Its part of a goal to encourage people to car pool.. and its just one of the things that resorts do to help the environment.

You know Susan, ski areas come under a lot of fire over environmental concerns, but a lot of people have no idea how much resorts do to preserve the mountains.

In fact, Snowbird, right here in Utah is famous world wide for its environmental care:

Ray Gardner, Snowbird CEO (("Little Cottonwood Canyon today is in better condition environmentally than it was the day that Snowbird started construction."))

That's an amazing statement. Snowbird has won several national awards for its pristene environment. This resort, and neighboring Alta run several environmental programs. One is called," ski-cology". Complete with a book and trail signs that teach young skiers and hikers all about the canyon and its ecology. Alta's Connie Marshal says that teaching kids about the ecology, serves as a good lesson for the adults and ski area management:

Connie Marshal Alta (("Trees do need to be cut down. If people want ski areas and its a delicate balance in partnership with a forest services. We, as a management team are very aware of what we have to do to get permission to do things. This way, we're teaching the children that its a compromise. And as adults, we realize the formula isn't simple and as adults we have to think a little bit more."))

Snowbird does a lot of tree planting too:

(("Every summer, with tree utah, Snowbird plants thousands of trees, at the top of the mountain, or special groves. We think thats important to keep Utah beautiful."))

And wait until you hear about the water:

(("Between Alta and Snowbird, we provide recreation for millions of people year round and yet we can say the water that comes out of Little Cottonwood is the cleanest source of all of Salt Lake City's nine sources of water."))

In fact, Snowbird has an incredible water system underground. This tunnel leads you into the mountain, honeycombed with mines. The miners built a tunnel to drain water out of the mines. When Snowbird was built 25 years ago, the company came in, cleaned the tunnels out and set this plug.

(("We can store 30 or 40 million gallons of water back in that drain tunnel."))

Here's one more tidbit of enviro trivia for you, Snowbird has its own co generation plant in the cliff lodge that heats the hotel and produces the electricity.

If you'd like to learn more about the environment at Utah ski areas, you can always ski with a naturalist. Most resorts have ski tours everyday. Here's how Alta's tours work:

(("On Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00, you meet with volunteers from the Forest Services. They ski the easy runs so skiers of all abilities can go, and they talk about the flora and fauna and decisions that the ski areas are making."))

Usually when you're out in the mountains, you just come up for a day of skiing, and all you see is Utah's great snow, incredible scenery, and the wildlife.

(("Hold on tight to my shoulder, push down, step on the bug, smash him, good job. I think we're ready to go skiing , are you ready? alright!"))

Utah's instructors are great with toddlers.

(Mark) My three year old daughter Josie, and Deer Valley Instructor Jana Howatt had a blast. Josie was still talking about stomping on the bug for days.. not to mention the chairlift.. or as josie calls it ...the swing. while they're on the lift, jana is telling josie how to make a wedge with her skis... that looks just like the shape of a pizza slice.

(("weeeee!"))

(("Push this foot out and push this foot out. And do you know what the pizza helps us do? "))

(("That's how we stop."))

Amazingly, Josie was actually able to make the shape of a pizza with her skis.. and she was standing up on her own... really skiing! Utah's resorts have a wide variety of classes for children of all ages. Here at Deer Valley, older kids, spend the whole day in lessons in the reindeer program. The three and four year olds go into a special Bambi program.

Jana Howatt Deer Valley Instructor (("From nine to ten, they're on the slopes skiing. Then they go into the child care facility. They have a snack, then they have art projects. They play games and have lunch then they come back out around 1:00, they can ski or sled. Then mom and dad pick them up at 4:00 when they're finished skiing.")) The kids love it. The hardest part of the day is dropping them off.. or maybe that was just the hardest part for this dad.

(("Sometimes you get a little separation anxiety when mom and dad say good bye. But by the time their on the chairlift, they see all the other kids ski and they're really happy and excited. having a good time."))

Even when the beginners fall and their little legs get tired,they're still happy.

(("Okay, lets see alittle bit bigger pizza, Josie thats great. Whoa.. Hold on tight, oh. woops. Wipe out. Let's try it again. Josie give me five. You're doing such a good job, I'm very proud of you."))

