Alta

Ahhhhhh. Alta ski resort. What started out as a quaint mining town in the 1800s has now grown into a world-renowned ski resort; famous for harboring 500+ annual inches of Utah's 'greatest snow on earth'...yeah, blah blah blah....a couple things come to mind when I think of this place: Altaholics, Alta-Egos and the fact that my friends who ride shredsticks can't come here with me if I choose, wait, if I'm dragged into skiing here.

A few thoughts that come to mind within this triptych:

Altaholics: These are the out-of-state guys and gals from back east and out west that make yearly, often multiple time-a-season, pilgrimages to the glorious state of Utah with one purpose, ok, two purposes: To patronize what they see as one of the last 'pure' skiing establishments in the Nation and to complain about the estranged liquor laws of our fine state.

Alta-Egos: Usually found amongst skiers that have grown up in Utah, learned to ski at Alta and will continue to ski there until they die or it doesn't snow anymore - whichever happens first. Here's a typical conversation would go with someone who has an Alta-ego:

1. "So for this party tomorrow night, I need directions to your house."
2. "Sure, buddy. We're at 300 South and 800 East, right by the Sinclair."
1. "Where is that in relation to Alta??"

Sadly, the above is no joke.

Snowboarders aren't allowed: The majority of my friends ski. And many of my friends snowboard. Usually, we enjoy skiing and riding together. Yeah, well, that's why Brighton is better.

I will merit this skiing establishment in that it has some of the finest terrain in the Wasatch. The only downfall: After a big dump it gets skied out faster than you can wipe your own ass.

*Edit - Yes, I also have tons of friends that ski at Alta. Most of this post is meant to be taken as toungue-in-cheek. Thanks for reading.