The early morning sun painted a thin line on the alpine edge of the Mt. Superior ridgeline. It was a chilly morning as an eager crowd gathered in the shadows of the plaza at the Snowbird Center — opening day with a foot or more of pent-up powder ready to be skied.The tram at Snowbird is a yet another cultural experience in our sport. In the early morning hours, it brings together a diverse group of skiers and riders united by the common goal of riding one of the world’s most iconic ski lifts, then dipping their tips into the 78 inches of new-season snowfall that had accumulated in the weeks prior.It’s 8a.m., an hour to go. The line stretches from the tram terminal, wrapping around the entire plaza. I felt pretty confident that I was destined for third tram — which was acceptable. Seeing the 2 degree temps that morning, I bundled up. My fingers were warm inside my leather mittens, and my toes were toasty with the Hotronics cranked up to high.Behind me, a dude argued with a friend on his phone. “No, I told you last night I would meet you on the tram. Yah, I’m there now and I’m not coming down to Gad.” Not sure where it landed, but the dude stayed in line.Two young girls with Red Bull backpacks were handing out Winter Edition Vanilla Berry. I passed. The group in front of me each grabbed one, but they didn’t go over well. I turned down the offer to finish one of theirs off.Time was ticking away quickly. Then, at 8:50 a.m., a Snowbird staffer came down the line to inform us all that the tram would be delayed. Virtually no one left. This group was committed!As the clock ticked closer to the 9 a.m. opening, rationalization started taking over with some. The group ahead of me included a diehard Snowbird pass holder and a couple of out-of-town friends. The diehard spoke of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ski weeks of untouched pow off the tram. The flatlanders, well, they just wanted to ski. Soon, it was 9:05 a.m. The group reviewed their options. I figured diehard would win out. He didn’t. I said goodbye as they headed to the new Wilbere lift down valley. I moved up four places in line.As you would expect, five minutes later, there was whoopin’ and hollerin’ inside the tram terminal. The line began to move. Yes, the game was on.Inside the tram building, you can feel the energy of the massive counterweights that anchor the two Doppelmayer 125-person cabins as massive steel cables pull the cars up over 3,000 feet. Soon, we’re funneling into the tram for the seven-minute journey to the top of Hidden Peak.A few turns onto the spine, and it was time to drop into Regulator Johnson. There was a reason they posted the tram as expert only on opening day. Regulator had its typical steep groomer in pristine condition — smooth but very steep! I linked turn after turn in a nice line down the face. Near the bottom of the pitch, a young skier ripped by at breakneck speed. He missed me, but the two unsuspecting souls standing at the bottom of the run by a control fence took the full brunt of his speed as the kid knocked them both over, the busting through a few bamboo pools and cartwheeling precariously close to a dropoff.Come on, folks, let’s ski under control!Back atop Hidden Peak I pulled up a chair at a corner table overlooking Mineral Basin. The temperature inversion created a cloud layer below, with a bank hanging over Mary Ellen Gulch with the ridgeline featuring Provo Peak pointing skyward from the fog out in the distance. To the east, the peaks of the Uintas stood out prominently. Up above, the sky remained a royal blue, while below, in Mineral Basin, the fresh untouched powder was awaiting its opening in another week or so.It was a beautiful morning to ski. But I was here for the view!The post Ridgelines: Sometimes it’s just about the view appeared first on Park Record.