Snowbird Celebrates Independence Day With Fourth Of July Skiing
Jul 4, 2019, 5:56 PM | Updated: 9:30 pm
SANDY, Utah – Skiers and snowboarders eager to get an early start celebrating the Fourth of July hit the slopes at Snowbird for a morning on the snow.
It was a star-spangled scene at the summit, with many skiers and snowboarders decked out in red, white, and blue.
This is only the fifth time in Snowbird’s history they’ve had enough snow to ski on the Fourth of July, and plenty of people showed up to be part of the celebration.
“It’s fun. It’s a fun chaos,“ said Forrest Sawyer, a skier from Salt Lake City. “The snow is great, honestly. It’s as good as it can be on the Fourth of July. You can’t really ask for better.”
Anybody who thought it would be a mellow day on the slopes was quickly swept up in the energy of the crowd.
“Lots of red, white, and blue. Lots of singing. Lots of dancing,” said Madie Osborne, who was skiing with family and friends. “It’s everything you can imagine. It’s like a parade on skis.”
@jedboal found a parade of skiers at @Snowbird today for their last day of the season on the slopes – on the #FourthofJuly! pic.twitter.com/rwDgUpM9Wp
— KSL 5 TV (@KSL5TV) July 4, 2019
It was a much larger gathering than 2011, the last time Snowbird had enough snow to ski on the Fourth.
“About every 8 to 10 years, we get the chance to do this,” said Brian Brown, Snowbird Communications Manager. “The Snowbird faithful are out today and they are celebrating Independence Day. After 191 days of being open for winter operations, we get to finish the season on July 4.“
It was a soft, slushy ski day on the hill, with temperatures rising into the 50s and 60s. That didn’t stop people from their chance to getting out on the slopes in the summer.
“It’s the Utah thing to do,” said Rosalie Schuette, who moved here from Alaska a handful of years ago. “It couldn’t be better to be in the mountains with snow on the Fourth of July here in Utah.“
The aerial tram got everybody to the summit. From there, people were able to ski and ride in Little Cloud Basin. There were still 30 inches of snow on parts of those on those runs.
“Lots of red, white and blue. Lots of singing, lots of dancing. It’s everything you can imagine. It’s like a parade on skis.” That’s the Fourth of July celebration @Snowbird this year. We’ll share the Celebration on Snow at 5&6 @KSL5TV @kslnewsradio #ksltv pic.twitter.com/SWt1K83TmS
— Jed Boal (@jedboal) July 4, 2019
“We average 500 inches of snowfall each year,” said Brown. “This year we ended up with 711 inches.”
“I’ve been skiing here since I was six,“ said Alex Osborne, who came out eight years ago on Independence Day, and came back Thursday flying the American flag On a piece of PVC pipe as he skied.
“Just to celebrate freedom” he said. “(To) celebrate this great nation.“
Everyone we spoke with said they wouldn’t have missed it and can’t wait for the next one.
“This winter was probably one of the top three winters in Snowbird history,” said Brown. “This is it. After today we are going to officially end winter operations.”
