Elevation 2025:  Easiest Way Down

By Ethan Laird

The weather has started to turn here in Southern California which can only mean one thing… gay ski week season is upon us!  Time to put away the speedos and break out the union suits but keep them scandalously unbuttoned, we are gay after all.

More than 20 years ago, LA-based event and TV producer Tom Whitman put his love of producing big gay events together with his lifelong love of skiing and snowboarding and remixed the two to create the first Elevation Gay Ski Week in Mammoth.

The first Elevation in 2003 in Mammoth Lakes, California drew a core crowd of California boys that quickly grew into one of the largest gay ski weeks in the world.  Whitman expanded to Park City, Utah and then to Tremblant, Quebec and the rest is history.  While Tremblant hasn’t returned since the pandemic, look for a third location to be added to the roster in 2026.

The Elevation Gay Ski Weeks have become the gold standard of gay getaways and are now the largest series of gay ski events in the world.  Whether it’s Elevation Mammoth – the crown jewel of gay ski weeks – or Mammoth’s 15-year-old baby brother in Park City, you know exactly what you’re getting into with an Elevation event: the three big D’s…DJs, dancers and drag queens, of course.  OK, maybe there is a fourth D as well if you play your cards right!

While each ELEVATION event has its own local flavor and flair, there are events that are crowd favorites in both Utah and Mammoth:  The Onesie Apres-Ski is an ELEVATION Gay Ski Week tradition that is both sexy and silly.  Where else can you find a collection of muscle boys in ass-less onesies, burner boys in rainbow bodysuits, gaymers in unicorn-horn hoodies, and lumberjocks in wool socks?  The neon party, which has been named Neon & Neoprene this year, gives attendees a chance to break out their best blacklight reactive club wear and show their artistic expression via neon body paint.

Comedy Night in Mammoth is always a crowd pleaser and has featured drag icons including Jackie Beat, Sherry Vine, and Tina Burner.  Whitman says the headliner for this year’s comedy show will be released soon.  But if we know Tom, it’s sure to be a great show.

The music at Elevation is always top-notch, with nationally known DJs bringing the parties to life over the course of each 5-day event.  DJ Dan Slater and Joey with the Mustache will be returning to Elevation Mammoth this year, while DJ Ryan McClure makes his Elevation debut in Park City.  LA-based DJs Josh Peace, Dawna Montel and Casey Alva, who helped shape what Elevation has become, will return and bring their iconic Elevation sounds.

Whitman’s magic lies in his ability to give people those expected extravaganzas that we look forward to every year at Elevation, mixed in with just the right number of new tricks pulled from his snowproof sleeves. 2025 will bring a new venue in both Park City and Mammoth.  What else can you expect… I guess you will just have to attend one (or both) events and see!

“Each year I get more excited for Elevation,” says Whitman, “it feels like going home.”  Some people have been attending for over 20 years, but there are always fresh faces to keep it interesting!  (We aren’t getting older… you are.)

In the immortal words of Mariah Carey… It’s time!   Let’s have a ski-ski.

Info and tickets for the Elevation events are at www.elevationgayski.com.  Follow @elevationgayski on Instagram for real-time updates.