The mining camp at Snowbird starts right here. Its just a fun little make believe town.. a replica of the old mining camp of Alta. Children who ski this trail follow a narrow, twisting ride through the trees.

Katie Mulbaney (("Its a lot of old houses, and a lot of quick turns and thats whats so fun about it. you can go fast, its funner, and at the end you can go fast and do jumps and that sort of thing."))

The run is built by the ski school for the pure entertainment of the children who ski here. The corners on the track have high sides so kids can really pick up speed and bank their turns-- and that's pretty cool: And even cooler, little moguls even let small skiers get some air.

Cougar Elfervig (("You could go fast and jump and stuff."))

John Tateoka (("It was awesome. What was awesome about it? The turns and jumps and stuff like that."))

The favorite jump of them all waits for the groups at the very end of the mining camp.

((" yahoo.... wahoo!!!"))

Over at Solitude, children can play in the Troll Hagen. Its a simple little area where kids can get used to the snow, get used to their instructors, and its also a place, where we noticed, smiling runs rampant.

Kurt Armacost Solitude Ski School (("Skiing is fun, so if we introduce it as a playful thing they'll want to do it for the rest of their lives."))

Solitude's staff tells us you can only teach kids how to ski if they are having fun.

(("Our first goal is safety, second is to have fun, if its not fun the children wont learn anything, third, is learning something."))

This crew even makes getting the kids into their skis fun. After the snowball games, they get the little ones to get the snow off of their boots, and step into their bindings as if it were some extremely fun task.

The instructors say they see a lot of parents really struggling to try to teach their young children to ski. If they would put the children in a program , or at least take some of these instructors advice, lessons for little ones would go a lot more smoothly.

(("You see quite often parents out there are frustrated with their children and its becuase they're expecting too much out of them. If they would turn it around a just make a snowman every once in a while or throw some snowballs, the kids would be having more fun than doing just what the parents want them to do. Then, the children will want to ski with the parents as well."))

It works like magic. Maybe the magic troll has something to do with it...Whatever it is... The kids have fun playing-- they're willing to try something new, like ski. Next thing you know, they're coming down a run, and having fun. even when they fall!

Andrea jake (("We threw snowballs at everybody and had fun, and I really liked it."))

In fact, they think all kids should get a chance at a day like this:

Jesse Buchanan: (("Because its a lot of fun and skiing is a great sport."))

Not only is skiing fun for kids, but it can also be free!!!! Right here at Brighton, kids 12 and under can ski for free with one paying adult.. and at Snowbird, kids 10 and under can ski free as well.

Most resorts these days are offering the skier more than the usual hamburgers and hot chocolate and a few are even winning some national awards. But as we all know, theres nobody in the nation that does food better than Deer Valley.

Clark Norris, Silver Lake Executive Chef ((CLARK: "THEY'VE BEEN PAMPERED ALL DAY, THEY EXPECT THE ULTIMATE IN DINING AS WELL AND WE STRIVE TO DO THAT, AND I THINK WE'RE DOING A GOOD JOB OF IT. WE'RE RATED NUMBER ONE IN ON-MOUNTAIN FOOD ACROSS THE COUNTRY."))

You're looking at the best there is when it comes to ski resort cuisine, and its at Deer Valley.

Jim Norton, Snow Park Executive Chef ((JIM: "I WOULD SAY MOST ASSUREDLY THE DINING IS WHY PEOPLE COME TO SKI AT DEER VALLEY. WE'VE GOT A GREAT MOUNTAIN, THERES NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT, BUT PEOPLE IF YOU ASK ANYBODY ON THE STREET IN PARK CITY AND SAY WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT DEER VALLEY THEY'RE GOING TO SAY THE FOOD'S GREAT."))

Why is Deer Valley rated number one? Listen up, here's the secret.

Julie Wilson, Director of Food & Beverage ((JULIE: "WE MAKE EVERYTHING FROM SCRATCH. WE BUY NO MADE SOUPS, WE BUY NO FROZEN COOKIES OR FROZEN CHEESECAKES, EVERYTHING IS MADE FROM SCRATCH HERE."))

