20 replies to this topic

[liftmech]

As we wind down the season at our respective areas, maintenance departments are gearing up for our busy season. As I tell people who ask what I do all year, I actually work harder in the summer and I'm sure Allan and James (among others) can say the same. We have no projects save one on the menu for this sumer, yet we will still spend an average of 2200 man-hours per two-man crew- we have five crews in the summer, and each is assigned three to five lifts. The one major project that we have planned so far is a complete disassembly of the Flyer's gearbox, at which time we will inspect the gears and shafts while replacing the bearings and seals. Other than that, we plan on spending our days greasing sheaves, aligning terminals, cleaning and testing brakes, and several dozen other 'routine' items (I have a binder with aproximately 20 work orders per lift, more on detachables). This is the Behind The Scenes stuff that most skiers know nothing about- most I've talked to think I'm just another seasonal worker. I'll try to take pictures this summer, at least of some of the interesting stuff.
What's happening at Red, DV, etc. this summer?

[SkiBachelor]

John, arn't you installing the gondola this summer too?

[Allan]

Well after next week (or the week after) I get a couple months off (YAY!!) while the top two guys will be working on Paradise removing some assemblies and ND testing the main axles, while there is still snow on the ground and can get to them with the cat. After that apparently I've got the job of rewiring the towers of Red, Paradise and the T-Bar. The only other major chore this summer (that I can think of off the top of my head) is to replace all the carriers on the Paradise chair. The new chair is postponed until next summer.

[SkiBachelor]

What new chair Allan? Seems odd to replace the carriers on that Thiokol and then replace the lift the next summer. What style of carriers are you going to put on there, I presume CTEC triple carrier design?

[KZ]

He is talking about the white wolf triple. Also, they dont have plans of removing paridise, do they?

[coskibum]

i have not heard about a new gondola this summer for copper?

So far, i know of 4 new lifts for sure (maybe more) in CO!

[KZ]

In Tahoe/Mammoth we are doing semi decent, 6 lifts officially so far with maybe an additional 6 around the state.

[liftmech]

SkiBachelor, on Mar 29 2004, 08:04 PM, said:

John, arn't you installing the gondola this summer too?

Negative, Ghostrider, the budget is empty. :---:
I don't know when the thing is going to go in now... next year, year after, maybe an 1800 PPH detachable quad instead, rumours abound and there's no way (at my peon level) to tell what's true and what isn't. Maybe the bottom half of the liftline will be logged this summer (trail crew's project, not ours) and then the powers that be will see that we really want to build a new lift. For years Copper built lifts almost every summer ('81-K, L; '82-R; '83-S; '84-E; '85- A-1, M; '86 O-1), but now it's been since '98.

[liftmech]

Allan, on Mar 29 2004, 08:17 PM, said:

Well after next week (or the week after) I get a couple months off... (a)fter that apparently I've got the job of rewiring the towers of Red, Paradise and the T-Bar.

Do you always get time off (aka MBR- Mandatory Budget Reduction) or is that just this year? Also, are you pulling new comline on Red, Paradise and the T-bar or just new wires from the boot to the switches?

[KZ]

that stinks, but back then lifts were cheaper. Look at Sierra, a lift every 2 years in the 70s-80s, but then nothing since 96, and probably nothing for another 3-4 years with booth owning the place, even though they need a fg quad. Alpine is the same, but they may be putting in a new lift this summer or next.

[liftmech]

Yeah, I suppose that was true for many places in the '70s-'80s. Crystal put in a lift every year or every other year from '62 to '70, then they slowed down. Most places didn't really do the summer stuff we do now, though, so they had more capital to spend. Preventative maintenance hadn't really been a big thing until the late '80s-early '90s, when it was demonstrated that it cut down on downtime and accidents. I think our downtime last season was at or below 1% of total operational hours, and that counts shutting down Storm King, Mountain Chief, and S-lift when it got windy.

[Allan]

liftmech, on Mar 29 2004, 09:08 PM, said:

Allan, on Mar 29 2004, 08:17 PM, said:

Well after next week (or the week after) I get a couple months off... (a)fter that apparently I've got the job of rewiring the towers of Red, Paradise and the T-Bar.

Do you always get time off (aka MBR- Mandatory Budget Reduction) or is that just this year? Also, are you pulling new comline on Red, Paradise and the T-bar or just new wires from the boot to the switches?

Yeah we always get time off - usually it's everyone. Not new comm lines (maybe one on Red, depending on funds) but the wiring between the switches, and between the messengers and other such wiring on the towers. The Thiokol chairs are being replaced with chairs of the same design, manufactured by M-Latta I believe. I was speaking of the White Wolf Triple for the postponed chair.

[liftmech]

With the Thiokol brand nominally being owned by DoppelmayrCTEC, can Murray-Latta actually build Thiokol carriers, or is it an M-L design?

[Allan]

They build the exact same carriers for us, CTEC wasn't interested in building them.

[Whistler]

I was just looking at the map of Red, i want to go their some day!
How big is the Paradise Lodge Allan? I love when resorts have a little place to grab a bite to eat in the middle of nowhere.

[Allan]

Whistler, on Apr 1 2004, 03:47 PM, said:

I was just looking at the map of Red, i want to go their some day!
How big is the Paradise Lodge Allan? I love when resorts have a little place to grab a bite to eat in the middle of nowhere.

It's not huge, about the size of a BIG house... I believe they are expanding it this summer though.

[lastchair_44]

We're getting two new ski lifts installed this summer...so I might work for CTEC on the weekends to make some xtra money. We're doing a line splice on Silver Lake Express, and we might do the com line on Wasatch. Those are the only things I know of...I'm sure there is more.

[Allan]

That would be a pretty good deal - working for CTEC, I'm sure they pay well. Our old maintenance manager got hired by Doppelmayr after he left us.

[Allan]

liftmech, on Mar 29 2004, 10:08 PM, said:

Allan, on Mar 29 2004, 08:17 PM, said:

Well after next week (or the week after) I get a couple months off... (a)fter that apparently I've got the job of rewiring the towers of Red, Paradise and the T-Bar.

Do you always get time off (aka MBR- Mandatory Budget Reduction) or is that just this year? Also, are you pulling new comline on Red, Paradise and the T-bar or just new wires from the boot to the switches?

Yay! The MBR is over :) We go back to work either the first or second week of June.

[liftmech]

In spite of the nasty weather, my work partner and I have been flying towers on the Flyer this week. Here are several illustrations. Basically we lift the rope off the sheaves, spin them to check bearings, pump the rockers and eveners full of grease, clean the assembly, drop the rope back down, and move on. While we're going around I'm making notes as to which sheaves I think need changing; once we're finished with the grease lap we'll go back with sheaves and do those.
First picture is the other side of the tower as seen from standing on the six-rocker (this is where the term 'grease monkey' comes from- we climb around the tower cap like primates whilst pumping grease). Second is a Ratcliff hoist used to lift the rope. Third is the aforementioned six-rocker as viewed from my perch in the work chair.

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•  four_rocker.jpg (191.17K)
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•  rope_lifting_in_progress.jpg (114.81K)
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•  six_rocker_main_axle.jpg (151.18K)
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