind Sasha’s creativity. He’s a nine-to-fiver who doesn’t understand the term “weekend warrior.” Everyday provides if you’re motivated to take advantage, and the Wasatch is a big backyard with more to offer than most seek to realize. The abundance of pleasures is almost overwhelming, and even after a good soak, you can easily be satisfied with just the tip.

“When I moved to Utah, my first thought was damn this place is dry, I hope we get a ton of rain. New Hampshire has variable weather which you learn to love, but Utah is much more sunny and dry. When it rains here I get really stoked and head to the woods to build. The nice thing about the Wasatch is the variety. You can ride whatever you want. Dirt jumps down low, alpine riding up high, DH or all-mountain trails in between.” – Sasha

Over the past few seasons, I’ve had the opportunity to tag along with Sasha as he familiarized himself with his new backyard. Being on the bike or shoveling dirt seem to be the only two things he thinks about, and soon I started to expect a call or text from him every couple of days to go shoot a new feature he had been secretly building over the weekend or scout something he spotted from the road on his drive to work that looked fun to ride. We got together at the end of this season to recount a few of the fun adventures and build projects we had photographed together.

“This was shot early in the morning in March. I Street is a winter staple in Salt Lake City as it is usually rideable year-round. In fact, the dirt there is much better in the winter when it’s actually wet and malleable. The funny thing about I Street is that things are always changing. Lots of people build there, so the place has tons of personality. I don’t know who built this jump but it’s awesome; you can just pull for days.” – Sasha

There had been a couple wildfires this past summer just outside of Park City. Sasha and I scouted this area after he spotted the burn zone on a cross-country ride and thought the ashy dirt would make for some good turns. Besides being covered in soot when we got back to the car, it was a fun new experience for both of us.

“I had driven by this spot a million times, or taken the bus up past it with my DH bike to go ride other trails. I thought about riding it before but was too lazy and forgetful to check it out until it rained one time this past spring. The dirt was perfect and it was really fun to ride. There are a few sections of different pitches where you can alternate your speed and push out a brown pow turn or two. Plus, first descents are hard to beat.” – Sasha

“Evil Empire is a Park City classic DH freeride trail that never gets old. It starts at Jupiter Peak and descends over 2200’ vertical feet back into Old Town Park City via Daly Canyon. This jump is rad and on one of my favorite sections of the trail near the bottom in the Black Forest of Empire Canyon. The pines thin out a bit as you jump through aspens before dipping back into the darkness.” – Sasha

“Raspberry Lane is one of my favorite pirate trails and sits just above the top of Old Town in Park City. We were actually scouting out another shot on an overcast day and noticed the fall colors in this berm. Funny how things work out when you’re looking for something else – always keep your eyes open I guess.” – Sasha

I think Sasha’s least favorite time of the year is after Daylight Savings when it gets dark super quick in the afternoon. For someone who works all day but lives to shred, it’s frustrating to only have an hour or so to ride after work in the later part of the fall. Luckily the Park City Dirt Jumps are easy to get to and the street lamps at the fire station next door help illuminate the open field of jumps for a few laps before dinner.

The Oakley Skatepark is located right next to one of the biggest rodeo venues in Utah. The town population is about 1,000, but the new $3 million rodeo arena seats 6,000. It can be windy a lot of times, but if you wait it out, the Kamas Valley sunsets are usually incredible.

Eric Porter has one of the sickest backyard setups, stacked with stunt ramps, a pump track and a water slide snake run connected to another pump track in the neighbor’s yard. Fall BBQ sessions at Porter’s are some of the funnest days during late season.

“After moving to Utah, it took me about a year to scout out a few spots I wanted to build and learn my way around the place a bit. I knew I wanted to build a large wallride in the middle of the woods, and what better place to put it than in an Aspen grove? This thing is tucked up on a hillside in Park City. We built it, painted it and sessioned it a few times before the snow started to fall. The aspen leaves died early this year due to a fungus, so hopefully we can catch a golden frame next autumn when the grove goes off.” – Sasha

Adventures in any backyard can be endless if you use your creativity. Even when it seems like there’s nothing new left to discover, building and riding have endless possibilities. When you’re passionate about riding your bike and always looking for something new to shred, you’ll find a way to satisfy your cravings but also stay thirsty for more. He might be settled into his new home now, but Sasha’s quest for new fun outside his doorstep will never stop regardless of how long he stays anywhere.

