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November
19, 2002
News Specialist Jed Boal reporting
The
success of a ski season all comes down to the snow, and Utah
is due for a blizzard of business.
This time last year, the nation was recovering from 9-11,
tourism was suffering, and the resorts were bare.
They also
did not know how badly the Olympics would hurt business.
But skier days did not slide as steeply as expected and Utah
resorts are poised for a good year.
"If there is no war and there's no terrorist attack and
the economy stays the way it is, we could have a record year,"
says Kip Pitou, president of Ski Utah.
Early season bookings at resorts are better than two years
ago, when 2000 was a record-setting year.
Snowbird and The Canyons are up about 25 percent. And Deer
Valley bookings are up more than 80 percent.
"We are basking in the Olympic glow. We made an investment
last year and we're starting to realize that investment now,"
Pitou says.
For the 16th straight year, world cup ski racing returns to
Park City Thursday through Sunday for America's Opening.
"In terms of numbers, America's opening does not draw
an Olympic-sized crowd, but it is the unofficial start to
the ski season in Park City and gets the town buzzing,"
Pitou says.
"Plus, ski fans get to see the same skiers on the same
slopes they competed on during the winter games."
"We really think that if the race course can be in this
good of shape, and we're open a week before we planned, that
it's a good start to a strong season," he says.
The Olympics even inspired the local market, which is usually
static.
More Utahns are buying season passes this year, a good turn
for the $770 million industry.
Alta Ski Resort opens tomorrow. Other resorts plan to open
this weekend.
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