Forest Service sides with Alta on snowboarding ban


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ALTA — A group of snowboarders filed a lawsuit in January claiming Alta discriminates against them while operating on federal property.

But this week, the Forest Service sided with Alta and filed court papers asking a judge to dismiss this lawsuit.

At Alta Tuesday, you'd have a tough time finding someone not using words like epic and gnarly.

"The best winter conditions we've had all year,” Draper resident Tom Folmsbee said.

The snow was coming down Tuesday and skiers loved it, but only skiers could enjoy it.

"You know, it's a public area, but it's privately owned,” Folmsbee said.

Folmsbee has skied Alta for 30 years and said he wouldn't care if snowboarders were allowed.

In U.S. District Court Monday, though, the Forest Service agreed with Alta, filing a request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by snowboarders saying they "have failed to show that the federal defendants’ treatment of them was irrational."

The attorney representing the snowboarders released a statement, saying:

"We believe that Alta's and the Forest Service's motions mischaracterize our complaint, confuse applicable law, and entirely avoid certain key issues."

For skiers Tuesday, though, the lawsuit was all "court stuff," and on a snow day like this, it was the farthest thing from their minds.

"There's really no animosity there,” Folmsbee said. “It's just the snow, the people, the kindness of the whole area. It's just fun."

The attorney for the snowboarders said they would file a response to keep the case going. They also said that when it goes to court, it'll be hard for the other side to explain why this isn't discrimination.

The Forest Service, the U.S. Attorney's Office and Alta ski resort declined to comment Tuesday, saying they will after it's all settled.

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