About Utah: Burns family retains role in ski industry

As for Roger, he's not sure just how his grandfather might react if he were to come back and see the old place now, because he never was one to boast about his place in Utah's ski history.

He tells the story of when he was a teenager and his grandfather, who lived just down the street in old town Park City, mentioned that he thought he'd start skiing again. Bob Burns was in his 70s by then, but he went out and bought some skis and asked his grandson if he'd like to join him for some night skiing at Park City.

"As a little kid I never knew he skied at all, so I thought, 'Oh great, I'll be waiting for him on every run,' " says Roger. "But I'll tell you what, he beat me down the hill every time."

Ski pioneer Bob Burns died in 1982. That was immediately after Deer Valley opened and hired his grandson – ensuring that a Burns would still be there on the mountain to make sure the lifts kept running.

Lee Benson's About Utah column runs every Monday.

email: lbenson@desnews.com