Author: stefanmortl

Ober Gatlinburg, TN

Ober Gatlinburg is the top resort for those who live in Knoxville. Being roughly an hour away can make for the perfect day trip for people of all ages. Whether you got out of class early from UT or have a little extra free time on a Saturday, Ober is a great place to get some practice in. Although the snow is very rarely natural, Ober does a great job a blowing enough snow, so you can hardly tell the difference. Make sure to bring a pair of goggles as getting snow blowed in your face as you fly down the slopes is not pleasant at all. Ober is a rather small resort, only having one black diamond available and a very pitiful terrain park. The runs are very short too, lasting roughly five minutes.  However, if you are from the Knoxville area, the convenient location that Ober offers is hard to pass up. Besides the skiing, Ober has a great resort cabin. There’s inside ice skating, fudge shops, restaurants, and even a mini mall for those shopping addicts. Ober uniquely offers a tram ride (pictured above) directly to the resort cabin from the city below, so you do not have to drive on those scary mountain roads!

Beech Mountain, NC

If you are looking for an east coast resort that has a west coast style terrain park, Beech Mountain is the place for you. In fact, Beech’s main attraction is their terrain park. The park has three jumps that grow in size as you progress, many rails, tubes, and even a huge wood block that skiers and snowboarders can really get creative with. Even without the park, Beech is still a great place for skiers of all levels. There are multiple black diamond trails, and a run from the top of the mountain can take a good fifteen minutes to complete. The ski lift lines are a pain. Beech only has one lift that scales the mountain from the bottom to the top. If the lift stops for whatever reason, the lines can get backed up quickly. For those from the Knoxville area, the three hour trip to Beech Mountain is completely worth it. Being just over the boarder into North Carolina, the trip can be done in one day. If you want quality skiing, you must travel to North Carolina, as East Tennessee’s only resort is Ober Gatlinburg.

Sugar Mountain, NC

Only thirty minutes away from Beech, Sugar Mountain is arguably the best ski resort for open slope skiing. Three black diamond trails, with runs that last almost 30 minutes from the top to the bottom. This mountain has seriously steep slopes that are challenging even for the most experienced skiers and snowboarders. What Sugar lacks in terrain park, they make up for with ski lifts. Sugar Mountain offers two of the fastest lifts that I have ever been on. This factor alone will give you more time actually skiing, and make your overall experience better. This resort offers the best meals out of any that I have personally been to. Usually, ski resort food is just very subpar cafeteria food, but Sugar offers an outdoor grille with succulent cheeseburgers, steak fries, nachos, and more. The tap beer at the grille just adds to the luxury of it all. Sugar Mountain is the top family resort because of the amenities and the variety of trail difficulty.

The only thing worse than the long drive up to the resort is not being ready to go as soon as you arrive! Ski gear takes forever to put on and the anxiety levels rise as tons of people rush past you to be the first one on the lift.

Do Not Rent Skis From The Resort

It is best to have your own pair of skis, but depending on how often you ski that expensive purchase may not be necessary. If you have to rent, do not rent from the resort! Long lines, slow workers, and multiple safety forms will have you waiting in the cabin for hours. Those who are looking to rent should either rent from a local ski shop such as Alpine Ski Center or one of the ski shops along the way to the mountain. Not only are their prices cheaper, but the skis are usually better maintained as well. This way, when you arrive to the ski resort all you need is your lift ticket and you are golden!

Make Sure Everything Fits

Making sure everything fits is crucial before you head out for a ski session. Make for the boots and bindings work and fit together by properly measuring the binding. If you can get your ski boots to click into the binding, you will have a long walk back down the mountain. Gloves, jackets, and pants are important too. Any exposed skin will be irritated at the end of the day, especially if the resort happens to be blowing snow that day.

Remember your goggles! There have been too many times that I’ve had to buy a cheap pair of goggles at the resort because I forgot my own. It is nearly impossible to ski without them. I have had my eyelashes freeze over before, so believe me when I say goggles are crucial. They are also good for your safety. Ski poles can and will take your eye out!

Take Care of Your Gear

A wax and edge trim is always a good thing before the first ski of the year. The beating put on the gear last year is often forgotten over the summer. It is not until you get on the mountain when you can tell the difference. Waxing allows your skis to glide more easily over the snow, making you fly down the slope. The faster you go, the more fun you have, am I right? Getting the edges of your ski or snowboard is important too. The edges are what carve through the snow, allowing great speed control. Lots of resorts have ski patrol that look for hooligans flying through posted slow zones (I am guilty myself), and will end up cutting your lift ticket!

With Knoxville not being a “ski city” such as Denver, there is not a wide variety of places to get gear or tuneups. There are still a couple select places to get ready for the mountain.

Alpine Ski Center

Alpine Ski Center is the top dog of ski shops in the Knoxville area. Located right off of Kingston Pike and just a block up from West Town Mall, Alpine is never out of reach. As their website claims, they are indeed the number one ski shop in Knoxville, let alone the Southeast. There are several Alpine locations such as: Johnson City (TN), Banner Elk (NC), and Beech Mountain (NC). Banner Elk and Beech Mountain are both home to a ski resort, but if you live in Knoxville and want to be ready to go once you get to the resort, Alpine Ski Center of Knoxville is the way to go.

What They Offer:

Alpine is unique in that you can buy, tuneup, and rent skis all in one place. No other ski shop in the Knoxville area offers those services. They have a wide variety of skis, boots, and bindings so you can be unique on the mountain. They carry top ski jacket and pant brands such as North Face, Burton, Vans, and Oakley. They even have a special Oakley case with all the latest goggles.

Staff/Services:

The staff is always very helpful and patient at Alpine Ski Center. If you are just now starting out, they are willing to go the extra mile to make sure you get the right set of gear to become a pro fast! The staff at Alpine is very knowledgeable and usually ski or snowboard themselves. The can mount bindings, wax skis, and trim the edges for sharper turns on the slopes.

All in all, if you want a one stop ski shop in Knoxville, Alpine Ski Center has everything to be ready for a solid ski session.

REI (Recreational Equipment Inc.)

REI is a very well-known outdoor store that is spread out all over the country. REI can offer a skier name-brand jackets, pants, gloves, and thermal gear. REI does not, however, offer any sort of ski specific tune ups and does not sell skis, ski boots, or bindings. With a big name company, you pay the big price. The ski gear at REI is fairly expensive, but not much higher than Alpine’s prices.