Yep, the only thing frozen at this resort is the snow. Being number one begins in this kitchen where these chefs proudly lead the pack.

Letty Halloran Flatt, Executive Pastry Chef ((LETTY: "THE DAY RESTURUANTS HAVE SET THE STANDARD FOR THE SKI INDUSTRY IN THE LAST 15 YEARS. ITS NOT JUST CHILI AND HOT DOGS ANYMORE."))

So if its not the normal fare, what can you expect at the Deer Valley resturaunts?

((JIM: "THOSE ARE BLACK BEAN ENCHILLADAS AND ARE SERVED WITH A FRESH GUACAMOLE SAUCE."))

If that doesn't float your boat, then try the Carved Oriental Sea Bass, a few Pheasant Dumplings or the Mushroom Risotto Cakes. And even if you can't figure out how it was prepared, odds are you loved it anyway.

Ted Scheffler, Freelance Journalist ((TED: "THE CHEF HE DID SOMETHING WITH SUSHI THAT I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS, BUT IT WAS PHENOMINAL WHATEVER IT WAS. I JUST REMEMBER IT HAD NORI AND A WASABI SAUCE THAT WAS BEAUTIFUL."))

Suppose you're like me and have a sweet tooth? These people know exactly what skiers want after a day on the hill.

((LETTY: "THEY LIKE CHOCOLATE AND NO ONES AFRAID OF FAT. THEY'RE EXCERSISING IN THE OUTDOORS, BURNING CALORIES AND THEY LOVE GOOD RICH DESERTS."))

Thats right! But does it taste as good as it looks? Even better! ((LETTY: "UH ITS NOT AS IMPORTANT AS THE FLAVOR. SO IF YOU DON'T HAVE THE FLAVOR, THEN THE ARCHITECTURE IS ALL SHOW."))

Interestingly enough, occasionally changing menu items helps Deer Valley stay one step ahead of the competition.

((CLARK: "AND JUST BECAUSE WE DID SOMETHING ONE WAY LAST SEASON DOESN'T MEAN WE'RE GOING TO REPEAT THAT SAME PROCEEDURE THIS SEASON. I LET MY PEOPLE EXPERIMENT AND BE CREATIVE. JUST BECAUSE I LIKE THINGS DONE A CERTAIN WAY DOESN'T MEAN THERES ANOTHER EXCEPTIONAL WAY OF DOING IT."))

That creativity makes these dishes what they are today--Delicious.

((JIM: "ITS EXCEPTIONAL AT KEEPING THE CREWS ON THEIR TOES. IT HELPS THEM FROM BEING COMPLACENT AND HAVING TO PREPARE THE SAME THING DAY IN AND DAY OUT WITH A SET MENU."))

The customers agree, its not just the snow attracting skiers to Deer Valley.

((JULIE: "AND WE GET QUITE A LOT OF COMMENTS FROM THE MARIPOSA SEAFOOD BUFFET AND McHENRIES THE PEOPLE LEAVE SAYING THATS ONE OF THE BEST RESTURAUNTS WE EVER BEEN IN IN MY LIFE."))

And for the chefs working behind the scenes, there is only one true measure of the success...

((JIM: "THE EMPTY PLATES. THEY WIL HAVE FINISHED EVERYTHING ON THEIR PLATE AND THEY WILL COME BACK IN AGAIN AND THEIR WHOLE SKI VACATION YOU WILL SEE THEM TIME AND TIME AGAIN IN YOUR LINE AND THEY WILL COME UP AND GO, I HAD THE TURKEY CHILI YESTERDAY IT WAS WONDERFUL AND I WANT TO TRY SOMETHING ELSE CUZ IT WAS SO GOOD."))

So if you're sitting there with your mouth watering and your stomach growling, the directions to Deer Valley are simple. Deciding what to eat, however, is not.

((JIM: "I'D ENCOURAGE THEM TO COME IN AND SPEND A FEW DAYS AND TRY EVERYTHING."))

(Mark) And with so many resorts realizing the importance of fine dining and upgrading their menus, like here at Creekside at Solitude, its not hard to find a delicious meal no matter where you go skiing.

