PARK CITY, Utah – Deer Valley Resort has been named the No. 1 North American ski area by a leading magazine for a fourth straight year.

Readers of Ski magazine voted Deer Valley tops overall out of 60 ski resorts. It also won No. 1 rankings for grooming, mountain service and dining.

It was not clear what rankings Vail and Beaver Creek received. Ski magazine editor Greg Ditrinco could not be reached Tuesday.

More than 20,000 readers participated in a survey conducted by an independent research firm.

Vail native and Town Councilwoman Kerry Donovan would hang Vail’s No. 1 ranking in Ski magazine, in which her parents would send to her from Vail, on her dorm-room door when she was in college. She said a certain amount of pride goes along with the top spot in the annual poll, but “I do not think the sky is falling if we do not have a No. 1 ranking from a single magazine.”

“Particularly in this age of increased social media and diverse marketing methods,” Donovan said. “If the ranking serves as a catalyst to continue our conversation of where we as a town and as a resort can improve, then that carries a value in itself. I’ll continue to rely on the facts on the ground – I’ll keep wearing my ‘Vail No. 1’ pin.”

Deer Valley’s ratings has never dropped lower than third overall in the past decade.

Vail has topped the poll more than any other resort, taking the No. 1 spot in 14 of 22 years prior to this year. However, in both 2007 and 2008, it slipped to second behind Deer Valley, a resort that prides itself on its emphasis on luxury and service. Vail fell to third last year.

Deer Valley president and general manager Bob Wheaton said being No. 1 a fourth time is unprecedented – no other resort has achieved that string of rankings.

“We are absolutely delighted with the results of this year’s Ski magazine survey,” Wheaton said. “To win the No. 1 ranking four years in a row, in the company of the finest resorts in North America, is just humbling.”

Wheaton said his staff’s efforts to please guests are validated by the survey.

“We are here for our guests, so if they are happy, we’re happy,” he said. “We’re doing our job properly.”