In 2002, Utah became the 5th state in the U.S to host the Olympic games with the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. Venues were held all around the city, including Park City’s Utah Olympic Park with bobsleigh, luge, skeleton, ski jumping and Nordic combined events.
Utah Olympic Park
Today it is a center for Olympic-level events and athletes in training, and is also a delightful tourist destination. We were visiting family in late June, and we all spent an exciting afternoon watching athletes from around the world practice ski jumps and land in a pool.* There were two observation decks with seating and tables, so we bought sandwiches and salads at the cafe, and then enjoyed lunch and a show on a beautiful summer day.
Utah Olympic Park Practice Pool
Park activities available to the public are extreme zipline, extreme tubing, freestyle zipline, comet bobsled rides, climbing wall, slip-n-soar, scenic Nordic chairlift, museums, and flying ace all-star shows, all for summer fun and adventure.
Guided tours of the facility give the history and amazing stories of the Olympics. Check out their website here, because this is a fantastic destination for athletes and family fun, located only 30 minutes from Salt Lake City!
Wishing you Happy Discoveries!
Amy and Mr.D
*The pool permits the practice of new skills with reduced risk, as the impact of a water landing is less dangerous than a comparable impact on compacted snow. Participants typically wear wetsuits, dry suits, gloves, lifejackets, and helmets. The danger of hard landings on water can be reduced by aerating the water surface to create bubbles as large as 12 inches (300 mm), softening landings and lowering injuries. Additionally, these bubbles serve as a reference point for the athletes to help keep them oriented when performing acrobatics.
7 comments
I am so enjoying your e-newsletter. We visited Park City a few years and tooka timeshare week there. The Olympic facility was great – so enjoyed — also visited friends in Salt Lake City and did a little research at the Center.
Great post. Amazing how they land in the water with skis.
Victor, their boots and skis are modified for practice and water landings. Still, we agree it’s amazing to watch them splashdown with skis on!
Your video sections combined with the beautiful photography are wonderful. I wish you would use more natural sound with the videos but they are really great.
Naomi, oftentimes the sound is just rushing air from the car window, or not entirely audible, so we mute it. We are, however, working on Mr.D’s original compositions for future videos, so stay tuned!
This looks so fun! I’m not crazy enough to do this but watching from the viewing platform would be awesome.
Ally, we had a blast there and the viewing platforms and some other events are free to the public, so be sure to check their website for details.