Stealth III bottom terminal.Towers 1-5.Leaving the bottom station.Upper portion of the line which turns slightly to the right.Turning accomplished with canted sheaves.View back down the line.Arriving at the top station.Top terminal with 90-degree unloading.Looking up at the top terminal and breakover.View down above the bend.Tower 11 bend tower.Upper half of the lift line.Flat middle part of the line.Top station seen from Hidden Peak.Bottom station in Mineral Basin.View down the steep lower part of the line.Top terminal side view.View from the top.Stealth 3 terminal with 90 degree unloading.
The slight turn in the line has created an operational issue with this lift. When snow melts and water gets on certain sensors on tower 11, the sensors malfunction and act as though the rope is in danger of falling off. This causes the lift to shut down for around 5-10 minutes. It really only impact operations during a short period of time around now when it can snow overnight and then melt during a sunny day pretty quickly.
I rather doubt it’s solely due to the angle. As far as the prox switches are concerned this is a depression tower. Most likely there’s a bad bit of weatherproofing in the switch body. The fact that it happens where the line turns is probably coincidence.
Baldy also has a 6-Pack line gauge. The real reason Snowbird did the 6-Pack gauges on Baldy as well as Little Cloud and Peruvian is actually because they have 90 degree unloading (Peruvian also has 90 degree loading) to maybe make it easier for guests to unload without the chair turning around.
I’m not sure I follow… the chairs are detached from the cable during loading so line gauge shouldn’t matter there, correct? I’d guess the larger gauge is to help with wind but I’m not sure.
Wider gauge leaves more room for the 90-degree unloading area, as well as wind resistance. The space issue matters more on Peruvian, which runs right into the side of the mountain, and Little Cloud, which ends on a narrow ridgeline.
Why a design speed of 800 fpm, while Mineral although 2 years older, has 1,000 fpm capability? Is it Wear N’ Tear or is it something to do with that turn?
During the 90’s there was an obsession with speed on detachables, especially with Poma. Im pretty sure that the fastest Poma HSQ from the time could go 1150? Mineral is from that time period so maybe its an artifact of that. Or maybe im just overthinking it and they just decided that they needed less speed for baldy.
Lift Blog 
The slight turn in the line has created an operational issue with this lift. When snow melts and water gets on certain sensors on tower 11, the sensors malfunction and act as though the rope is in danger of falling off. This causes the lift to shut down for around 5-10 minutes. It really only impact operations during a short period of time around now when it can snow overnight and then melt during a sunny day pretty quickly.
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Interesting. Have to wonder whether the new Supreme lift will experience the same issues.
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I kinda doubt it, since Supreme was built with a special turning tower, and also is a full 15+ years newer, so technology has improved.
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yeah it’s having problems now
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Yes, I believe that Alta wants to replace the bend with a midstation now.
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I rather doubt it’s solely due to the angle. As far as the prox switches are concerned this is a depression tower. Most likely there’s a bad bit of weatherproofing in the switch body. The fact that it happens where the line turns is probably coincidence.
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Baldy also has a 6-Pack line gauge. The real reason Snowbird did the 6-Pack gauges on Baldy as well as Little Cloud and Peruvian is actually because they have 90 degree unloading (Peruvian also has 90 degree loading) to maybe make it easier for guests to unload without the chair turning around.
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I’m not sure I follow… the chairs are detached from the cable during loading so line gauge shouldn’t matter there, correct? I’d guess the larger gauge is to help with wind but I’m not sure.
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A wider line gauge allows for a short straight section in the centre of the contour, which makes contour loading easier.
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I knew it seemed that way, I also think Altas Stealth III chairs have 6 pack line gauge
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Wider gauge leaves more room for the 90-degree unloading area, as well as wind resistance. The space issue matters more on Peruvian, which runs right into the side of the mountain, and Little Cloud, which ends on a narrow ridgeline.
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Why a design speed of 800 fpm, while Mineral although 2 years older, has 1,000 fpm capability? Is it Wear N’ Tear or is it something to do with that turn?
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During the 90’s there was an obsession with speed on detachables, especially with Poma. Im pretty sure that the fastest Poma HSQ from the time could go 1150? Mineral is from that time period so maybe its an artifact of that. Or maybe im just overthinking it and they just decided that they needed less speed for baldy.
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If you’ve ever ridden the new d line at Brighton, that one feels insanely fast
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I don’t think I have ever seen mineral run at anything close to 1000fpm, the top unload is already sketchy enough as it is.
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