Solitude, UT (Monday, April 10, 2006) -

Utah's skiing governor Jon Huntsman Jr. addresses the state's ski and snowboard resort industry and media on Saturday. (photo: First Tracks!! Online/Marc Guido)

Even the status quo can be exciting, especially when it nearly matches a previous record.

Officials from Utah ski and snowboard resorts, the marketing arm of the Utah Ski and Snowboard Association, and Utah's skiing Governor Jon Huntsman Jr. gathered with members of the media on Saturday at Solitude Mountain Resort to discuss the state of the state's ski and snowboard industry. Ski Utah President Nathan Rafferty announced that while final numbers are not yet in, skier visits to Utah's 13 resorts this winter are closing in on the four million mark, a number that would represent a new record for winter visits to the state's resorts. 2004-05's 3,895,578 Utah skier visits set a record and represented a 12% increase over the previous best winter.

Utah ski and snowboard resorts faced a different set of challenges this winter season. Last year, what Rafferty described as "the perfect storm" -- early and consistent snowfall, a surging economy, increased marketing efforts, a dearth of snow in other ski regions (particularly the Pacific Northwest), and the lingering afterglow of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games -- combined to fuel the busiest season in Utah's 67-year skiing history. This year, snows came deep and early to the Pacific Northwest, and west of the Mississippi all but the extreme Southwest enjoyed at least a seasonable winter. Colorado resorts reported near-record snowfall, reducing Utah's ability to draw skiers normally headed to its neighboring state.

Eastern ski areas, however, experienced a challenging up-and-down winter, driving many to visit the west, some for the first time...and often...to experience a winter in which up to 50 feet of snow have fallen upon Utah's slopes. The National Weather Service in Salt Lake City reported late last week that the snowpack in the Cottonwood Canyons, home to four of Utah's ski and snowboard resorts, is currently at 171 percent of normal. Alta Ski Area, high above Salt Lake City in Little Cottonwood Canyon, reports a 170-inch base and 604 inches of snowfall thus far this season.

“The past two seasons prove that Utah clearly stands on its own. We don’t need an abnormally early start to have a great year, nor do we have to rely on neighboring states to have poor snowfall in order for us to be successful. The bottom line is we need consistent snowfall throughout the year, which we have been fortunate to have,” said Rafferty.

Delta Air Lines’ expansion of its Salt Lake City hub has contributed to Utah’s ski tourism boost. The airline now offers non-stop service to all of the airport’s top 50 markets and served 16.7 million passengers in 2005 compared to 12.9 million in 2004. In 2005, Salt Lake City International Airport served more than 22.2 million passengers – the most in its history. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the airport ranked #1 in the country for on-time departures and #2 for on-time arrivals in 2005.

As a result, Utah ski areas worked this winter to capitalize on the easy access to the state's ski areas, 11 of which are located an hour's drive or less from Salt Lake City International Airport. As a hub for Delta Air Lines, and with non-stop red eye flights from the East Coast aboard low-cost carriers such as JetBlue, skiers and riders can often be schussing Utah's slopes in less time than it takes to travel to New England ski resorts. The three Park City-area ski resorts continued a program by which boarding passes were exchanged for free lift tickets with airline passengers on the day of their arrival to highlight Utah skiing's easy same-day access.

Utah is currently the number four state in ski and snowboard visits, and eclipsing the four million mark could bump the state ahead of Vermont, the current number-three placeholder. Governor Huntsman estimated that ski and snowboard travel to Utah pumps $900 million annually into the state's economy, and presented Utah's ski marketing effort as one important component in the state travel and tourism department's new "Life Elevated" marketing initiative. Huntsman is the first Utah governor to attend the annual media event in its seven-year history.

Other significant indicators that point to a successful Utah ski season include:

• Salt Lake City lodging occupancy is up 7 percent over last year.
• Park City is very close to last year’s all-time lodging record.
• Salt Lake City International Airport car rental has increased by 10-15 percent.
• Park City Transit saw its one millionth passenger of the year on March 23, opposed to April 12 during 2005.
• www.SkiUtah.com visits are up 29 percent over last year.
• 2005/06 marks the second consecutive year that Ski Utah has issued more than 5,000 5th and 6th grade passports.