Appeals court to hear arguments on Alta snowboarding ban


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SALT LAKE CITY — As Utah ski resorts gear up for the winter season, a federal appeals court will hear arguments from a group of snowboarders who want to ride at skiers-only Alta.

U.S. District Judge Dee Benson rejected Wasatch Equality's argument last year that snowboarders have a 14th Amendment right to the Little Cottonwood Canyon resort. The group appealed to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, which scheduled oral arguments in Denver next month.

Wasatch Equality claims Alta's arrangement with the U.S. Forest Service requires it to comply with the equal protection guarantees in the Constitution. The resort operates under a Forest Service permit on 2,130 acres — 1,802 acres or 85 percent of which is on public land.

In tossing the lawsuit, Benson found that the snowboarders presented no evidence that the Forest Service had anything to do with Alta's ban on snowboards. The group argues that the Forest Service and Alta have a "symbiotic" relationship.

Alta argued that its equipment policy doesn't discriminate against snowboarders, who are welcome as long as they strap on skis. The snowboarders contend the ban treats them differently for no rational reason.

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Dennis Romboy

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