UTAH SKI VACATION HOME AND CABIN RENTALS

Here is an updated photo of the day lodge at Brighton Ski Resort. Looks like they are on schedule. Good timing. We are supposed to get 8-12 inches of new snow tonight.

This summer I have watched the Milly Day Lodge under construction. Layton Construction has been working hard to get it completed for its November 17th debut for the 2008-09 ski season. Millicent Day Lodge will be 6,400 square feet and will house a ticket office for the west side of Brighton Ski Resort, bathrooms and a restaurant that will seat 140 people inside and 50 people outside. During winter months, it will be a cafeteria, a efficient and convenient style better suited to the needs of skiers on the go. During the summer months, Milly Day Lodge morphs into more of a restaurant-style setting.

The design of Millicent Day Lodge is quite unique. On the western side of the Lodge, garage doors substitute the typical narrow doorways you find at most ski resort eateries and allow for uncongested pedestrian traffic. The garage doors open directly into the face of Brighton’s ski slopes, the Mount Millicent panorama, and the beauty that is the Utah outdoors. During the summer months, the new building will house the Molly Greens Pub. Beer and Brats on the deck sounds like a great year round event to me.

Thought I would take another photo of La Vista to show what Mother Nature brought us this weekend – the first signs of Winter! The first photo that we posted on September 25th shows the changing colors of Fall at La Vista without snow. It is interesting to see the snow mingle (maybe compete?) with the Fall leaves. We are expected to have another storm next weekend so am not sure how long the leaves will last.

Sept 6, 2008

What a beautiful day for the Mid Mountain Marathon. Starting out signing 3 waivers to hold harmless Deer Valley Resort, Park City Resort and Canyons Resort I wondered if it was a bad omen. But the stars were lined up correctly and conditions were perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. Problem was, I ate a peach right before the race which wreaked havoc on my stomach the entire time. Fell once, but despite all that I improved my time by 30 minutes and came in under 5 hours…barely (4:56). This is always a great feel good race.

Finally tried out the Frisbee Golf course at Solitude Ski Resort. We celebrated my brother, Jim, and sister, Dorian’s, birthday up there. Julia and Kevin, Jim’s daughter and boyfriend, provided some expertise and finesse to get us through the grueling 2 hours. They wisely brought tunes and a cooler full of beer to parch their thirst during the ordeal. After losing 3 Frisbees, I mean discs, and finding 2 on the course, we hobbled to our cars and bee-lined it to Chez Louisa for a wonderful bar-b-cue out on the deck.What a great family I have.

This photo was taken by the guests from the driveway of La Vista as they were loading their car up to head home. They said they enjoyed an amazing week of hiking in the incredibly beautiful fall colors that Brighton is notorous for. Fires at night with great music was all they needed.

Again, booking your Utah Winter vacation NOW with Mount Majestic for home and cabin rentals in Brighton and Solitude will save you lots of money on the slopes.

Enjoy Solitude Ski Resort’s best for as little as $40 a day. Pick up an 11 Pak + Card and get 11 or more days for just $40 a day. Or grab a 6 Pak + Card and get 6-10 days for only $43 a day. Purchase your ski days and bypass the ticket window with direct-to-lift service. Credit from unused days will rollover to next season; days are transferable (one per day per card), and you can add more days during the season at the pre-season price. Remember, with each adult pass purchased, kids under age 10 receive a free matching Pak of tickets.
The Family Pak works like this – 30 days to split amongst your family as you see fit! You must put a minimum of five days on each card. If you go over 30 days you can purchase additional days in groups of five at $39 each. This is a non-transferable picture pass.

Booking your winter vacations NOW with Mount Majestic for home and cabin rentals in Brighton and Solitude, Utah will save you money on the slopes. It’s that time of year to open your pocket book to save on lift passes for the 08-09 Brighton, Utah ski season. Just go to Brighton Ski Resort’s website to get the skinny on it. They are maximizing the family dollar by offering a child’s 7-10 unlimited ski pass for $50 when you purchase from one of their early season ticket plans, such as a book of 10 passes. This offer is available through September 12th. You don’t even have to drive up the canyon (what an awful drive) to cash in on these deals. You can get them online www.brightonresort.com, or at the following outdoor retailers for four days beginning Aug 29: REI-3285 E 3300 S, Sports Authority 5590 S. 900 E.

I was just reading the 2007-2008 Utah Ski and Snowboard Survey and saw some interesting stats I thought I would share. 

Utah had a 4.8 percent growth in skier/snowboard days this season, attributable to the high snowfall we had (up 39% from last year). Median income of visitors to Utah ski resorts was $76,000, up from last year by $1,000.  Do they take into account inflation? Average age of visitors decreased from 34 to 33 years of age even though, in my experience, there were more people in the 55 years and up category than in years past.  My, how we baby boomers are getting old.  There were less locals skiing the powder than out of state guests, and there were more international visitors than in any year yet – Utah is truly becoming THE place to ski globally.  One of the reasons is the weak US dollar. Most skiers/snowboarders were coming from California (22%), New York (8.3 %), Texas (7.1 %) and

Illinois (4.2 %).  Those who think the snowboarders are taking over the hill are wrong.  While this segment is growing, they still only represent 31 percent of visitors.  We are also getting smarter.  The percentage of visitors with a bachelors degree or higher increased from 58% to 60%. Hmm so we are getting younger, but smarter on average.  Singles take the lead on who tends to come with  a second segment of parents with children at home the next.  I bet there would be more from the latter segment if they surveyed only Brighton Ski Resort visitors.   Good news for you late planners - only 39% started planning their trip by October.  Most trips were booked in January.   Finally 61 percent of respondents indicated they would definitely return to

Utah within the next two years.  Why???? Need you ask?  A majority of respondents indicated snow quality and their number one reason for returning, followed by presence of family and friends, was the proximity of the ski resorts to the Salt Lake City Airport, and better value for the skiing.

Ever wonder what the lifties on the Brighton Ski Resort do during the summer months? Well, some things I can’t say in print, but they do many things I can.  Besides reseeding the hillside so it doesn’t look like a construction zone all summer, they may be adding new water lines to extend the snow making capacity on the hill, or they may be repainting the lift towers.  This summer they are replacing all of the bulbs in the light poles for night skiing.  Apparently they lose their luminosity as time goes on.  All the cables and the chairs for all lifts have to be individually tested for unraveling and cracks in the steel, and all the bearings in the rollers have to be cleaned and repacked.  Finally, the entire grooming and snow removal equipment has to be overhauled and in top shape for a busy winter.  They will be busy setting up for snow making the minute the weather gets cold enough. There is never a dull moment for those folks.