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view Steep Thrills! "Utah Mountain Montage!" (3/22/97)
For our steep thrill grande finale, a montage from Utah's mountains! We begin with Millicent peak at Brighton. The hike up to this high point takes you to untracked, soft powder in a long lasting realm with room for countless turns.

Up the canyon at Solitude, more of Utah's greatest snow on earth, especially in Honeycomb canyon, where skiers and boarders can find tree shots, chutes, and deep deep snow.

Hopping over the terrain to Deer Valley, Heidi Voelker of the US Ski Team takes us out to play.. Here, Voelker races through the gladed groves of trees, off piste, where the snow stays deep for days after a storm. This spot is called Sunset Trees.

Next Door, at Park City, some super steep thrills take you out of this world.. to Jupiter Peak. The toughest chutes of them all are right off the peak, and a very brave Utah Olympic star, Jeremy Nobis, rips right down them like a breeze.

Speaking of ripping, one of Utah's very famous extreme skiers is Gordy Pieffer. You can recognize him by his ability to fly down and slice through the snow in some of utah's longest, deepest chutes. This is Pieffer turning 'em all the way down Glory Hole.

Another nice line that's a challenge to survive all the way down... is Bishops Bowl at Sundance. This bowl is nice and steep, it has a perfect fall line, and its heaven to blaze through .. all the way down... it must take one hundred turns top to bottom and its all good.

Finally, we're onto Snowbird, where skiers are blown away by the endless terrain and steep thrills. Here you can spend the entire day in open bowls, chutes and trees: all in deep, fluffy snow, like this powder found in Tiger Tail.

And that wraps up this whirlwind look at some of the season's steep thrills in Utah's mindblowing snow!


view Steep Thrills! "Parachute" (3/15/97)
For a lot of skiers, just running into a few moguls or an expert run by accident becomes a steep thrill. But for those of you who love speed and gravity...here it is. For this one, just think about what you'd want to have on your back if you had to jump out of a plane:

(Solitude Resort) The run is called Parachute. You get to it by taking the Powder Horn Quad, and you head skiers right from the top. There's definately something to a run named Parachute--be it the flight, the drop, or the feeling of a controlled free fall through an extremely long line of untracked snow.

The run is not for everyone. A black diamond label tells you a run is "most difficult" and Parchute is a double black diamond. Only the bold, brave this terrain!


view Steep Thrills! "Sundance" (3/8/97)
Each week, we profile one tough run at Utah's resorts. Every area has easy green runs, more difficult blue runs, and the most difficult black diamond runs. Beyond that, you're off trail...hiking for your verticle. And thats what a lot of extreme skiers and riders do, looking for that steep thrill. This week, we go to Sundance.

Off the highest lift at Sundance, you have Bishop's Bowl, and a wide array of tree shots and gentle shoots. This ski area takes your breath away. Whether you are awestruck by the majestic mountains, or powder flies in your face.

Brett Paretti and Scott Richardson are slicing through this soft snow. (Brett is in red and Scott is the other skier in the video) Everyone who visits Sundance is impressed at the vast amount of terrain, in a relatively small area. The wide open bowls and rolling knolls here are perfect for carving perfect turns, with a perfect rhythm.


view Steep Thrills! "Deer Valley Powder & Trees" (3/1/97)
[See Encoded Video for this Week's Steep Thrill]

view Steep Thrills! "Milly's!" (2/22/97)
The wildest skiers and boarders love deep snow, steep terrain, and rocks that send you off into flight. And, this week's Steep Thrill has it all off Milly's at Brighton Ski Area:

(Millicient Peak, Brighton) On the right side of the Brighton Ski Area, up above the millicent chair lift, looms one nice big peak every one calls: Millys. And on this day, the mountain is graced with the presence of celebrity skier Jeremy Nobis in the yellow. Jeremy is an olympic star who lives right here in Utah. On this sunny day he shared the steeps and deeps with boarders Brett Paretti and Rick Hilliard... You can see, hiking up to the top of Milly's gets these skiers and boarders to places where no tracks break the pristene snow...so these guys can blaze their own trails. (Video Courtesy: Ritual Snowboards)


view Steep Thrills! "51-50" and "Machetti!" (2/15/97)
Take a swig of that soda and get a good grip on your couch. Hold on tight, we're taking you out for a steep thrill:

At the very tip top of the Park City Ski Area, Jupiter peak looms high above the rest of the world.There are two prominent chutes that seriously challenge even the very best athletes.

