If you really want people to experience a new SUV, what is the best way? How about taking them up a mountainous location at about 8500 feet elevation! And if you are looking to engage with media beyond the typical automotive press, what better way than to bring in people heavily engaged in social media such as Chip Chick, GeekDad and of course, Gear Diary!
That is exactly what Hyundai did to introduce their new 2013 Santa Fe. After a week of normal work with the traditional automotive press, they brought in nearly two dozen bloggers whose sites range from travel to parenting to general technology and more. The goal was to engage us to learn how we could help them, and to get coverage for their vehicle in a broader range of media outlets.
So how was the car? Sorry – for that you will have to wait until Hyundai is ready for all of the press they invited to unleash their experiences. But what I CAN do is show you a bit about the location they chose.
We were put up at the Montage Deer Valley in Park City. The elevation is nearly 8500 feet, and the resort itself was exquisite. Here is the view driving up:
I went for a 7 mile trail run up the mountain behind the Montage on the first day. Here is the view of the back from one of the openings in the trail.
The resort is such a gorgeous site that as I was finishing up the run, I grabbed this shot coming up the driveway.
On the day of the drive, the Hyundai folks had us all set up for a full day focused on the Santa Fe.
And let’s just say that our experiences were very much real world.
The area of Utah outside of Park City near Provo is just … breathtaking.
One of our stops was at Robert Redford’s Sundance, where we had an awesome lunch and got a tour of the place.
One cool thing on the tour was Bob’s Tree Room, which he built around a tree but sadly miscalculated the amount of light needed compared to what was supplied. The room was full of gifts from Native American tribes.
The last major stop was at Utah Olympic Park, which is very active and has loads of activities. We got to go on a really cool zip-line ride.
We finished up with a dinner on an outdoor patio in downtown Park City.
Thanks again to the folks at Hyundai, the staff of the Montage, and to all of my fellow bloggers who were just a joy to meet and hang out with all weekend.
