Brighton Ski Resort is a ski area located in

Big Cottonwood Canyon Big Cottonwood Canyon is a canyon in the Wasatch Range southeast of Salt Lake City in the U.S. state of Utah. The -long canyon provides hiking, biking, picnicking, rock-climbing, camping, and fishing in the summer. Its two ski resorts, Brigh ...

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, Utah, United States, about from downtown

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, t ...

. It is owned and operated by

Boyne Resorts Boyne Resorts is an owner and operator of ski and golf resorts in the United States. The company employs over 7,000 full-time and seasonal staff. It operates 13 resort properties: 10 ski resorts and 11 golf courses. The company, based in ...

Description

Brighton Ski Resort was the first ski resort in Utah, and one of the first in the United States. Brighton was started in 1936 when members of the Alpine Ski Club built a

rope tow A surface lift is a type of cable transport for snow sports in which skiers and snowboarders remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill. While they were once prevalent, they have been overtaken in popularity by higher-capacity and higher-c ...

from wire and an old elevator motor. The resort was named for Thomas W. Brighton, who is credited with constructing the first buildings in the area. In 1943, Zane Doyle and Willard Jensen purchased the T-bar from K Smith. In 1954 when there was talk of expansion, Willard insisted that going out on a limb to build a double chair lift instead of another T-bar was worth the risk. Those important changes were able to come about when in 1955 Zane's brother-in-law, Dean L Jensen sold his Idaho business and joined Willard and Zane to build the first double chair lift, Mt Majestic, which was constructed parallel to the old T-bar. Mary Lift was installed in 1959 and in 1963 the trio bought out Brighton Recreation Company, which owned Millicent Lift, and Brighton Ski Bowl was off and running. The Doyle and Jensen ski operation became successful and was owned and operated by Willard, his son Dean and grandson, Gilbert Jensen; Zane and his sons Michael and Randy Doyle.

purchased the resort in 1986. Boyne sold Brighton to CNL Lifestyle in 2007, but continued to operate the property under a lease. CNL sold the property to

Och-Ziff Capital Management Sculptor Capital Management (formerly Och-Ziff Capital Management Group) is an American global diversified alternative asset management firm. They are one of the largest institutional alternative asset managers in the world. The firm operates mu ...

in 2016. Boyne Resorts repurchased the resort in May 2018 from

. Brighton claims to be a "no-frills" resort whose sole business is to provide skiers and snowboarders with top-notch trails. While it does provide lodging, dining, and shopping, the extent of the facilities does not make Brighton what is typically seen as a destination ski resort. Most Brighton skiers and riders are Utah locals. Most visitors do not stay at Brighton-run lodging; many visitors stay in the greater Salt Lake area, many of whom also plan trips to other area ski resorts. Brighton is also known for its extensive backcountry access, visitors can purchase single ride lift tickets to reach the backcountry access gates at the top of the resort. Although the terrain inbounds at Brighton can rival that of the backcountry, Brighton is known for its cliffs, chutes, bowls and natural features. Brighton was voted to have the 2nd best snow in North America, losing the top spot to its neighbor Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort. Brighton is on

public lands In all modern states, a portion of land is held by central or local governments. This is called public land, state land, or Crown land ( Australia, and Canada). The system of tenure of public land, and the terminology used, varies between countr ...

; all of the resort's land is part of the Wasatch-Cache National Forest, meaning the whole resort is open to the public year-round, though tickets must be purchased to use the lifts. Brighton is a local favorite. The resort offers a variety of special deals throughout the year that allow locals to ski cheaply. Generally, during the first Wednesdays in December, the resort offers a promotion called "Quad Wednesdays" where, if one brings an item to contribute to a local charity, one gets his or her lift ticket for one fourth the cost of a regular-priced ticket. Brighton is adjacent to

Solitude Mountain Resort Solitude Mountain Resort is a ski resort located in the Big Cottonwood Canyon of the Wasatch Mountains, thirty miles southeast of Salt Lake City, Utah. With 66 trails, and vertical, Solitude is one of the smaller ski resorts near Salt Lake Cit ...

, and the two ski areas offer a common "Solbright Pass" which provides access to both resorts for a nominal surcharge. Transit between the two mountains is provided from Solitude to Brighton via the Solbright run off the Summit Express on Solitude, or via the Evergreen trail off the Milly Express on Brighton. Brighton has some of the most extensive night skiing in the

Western U.S. The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

, with over , six lifts, and its main mountain terrain park. Night-skiing occurs from 4:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Monday through Saturday, from early December through early April. Brighton is closed for night skiing on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year's Eve.

Snowboarding Legacy

From the early 1990s through the 2000s, many top professional and

amateur An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught, user-generated, DIY, and hobbyist. History Hist ...

snowboarders called Brighton their home.

Trivia

The Disney Channel Original Movies, ''

Johnny Tsunami ''Johnny Tsunami'' is a 1999 Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM). The film focuses on a young surfer from Hawaii who must adapt to new challenges when his father's job forces the family to move to Vermont. It was nominated in 2000 for the Humanita ...

'' and '' Cloud 9'', were filmed at Brighton Ski Resort.

References

External links

Brighton Resort Official Site

3dSkiMap of Brighton Ski Resort

Brighton's Snow Report
{{Ski areas and resorts in Utah Ski areas and resorts in Utah Sports venues in Salt Lake County, Utah Event venues established in 1936