Park City is looking to break Brekenridge, Colorado’s record of 1,350 shot takers set in December.
The two ski towns go back and forth for the unofficial record each year. Park City Sunrise Rotary founding member Connie Nelson said a few shot takers are added each year to break the record, ensuring the tradition can continue for decades to come.
“The unwritten rule is ‘don’t do too many,’” Nelson said. “Just maybe 10, because we’re going to run out of space on Main Street.”
At last year’s event, the shot ski involved 528 skis end to end, totaling 2,800 feet in length. A U-turn had to be engineered to run the shot ski on both sides of Main Street.
Snyderville Basin Water Reclamation District Executive Director Mike Luers, who is also a Sunrise Rotary member, explains.
“So the first year we made a run down Main Street, and then the next year grew because Brekenridge broke our record, and we thought we’re running out of real estate, we have to do something," Luers said. "So we thought let’s do a double run of the skis, but how do you do a double run where everyone can turn up the shot all simultaneously? So I cut up a whole bunch of skis and played around on a U turn, and finally came up with kind of a double-hinged system. And it’s worked well for us.”
Luers added that he’s confident they could add another turn in the future for more shot takers.
The event at 2 p.m. sharp is sold out. However, people may be able to buy a ticket if participants are not in their spots 30 minutes before it’s skis up, Nelson said.
“We get a lot of people in on the day of, because if you are not standing by your shot ski shot that you bought at 1:30 p.m., we sell that spot at 1:31 p.m.,” she said.
Gates for the event open at noon when people will be able to place a sticker on their shot glass to reserve their spot. Nelson said they expect to raise $50,000, which Sunrise Rotary will donate in the form of community grants to local nonprofits.
Park City Economic Development Program Manager Jenny Diersen said the shot ski will close the upper portion of Main Street for most of Saturday.
“Main Street will close at 8 a.m. and it will likely be closed until about 4 p.m.,” Diersen said. “Lower Main and Heber Avenue will remain open.”
Diersen said the recent construction on Heber Avenue between Main and Swede Alley is expected to be finished by Saturday.
Parking at the China Bridge garage in Old Town is free. Diersen recommended using the entrance on Marsac Avenue to avoid potential backups on Swede Alley.
The city encourages people to bike, walk and take free Park City Transit.
