Resort report: Utah's ski areas get creative to attract, retain winter fun-seekers.

• Author: Hengesbaugh, Mark Gerard
• Position: The Cover

IT'S SNOW SECRET ANY MORE. Two billion TV viewers who watched last winter's Salt Lake Olympics now connect Utah with deep powder, crackling blue skies and a world-class winter sports infrastructure. "It used to be, 'Park City, where's that?', " says Bill Malone, executive director of the Park City Chamber and Visitors Bureau. "Now people know who we are." This was not the case a few years ago when the average tourist often mislocated Utah's premier ski town in Colorado.

By hosting the Winter Olympics, the Utah ski industry made a calculated sacrifice of the 2001-02 season. Recreational skiers steered clear of local resorts during the five-ring circus - as predicted - and skiing visits to the state declined nine percent.

This season is payback time. "The buzz is positive from all three Park City resorts," says Malone. "We hope to see a big jump this year. We think those who saw the winter games on TV will now want to come experience Utah skiing."

Malone and other local ski mavens are predicting a lucrative year for Utah resorts - possibly the biggest yet. Still, ski earnings are dangerous to predict. Lack of snow, a deeper decline in the U.S. economy or more terrorism-induced fear of flying may derail the season. But a big year would give the Beehive State a crucial edge over other ski states such as Colorado, Vermont and California, all of which are competing fiercely to attract their own share of big-spending downhill skiers from a national market that has remained flat for the past 20 years.

Advance bookings point to a record year for the Utah ski industry. The Ogden/Weber Convention and Visitors Bureau says group ski and snowboard reservations are up 100 percent and growing. Weber County's Snowbasin Ski Resort hosted several prestigious Olympic events, gaining an international reputation.

Likewise, The Canyons in Park City got a lift when entertainers Katie Couric and Matt Lauer broadcast NBC's Today show from the resort's Grand Summit Hotel during the Olympics. Katie Eldridge, the resort's director of communication, says, "Early season bookings are up 200 percent, and requests through our web site are up 800 percent."

In Salt Lake County, Snowbird ski resort says their telephones started ringing immediately after closing ceremonies. "Reservations are ahead of two years ago, which was our best year yet," says Communications Director Dave Fields. "With normal snowfall we're on track for our best season ever."

Early bookings can't tell the whole story, though. 'The trend for skiers today is to wait until the last minute," says Nathan Rafferty, communications director for Ski Utah. 'They look at the latest snow reports on the Internet, then check airfares and shop for ski packages."

To assure early-booking customers of a skiable base when they arrive, resorts routinely manufacture artificial snow when night temperatures drop to freezing. This season, snow guns and mid-November storms left local resorts on track for a traditional Thanksgiving-rime opening. A strong start is essential for a profitable year.

Ski Utah isn't sitting back waiting for skiers to show. This marketing consortium for the state's 14 ski resorts placed 35 pages of ads in national skiing magazines to promote the 2002-03 season and bundled a 100-page "Ski Utah Winter Vacation Planner" in SKI magazine's October issue.

As-seen-on-TV strategy

The strategy for Utah resorts is to peddle Olympic memories, tempting winter...