Dogs are awesome. Mutts are even better. We adopted Lucy, our cattle dog mix, after finding her wandering the foothills above our house where she had been heartlessly abandoned in the middle of winter. She was surviving on mice and voles she caught by pouncing through the snow like a fox, so it took several months before she realized the bowls of dog food we fed her weren’t a passing phase. She still terrorizes rodents of all sorts, but now simply for the sport of it.

Six years later, she’s a solid member of our pack, and we can’t imagine our lives without her. She may have given up living off of rodents, but she still enjoys chasing anything with four legs — the bigger the better it seems. She’s seen more of the Western U.S. than most people. She’s been there as my daughters have grown up from young girls to young women. She’s chased us down untracked powder.  She’s explored the depths of mountain ranges. She has curled up next to me under a tarp in the rain. She’s an “adventure dog” through and through, and she embodies the “explore more” attitude with her limitless energy. As a good friend once said, “everything’s better when you do it with a dog” and that is the truth! Here’s to all the great mutts out there who spend their days living the lives others dream of. In my next life I can only hope I come back as a heeler mutt living along the Wasatch Range. It’s a pretty great life.

Chris Morgan
www.twosherpas.com
insta: @chris_twosherpas

Photo credit: Richard Tilton (@richardtilton)

Who says the time between summer and ski season doesn’t have much to offer here in Utah’s Wasatch mountains? Perfect mountain biking conditions and weather gave us some good time in late October/early November.

The Kitten Factory team got out and around Utah during a less than stellar winter, taking full advantage of the few good days we had. Filmed in and around the Wasatach range and of course some fun spring days at Snowbird and Alta!

Thanks to Evan Heath, Hennie VJ, Jack Atkins, Jeremiah Paquette, Mike Blatt, Joe Fusare and Garrett Jurach for additional footage. Head to kfskis.com to check out the new skis.

Last fall, Caroline Gleich and I met and bounced around ideas of video projects for the coming winter.  Over plates of delicious Middle Eastern food at Mazza’s in Salt Lake City, we discussed our plans, goals, and thoughts about the ski season.  While we were full of ideas, we were also short on free time and a budget.  I ate some pita bread and thought of what we could do.  Caroline wanted to make a video focusing on her training regime.  I had a lot of commitments over the winter, but I had a kernel of an idea for a video.  A few more servings of muhamara and loobia later and we’d come up with a plan.  We just needed to shoot some video before the snows hit and then meet again a few months later to get some on-snow shots.

The next week, we met again in SLC and over the course of one day we were able to shoot video of Caroline running in the foothills, working out at the gym, and hiking at Snowbird Resort.  It was a long, fun day, and I knew I captured a lot of great shots.  We said goodbye and wished each other all the best during the upcoming ski season.  I threw together a quick assembly edit to make sure I had all the shots I needed, then I moved on to other gigs and didn’t think much about our unfinished project.

Between Caroline’s world travels and my own “schedule restrictions” (aka – other obligations that required skiing), we couldn’t choose a day to meet until April.  Unfortunately, the weak snow year was also deciding to give up the ghost and leave us even earlier than usual.  As we talked about our plans, the prospect of running out of snow was very real.  Luckily, two late season storms hit and gave us the saving grace of a new layer of snow.  Then, almost immediately after it fell, this white goodness started to melt, too.

As we drove up the Little Cottonwood Canyon I noticed the buds on the maple trees opening up.  The canyon was a sea of glowing green.  Beautiful, but not what I needed to capture some “on snow” shots.  I was worried we’d waited too late in the season.  One mile down the canyon from Snowbird the snow coverage was still sketchy and I was still worried.  A couple more miles up the canyon and we parked at the base of Mt Superior.  Caroline pointed at the approach and the chute she wanted to ski.  It looked great!  The cruel sun didn’t have a clear shot, with it so nicely nestled at a bit over 8,000 ft we found our perfect location.

It was a short morning skin and boot pack followed by a short ski back down.  The video came together rather quickly at that point.  It attempts to showcase not only the work that goes into training for Caroline’s physically demanding adventures into the mountains, but her thoughts about why she is always in pursuit of Type 2+ fun.  Enjoy!

Caroline Gleich: carolinegleich.com
video by Chris Morgan: twosherpas.com
music by Steve Gibbs: stevegibbsmusic.com

I’ll be honest, this is far from the best winter I have had in the Wasatch.  Saying that, I still rather have a bad year in Utah than an epic winter in most places.  So what have I been doing with myself this winter? Lots of resort riding, lots of splitboarding and even some more surfing.  I am feeling lucky to still score pow and waves this winter.  Stay stoked!

The views from Snowbird Tram.

Dave Suhre enjoying the pow! Even in a bad winter we still get waist deep days!

