full-time. At the time only 7% of all resorts in the world allowed snowboarding. Brighton, Park West and Powder Mountain followed in the next two seasons. With years of riding under their belts, local Utah filmmakers Mick Worthin and Mike Lookinland (a.k.a. Bobby Brady) shot “Tallest Wave” and showcased Utah talent. In 1987, Salty Peaks, the first specialty snowboard shop, opened its doors in Utah, and snowboarders finally had a place to purchase boards and equipment. Today Salty Peaks is home to the Utah Snowboarding Museum, which houses the world’s largest collection of vintage snowboards. Each year there was more pressure to allow snowboarding at resorts, and by the late 1980s Sundance, Elk Meadows and Brian Head offered full access to snowboarders, which left Snowbird, Park City, Deer Valley, Solitude and Alta as Utah’s skiing only resorts. In 1989 the Utah Snowboard Association was formed with a contest circuit between Park West, Powder Mountain, Sundance and Nordic Valley. The first pipe and slalom contests were hosted at Park West and Powder Mountain and helped gain recognition for Utah boarders, allowing them to enter the national circuit of events taking place in California and Colorado. Snowbird had a short trial for snowboarding in the spring of 1990 then allowed it full-time the following season, leaving just four Utah resorts as skiing only. Documenting snowboarding in Utah became a full-time job for two friends who set out to make a snowboarding magazine in Utah. In 1994 Andy Wright and Jared Eberhardt founded Medium magazine and
covered snowboarding’s furious evolution, both locally and abroad. In 1995, Solitude opened its slopes to snowboarding. THE TWENTIES - By the late 1990s there were between 300-350 snowboard companies worldwide and nearly 4 million snowboarders. In Utah, Shift and Caution made snowboards and Bilt made outerwear. In 1998 Mack Dawg released the movie “Decade,” which featured rails and freestyle snowboarding–all of which happened in Salt Lake. Snowboarding took a huge growing step when it became an Olympic sport at the 1998 Nagano Games. Full of controversy and mediainduced hype, snowboarders lived up to their image by destroying rooms and nearly being stripped of a gold medal. Despite these problems, snowboarding has remained an Olympic sport and grown in popularity. Currently, there are six Olympic snowboarding events. In 1998, Whitey McConnaughey returned to Utah after a year hiatus and filmed “The Revival”, featuring many up and coming riders who would be snowboarding’s new stars. Utah’s part in snowboarding’s history is undeniable. As the century came to an end, Utah was one of the biggest influences on the world snowboard scene. Utah had more footage in snowboard videos and magazines than any other single location in the world and many pro snowboarders rode in Utah. ADULTHOOD – Now over 30 years old, snowboarding’s influence in mainstream media has turned the sport into a money-making machine. The new millennium saw money flowing into snowboarding. It reached its biggest popularity in 2004 at 6.6 million participants and was accepted at 97% of resorts worldwide. Although snowboarding has decreased to roughly 5 million boarders today, global sales are still climbing, despite recession worries. During the August – October 2008
NEW WINTER RANGE INSTORE NOW AT WASATCH TOURING
PURE MURINO 702 East 100 South, Salt Lake City, Utah 84102 801-359-9361 www.wasatchtouring.com
winter 2009
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