Homegrown companies carving out niche for skiers

SNOWBASIN — The day was custom designed for skiing.

Fresh powder, short lift lines and blue skies welcomed our little group of test subjects to Snowbasin last Wednesday, where we sampled skis from three Utah ski companies.

Two are fairly new businesses — Viice Skis and Bluehouse Skis — while the third — Goode Ski Technologies — has been in business for three decades, but until 2001 sold mostly ski accessories and water skis.

Deseret News design director Heidi Perry, photographer Tom Smart and myself each chose which skis we'd test. We all have different backgrounds — and dare I say — relationships with skiing. Heidi is a former All-American ski racer and teacher; Tom is a lifetime enthusiast; and I am a dabbler.

Heidi skied Viice, and recruited her husband Gord to ski on a pair of Goode skis. Tom skied on Bluehouse; and I skied on a pair of Goode's backcountry skis. The story idea sprung from a conversation among the Deseret News staff about the amazing number of ski companies and outdoors businesses in Utah. Probably the most well-known is Black Diamond (the company from which I rented my boots and that also made my skins). Utah was also home to Evolution Ski Company, until its founder, Steve Eccles Denkers, sold it after the 2002 Winter Games.

Dave Goode moved his company from Michigan to Ogden because it is so winter-sport friendly. Scott Berry and Anthony Walker started Viice Ski Company a year-and-a-half ago after growing up on the slopes of Snowbird. And Dan Nebeker, Jared Richards, Adam Hepworth, Shane Larsen and Jordan Azner all grew up in Utah and were college roommates at BYU who, despite earning college degrees, just wanted to make a living in the ski industry.

For all of them, living so close to the world's best testing facility (the Wasatch mountains) is key in developing their products. They've taken their passion for skiing and developed ways to very literally share it with others.

Walker summed it up best for me when we discussed the freedom that comes from skiing. There are certainly a lot of emotions that the sport elicits, but peace has to be one of the most sought after.

"All you can hear is the wind in the trees," said Walker. "Those moments are amazing."

BLUEHOUSE SKI COMPANY