Dave Suhre sends a cliff on Baldy at Snowbird.

Dave Suhre enjoys the fresh at Snowbird. 

Devon King sends a method at Snowbird. 

Jesse Coss playing in the powder at Snowbird.

Jon Schofield rips some pow on his splitboard in Silver Fork.

Jon Schofield slashing in the sun on his splitboard in Silver Fork.

Jon Schofield rips some pow in LCC on his splitboard.

This is me ripping powder at Snowbird!

Me again, not too bad for a 40 year old! Snowboarding keeps you young!

My wife Melanie enjoys the fresh snow at Snowbird. I love that smile. Go team mom!

Full moon splitboard tour up at Brighton.

Tony Madrid keeps an eye on the moose on a recent splitboard tour out of the Canyons.

Pete Wurster, owner of Unity Snowboards, enjoys a splitboard tour out of the Canyons.

My son finally is big enough to have a splitboard. Here he is on his way to the top of Patsy Marley via Grizzly Gulch.

My son Sam stands on top of Patsy Marley.

Just because it was his first tour on a splitboard, doesn’t mean he is a stranger to powder!

Sam quickly learns the benefits of splitboarding!

Jon and Quin head up for another lap in Silver Fork.

Yeah when it snows in Utah, it usually dumps!

February wasn’t all powder for me. I actually surfed as many days in California as I got on my board in Utah for the month!

Warm temps and offshore winds, what more could you ask for!

Take me back!!!!

After a spring-like February, we finally got that big storm we’ve all been craving! Here’s a few photos of me, and a quick edit filmed on the GoPro of me and my buddies getting some well deserved pow!!!

Battling the major identity crisis that is Winter 2015 it’s hard not to get down over here on the drier side of the continent. While all those East Coasters revel in deep snow and frigid temps, we’re all walking around in t-shirts and sandals out West. It’s a good old reminder to appreciate the deep days and perhaps a sobering sneak peak at winters to come if we don’t assault that beast, global warming. My good buddy Mike and I were musing about all the warm,  springlike temps here in Utah and thinking about the triple-sport days we usually log in late April or May.  While these usually consist of climbing-skiing-biking, or perhaps skiing-biking-running, we thought we could attempt something a bit more unusual. Why not add PADDLE to the triple-sport roster, mix it up a little. So we did. With an alpine start we managed to paddle and pedal out at Antelope Island before heading higher to Snowbird for a few runs. It wasn’t exactly ‘powdery’ up at Snowbird but the title ‘Paddle, Pedal, Slide Down Ice At Low Tide” just didn’t have the same ring to it.

This is a quick peek at our TRIPLE DIP.

Last week I joined up with some of the SKILOGIK crew at Snowbasin Ski Resort during a WWSRA demo day.  Despite temperatures more reminiscent of early Spring than mid-February, Dave Rosen and I headed out early to see what snow had fallen overnight at the upper elevations.  Most skiers were there to try out a wide range of different skis, so they were loading onto the Needles Gondola for a quick ride up, and a fast ride down run, back to the base area.  We had other plans.

Hopping on the JP chairlift we separated ourselves from the crowd.  We then rode the empty Mt Allen Tram that dropped us off at the top of the ski area (approx 9,300′ elevation).  We were thrilled to see a few inches of untracked snow, sub-freezing temps, and an overcast sky to keeps the temps down — we threw on our skis, took off, and enjoyed the best snow conditions we’d seen in a week.

We did six laps back down to the tram before we headed back to the base to grab the others.  During one of the rides up the Tram, Dave commented how shocked he was that we’d only seen three other skiers, so it was like having the place to ourselves.  ”Better lucky than good is what I always say.”

The clouds kept moving up and over the mountain in waves, so visibility kept alternating from poor to spectacular.

Early that afternoon we headed back up with Darrell Haggard, Skylar Memsic, and Emma Morgan (SKILOGIK athlete manager, SKILOGIK athlete, and SKILOGIK ambassador, respectively).

We stuck to the upper elevations and took advantage of little stashes of goodness we could find.

Dave during one of his standard launches.

Dave Rosen throwing a Cork 7 off a natural wind lip above a two stage drop.

Skylar sending it with the barren mountains as a backdrop.

Emma charging hard and showing what great ski technique looks like.

Dave enjoying the views after a great day of skiing.  Now let’s pray for snow and some good ol’ Utah Powder!

Written by Chris Morgan (twosherpas.com / Instagram: @chris_twosherpas)

Skiers: Dave Rosen (@daverosen1), Emma Morgan (@skiemma), Darrell Haggard, and Skylar Memsic

Thanks to SKILOGIK, ZEAL Optics, Surefoot, and Snowbasin Resort.

