BRIGHTON, Utah — It’s the end of "The Meltdown" at Brighton Ski Resort, and despite closing the season a little earlier than usual, they were still able to make skiing last until May.
Michael Harrington with the resort said despite certain challenges with the lack of snowfall, the location of the resort worked in their favor this year.
“We're lucky enough here at Brighton. We have snow. We can kind of push from wherever,” he said. "We really made it work with our team that we have here."
However, as skiers reflected on the season, it was definitely a mixed bag. Amiel Richter said he was just happy to ski this late in the season.
“When there's all that powder, there's the pressure. You've got to get up at 5:30, you've got to fight the crowd, you've got to act like you had a good time while you're freezing your butt off,” he said.
Best friends Tiernan O’Sullivan and Matthew Mainini came to Utah from Massachusetts just for the skiing, and even with the rough winter, O’Sullivan said it's the best season he’s ever had.
“Powder day — probably best day I've had back east would be a foot powder day, and I'm touching the bottom and hearing ice, and I was stoked. I was juiced,” he said. "You come out here, we had a 48-inch day up at Snowbird, and that was incredible.”
Other skiers, however, felt the season was rough.
“Icy, slushy… jumping over some rocks and mud and dealing with all the conditions,” said friends Jenna Strom and Tanner Montoya.
“There was a good couple weeks in December, right around Christmastime, where it was decent, and then right after that, I feel like it was ice for weeks and weeks and weeks,” said Analise Cano.
If it’s one thing everyone could agree on, it’s that the Brighton community made the most of it.
“The people who came up were people who really wanted to be here, because people who don't really care aren't going to come up when it's icy and not very good,” Cano said.
While skiers are praying for more snow next year, O’Sullivan will be back, no matter what the conditions are.
“I’m re-signing that lease. If this was the worst year, next year is going to blow my mind,” he said.
Harrington added that they’re known for being a family-oriented resort, so closing on Mother’s Day was special this year.
The resort will now focus on its summer activities, including a mountain biking course and music festivals.
