Top 5 favorite lifts
vons
09 Apr 2014
liftmech, on 09 April 2014 - 07:00 AM, said:
Favourite lifts from a mechanic's perspective:
-Seventh Heaven, Stevens Pass. Mid-60s Riblet, so steep there are no mid-line towers but one, and the railroad-track bottom terminal to boot.
-Old Summit Express, Bachelor. Unique early Doppelmayr detach triple.
-American Flyer, Copper (there may be some bias present) One of only two vault-drive Poma detach quads in North America (that I'm aware of). Imported from France... and It is about to be the only one
I am a fan too, Flyer is one of the best lifts to drive at copper, though not always the best to ride.
-Chair 2, Loveland. Rare YAN Type 6 triple, still has the original aluminum sand-cast 'banana' assemblies.
-Old Chair 6, Crystal Mountain. Rare centre-pole Hall.
My favourites as a skier would be a bit different.
-Seventh Heaven, Stevens Pass. Mid-60s Riblet, so steep there are no mid-line towers but one, and the railroad-track bottom terminal to boot.
-Old Summit Express, Bachelor. Unique early Doppelmayr detach triple.
-American Flyer, Copper (there may be some bias present) One of only two vault-drive Poma detach quads in North America (that I'm aware of). Imported from France... and It is about to be the only one
I am a fan too, Flyer is one of the best lifts to drive at copper, though not always the best to ride.-Chair 2, Loveland. Rare YAN Type 6 triple, still has the original aluminum sand-cast 'banana' assemblies.
-Old Chair 6, Crystal Mountain. Rare centre-pole Hall.
My favourites as a skier would be a bit different.
This post has been edited by vons: 09 April 2014 - 12:43 PM
boardski
10 May 2014
1. Pallivicini- A Basin
2. Challenger- Mary Jane
3. Deep Temerity- Aspen Highlands
4.John Paul Express- Snowbasin, UT
5. Little Cloud- Snowbird, UT
*Based on the terrain each of them serves and how well the capacity of the lift is matched with it.
2. Challenger- Mary Jane
3. Deep Temerity- Aspen Highlands
4.John Paul Express- Snowbasin, UT
5. Little Cloud- Snowbird, UT
*Based on the terrain each of them serves and how well the capacity of the lift is matched with it.
Bogong
10 May 2014
To add some a diversity, here's my list from the part of the world where the ski season runs from June to October.
From a skiers perspective:
1. Kosci Express. (Thredbo, New South Wales.) A "chondola" serving some of the best in bounds ski runs in Australia
2. Heavenly Valley. (Mt Hotham, Victoria.) A quad serving a dozen harder blue and black runs, it offers consistently good skiing no matter what your tastes are. It can get a bit crowded though.
3. Rodway. (Mt Mawson, Tasmania.) A nutcracker tow at a volunteer operated club field near Hobart. Australia's steepest ski lift, it serves both broad (but steep) slopes as well as terrifying rocky chutes that should probably be rated triple black.
4. The Summit. (Falls Creek, Victoria.) Another quad chair. Used to be Australia's best bumps run until they started grooming most of the fun out of it. Still a great ski with a grandstand view of the sheltered village bowl and the surrounding mountains.
5. Heritage Express. (Roundhill, New Zealand.) A mile long nutcracker tow with a 1 in 3 gradient serving dozens of runs with almost untouched powder in this small resort. Staggering views and almost no tracks, skiing the slopes it serves feels like heli skiing. Built in 2010, it shows that nutcracker tows aren't dead yet!
From a heritage (and lift geek) point of view:
1. International Poma. (Falls Creek, Victoria.) A 1969 cornered Poma-lift. It used to have a blisteringly fast V12 diesel and operated at the same speed as a modern detachable quad. All but the chubbiest of skiers could get serious air time around the corner. It is now electrically driven and runs slower, but it's the longest cornered Poma south of the equator and as it's location on a windswept ridge line is unsuitable for a chairlift, it is likely to survive for a few more decades.
2. Mt Perisher Double. (Perisher, New South Wales.) An ancient 1961 Mueller chairlift that holds it own amongst the detachable quads and 8 packs that now dominate the resort.
3. Mt St Bernard nutcracker. (St Bernard, Victoria.) A 1953 home made nutcracker lift still running after 61 seasons. St Bernard is a tiny club field near the major resort of Mt Hotham.
