Marc Franc Montoya, just cruising on a Sunday

This kid was like Louie Vito’s stepbrother, not really but he rode like Vito, which is a compliment

Utah is a state full of some of the lift served mountains in the US. If you have not made it to Utah to ride, it should be on your list of places to go. The place is sick, from downtown Salt Lake rail jams to the Wasatch to the Northern resorts; Snowbasin and Powder Mountain. Out of the whole state Park City sticks out though. Park City is the only place where a ski resort town really exists. Most of the areas in Utah are just that – areas, insane riding but no real town. Park City is a real town with history, a cool downtown and lots of good places to eat; like Breckenridge, Aspen, Sun Valley and so on. The riding? Oh, yea, Park City Mountain Resort drops down right into town so it is the only real full on destination resort/town in Utah. This view of the trail map does not do justice but it gives you an idea of how the mountain is spread out pretty well

Not just a cool town Park City is the most well rounded resort in Utah; good freeriding, great groomed runs, and the best terrain parks in Utah (the world?). Hey at $77 (Brighton is only $55) for a full day ticket, Park City had better give you the goods and they do. Kings Crown jumps, the “medium” park, the main park, really

The mountain is not as steep as other nearby resorts, say Snowbird but there is enough to keep you interested. You are going to start out on the Payday lift or the town lift (and so is everyone else) and go from there with a lot of terrain to cover. King Con, Silverlode and Motherlode have some insane mid-level cruising and tree runs. Thaynes and ski team lifts have some really nice black diamond runs. The real gems are located off McConkey’s and Jupiter lifts though. Both of those lifts serve up nice double black runs. One of the drawbacks of Park City is that it is located on the backside of the Wasatch Mountains and does not get the same amount of snow as say Snowbird. This is also nice because all the powder whores head to Snowbird while Park City can have fresh tracks all day. Try riding the Jupiter lift and riding Portuguese gap on a windy day or hiking up to Jupiter peak for pow. Aaron Bitner spins off a Kings Crown kicker

Let us not forget about the parks, the best in the state, heck some of the best in the world. Pick and Shovel (Three Kings lift), Payday (Payday lift) and lower Jonsey’s (Bonanza lift) are great for all levels of riders. Kings Crown (Payday lift) is where Marc Franc, Aaron Bitner, Shaun White and others will be lappin. Upper Jonsey’s is closed to the public (while were there) and where they open up for photos shoots and stuff, pros only. Park City was also home to the Olympic Pipe so you know that thing is tight. Lower Kings Crown from the base area

Whether you are on a week long family trip to Park City or sleeping in your car in Park City, check out Park City. Of course, do not forget Sundance a cool experience and the slopes are not too crowded during the event. Discount tickets can be found at Supermarkets in Salt Lake too. Pine Cone Ridge, accessible (in good snow) via hiking from the Jupiter lift

Web: www.parkcitymountain.com Season: Nov-April Tickets: All day $77, half day $60 Vertical Drop: 3100’ Top Elevation: 10,000 Terrain Parks: 4 Superpipe: 1 Lifts: 4 high speed sixers, 2 high speed quads, 5 triples, 4 doubles, one magic carpet Acres: 3,300 Snowfall: 355 inches Parks: 8-9 out of 10 Terrain: 8 out of 10 Town: 9 out of 10 Vibe: 7-8 out of ten Who you might see: Marc Franc Montoya, Aaron Bitner, Erin Comstock, Scotty Arnold, Shaun White, Jeremy Jones, Stevie Bell, Drew Fuller, Louie Vito and way more Events: World Superpipe champs – March 10, Roxy Chicken Jam – March 24,25 Pick and Shovel Park, Eagle superpipe and the terrain served off ski team lift

Stevie Bell -50/50 to front board. This was just an average day, I swear, these heads were just cruising through the park, next to tourists from Minnesota

Payday park is mellower than Kings Crown; you hit the upper part of it going to Kings Crown. Aaron Bitner – pressy

Scotty Arnold – 540

Not just for boys, Kelly Clark rips it during a World Superpipe comp. Kelly also won Gold in this very pipe in 02’

Dani Constandache – Indy to fakie

The West face of Jupiter peak with a foot of new. How many people you see racing to shred it up? None! It was pow all day