Snowbasin Resort is a ski resort in the western United States, located in Weber County, Utah, northeast of Salt Lake City, on the back (east) side of the Wasatch Range.
Opened in 1939, Outside and USA Today in 2025. Snowbasin is located on Mount Ogden at the west end of State Route 226, which is connected to I-84 and SR-39 via SR-167 (New Trappers Loop Road).
History
Snowbasin is one of the oldest continuously operating ski areas in the United States. Following the end of World War I and the Great Depression, numerous small ski resorts were developed in Utah's snow-packed mountains, and Weber County wanted one of their own. They decided to redevelop the area in and around Wheeler Basin, a deteriorated watershed area that had been overgrazed and subjected to aggressive timber-harvesting.
Lands were restored and turned over to the U.S. Forest Service, and by 1938 the USFS and Alf Engen had committed to turning the area into a recreational site. The first ski tow was built in 1939 and in service at the new Snow Basin ski park.
The fourth NCAA Skiing Championships, the first in Utah, were held at Snow Basin in 1957. The downhill race course was set on the right side of the steep face of Mt. Ogden, on the slope named "John Paul Jones", after an early Snow Basin skier. The John Paul Jones' run was only accessible with a 45-minute hike from the top of the Porcupine lift. Several Ogden businessmen purchased Snow Basin from the Huntington family.
Another major personality to come out of Snow Basin was M. Earl Miller, who ran the ski school from the mid-1950s until 1987. Miller played a key role in drafting the Professional Ski Instructors of America (PSIA) American Ski Technique in 1961.
Pete Seibert, founder of Vail, led a partnership which bought Snow Basin in 1978, but ran into financial difficulty in 1984. The area was sold that October to Earl Holding, owner of Sun Valley in Idaho, and it became "Snowbasin".
2002 Winter Olympics & Paralympics
Because it was to serve as an Olympic venue site, the U.S. Congress passed the Snowbasin Land Exchange Act in 1996 as part of the Omnibus Lands Bill. The act transferred of National Forest System lands near the resort to the private ownership of Snowbasin, and identified a set of projects that were necessary for the resort to host the Olympic events. These projects allowed Snowbasin to double in size in 1998 with new terrain expansions onto Allen Peak to the north and Strawberry and DeMoisy Peaks to the south.
During the 2002 Olympics, Snowbasin hosted the downhill, combined (downhill and slalom), and super-G events. The spectator viewing areas consisted of a stadium at the foot of the run, with two sections of snow terraces for standing along both sides of the run. The spectator capacity was 22,500 per event; 99.1 percent of tickets were sold, and 124,373 spectators were able to view events at the Snowbasin Olympic venue. During the 2002 Winter Paralympics, Snowbasin hosted the Alpine Skiing events, including downhill, super-G, slalom, and giant slalom.
Statistics
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Mountain information
thumb|200px|alt=Super-G at Snowbasin during the 2002 Winter Olympics|[[Alpine skiing at the 2002 Winter Olympics – Men's super-G|Men's super-G<br>at the 2002 Winter Olympics]]
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