SAM Magazine-Alta, Utah, Sept. 25, 2006-It is one of the very few areas in the U.S. that don't allow snowboarding, and, it appears, doesn't need a terrain park, either. While most resorts have been pumping investment dollars into their parks, contrarian resort Alta has decided to ax its park altogether.

"We found that our skiers were curious about the park, and had a lot of fun times jibbing," the resort explains on its website, altaskiarea.com. "But we were also astonished by how many more of our skiers preferred to use the natural terrain features on our 2,200 acres as their preferred 'park.'"