18 replies to this topic

[SidBurn]

I just wondered, how come some gondolas have terminals in large buildings and others in simple canopies like high speed quads have? Why build a huge building if a regular detachable lift station works just as well?

[coskibum]

many like vail and steamboat's gondola are second generation and instead of tearing down the building, they just added the new lift in. buildings also offer a heated ice free environment. Also, back in the 60's and 70's it was customary for gondolas to be built inside since compact terminal designs (like the hsqs of today) were not available.

[Lift Kid]

I think that some of it is simply for the comfort of the people. The customers of the resort get inside out of the conditions and/or wind and other conditions that might occur. Also, the operators are also out of the elements. It is much nicer to work in a large heated building than outside or in an operator shack.

[SidBurn]

That doesn't really make sense. The lower terminal of Vail's gondola is a building, although is has the blue tile design of the HSQ terminals at Vail. By contrast, the gondola at Jackson Hole uses a HSQ terminal and the weather there is usually much harsher than in Vail.

[WBSKI]

The Whistler Village Gon buildings are pretty big, the midstation has a big gondola storage area which would explain the size of it.

[Lift Kid]

SidBurn, on Feb 8 2006, 04:44 PM, said:

That doesn't really make sense. The lower terminal of Vail's gondola is a building, although is has the blue tile design of the HSQ terminals at Vail. By contrast, the gondola at Jackson Hole uses a HSQ terminal and the weather there is usually much harsher than in Vail.

Yes but it depends on the resorts choice.

[tcs]

This is just a guess, but: It seems to me that most gondola systems store their cabins off-line at night and need buildings in which to store them. But I've seldom seen detachable chair systems with room for more than a few chairs off-line (presumably more for service than storage).

But why is that? It doesn't seem like chairs are inherently any more weatherproof than gondola cabins. ???

TCS

[Kicking Horse]

I know of some HS Chairlifts that all chairs can be parked on a rail. The New HSQ @ Breck is the same way. They can park all chairs on a rail.

[WBSKI]

Peak Chair, Whistler is another example of this, mostly cause of wind and ice buildup probably.

[coskibum]

Quote

That doesn't really make sense. The lower terminal of Vail's gondola is a building, although is has the blue tile design of the HSQ terminals at Vail. By contrast, the gondola at Jackson Hole uses a HSQ terminal and the weather there is usually much harsher than in Vail.

if you look at the terminal itself it is no larger than that of the born free, it was just enclosed by a normal structure.

[poloxskier]

coskibum, on Feb 8 2006, 01:21 PM, said:

many like vail and steamboat's gondola are second generation and instead of tearing down the building, they just added the new lift in. buildings also offer a heated ice free environment. Also, back in the 60's and 70's it was customary for gondolas to be built inside since compact terminal designs (like the hsqs of today) were not available.

Although Vail gondola is a second generation for the same line it is not in the same building as the original gondola. Another important concideration when deciding to enclose the gondola terminal in a building I woudl also think would be if it were being buit for foot passengers as well. I also have not seen Keystone or Vail park their entire line at night even though they are both able to do so. The chair parking issue seems to be more dictated by climate and weather patterns. I am not aware of any resort in Colorado that routinely parks their entire gondola line.

[SidBurn]

poloxskier, on Feb 8 2006, 09:55 PM, said:

Although Vail gondola is a second generation for the same line it is not in the same building as the original gondola. Another important concideration when deciding to enclose the gondola terminal in a building I woudl also think would be if it were being buit for foot passengers as well. I also have not seen Keystone or Vail park their entire line at night even though they are both able to do so. The chair parking issue seems to be more dictated by climate and weather patterns. I am not aware of any resort in Colorado that routinely parks their entire gondola line.

I think Aspen does and to a lesser extent, Steamboat. That's because most gondi's in CO are used to transport diners to on-mountain restaurants at night

[vons]

Chair parking is very commion in Europe due to the high moisture content of the snow also because of the type of chairs orderd. Look in a current World Book and you will see that almost all HSS and HSE have chair parking and may HSQ do to. Not only do thy have chair parking but it usuly is fully inclosed like a gondola.

[liftmech]

tcs, on Feb 8 2006, 07:34 PM, said:

This is just a guess, but: It seems to me that most gondola systems store their cabins off-line at night and need buildings in which to store them. But I've seldom seen detachable chair systems with room for more than a few chairs off-line (presumably more for service than storage).

But why is that? It doesn't seem like chairs are inherently any more weatherproof than gondola cabins. ???

TCS

Gondola cabins are maintenance-intensive while carriers take very little to service. I can perform most maintenance on my carriers ('86 Poma quads) with them still on line. Gondola cabins have seats, windows, fibreglass, doors mechanisms, and the like. It's much better to repair them indoors. As for off-line storage, carriers of any sort need a building if the area is prone to heavy snow in addition to the weather conditions that necessitate nightly removal. Grips don't travel well through terminals if they are encased in snow or ice.

[tcs]

In re storing carriers indoors to avoid ice/snow problems:

Didn't I read somewhere that the upper mountain triple chair at Mt. Bachelor had to run all night during inclement weather to prevent freeze-up?

TCS

[SkiBachelor]

Mt. Bachelor takes the carriers off the line every night and put them back on the fallowing, even if nice weather is in the forcast. However, the wind my pick up at night at the top so that could be the reason they do it. It's funny how the carriers still look brand new when the lift is 9 years old.

[coskibum]

Quote

Although Vail gondola is a second generation for the same line it is not in the same building as the original gondola

true for the base, but the summit is the same bldg.

keystone and steamboat use the same also for top/btm

[poloxskier]

coskibum, on Feb 10 2006, 05:05 PM, said:

true for the base, but the summit is the same bldg.

keystone and steamboat use the same also for top/btm

It is the same total building for the summit but the new gondola uses another building that was built on as an ad-on wing to accomidate the gondola and associated equipment. The original building is now the resturant up top.

[jibij]

Quote

Didn't I read somewhere that the upper mountain triple chair at Mt. Bachelor had to run all night during inclement weather to prevent freeze-up?

The upper lifts on Mt Hood, and I assume summit chair at Bachelor have 'night drives' which allows them to run the chairless line on a lower HP motor to keep sheaves from icing up.

This blog has some interesting info on operating lifts in inclement weather areas: http://www.skihood.com/cs/blogs/daveriley/.../01/22/382.aspx