4 replies to this topic

[SkiBachelor]

I just found an article about Durango mountain planning a 20 year master plan calling for more than 10 new lifts and possibly including 3 more high-speed lifts. The high-speed lifts look like they will be replacing lifts 2, 4 and 8. But the mountain is also going to be clearing some new runs and expanding into some more terrain.

http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/artic...s/out040501.htm

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[Kicking Horse]

McCormack said there is no set timeline for the improvements, but the replacement of Lift 4 (Twilight) on the front side probably will be one of the first improvements. The double chairlift will be replaced with detachable chairs that can hold either four or six people (the final decision hasn't been made), and possibly, gondola cabins to make it easier for beginners to get on and off the lift.

NICE that would really help out the mountain by replacing #4 with a HSQ or a HSS

[SkiBachelor]

Mountain Creek did this same type of thing and it seems so dumb. It is really that hard to board a chair when its moving 1 m per second in the station? Having cabriolets will just make it worse it seems when kids drop one of their poles or skis while boarding the lift. And not to mention having to constantly having to take your skis on and off. I just think the cabriolet thing is a bad decision.

[liftmech]

Cabs are purely as aesthetic decision. There is too much of a possiblity of things being dropped out of them. We have been pursuing a two-section gondola as an alternative to our bus transit system, and several people wanted cabriolet-style carriers. Base Ops vetoed that one as soon as they heard of it, because they'd be picking up garbage three times as much as they do now (based on our skiers' current littering habits...)

[ccslider]

Seems like there are usually one of four reasons why an area would install a Gondola instead of a HS chairlift:
1. Marketing - The subliminal message that an enclosed gondola conveys is a feeling of "big time" skiing - big vertical & long lift. But, those who've taken a few runs on a Gondola quickly realize that donning and doffing skis to unload and load is a hassle - snowboarders put up with this ritual for every lift ride.
2. Long rides with wind and weather exposure. At cold windy locations, sometimes an enclosed cabin makes sense, but I suppose you could accomplish the same thing by having a bubble (Vail & Steamboat). The increased sail area of the cabin shell might have an undesired effect of causing more wind-hold downtime events.
3. Kids - young kids can not fall out of cabins when they can and have done so out of chiarlifts. So if the lift serves beginner terrain, then maybe a gondola makes sense, or a hybrid lift that has gondola cabins and open chairs might be an answer (Telluride's Chondola).
4. Foot passengers - an enclosed cabin makes sense for this application.