As a cold snap descends on the Wasatch Wednesday bringing significant flakes Friday and Saturday (followed by another sunny, high-pressure system early next week), Ski Utah officials spread cautious optimism through the press rank and file Tuesday at the resort consortium’s annual pre-season state of the union.

President Nathan Rafferty predicted a modest increase in skier visits (3 percent) that would keep skier totals above 4 million in spite of the continued downtrending economy.

Rafferty, adopting the tourism industry’s ‘things-have-got-to-start-getting-better‘ mantra, said some economic indicators indicate an uptick in consumer confidence and spending which should trickle down to Utah’s biggest draw.

Noting the region and country’s continued economic turmoil, Rafferty said each of the 13 Utah resorts are offering skier discounts this year; he also pointed out last year was the first time since ’01-’02 the ski industry’s growth stagnated.

A newly redesigned Ski Utah website has received almost 10 percent more traffic than this time last year, Rafferty said.

Those wanting early turns can visit Solituede (opened Nov. 6) or Brighton (opens Wednesday).

http://www.skiutah.com/