Lori Stahler US Telemark Team (("You can be any ability on skis, or never even on alpine skis in your life, and you just need to demo some good telemark equipment and you can do it. That's the best way to get started in it."))

And those who venture to get started, never seem to stop!

(("Its different from Alpine, because its like a free, graceful type of skiing. Its just really different, it looks different, its a new challenge."))

Maurine Bachman helps run the Wasatch Telemark Association, a gorwing gorup of tele-enthusiasts. Complete with a help and information line at 955-Tele.

Maurine Bachman Wasatch Telemark Association (("I think its just the gracefulness, the flow ofit, those turns have a feeling thats way better than alpine skiing."))

Another great thing about telemark skiing is that you can be in the resorts, or out of them, as long as you are careful about avalanches.

(("We suggest calling the avalanche forecast center to find out what the conditions are, take some of their classes, know how to use your gear, take the time to loo,k at the snow, look at conditions and be prepared."))

(("What do you mean by be prepared? Should you have peeps, shovels and a buddy? Peeps shovels and a buddy at the minimum, and lots of knowledge."))

So, while you're learning all of that knowledge, you can play inside the resort boundries and work on your telemark skills.

(("People are intimidated by it, it looks hard, it is a little bit, the balance is a little tighter, once you get over that, you find out its not that difficult, you can really learn how to do it."))

We're not exaggerating when we say millions either! Just go to a search engine and type in the word ski and you'll see what we're talking about! Here's a look at some of the sites that focus on skiing right here in Utah:

Mark Menlove/ Utah Ski Association: (("The ski magazines have net sites now, there are all kinds of places and sites to go for information on skiing, its, boy, if you have a question about skiing, you can find the answer somewhere on the internet."))

You click your mouse and surf.. or ski.. the internet.. and your questions are answered in a matter of moments. Check out ski sites on the web, and you'll be amazed, guaranteed!

The Utah Ski association site gets a million hits a year. And those million web surfers have a plethera of sites to visit. Most ski & board gear companies have web sites.. like Rossignol, Marker, burton, and K2. And the ski areas have web sites too, like pcski.com for Park city. You can dial upDeer Valley if you like. You name it, you can get it. Wonder if kids ski free? Surf over to Snowbird's site and there it is. You can even find out what level skier you are at this site.

Some sites give you information about a variety of resorts or ski companies, like SkiNews.com. Ski News has pages dedicated to women's clinics, snowboarding, telemarking, plus it has ski stories and an extremely long list of links.

Links are words you can click on, they're usually underlined, and when you click, you hop right over to another site. So , you can use the skinews link to get to the ski utah site for example.. or you can simply type in http://www.skiutah.com.

Want to know more about the interconnect adventure tour? Here you go! you can read all about it! Right in front of you, at your convenience. What you want, when you want it.

(("Virtually, anything you want to know about skiing in Utah is on our web site. With th snow report, resorts, weather that day, you can find out all the mountain statistics, lifts, runs, snowmaking capabilities, lift ticket prices, lodging, transportation, how to get to the resorts, or stay at the resorts, if you are interested. If you want to take atrip to Beaver Mountain or Brianhead somewhere else in the state, all the information you need is there on our web site."))

There are so many site to choose from. There are some great weather sites, you can check out avlanche forecasts, even the national weather service. KSL's web site has a weather page and a ski page that has text and stories from out "Ski Utah" show. You can find it at www.ksl.com. And , one of the coolest things in cyberspace.. this site has video !

(("Skiers in Utah know the wasatch mountians are an endless realm of heavenly powder, open bowls, and steep thrills."))

Russell Banz / KSL Internet Producer (("One of the things we have that most don't, we have real time streaming audio and video, say you for some reason miss the ski show, you can watch the stories and tips in a real time video audio stream."))

(("The first time you come to our website, you download streamworks, Its free off our website, its an external application that allows you to do this from the Ski Utah site."))

(("We're a television station, so we have the technology to provide the full media on the internet. As the technology improves, so with the quality and everything else."))

