18 replies to this topic

[bradleyhig]

In 1978 their was a tv movie released called Ski Lift to Death/Snowblind that was filmed on the Banff Gondola. In the movie the lift was running the opposite direction it runs now. How hard is it to make a lift run in reverse and why would it be done?

[Lift Kid]

Many detachable lifts can and do run in reverse during normal operation. I think that only Doppelmayr lifts do this, however. On Doppelmayr detachable lifts, the grip force detector is on the acceleration rail. Therefore, if a grip sets off the grip force detector, the lift must be run in reverse to put the carrier on the parking rail. The speed is drastically reduced for reverse operation though.

[vonrollskyway1]

almost any lift can operate in reverse.vr 101s cant due to gravity feed grip.

[lastchair_44]

Lift Kid, on Dec 22 2008, 09:15 PM, said:

Many detachable lifts can and do run in reverse during normal operation. No lift should ever run in reverse during "normal" operation. Most lifts are designed to run in reverse for taking carriers off-line for grip re-build/NDT. IF a lift were to be run in reverse during "normal" operation, a representative of the ski area should ski the lift line to inform passengers that the lift will run in reverse to avoid any "confusion". This should be a last resort by any means. I think that only Doppelmayr lifts do this, however. GaraventaCTEC detachables are designed to do this as well, although almost any lift can be made to run in reverse with the proper know how. On Doppelmayr detachable lifts, the grip force detector is on the acceleration rail. Therefore, if a grip sets off the grip force detector, the lift must be run in reverse to put the carrier on the parking rail. The speed is drastically reduced for reverse operation though.

[Lift Kid]

lastchair44,
I know that there are signs on some lifts, like at Keystone, that say that the lift may run in reverse at anytime during normal operation.

[Lift Dinosaur]

[quote name='Lift Kid' date='Dec 23 2008, 03:01 PM' post='81549']
lastchair44,
I know that there are signs on some lifts, like at Keystone, that say that the lift may run in reverse at anytime during normal operation.
[/quote]

Come on, 'Kid, who reads signs?
As lastchair44 stated, a good safety protocol will require that the line be skied and lift riders notified before reverse operation. It only takes one person who missed the sign and decides to jump.
$0.02

Dino

[vonrollskyway1]

mjturley34, on Dec 22 2008, 11:37 PM, said:

So there is a problem with the VR 101 eh ? Gravity doesn't work in reverse ? What about VR 101's in the southern hemisphere ?

If you ever seen a vr 101 in action,the gondola traveles from a dispatcher down a ramp.In the dispatcher the clamping lever moves into the engage mode.From there,traveles down a runway and clamps onto the cable.There is no way to by-pass the dispatcher.

[skierdude9450]

I think that the original question was about reversing the drive direction and the line side rather than running in reverse. All recent carriers are completely reversible; just switch around the hanger and chair weight (if it has one) and you've changed the direction. However like your car the gearbox is built to go primarily one direction.

I have no way to prove this, but I think that Beaver Run SuperChair at Breckenridge was originally built right-side line and counter-clockwise drive but was changed sometime in the late nineties. I vaguely remember riding on it in 1997 and it seemed to me that it was on the right.

[Kicking Horse]

skierdude9450, on Dec 23 2008, 08:14 PM, said:

I think that the original question was about reversing the drive direction and the line side rather than running in reverse. All recent carriers are completely reversible; just switch around the hanger and chair weight (if it has one) and you've changed the direction. However like your car the gearbox is built to go primarily one direction.

I have no way to prove this, but I think that Beaver Run SuperChair at Breckenridge was originally built right-side line and counter-clockwise drive but was changed sometime in the late nineties. I vaguely remember riding on it in 1997 and it seemed to me that it was on the right.

SkierDude,

I'm not so sure your statement is true about

Quote

All recent carriers are completely reversible; just switch around the hanger and chair weight (if it has one) and you've changed the direction.

What about all the safety systems. What about the Spacing System?

I'm sure others will chime in on this matter.

[vonrollskyway1]

vonrollskyway1, on Dec 23 2008, 06:36 PM, said:

If you ever seen a vr 101 in action,the gondola traveles from a dispatcher down a ramp.In the dispatcher the clamping lever moves into the engage mode.From there,traveles down a runway and clamps onto the cable.There is no way to by-pass the dispatcher.

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[skierdude9450]

Kicking Horse, on Dec 23 2008, 08:53 PM, said:

SkierDude,

I'm not so sure your statement is true about What about all the safety systems. What about the Spacing System?

I'm sure others will chime in on this matter.

I should clarify some more. I meant that you can easily take a carrier from a system with a clockwise direction and switch it to be able to run on a system with a counterclockwise drive direction. The terminals are designed so that the system is run in a certain direction so of course there would need to be more done than just switching the carriers around.

[vonrollskyway1]

skierdude9450, on Dec 23 2008, 08:52 PM, said:

I should clarify some more. I meant that you can easily take a carrier from a system with a clockwise direction and switch it to be able to run on a system with a counterclockwise drive direction. The terminals are designed so that the system is run in a certain direction so of course there would need to be more done than just switching the carriers around.

Matters on the type of lift/year/grip type...correct?

[Aussierob]

You could change most Doppelmayrs to run the other way with out too many problems. Pomas do not run in reverse at all.

[mikest2]

Aussierob, on Dec 23 2008, 09:40 PM, said:

You could change most Doppelmayrs to run the other way with out too many problems. Pomas do not run in reverse at all.

Actually my 06 Poma 6 pack runs very nicely in reverse !

[bradleyhig]

skierdude9450, on Dec 23 2008, 07:14 PM, said:

I think that the original question was about reversing the drive direction and the line side rather than running in reverse. All recent carriers are completely reversible; just switch around the hanger and chair weight (if it has one) and you've changed the direction. However like your car the gearbox is built to go primarily one direction.

I have no way to prove this, but I think that Beaver Run SuperChair at Breckenridge was originally built right-side line and counter-clockwise drive but was changed sometime in the late nineties. I vaguely remember riding on it in 1997 and it seemed to me that it was on the right.

Yes that's what I might reversing the drive direction.

[chuckm]

I used to argue about this all the time. Running a detach in reverse can be an extremely useful procedure if people are TRAINED to be able to use it. For "hangers" during operation you may at least reduce the distance that they will fall or avoid any fall at all- i actually used this method several times (the lift even had a gearbox backstop, the crew was trained very well tho) If you had a grip that was not attached properly you can also bring it back and unload the chair and remove it or at least recycle it. People these days are mostly unaware of what a lift roll back is all about and a slow controlled reverse of direction will most likely NOT cause people to jump off. ( this was a different story a long time ago) If you need to reverse for a "hanger" there is rarely time to ski the line to advise the rest of the passengers and the move is usually a short distance anyway.
Being able to reverse run will also allow you to fine tune your alignment- you cannot play "misalign to aligne"- you can get it absolutely correct. (Beware tho of lifts that have guage changes)
Truly the lift must be designed for this ability to keep it safe- there are many considerations that need to be taken into account ie gearbox design, Gauge, safeties for rollback devices. My.02

[tahoemoto]

My 99 Poma six packs run in reverse. So does my 89 Poma quad. Doppels are by far the easiest to run in reverse.