4. Ramshead Chair. (Thredbo, New South Wales). A long 1963 Riblet double chair that lasted 50 years. Infamous for swaying violently in the wind, it's chronically slow speed and it's shaky wooden terminal platform perched on top of a mid sized cliff. It was removed a couple of months ago, but I'm not prepared to admit that it has gone.
5. Tyrol T-bar. (Mt Buller, Victoria.) A steep, mile long, McCallum built T-bar dating from 1972. While it has been slightly shortened at the top to make room for yet another quad chair, it is one of the few seriously long surface tows left running in Australia or New Zealand and a surviving product of Australia's most successful ski lift manufacturer.
My listing of every ski lift to have opearted in Australia can be found at this link, http://wikiski.com/w...i_tow_directory
This post has been edited by Bogong: 10 May 2014 - 11:00 PM
From a skiers perspective:
1. Kosci Express. (Thredbo, New South Wales.) A "chondola" serving some of the best in bounds ski runs in Australia
2. Heavenly Valley. (Mt Hotham, Victoria.) A quad serving a dozen harder blue and black runs, it offers consistently good skiing no matter what your tastes are. It can get a bit crowded though.
3. Rodway. (Mt Mawson, Tasmania.) A nutcracker tow at a volunteer operated club field near Hobart. Australia's steepest ski lift, it serves both broad (but steep) slopes as well as terrifying rocky chutes that should probably be rated triple black.
4. The Summit. (Falls Creek, Victoria.) Another quad chair. Used to be Australia's best bumps run until they started grooming most of the fun out of it. Still a great ski with a grandstand view of the sheltered village bowl and the surrounding mountains.
5. Heritage Express. (Roundhill, New Zealand.) A mile long nutcracker tow with a 1 in 3 gradient serving dozens of runs with almost untouched powder in this small resort. Staggering views and almost no tracks, skiing the slopes it serves feels like heli skiing. Built in 2010, it shows that nutcracker tows aren't dead yet!
From a heritage (and lift geek) point of view:
1. International Poma. (Falls Creek, Victoria.) A 1969 cornered Poma-lift. It used to have a blisteringly fast V12 diesel and operated at the same speed as a modern detachable quad. All but the chubbiest of skiers could get serious air time around the corner. It is now electrically driven and runs slower, but it's the longest cornered Poma south of the equator and as it's location on a windswept ridge line is unsuitable for a chairlift, it is likely to survive for a few more decades.
2. Mt Perisher Double. (Perisher, New South Wales.) An ancient 1961 Mueller chairlift that holds it own amongst the detachable quads and 8 packs that now dominate the resort.
3. Mt St Bernard nutcracker. (St Bernard, Victoria.) A 1953 home made nutcracker lift still running after 61 seasons. St Bernard is a tiny club field near the major resort of Mt Hotham.
4. Ramshead Chair. (Thredbo, New South Wales). A long 1963 Riblet double chair that lasted 50 years. Infamous for swaying violently in the wind, it's chronically slow speed and it's shaky wooden terminal platform perched on top of a mid sized cliff. It was removed a couple of months ago, but I'm not prepared to admit that it has gone.
5. Tyrol T-bar. (Mt Buller, Victoria.) A steep, mile long, McCallum built T-bar dating from 1972. While it has been slightly shortened at the top to make room for yet another quad chair, it is one of the few seriously long surface tows left running in Australia or New Zealand and a surviving product of Australia's most successful ski lift manufacturer.
My listing of every ski lift to have opearted in Australia can be found at this link, http://wikiski.com/w...i_tow_directory
This post has been edited by Bogong: 10 May 2014 - 11:00 PM
skierdude9450
11 May 2014
New list for me.
1. Peak Chair at Whistler (not recommended if you're afraid of heights)
2. JH Tram
3. High Noon Express at Vail
4. Pallavicini at A-Basin
5. Challenger at Big Sky
Plus Peak2Peak Gondola is always awesome.
1. Peak Chair at Whistler (not recommended if you're afraid of heights)
2. JH Tram
3. High Noon Express at Vail
4. Pallavicini at A-Basin
5. Challenger at Big Sky
Plus Peak2Peak Gondola is always awesome.