All you need is a sound card and speakers.. which russell tells us about half of the internet surfers out there already have. Even if you have a slow computer, you can read the text only versions on most of these ski sites. And if you don't even have a computer, you can click on the web for free at most libraries. So, if you can surf the net, you can ski the net. .. You have to agree... there's nothing quite like it!

((" I'm not the most computer literate person in the world but its easy to use and the information is all there."))

We're talking about cross country skiing.. and its one growing sport in Utah.

You're looking at the Nordic Center between Solitude and Brighton Ski Areas. As you can see, its this quiet peaceful place hidden in the trees, and buried in pure shite snow. Here, you find the exhilerating sport of cross country skiing. Its a sport that is growing incredibly fast.

Craig Panarisi Solitude Nordic Center (("The ratio is up. Its becoming, more new people are in it than snow baording. Its really surprising fact. You'd never guess, its such a small population but the growth of the sport is actually larger than snowboarding is at this stage."))

One obvious reason for the g rowth is the pristene scenery in Utah's countryside. And cross countyr skiers tell us that's ust the beginning.

(("People thses days are interested in a healthier lifessstyle. Cross country is a healthy lifestyle. not just a sport but a lifestyle you live. Between what you eat, your workouts, some poeple take it easy, id dosnt' hvae to be a work out."))

For this woman on the University of Utah Cross Country team, its all of that and more.

Stine Helleruv, U of U Cross Country Team (("You get excercise , see nature, even in bad weather, its nice in nice weather and its nice in bad weather, its fun."))

And now, in the 90's there are a couple different types of cross coutnry skiing. One is the traditoinal cclassic cross country skiing metheod... and now, there's also a new popular techniwque called skating. You can see Stine and her coach are skiing both ways. Stine is skiing in classic form, her coach, is skating.

(("I think both are fun. Classic is origninal, but skating is, you don't need wax, you're just gilding so its easy to do that."))

(("The whole principal is gliding, you feel really free, these are really nice soft clean conditions."))

Stine's coach is Kevin Sweeney. He's the head coach for the university of utah cross country team.

Kevin Sweeney, Cross Country Head Coach (("Skiing in Utah is a big deal. The program aat the U of U exemplifies that. We're divisoin one and we've placed first, second or third int he paast ten years at the NCA championships."))

The coach admits, with all the success, his team and the sport, for that matter, don't really get much attention.

(("I think its a hisdden secret. people are involved having a great time doing it. They tell their firends or a few coworkers about it but its not something that gets publiciced so much."))

The coach and the skiers out here tell us they perform so well, because they live in such a great state for skiing.Utah has everything they need to win. You need a lot of annual snowfall, you need good quality snow, and you need a lot of terrain where you can practice.

(("Its unlimited, not only the terrain, but the snowfall. There are poeple in the other parts of the country that would pay dear money to have conditions like this. Its a paradise! We're pretty lucky!"))

And this year a similar change is underway in the snowboard industry.. with companies scrambling to make their new, high tech board binding the best. Here's a look at the bold new changes:

Look at the difference. this is a traditonal snowboard binding, and this is a new high tech step in.

Rich Varga Salty Peaks Vice President: (("I think it will definately help out in the future as far as biring in new people to the sport, because it eliminates sitting in the snow and buckling up the bindings with the straps its definately ease and convenieent."))

There are three major step in bindgins to choose from. The k2, the switch and the devbice. but we noticed, even the easierst new bindings still take a little getting used to.

(("Poeple are gonna have to practice to get in and out. This is the safety lock feature right there so, so release is not possible. to release (turns knob and click)."))

Which brings us to an imporrtant note. Snwoboard bindings are not releaseable. Unlike regular alpine bindings. The step in binddings still demand an effort for you to get out. Its is however, less effort the the old strappy snowboard bindings.

(("With an old binnding like this, you had to go like this, like this, and then you crashed, and you still got yuour back one on."))

Ask experience boarders about some of the tricks,, like tying a string to both binding release knobs, so if you wipe out, you can release wioth one pull. It is vitally important that you get gear thats the best and most safe for you.

(("Every year you hear about people on the big powder days getting, they crash into a tree, fhey fall upside down in a treee well, and suffocate in a tree well."))