One chute is 51-50, and it channels into the other, called Machetti! This is some of the steepest terrain you can find inside Utah's resorts. And on this day, brett paretti, scott richardson and rick hilliard braved the degrees. Here, gravity seems ever so strong on the backs of these skiers and boarders... but they brave it, survive it, and thrive on it. (Video: Ritual Snowboards)


view Steep Thrills! "Honeycomb Canyon" (2/8/97)
Here's this week's steep thrill. This week we go to Honeycomb Canyon at Solitude:

You can find this breathtaking area at the very top of Solitude Ski Resort. Its a big bowl , laced with picturesque rocks.

On this day, brothers Derek and Mason Osborne were sharing powder shots. The area is overwhelming. You have a choice of routes down that range from slightly steep to elevator shaft- steep. You can ski far from trees, right along tree lines, or you can find stashes of mini forests. Most of the trees here are big and old, so you have lots of room to navigate your way around them.

The slopes here have a great exposure, so storms always seem to dump an extra dose of snow here... and as you can see, its perfect powder. This is a great destination for skiers who want to charge down the fall line, watch their friends, and enjoy the spectacular scenery.

Whatever you do, don't forget your camera. (Video Courtesy: Ritual Snowboards)


view Steep Thrills! "Bishop's Bowl" (1/25/97)
This week's steep thrill profiles the steep, wide, long bowl at Sundance. It's at the very top of the mountain... where the views of Deer Creek and Utah county are spectacular. You can enjoy the view while you make the mental preparations or should I just say, muster your guts... to go for it.

Your off.. your turning... the snow is soft here... and you just keep going like the everready battery bunny.

If you have to stop to rest before you slam all the way to the bottom, at least you can look up and watch some other experts carve up the mountain like a thanksgiving turkey.

When you get all the way to the bottom of this super long run, if you still want more...you can traverse right to this powder shot by the trees. Then you can say you did Bishop's Bowl!


view Steep Thrills! "Murdock Bowl" (1/18/97)
This is Murdock Bowl. You have to take the Condor lift at Wolf Mountain, and hike 20 minutes to get to it...but as you can see...its a worthy adventure.

You're watching Holly Flanders slice through the snow with ease. She's a two time olympic downhill racer and a 3 time world cup downhill champion. And now she's the skiing director at Wolf Mountain... and this wide open bowl is her favorite run there.

The boarders you see are flying through the air and landing on the soft pillow of snow in this bowl. With all the room in the world to ride on. And just like Holly, everyone looks very happy over here...experiencing great snow, on a great day, in a great bowl. (Special thanks to Ritual Snowboards)


view Steep Thrills! "Glory Hole" (1/11/97)
(Mark) This weeks steep thrill was shot at Snowbird. The name of the run isn't on the map but everyone calls it "Puckerbrush."

(Susan) Its one of my favorite runs in Utah, and one of Mark's too--watch the guy in the red vest! So, sit back and watch the video of this week's Steep Thrill! (Video Courtesy: Michael Robinson)


view Steep Thrills! "Glory Hole" (1/4/97)
Glory hole is right in the heart of the Alta resort. The run starts out with a rocky chute on top, then opens up into this incredibly long, wide steep bowl.If you recognize skier Gordy Pieffer, you may have seen him in some Warren Miller movies.

On this day, the powder was just right, for the local extreme skier to fly off the rocks and great turns all the way down. (Courtesy: RSR Productions, Park City)

Glory Hole is a long run that almost looks easy, until you're there, and you can see just how steep it really is. After the bowl, and through the bottom of this run, you find a few small trees and bushes on your way back to the lift. Where strong skiers can ride to the top to do it all over again!


view Steep Thrills! "Jupiter Bowl" (12/28/96)
Many expert skiers and boarders love this winter sport because of the challenge.. and for experts, the big challenges are the black diamonds, the double black diamonds.. and terrain thats not even labeled on the maps. Whether you are that advanced.. or just like to watch, here's steep thrills..

This week, we take you to the top of Park City Ski Area .. up the Jupiter lift and out to a whole new world...

Check out some of these steep chutes:

On the upper right section of Park City Ski Area, off the Jupiter chair, you have access to Jupiter Bowl and Jupiter Peak. Its an incredibly big area full of chutes and bowls. Almost like an entire mountain of its own. its hard to decide which way to go down because you have so manu choices. This is a destination for expert skiers who want to ski the steeps. One chute here is called 51-50. Great name, because this is what 51 degrees looks like, steep. In fact, here gravity is maximum and the crowds are minimum. There is some wild terrain on Jupiter.. where you definately lose touch with earth.


view Steep Thrills! "The Pipeline" (12/21/96)
Up next, your favorite part of the show: Steep Thrills! And its a steep thrill that will take your breath away.

