The Top of Main Brew Pub name is as literal as the building is iconic. The rebranded and re-localized brewery sits at the crest of Park City’s famed Main Street as it has for 35 years (as Wasatch Brew Pub until 2023). A fresh bright blue exterior beckons craft beer lovers and eclectic pub-fare fans to pop in and experience a piece of Utah history as told through wafts of grain and hops.
“We’re lucky to live here,” says Nils Imboden, Top of Main’s head brewer and full-time resident of Summit County. “It’s where people choose to vacation. The access to the outdoors is second to none.”
Escape the summer swelter of Salt Lake City, Imboden urges. After a day spent recreating in the mountains, “there’s no shortage of good food and drink.”
Top of Main is at once the oldest and—after recently returning to local ownership—newest player in Park City’s craft beer and spirits scene. But it’s definitely not the only one. Local libations flow liberally in and around Park City.
Maybe you’ll choose a do-it-yourself bar crawl down Main Street. Or venture out to the reimagined Park City Brewing. From Offset Bier’s “hop-centric brewery with a nod to tradition” to High West, which became the state’s first legal whiskey distillery in more than a century, you’re sure to find a spot to suit your mood.

Breweries

Offset Bier, 1755 Bonanza Dr., Unit C, offsetbier.com
Opened in 2021, Offset Bier strives to deliver unique craft beer experiences. It isn’t afraid to experiment (especially with hops), but it also respects tradition and brews some of the finest lagers anywhere. Just don’t ask for a flight.

Park City Brewing, 1764 Uinta Way, Unit C1, parkcitybrewing.com
Touting the mantra “for locals, made by locals,” the latest iteration of Park City Brewing delivers a range of locally inspired brews. The all-ages restaurant and taproom offers flights for those interested in sampling different beer styles.

Park City Roadhouse Grill, 1900 Park Ave., parkcityroadhouse.com
Salt Lake Brewing Co. is a Utah staple. Its Park City Roadhouse Grill has been a Summit County favorite since 2006 and features a classic beer and food menu certain to satisfy hearty appetites after a bike ride or a round of golf. Dog Lake Pale Ale and Emigration Amber Ale are solid go-to brews.

Red Rock Brewing, 1640 Redstone Center Dr., redrockbrewing.com/park-city
One of Utah’s oldest craft beer brands, Red Rock’s outpost at Kimball Junction is a comfortable place to grab a bite and a beer. Its Alaskan halibut fish and chips are a fan favorite, washed down with Red Rock’s award-winning Elephino Double IPA.

Top of Main Brew Pub, 250 Main St., topofmainbrewpub.com
Park City’s iconic craft brewery has been rebranded Top of Main, but it’s still delivering quality brews. For “beer that tastes like beer,” give Utah Beer, an American lager, or The Original Schirf Beer, a Helles, a try.

Bars

Alpine Distilling, 7132 Silver Creek Road, and Alpine Social Aid & Pleasure Club, 364 Main St., alpinedistilling.com
Alpine’s award-winning whiskey and gin portfolio mirrors the values of its community: adventurous, innovative, and authentic.

High West Distillery, 703 Park Ave. and 27649 Old Lincoln Highway in Wanship, highwest.com
What was once a small operation in downtown Park City now boasts international acclaim and earned Distiller of the Year accolades by Whisky Advocate in 2016. Visit the High West Saloon in Old Town or tour the distillery in Wanship.

Old Town Cellars, 408 Main St., otcwines.com
The goal of Old Town Cellars is to make “great wine affordable, welcoming, and fun.” Its bar and lounge features a sommelier-crafted wine list, locally brewed beer, and spirits, and its bottle shop offers wine to-go.

Proverbial Spirits, 4175 N. Forestdale Dr., #102, proverbialspirits.com
Creating its spirits from scratch using primarily locally sourced ingredients, Proverbial Spirits reminds us that imbibing with friends should be fun.

The Spur Bar & Grill, 352 Main St., thespurbarandgrill.com
The two-story Main Street staple offers signature cocktails, delicious food, and live music every night. And if you’re looking for an Instagram-worthy photo op, join forces with 10 of your compatriots and shoot a shotski at The Spur.

See more in the 2024 Summer Adventure Guide

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Each September, the nation commemorates the unofficial end of summer with Labor Day barbecues and other outdoor activities. In Park City, it’s Miners Day that takes center stage, attracting around 20,000 people to celebrate and honor the area’s rich mining history.
This year, Miners Day is Sept. 2. It includes a host of activities the whole family can enjoy. The day begins with a breakfast in City Park, followed by a dog-friendly 5K run and, after the Running of the Balls (more on that below), a parade down Historic Main Street. Food trucks and a beer garden are stationed in the park, with children’s games and live music creating a festive atmosphere throughout the day.

