Ski Lift of the Week • Strawberry Express Gondola at Snowbasin Resort

Type • Eight-occupant gondola

Vertical rise • 2,472 feet

Number of runs • 14

Difficulty rating • Intermediate to advanced

Why try it • Whatever you like, you can find it in the bowl below

The ride • There are two ways to reach this high-speed detachable gondola, which services a bowl incorporated into the resort with the expansion for the 2002 Winter Olympics. The easiest approach is via Needles Express Gondola, which rises out of Snowbasin's base facility. Then it's an easy slide down Strawberry Traverse to the wide-open, largely intermediate area. It's also possible to get into Strawberry by taking Becker lift to lower Philpot Ridge.

Runs to try

Main Street • A classic intermediate run, never too steep but with enough turns, dips and doodles to make it appealing to more adventurous as well as cautious skiers and snowboarders.

Philpot Ridge • Drop in wherever you like off the ridge and you'll find fairly steep pitches with plenty of space for turns among scattered trees.

Sister's Bowl • The terrain beneath the chutes of Strawberry Peak is varied and challenging, from Twist & Shout through Moonshine Bowl to White Lightning.

The Salt Lake Tribune