From Deseret News archives:
Extreme Ogden Railroad city rebuilds itself through extreme sports
Did it work?
Ogden is, claims one national publication, "fast gaining on places like Boulder, Colo., as a destination for extreme sports."
On the extreme menu are activities such as skiing, indoor surfing, kayaking, rock and ice climbing, flying without wings, and water skiing.
"When we came into office nearly eight years ago, we knew we had to stop being an old railroad town. We used to have a railroad; then we had nothing," recalled Ogden Mayor Matthew Godfrey.
"We asked ourselves: 'What can we do to be the best in the world?' We knew we had unparalleled access to recreation. No one along the Wasatch Front has better access to recreation. No one has greater access to recreation so close to a downtown area. That's what will make this work. "
It started with skiing Snowbasin, Powder Mountain and Wolf Mountain, formerly Nordic Valley. It was available and had been for years.
Powder Mountain is another of the "undiscovered" resorts. When its unmanaged powder fields are combined with its managed slopes, it is Utah's largest resort 5,500 acres. In the magazine's annual reader's poll, under the category "snow," skiers rated Powder Mountain second only to Alta.
Wolf Mountain, under new ownership, is Utah's smallest resort but lists itself as its most "family friendly" and most affordable.
Then Godfrey targeted two more areas attracting new businesses and exercising new opportunities.
"We spent years cleaning up downtown to create momentum. We weren't presentable the way we were," he explained. Roughly 60 acres of the downtown area has been renovated, and 120 acres is currently under redevelopment.
The new development includes the new Salomon Adventure Center, named after the ski company Salomon.
There, people can surf or boogie-board indoors on the FloRider, climb any one of the hundred routes on the IRock climbing walls, fly solo in the IFly wind tunnel, work out at Gold's Gym, bowl a few games or engage in a range of other family activities.
Recent comments
This really is the place... I've lived in southern Cali and traveled...
Anonymous | Dec. 12, 2007 at 6:00 p.m.
Why live anywhere else? Utah looks like Hawaii in the summer...you...
Left Hawaii for Utah | Nov. 12, 2007 at 10:49 a.m.
What an amazing transformation! Mayor Godfrey deserves the lion's...
Larry B. | Nov. 10, 2007 at 1:47 p.m.
- Rescuers reach stranded hikers 10:49 a.m.
- Blind woman follows the Son 10:41 a.m.
- Madoff's yacht on auction block 10:23 a.m.
- Report: OSHA needs to improve 10:21 a.m.
- GM reports $1.2B loss 10:20 a.m.
- Bacall, 2 others receive early Oscars 10:16 a.m.
- '2012' has box-office bang of $225M 10:13 a.m.
- Cox ready to shriek in 'Scream 4' 10:11 a.m.
- 'Hair' opens London with B'way cast 10:10 a.m.
- 'Twilight' part of heartthrob history 10:08 a.m.
- Apostle's wife felt comfort in attack
- MWC expand? Get rid of deadweight
- TCU stays 4th in AP; Y. 19th, U. 23rd
- Bennett at center of GOP storm
- Win in New Mexico good for Y?
- BYU happy to escape with victory
- Relieved Cougs prep for Falcons
- TCU creams U.
- Jazz rookies had to grow up quickly
- Wounded Utes limp home
- TCU creams U.
231 - BYU happy to escape with victory
231 - Editorial: Mormons and gay rights
208 - Will state consider gay rights law?
151 - Can BYU root for (ick) Utah Utes?
131 - RSL heads to MLS title game
130 - Utes remain silent about BCS
120 - TCU stays 4th in AP; Y. 19th, U. 23rd
105 - Celtics crush Jazz
104 - 5A: Bingham rolls to title game
89
One of you Sloan haters, can you please tell me the name of a rookie that...
Can't the championship game end in a tie so nobody gets their feelings hurt?...
"I know we losted and it hurts but we must go on utah fans." Spoken like a...
Remember the early season hype? RSL expected to do well, an early favorite...
According to the testimony of Martin Harris, Mr. Smith often used the "seer...
You can have your healthcare, and you will have so much time to spend sitting...
I believe this attempt to excuse a terrorist in the midst of the US military...
We Win
One cannot help but wonder how one gets a shovel stuck in one's forehead....
One thing I learned from the Cleveland game is that Coach Sloan needs to take...

