The Frisco Adventure Park has plans to install a tow rope this winter season that will provide skiers and riders access to a terrain park with rails and jumps.
Frisco has operated a winter tubing and beginner ski hill at the adventure park for several year. Over the past few years, the town has set up a couple rails and small jumps when the tubing hill closes in the spring for skiers and riders who want to hike up to the features.
The tow rope will expand on that early terrain park concept, Frisco Adventure Park operations manager John Anicito said. It is planned to be located to the north of the existing magic carpet and could open by February this year, depending on snow conditions, Anicito said.
“It’s going to be just like the late-season (terrain park) we’ve done out there,” Anicito said. “But it’s going to be off to the skiers right off the carpet, with the goal of getting some jumps and some rails and having a permanent terrain park.”
While the exact details are still being worked out, the tow rope will likely offer a day pass for a low cost during the first year, before offering some kind of season pass in the future, Anicito said. He said the pass will likely tie in the ski-and-ride school program so learners can progress from the magic carpet to the tow rope as their skills improve.
The town budgeted $70,000 from the lodging tax fund for the tow rope. Anicito noted that one cool feature about the tow rope is that it is portable, so when the tubing season is over, it is possible to move the terrain park operations over there, he said.
Anicito noted that local kids enjoy the skate park and bike park throughout the summer, and part of the idea behind the terrain park is to provide another recreational opportunity for young athletes in the wintertime.
Some local winter sports teams, including Team Summit, have previously noted that a terrain park would create more opportunities for athletes to practice their skills, especially during the week, Anicito said. He said the terrain park will be one of just a handful in the state that can be accessed by tow rope.
“Looking big picture it is ‘How can we help the community?’” Anicito said. “Because if you think of kids that are trying to practice their skills after school, unless they go to Woodward, there’s not a whole lot of options out there — maybe Keystone on a couple of nights.”
The tow rope has been ordered but has yet to arrive, Anicito said. He said while the terrain park will just be getting started this year, the hope is to have a longer season and continue to expand the features in years to come.
“I think it’ll be a good testing year just to see what that will look like,” Anicito said. “So for the next season, we’ll hope that things really dialed in.”