8 replies to this topic

[DonaldMReif]

The www.skilifts.org fact sheets say the Challenger double at Big Sky was built by Superior Tramway, but a closer look shows that it uses Riblet chairs. And this picture (all pictures here are by skierdude9450) by skierdude9450:



suggests clearly that Challenger is some sort of accidental cross between a Superior Tramway and Riblet lift.

Think I'm joking when I show you an image of one of the towers that looks the most like a Riblet?

Then get this:


The tower you see here doesn't look a bit like a Riblet tower.

To me, it looks more like a Riblet with Superior Tramway towers, when you see this picture:



which appears to be of a Riblet loading station. The sheaves are also Riblets. In these findings, I can determine that Challenger is not a Superior Tramway lift at all. Instead, it is actually just a Riblet double chairlift with Superior Tramway towers (however, at least one tower, which you saw earlier, was a Riblet).

I must give thanks to skierdude9450 for use of his photos.

[SkiBachelor]

Challenger at Big Sky was built by Superior Tramway.

You may be wondering how this could be when it looks just like a Riblet. Well, it is a Riblet in a matter of speaking. The CEO of Superior Tramway was one of the head engineers at Riblet and the majority of Riblet's patents were also in his name, allowing him the ability to use them when he started building lifts.

[skierdude9450]

I think SkiBachelor has it right that Superior Tramway shared the patents with Riblet. Seems like a legal way of cheating to me. So, Superior Tramway built their own lift using Riblet designs, and I think this was their only lift ever built.

[Peter]

Also Big Sky provided a list of lift info at one point and they had Challenger listed as being built by Superior Tramway.

[aug]

fsj may want to chime in on this and end the argument.

[skier691]

skierdude9450, on Mar 7 2009, 09:30 PM, said:

I think SkiBachelor has it right that Superior Tramway shared the patents with Riblet. Seems like a legal way of cheating to me. So, Superior Tramway built their own lift using Riblet designs, and I think this was their only lift ever built.

that'll get ya in trouble. Superior has engineered and built many lifts.

[Peter]

skier691, on Mar 7 2009, 10:41 PM, said:

that'll get ya in trouble. Superior has engineered and built many lifts.

From the Superior Tramway website: "Since 1988 we have provided 9 complete reconditioned Riblet lifts . We have also provided several 3 leg hydraulic tension-drive units made up of a mix of reconditioned and new parts." That was written in 2003, and there have been a few more since then.

[DonaldMReif]

What are those other eight, to no offense?

[Splicer]

It's actually a Riblet/Hutzinger.