Despite the ebb and flow of the stock market and concerns over our future ability to employ ourselves ski resorts are reporting strong bookings for this coming ski season. Early bookings are up about 17% according to the Denver-based Mountain Travel Research Program. It remains to be seen how quickly the backcountry will get tracked out, but strong sales of backcountry gear means trailheads may be more crowded than usual.

A man in Germany strolled up the country’s highest cable car route covering 3,300 feet in about an hour-and-a-half. He gained about 1,110 feet in elevation during the stunt and plans to submit it for some obscure longest-walk-above-sea-level-without-pole Guinness Record. Perhaps more remarkable are these three guys riding bikes around on top of a tram in the French Alps while it’s moving.

Good god, I hope it snows soon. I can’t take many more of these weird videos filmed at ski resorts over the summer.

Ski Utah, the marketing conglomerate that represents the interests of the ski resorts in Utah, is seeking someone to write a blog for them. What do you get? A Silver Pass that allows you access to every ski resort in the state. Or at least any of the resorts worth skiing. There’s a catch, you need to be something called a “park rat.” In accordance with ‘park rat’ behavior, they’re hosting some kind of essay contest to see who will get the job, which makes sense as park rats communicate almost entirely via essay. The contest ends September 5^th.

Snowbasin was built for the Utah Olympics, and no expense was spared. You can tell when you walk into the restrooms, just named ‘America’s Best’ in some bizarre contest. Marble floors as slick as ice when you’re walking in ski boots and massive chandeliers just too far overhead to grab when you slip and fall. And yeah, the mountain’s nice, not too crowded and the skiing is great, but I think we’ve covered the best of the resort in this slideshow on Examiner.

Ski season in Patagonia should be at its peak. Kids are out of school for a while, the snow’s coming down and ski towns built on tourism are setup. Unfortunately a volcano in Chile’s been puking ash on the resorts and neighboring towns keeping the airports and resorts on lock down. People are wandering around town wearing ski goggles, but it’s just to keep the ash out of their eyes. I’m surprised no enterprising skiers are uploading GoPro footage of them floating down the mountain covered in ash, but I suppose it’s tough to skin up an ash-covered mountainside. Plus it’s probably not great to breathe or wash out of your ski jacket.