 "Photo: Jessica Dunn")
Long before Brighton Ski Resort had a rail in its park, snowboarders were hitting handrails at the now famous Rail Garden.
If you've never heard of it, there's a big chance that you've either driven past it or watched a video of your favorite snowboarder or skier hitting one of the rails. Videos such as "Decade," "The Resistance" and "Picture This" show the potential of the garden with different professional riders hitting many of the available feature.
The Rail Garden got its nickname from the riders who frequent its grounds, but it is officially named Mt. Olympus Park. The park was initially built as a walking path next to the Mt. Olympus Trailhead. Designers kept many of the trees and hills in place by building concrete paths and stairs, as well as putting in rails to hold onto while meandering through the park.
The park is littered with a variety of rails sized anywhere from four to 20 stairs. One of the most popular rails, the Disaster Gap, is right next to the road. It's a set of two rails where the top one is knobbed. Riders have to gap it to hit the second one.
Two other well-ridden rails are an eight-stair followed by a 10-stair rail that can be conquered in one hike. There's also the 16-stair that's a classic spot for filming and where the Dragon apparel company held the first contest last year.
The rest of the park is full of different types of jibs. You just have to be a little creative to see them. The bleachers are usually set up to ride on and are sometimes changed to be able to hit other levels of seating. The picnic tables make awesome wide boxes and can be moved around to suit your style and skill. Fences can be cleared, and small jumps can be built wherever. You can be a daredevil and ride the roof of the pavilion or go back to your childhood while setting something up on the playground. The ride-on concrete ledges are a good way to keep it simple.
Most of the rails and jibs stay set up all winter, because the park is technically closed, although boarders and skiers frequent it along with the occasional dog-walker. Riders can be seen at the garden almost any time of the day, from the midday after-school riders to the sunset and night filming crews.
On occasion, there could be more than 15 people waiting to session one rail. The Rail Garden usually gets crowded when the canyons close, allowing those people who need their daily snowboarding or skiing fix to still be on the snow. Others simply can't afford season passes at the resorts and take advantage of the free riding the garden offers.
Regardless of why snowboarders and skiers flock to Rail Garden, they most likely found their way to it through their friends. Rail Garden remains an underground local spot, because no one publicly gives away its location. Usually, the only way to find it is by being taken there by those who know or through a stroke of luck. That way Rail Garden can remain a jibbing mecca and a rite of passage for the loyal.
j.dunn@chronicle.utah.edu