Its true, a snowboarder can suffocate and die. but these hard core boarders tell us some step in bindings could possiblity speed up your escape from a deadly situation.

(("If you are upside down, stuck in a tre well, youre gonna be able to get out. Perhaps that will save your life. not only in the back coutnry, in case of avalanche but also at a resort on a big powder day."))

The best advice for boarders is to choose your gear wisely, be smart , be careful, and finally, enjoy the ride. Sounds like is getting safer for snowbaorders out there.

We take you back now two months ago when the real work took place to put these chairs in the ground.

Park City Ski Area: The mountains of Utah recently became part of an exclusive club here in North America. Last month an airlift replaced the old Prospector lift with the latest in ski lift technology. The new Silverlode lift is now the centerpiece in a pricey new package at the Park City Ski Area.

Charlie Lansche, Park City Ski Area: ((CHARLIE: "THIS IS PART OF A 3.5 MILLION DOLLAR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT. THIS LIFT INSTALLATION MAKES UP MOST OF THAT 3.5 MILLION DOLLARS, ITS A VERY EXPENSIVE ENDEVOUR."))

Silverlode gives skiers and boarders a lift to 800 acres directly in the heart of the resort. And it wasnt easy getting it into place: For nearly two straight hours the Sky Crane helicopter carried each the 17 towers up and over the mountain, then gingerly set them into place. Not an easy feat considering each tower weighed in at over 10-thousand pounds--A sight stunning even the veterans.

((CHARLIE: "I MEAN ITS AN INCREDIBLE DEMONSTRATION OF RAW POWER AND FINESE, AS I SIAD EARLIER, I MEAN THE GROUND SHAKES, THE LEAVES GO AWAY..."))

As the helicopter hovered with its expensive cargo, the ground crew worked at a fevorish pace to guide the tower in and bolt it to the foundation. If you blinked, you may have missed it. One minute its wasn't there, and just six minutes later it appeared as if by magic.

((CHARLIE: "WELL YOU KNOW THEY'RE PUTTING IN A LIFT TOWER EVERY SIX MINUTES AND THEY'RE COMING UP PROBABLY ALMOST 2,500-2,800 VERTICLE FEET FROM THE BASE OF THE SKI AREA OVER A COUPLE OF MILES SO IT HAPPENS VERY, VERY RAPIDLY."))

The new six pack chairs are 11-feet wide. Just in case you're wondering, that gives you a little over 21 inches from cheek-to-cheek. The greatest benefit of these new lifts is the time is saves moving eager skiers up the mountain.

((PHIL: "THAT LIFT WHEN IT WAS IN A FIXED-GRIP CONFIGURAITON WAS A 12, 13 MINUTE RIDE. IN THE DETACHABLE QUAD CONFIGURAITON IT WAS A SIX MINUTE RIDE AND THE DETACHABLE SIX PASSENGER ITS GOING TO BE A FIVE MINUTE RIDE."))

Which means more time for you to be boarding or skiing... instead of sitting.

((CHARLIE: "SO YOU CAN SKI A LOT OR ETERRAIN AND YOU HAVE A LOT OF LIFTS TO MOVE YOU AROUND AND A LOT OF LIFTS MEANS LESS CONGESTION, LESS LIFT LINES, PARTICURALY WHEN YOU HAVE EFFICIENT QUADS AND SIX PASSENGER CHAIR LIFT, HIGH SPEED LIFTS."))

The Park City team says installing the silverlode lift is a wise investment that will be paying dividends for years to come.

((PHIL: "THEY DO MAKE A LOT OF SENSE, THE LOADING INTERVAL IS LONGER SHICH MAKES IT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO GET ON AND PEOPLE TO GET OFF AND THEN ITS A BIGGER PIECE OF EQUIPMENT, RUNS BETTER IN THE BAD WINDS."))

Skiers from here in Utah and from all over the world will soon understand the impact of this lift as they share the ride with, yes, five of their closest friends.

((CHARLIE: "IT IS THE HEARTBEAT OF OUR WHOLE OPERATION, SO THEY'LL SEE THAT AND HOPEFULLY ENJOY THAT."))

Ever wonder whats in store for the future, like maybe a 10-person chair?