Miners Day Origins
The term Miners Day originated as Miners Union Day in 1898 to honor miners by giving them a day off, according to Kristin Wright, of the Park City Rotary Club, which organizes the event, and Sandra Morrison, longtime director of the Park City Historical Society. In the 1940s, Miners Union Day merged with the nationally celebrated Labor Day holiday.
To help event-goers better understand the area’s mining history, exhibits featuring Park City’s past will be on display at Miners Hospital. Mucking and drilling demonstrations will be held as well. Showcasing such skills dates to the original Miners Union Day festivities, where competitions were held in Swede Alley. The demonstrations remain a popular attraction today in City Park. Mucking involved heavy machinery to load rocks (muck, or break up ore) into a bucket. Drilling demonstrations use a slab of sandstone to show how miners drilled into the walls of the mines.
The Miners Day goal each year is twofold: Provide a fun community event and maximize funds generated for nonprofits. Proceeds from merchandise sales and Running of the Balls purchases are earmarked for grants that are distributed to local nonprofits.

Running of the Balls
Pamplona hosts Running of the Bulls. Park City organizes Running of the Balls. It’s a fast-paced, see-it-to-believe-it event that creates excitement and raises funds for local nonprofits. The first Miners Day running happened in 2008 amid September snowflakes.
Today, thousands of contestants gather to watch upwards of 15,000 numbered golf balls plummet from a custom tower and race down a track equal to the length of three city blocks. Those that make it to the landing chute first qualify for prizes (including season ski passes). As the event gained popularity, organizers fine-tuned the production. Trevor Adrian is credited with building the tower that releases the balls into a chute for ordered retrieval. Software created by Ari Loannides now generates numbers randomly to match contestants with pre-numbered balls, eliminating the task of hand-writing numbers on thousands of golf balls. And Corrie Forsling, former Miner Days chair, was a “driving force for getting the event organized and modernized,” Wright explains.

Helpful Tips
Organizers offer some tips to help participants get the most out of Miners Day:
Purchase your balls for Running of the Balls online at parkcityminersday.org.
Get a good spot to scream as thousands of golf balls chase members of Park City High’s Interact Club, just as bulls chase patrons in Pamplona.
Check the weather forecast in advance and prepare for potential inclement weather in the mountain town (Miners Day saw snow in 2008).

See more in the 2024 Summer Adventure Guide

The post Miners Day Honors Park City’s Rich Mining History appeared first on Park Record.

In the world of demolition derby car designs, Lacy Brundy knows the stars and stripes are usually a hit in beauty car competitions. That’s to say, those cars generally fare well when the crowd votes on their favorite paint job prior to the cars getting demolished.

The No. 32 glossy base-black car at the 2021 Kamas Fiesta Days sported multiple American flags, the date 1776 encircled by stars, and several instances of red, white, and blue patriotic lettering. The car, decorated by Brundy and run by her cousin Logan Walsh, captured that year’s Fiesta Days Beauty Car title.

“We’ve been beaten out a couple times by American flags, so we decided to do one and it ended up being good enough for first place,” Brundy says.

Securing the crowd’s vote is the goal each time Brundy puts paint to metal. The Kamas native and Coalville resident grew up attending demo derbies and for the past decade or so she’s decorated several derby cars that have run at fairs and community celebrations up and down the state.

Brundy primarily decorates cars for Walsh and his brother JC. Her early designs featured freehand painting and lettering. Though she doesn’t possess a typical art background, Brundy considers herself a crafty person and is self-taught in the art of derby decorating. Tole paints, vinyl stickers, and a Cricut craft cutter machine are the tools of her trade.

Ahead of each derby, Brundy will work with whomever she’s designing for to brainstorm ideas. Once a theme is established, it generally takes about three days to turn a single-color car into a work of art ready to run on demo derby day. Of course, the down-to-business decorating is broken up with family members coming and going, barbecuing, and plenty of laughs.

“They paint the car one color and then I go for it,” she says. “It’s a lot of fun. We have a good time doing it, that’s for sure.”

Over the last few years, many of Brundy’s car designs have sought to bring awareness to a cause, such as suicide prevention, breast cancer, and aiding military veterans.

But others are pure fun. 2018 saw JC Walsh run a “hold my beer” Bud Light-themed car. This summer, Brundy plans to turn an idea she’s had for some time into reality: a pinup girl design on a station wagon.

“I just think that will be fun,” she says.

See more in the 2024 Summer Adventure Guide

The post Art Demo appeared first on Park Record.