The Pipeline above Snowbird is famous. Located above the tram over on twin peaks, it takes a hike to get there.

Look at this video. Chutes are dangerous... and this is a very long chute. There is no room for mistakes. You have to turn em and you can't fall. You have to watch out for deadly rocks and avalanches. This is definately a steep thrill. Too steep and too thrilling for the far majority of expert skiers. But there are those who cross that line from the expert.. into the extreme. Here you can spot skiers who are very courageous, and maybe also crazy! (Courtesy: RSR Productions, Park City)

(Susan) Have you done pipeline Mark???


view Steep Thrills! "Tiger Tail" (11/30/96)

(Mark) Snowbird has so many steep thrills we couldnt even name them all. Any favorites susan?

(Susan) yes.. Lower Cirruqe.. Mark Schnell..Tear Drop, Great Scott... and all the big bowls!

(Mark) I like Tiger Tail... check it out, its this weeks Steep Thrills:

You can find a run called Tiger Tail on the west side of the snowbird ski resort. Its away from the tram and some of the more obvious steep thrills on this 11,000 foot mountian.

Its like a hidden haven of powder off the Gad 2 chair. Here, you' re only allowed to ski when the avalanche danger has passed.. because snow storms race into Little Cottonwood Canyon on a regular basis and dump feet of fluffy snow on these mountians. You're watching local extreme skiers John Argyle and Jason Parkinson tear up this challenging terrain.

Tiger Tail is above Snowbird's newly opened area called Thunder bowl. So now, you get an even longer run through the trees and down nice steep fall lines.

courtesy: Michael R. Robinson


view Steep Thrills! "Milly Chutes" (11/23/96)
Time now for Steep Thrills... this week we take you to the chutes off of Milly... if you don't know what we're talking about, you're about to find out.

(Mark) I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to go play in the chutes... It was a little tricky .. but fun. Take a look:

On the far right side of the Brighton ski area, just to the left of the Millicent chair lift, you can see some of the steepest thrills around. Nestled between rocks, trees, and ridges, expert skiers can find several steep chutes.

This is the cliff area. Here, you find 3 narrow chutes to chose from. Definately a double black diamond rating here. The tough stuff is almost hidden, you start by skiing down some powdery knolls... just rolling away fairly effortlessly.. then, you find these nooks and crannies... where you have to stop and think before you go. And when you go... the pitch is mean and you have to turn 'em fast to survive without bailing. This particular chute was not only steep and narrow, but forced you to bear left while struggling to stay on top of your skis. After about 6 turns, its over.

Finally, you open up into yet another rolling knoll, where you can catch your breath, regain your confidence and look back at your accomplishment.


view Steep Thrills! "Sunshine Bowl" (11/16/96)
In this weeks Steep Thrills, the thrill is skiing powder so early in the season! And if anyone out there doesn't believe me, here's the tape to prove it.

This is Sunshine Bowl. and right now, its more like one big Powder Bowl. A boarder, skier and telemarker all sail through this snow with ease, enjoying the thrill. I know my heart was racing, afterall, its been about 7 months since we had this amount of Utah Powder in our backyards. You can find this particular playground in Big Cottonwood Canyon, at the Solitude ski area, just off the Eagle Express High speed Quad.

Hey, I want to do some skiing like that, I can't believe how good the snow is so early in the year... You didn't use any trick photography did you???


view Steep Thrills! (11/9/96)
Skiers in Utah know that the Wasatch mountains are an endless realm of heavenly powder, wide open bowls, and steep thrills.. to mention a few of the sacred spots is hard.. because there are so many ... like empire canyon.. reached by snow cat from the Deer valley ski area, with a wide variety of terrain, including chutes at a very scary 60 degrees.

Redfinger, at Sundance is an open bowl thats wide and steep at the top and gets narrow and steeper at the bottom.

The run " 51-50" gives you a detailed description of just how steep it is right there in its name! The Park City spot gets you going with a steep dive right off the top into a 51 degree pitch that funnels into a tight rocky chute!

Over in Big Cottonwood Canyon, Rein's run is a big favorite for Brighton's best skiers and boarders. The run is a narrow chute only 5 feet wide in the cliff area off ttthe great western quad.

At Snowbird, the upper cirque is a classic open bowl that catches a huge amount of high quality Utah powder. When you stand and the top of the upper cirque and look down,you have an unlimiting array of room, along with access to several different chutes to choose from.

As the snow starts building along the Wasatch Front, we'll take you down some of the most thrilling runs around the state.

If you have a favorite run you'd like us to feature, send us email at SkiHost@KSL.com.


© KSL Television 1997

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