JH Underground – news, sports and music blog from Jackson Hole, Wyoming news, sports and music blog from Jackson Hole, Wyoming

For the second year in a row, Jackson Hole has been a magnet for Hollywood celebrities over New Year’s. Town has been abuzz all week with a rather long list of sightings; you don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out who they are.

It’s pretty cool that these artists, so talented in the fields of film, theater and comedy, have come to celebrate with us.

But it must have been bracing for them to wake up to -8 degrees in town this morning, and -12 atop the tram at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Meteorologist Jim Woodmencey is calling for lows near -20 tonight and tomorrow. Going to make for some cold merrymaking.

Hopefully Conan gets good material for his next monologue, as with eyelids frosted and teeth chattering we go to ’11!

(Photo by Jakub Sram, shot in June 2009)

Posted under Entertainment, Holidays, Ski Resorts, Weather

Tags: films, jackson hole mountain resort

An American Airlines plane overran the runway at Jackson Hole Airport today, amid snow and winds.

Good thing the landing was soft.

Update: Andrew Bennett, a photographer who was on board and submitted a photo (after the jump), reports, “The landing wasn’t all that bad, just a couple of big bumps and a huge cloud of snow.”

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Posted under Environment, Weather

Tags: grand teton national park, powder, travel

Last week blogger Rando Steve posted on a TGR forum about the rumored demise of Snow King Resort. This week the News&Guide followed up with a report that the resort indeed is looking to part with the ski hill and ice rink, which are said to have been money losers for a long time.

I’ve heard that Vail Resorts or perhaps another major player in the resort industry is interested in buying the hotel and related property, but Snow King managing partner Manuel Lopez says no deals are in the works.

The resort is floating the idea of a nonprofit taking over the ski hill and rink, possibly financed by lodging tax revenue. The Jackson Hole Ski Club, which uses Snow King as its base and hosts a variety of events there, is a natural candidate. The resort has set a deadline of May 1 for the community to come up with a plan.

“Lopez hopes the community can find an independent person with a business mind to examine all the revenue and expenses associated with operations as well as issues such as the U.S. Forest Service permit and determine a plan for funding operations of the hill next year and beyond,” the News&Guide reported.

That’s all fine, as who wouldn’t want the beloved Town Hill to continue to be a ski area in some form. But there are other questions about the future of the resort that must be resolved.

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Posted under Economy, Environment, Politics, Ski Resorts, Sports

Tags: development, skiing, snow king, snowboarding

Another gem mined from the trove of Census data released last week: The Ratio.

Wyoming ranks third-worst in the nation with 127.4 unmarried men per 100 unmarried women ages 15 to 44, according to the American Community Survey. The Cowboy State trails only Alaska (134), not surprisingly, and Hawaii (128.3), surprisingly, and narrowly outpaces North Dakota (125) and Nevada (122.4).

It gets even more depressing, fellas. Among Wyoming counties, Teton County is third-worst with 154.2 unmarried men for every 100 unmarried women, trailing Carbon County (the state prison isn’t much of a draw for the ladies, apparently) and the aptly named Johnson County.

In essence, the survey confirms what every dude who has spent apres-ski at the Mangy Moose knows all too well. The average Jackson Hole woman is probably texting 4.5 guys at this very moment.

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Posted under Dating, Economy, Humor, Wyoming

Tags: census, sex

The travails of leaving a car at Jackson Hole Airport for an extended period during Deepcember. Hope they brought a shovel back with them.

Avalanche danger on the submerged Subaru was rated “high” today.

Posted under Humor, Ski Resorts, Weather

Tags: jackson hole mountain resort, powder, travel

Tonight, conditions permitting, star gazers can usher in the winter solstice with another celestial convergence: a lunar eclipse.

Given that snow and fog are in the forecast, it’s unlikely northwest Wyoming will get to see the Earth’s shadow envelop the full moon. But the phenomenon will begin to be visible at 11:33 p.m., should the clouds part. The solstice, marking the shortest day and longest night of the year, begins at midnight.

What does it mean? I’ll leave that to an astrologer, but there’s certainly a spooky vibe in the air tonight (it’s just after midnight as I type). It rained here in town — again — after a foot or more of snow fell Sunday. I watched the temperature rise 4 or 5 degrees in about 30 minutes before 10 p.m.

An avalanche in the Double Dog Leg chute of Granite Canyon north of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort carried a skier 1,000 feet today. I’m told he’s pretty banged up. The skier is said to be a resort employee.

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Posted under Environment, Holidays, Religion, Ski Resorts, Weather

Tags: avalanches, jackson hole mountain resort, powder