A Utah man is carving his way through the slopes of Snowbasin, poised to etch his name into the annals of skiing history with a Guinness World Record.
For Tom Hart, the thrill of hitting the slopes is unmatched. From the moment he straps on his skis for that first run of the day, the excitement is palpable.
“It’s fun from the very start of the day to the very end,” he exclaimed.
Accompanying him on this exhilarating journey is his steadfast companion, Jay Lell, who shares Hart’s commitment to skiing from bell to bell, every single day.
“Nine (a.m.) to 4 p.m., every single day,” Lell affirmed.
But Hart and Lell aren’t just chasing the thrill of the run; they’re also racing against time itself.
“It’s good to get down to the next lift and be the first one there … today will be 147 of the last 148 days,” Hart revealed.
As the ski season draws to a close, Hart finds himself on the brink of making skiing history, aiming to set the Guinness World Record for the most vertical feet skied in a single year—a feat he meticulously calculated he could achieve back in August or September.
That equates to the distance skied from the top to the bottom of a run’s lift—an astonishing accomplishment considering Hart’s 63 years of age. Having already surpassed the previous record weeks ago, Hart is now on the cusp of reaching an unprecedented milestone, boasting a vertical feet tally nearing 7 million this season alone.
“The goal is to reach 7 million vertical feet, which I will do tomorrow, God willing,” Hart remarked.
To put this staggering achievement into perspective, it’s akin to skiing down the Empire State Building a mind-boggling 5,600 times.
“He’s set the vertical feet record right at our home mountain at Snowbasin,” Lell proudly stated.
Indeed, whether you’re measuring by miles conquered or records shattered, “Racer Tom” remains modest, preferring to let his accomplishments speak for themselves, as evidenced by his prominent position atop the leaderboard.
“It’s better than sliced bread. Let’s put it that way. It’s just; there’s this wonderful feeling that’s an overwhelmingly happy feeling on the mountain every day, all day,” Hart concluded.
