SALT LAKE CITY - One of these years, snowboarder Erin Comstock would like to see an official license plate that says "Ride Utah" to acknowledge the great snowboarding in the Beehive State.

"Now that would be cool," said Comstock, who represents Park City Mountain Resort on the professional circuit.

In the meantime, though, she'll have to be content with the distinctive "Ski Utah" plate. That promotion started in 1985 to boost the state's huge snow-sports industry, which includes 11 major resorts within an hour of the Salt Lake City airport, as well as Brian Head in the southern part of the state.

Comstock, who grew up skiing - yes, skiing - at Lake Tahoe, moved to Utah nine years ago to play soccer at the University of Utah and - having made the switch to snowboarding at age 12 - to ride to her heart's content.

"The snow is light and wonderful here, much better than Tahoe's in my opinion, and the riding opportunities abound," said Comstock, who has won several major snowboarding events in the past year.

"I love living and riding here and I recommend visiting to every snowboarder I meet," she added.

Not surprisingly, Comstock picks Park City Mountain Resort for her favorite place to ride, thanks to its highly respected terrain parks, which have been ranked tops in the nation by Transworld Snowboarding Magazine for four years in a row.

The biggest of the resort's parks is King Crown, where you'll find some of the best riders in the country practicing their favorite tricks, while PayDay park and Pick 'N Shovel park are for snowboarders moving up the line.

Moreover, its huge Eagle superpipe - which boasts 22-foot-high walls this year and annually hosts the World Superpipe Championships - draws top riders from around globe to test their skills.

"I was in a terrain park every day last winter," explained Comstock, who said the mix in the parks is usually 80 percent snowboarders and 20 percent skiers. On the mountain itself, she said the blend is about 50-50 for riders and skiers.

When there is a big storm with fresh powder, Comstock often abandons her home resort and heads over to Brighton.

"It has steeper terrain that doesn't get tracked out often, plus great cliffs and more things to jump off of," she said.

Brighton is in Big Cottonwood Canyon and is known for its smaller, almost mom-and-pop feel, and generally attracts a younger crowd, many of whom make the short trip from Salt Lake City and its burbs.

In addition to the cliffs, it has a wide variety of intermediate and advanced terrain. Home to Utah's first terrain park, it now boasts four parks that draw plenty of riders and freestyle skiers who want to play on its 45 rails and boxes and 15 jumps.

Brighton fans recommend heading to the My-O-My run off the Crest chairlift to enjoy a top-to-bottom run full of features for all abilities. The Candyland park is for beginners, while the Majestic park is for advanced riders, according to terrain park Director Jared Winkler. He also says the resort's halfpipe, which is 400 feet long and has 16-foot-high walls, is worth checking out.

In the Ogden area north of Salt Lake City, one of the best resorts for snowboarders is the huge Powder Mountain Resort, which boasts a whopping 5,500 acres, much of which is ungroomed.

This resort also has two terrain parks. Sundown has rails, boxes and features for all levels of riders and is open until 10 p.m., while the Hidden Lake park is for more advanced riders. Powder Mountain also has a 400-foot-long halfpipe that boasts 12-foot walls for catching big air. Down in southern Utah's scenic red rock country, snowboarders headed to Brian Head will find three terrain parks - one for beginners, one for intermediates and another for advanced riders - with a total of 30 different features. In addition, the resort's groomers are known for building jumps and other features around the resort.

One somewhat sour note for snowboarders: Utah's Deer Valley in the Park City area and Alta in Little Cottonwood Canyon still do not allow riders.

IF YOU GO

For more information on riding (and skiing) in the Beehive State, go to the Ski Utah Web site at www.skiutah.com.

Brian E. Clark is a freelance travel writer.

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