Related Deals:

• Shop for SKILOGIK at REI.com
• Buy discounted lift tickets for Snowbasin, Utah
• Save up to 30% on Zeal Optics at Backcountry.com

This picture shows the beauty of urban skiing. When things aren’t always great on the mountain, this shows how you can still have fun simply in someone’s backyard or neighborhood.

Here’s a quick and insightful look into the world of veteran Snowbasin ski patroller, GR Fletcher. I was fortunate enough to be able to follow GR during a morning of avalanche control work on the mountain as he explained what motivates him to continue as a patroller after over twenty years on the job.  The video is short and sweet, so grab your coffee and enjoy before gearing up and heading for the mountain.

Enjoy!

A last minute email from fellow big mountain telemarker Bevan Waite boded well for great holiday week ski sessions… and that was before the Wasatch was pounded by storm after storm! Check out some highlights in this quick edit put together by Bevan.

After a two week drought and a horrible start to the 2014/15 snow season, we are asking ourselves what does it all mean.

After a four-year stretch at other resorts, I returned to Solitude Resort this year. I missed the lack of lift-lines and amazing backcountry access. So far I haven’t been disappointed.

Last Sunday after two weeks without snow, we found the most amazing line of inbounds fresh powder!

I know what your thinking. Bullshit, no way! I assure you it is all-true.

Now we‘re not talking blower powder up to your eyeballs, after all it is the beginning of December. We are talking knee deep, soft and slashible powder. The kind where you charge down the mountain without much worry. Core shots or being harpooned by a hidden stick are far from your mind. The kind of powder where you just get lost in the moment, feeling the snow moving and spraying under your board. Where you’re weightless and floating on nature’s frozen cloud.

We charge down the mountain and slashing deep backside turns that sent snow arching though the air like surfing at pipeline. Then popped off a buried tree stump and landed on what felt like a new down pillow. Cruising, linking, from one turn to the next, one stump, then a log, and finally down a natural half using the transition to boost higher.

It didn’t last long though, only a few hundred yards. It was so amazing that when we reached the bottom and looked back at the line, we said to ourselves, “Holy shit that was fun!”  I looked over at my friends and everyone was just looking back at the line. You could see it in their eyes, that kind of satisfied hunger. Everyone knows that might have been the best run of the season. Yet, it’s only the beginning.

Now I have that hunger growing again. How long will I have to wait for one more amazing, life changing run?

Though we haven’t had much snow lately and have had record warm temperatures, it hasn’t kept us from getting out and enjoying the mountains. Pray for snow!

Went to good ole Heber skatepark with my pals Bryan and Bass and did some rolling around.  Alex Bass with the edit.

In order of appearance: Tyler Plane, Alex Bass, Bryan Baisley.

Music: “My Rap World” – Andre Nickatina

Tram laps in the Summer? Dreams do come true! Snowbird Resort in Little Cottonwood Canyon dropped a stoke bomb on mountain bike fiends this week announcing the grand opening of their brand-spankin-new Big Mountain Trail. Needless to say, we’re aching to get to Snowbird ASAP to do some laps on what will certainly be a premier must-do trail when visiting the Wasatch.

According to the Ski Utah video (see below), the trail is approx. 3000 vertical feet, 7.5 miles long, and takes about 1 – 2 hours to ride depending upon rider experience. So that means it’s a <10 min. ride up the tram for a massive descent back to the tram deck. CAN.NOT.WAIT! From the video, it looks like there are lots of smooth berms to rail, a few wood features, and a mix of high alpine and aspen single track to give even the most spoiled of riders a mega-fix of downhill fun.

Here’s some beta directly from Snowbird.com about the trail:

• Hours: 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
• Access: Hidden Peak (Tram MTB ticket required), Down-traffic ONLY after 11 a.m.
• *Trail Rating: Blue (intermediate)
• Distance: 7.5 miles from Hidden Peak to the Snowbird Center via Dick Bass Highway.
• Trail drops 2,900 vertical feet with an 8 percent average grade. Wide-open straightaways, tight forested turns, small earthen tabletops, wooden bridges and amazing down-canyon views. Very little pedaling required. Helmets required.

• Adult $19 Half-Day, $29 All-Day
• Child $16 Half-Day, $24 All-Day
• Snowbird season passholders (winter 2013/14 and 2014/15) $10 All-Day

For more information about Snowbird’s mountain bike trails, hours, and ticket prices, visit Snowbird.com.