The Alpine Slide at Park City Mountain Resort – what a ride!

I have a need: a need for speed. Given a choice between meandering and going as fast as possible, I will usually choose to floor it.

When I traveled to Park City, Utah to attend the EVO conference this summer, I got to satisfy my need for speed on the Alpine Slide at Park City Mountain Resort. A concrete track winds down the mountain with turns and drops, taking riders on a high speed race unlike anything I’ve ever done. Riders sit on a flat plastic cart with four wheels. The cart is only big enough for you to sit down and stretch your legs out in front of you. There is no extra padding or cushion, nothing is coming between you and the concrete track except the wheels and the plastic cart. If I thought about this a little harder, I might have been scared, but I was too excited to get on.

I rode this slide years ago and felt thrilled nothing had changed; in fact, the slide had gotten better. When I last rode, there were only two tracks; now there were four! One track was labeled the “designated slow track”. I knew that was not the one for me.

I climbed on the cart, sat down and waited for the go-ahead from the attendant. The cart takes off slowly at first and builds momentum quickly as gravity takes you down the hill. The only person controlling how fast you go is you. The brake is easy to operate, but I only used it when I absolutely had to. Riders don’t wear helmets and there’s no seat belt holding you to the cart. A few times I caught air as the track took a steep dip down the mountain. I loved that!

Watch a video of my ride!

More fun at the Park City Mountain Resort

If you’re not a speed demon like I am, the Park City Mountain Resort has other activities just as appealing to folks who like to take things slow. Trails are open for hiking and biking. All you need to do is take the ski lift up the mountain and find your way down. The Resort also offers other thrilling activities like a zip line and a coaster ride down the mountain. Families can enjoy a round of miniature golf or scale to the top of a climbing wall. The Resort has something for everyone to enjoy.

After watching my video a few times, it seems I feel more comfortable banking higher on the left turns than the right. Who knew? If you have a need for speed like I do, get yourself to Utah and head to the Park City Mountain Resort. You’ll have a ride of your life.

When Eileen Calandro isn’t finding ways to satisfy her inner Speed Racer, she is the Chief Mom Connector of Mom Central. You can read about other things she does way too fast on her personal blog at calandroclan.com and connect with her on twitter at @MomCentralChat and @calandro5.

Eileen Calandro