Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Megaprojects
- Alterra details its 2024 capital plan, totaling $300+ million with six new chairlifts.
- Following yesterday’s announcement of three new lifts this year, Deer Valley also outlines the seven detachable lifts opening in 2025 for a total of 10 in two years (counting the two section gondola as two.)
- A presentation details massive construction underway at Deer Valley.
- Deer Valley will hold an open house to update the community on construction and future plans next Thursday.
- Park City continues to explore a gondola connection from Main Street to Deer Valley.
- Speaking of megaprojects, here are some unofficial photos of the two D-Line gondolas with six total stations under construction at Big Sky.
- The world’s largest indoor ski area opens near Shanghai with a detachable chairlift and gondola from Poma.
- Parks Canada approves the Banff Gondola owner’s purchase of the Jasper SkyTram.
- A Swiss newspaper reports Alterra may be as interested as Vail in acquiring Swiss resorts.
- Vail Resorts to report earning September 26th, traditionally when lift projects are announced for the following year.
- Vail to sell Wildcat Express gondola cabins, run only chairs in the future.
- Solitude will auction 29 chairs from the Moonbeam quad, which operated only four years.
- Wachusett orders a Doppelmayr UNI-G six pack to replace the Polar Express.
- A rider is injured and airlifted after falling while boarding Schweitzer’s Great Escape Quad.
- Five years since the Sea to Sky Gondola‘s haul rope was first cut and four years since it was cut again, police are still looking for the perpetrator(s).
- Maintenance workers on London’s IFS Cloud Cable Car plan a strike.
Deer Valley to Open Three New Lifts This Season
Deer Valley has unveiled the names for three chairlifts that will open this winter in phase one of the Expanded Excellence expansion. The three inaugural lifts, being constructed by Doppelmayr, include a high speed six pack with bubbles, a detachable quad and a fixed grip quad. Skiers will gain access to 300 acres and 20 trails this season via a temporary gateway with 500 parking spaces, a rental shop and ticketing services. “In just a couple of months, we are looking forward to welcoming our guests to experience the beginning of Deer Valley’s Expanded Excellence vision,” said Todd Bennett, President & COO of Deer Valley Resort.
The flagship D-Line Keetley Express will load near the new Grand Hyatt Deer Valley and lift skiers to Keetley Point. This lift will feature Deer Valley’s first-ever bubble comfort chairs and provide access to the existing Sultan Express lift. Next door, the shorter Hoodoo Express quad will service beginner terrain above the East Village. This lift will be a UNI-G detachable designed to look like the D-Line next door. The third new lift for this season, called Aurora, will provide a short return route back to the East Village. This Alpenstar quad will feature a loading conveyor to maximize efficiency. Keetley Express is expected to open in December with Hoodoo Express and Aurora to follow shortly thereafter.
Concrete work is also underway for six additional lifts set to open for the 2025-26 season. These include a two stage, 10 passenger gondola and five detachable chairlifts. The final four lifts in the expansion will open in future seasons with the exact timeline yet to be determined. When the expansion is complete, Deer Valley will have added 3,700 acres of skiable terrain and 135 new ski runs, making it one of the largest resorts in North America.
Instagram Tuesday: Goats
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photo from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Ikon Addition
- Sierra-at-Tahoe joins the Ikon Pass, Taos returns to the Ikon Base Pass.
- Owners of Mt. Norquay, Lake Louise and Sunshine Village express dismay at an American company’s proposed purchase of the Jasper SkyTram.
- Elk Mountain, Pennsylvania is for sale.
- A local group considers bidding for Mt. Bachelor.
- Copper thieves damage the only lift at Blizzard Mountain, Idaho.
- Killington’s future owners promise a massive capital improvement push and numerous lift upgrades, reveal Powdr considered closing the Skyeship Gondola.
- The government of Newfoundland and Labrador tries again to sell money losing Marble Mountain.
- The proposed Shadow Mountain Bike Park in Colorado would include a detachable six pack.
- Mountain Capital Partners seeks a Director of Lifts to oversee maintenance, new installations, used lift sourcing and more.
- Steamboat removes Priest Creek‘s old towers and repairs damage on the Christie Peak Express.
- Aspen Mountain to remove Gent’s Ridge this fall.
- Gent’s Ridge and Jackson Hole’s old Sublette parts will head to Maverick Mountain, Montana.
Instagram Tuesday: Finale
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Lost & Found
- New York lost ski area Big Tupper to be auctioned this fall.
- Partially lost Ski Chantecler, Quebec gains new, local ownership.
- Big Sky constructs a striking glass enclosure over the Lone Peak Tram‘s bottom terminal.
- Red Lodge sells former Alta Sunnyside chairs.
- Bluewood seeks Forest Service approval for a base to summit detachable.
- Unspecified improvements are coming to recently reopened Sandia Peak Ski Area.
- Fatzer acquires Rigging Specialties of Canada.
- The first Leitner-Poma bubble chairs in Canada land at Sunshine Village.
- Hear the inside story of how the Yellowstone Club supports a $100+ million annual operating budget and 20 lifts with only 70,000 skier visits.
- Swiss media report Vail Resorts may be in talks to buy Laax.
Snowbasin Announces Becker Replacement
Snowbasin Resort will construct its seventh detachable lift next summer, replacing the Becker triple in a new alignment. The detachable quad, to be constructed by Leitner-Poma of America, will load closer to the Wildcat Express and unload in a simlar location to the current triple. Becker is a 1986 Stadeli triple, one of just 21 Stadeli-built lifts remaining in the United States. When the replacement is complete in 2025, Snowbasin will operate just one fixed grip chairlift, another Stadeli triple called Porcupine. Snowbasin has been on a roll lately, adding the Wildcat Express in 2017, Middle Bowl Express in 2021 and DeMoisy Express in 2023. Snowbasin’s owner, the Holding family, has been on a similar improvement push at its Sun Valley Resort in Idaho. Between the two mountains, the Holdings have purchased eight detachable chairlifts in nine years.
The new Becker will span more than 5,800 linear feet with a vertical ascent of approximately 1,300 feet, serving a variety of terrain and providing access to the Strawberry area. The new lift will transport 1,800 skiers per hour and cut ride time in half from 12 minutes to six. In conjunction with the lift installation, Snowbasin will widen and re-grade Bear Hollow, Snowshoe and Slow Road to improve flow and safety.
Snowbasin also announced a refurbishment of the Needles Gondola‘s 86 cabins, which are nearing 26 years old. The first third of cabins will receive new mechanisms, windows and seats this summer with the rest to follow over the next two years.
Local Investors Purchase Killington and Pico from Powdr
New England’s largest ski resort has been sold to a local group of investors for an undisclosed price. The sale, which had been rumored for weeks, is the second recent disposition by Powdr following the sale of Lee Canyon, Nevada to Mountain Capital Partners in 2023. Lead investors in the new ownership group, Phill Gross and Michael Ferri, both have long term ties to the Killington area and ski racing. Gross is Managing Director of Boston-based Adage Capital Management and Ferri owns Valvoline Instant Oil Change franchises throughout the East Coast. Powdr will retain a minority stake and one seat on Killington/Pico’s board of directors. Current management will remain in place and the resorts will continue to participate in the Ikon Pass. “The Killington leadership team is excited about this opportunity to build on the strong foundation laid by Powdr,” said Mike Solimano, President and General Manager of Killington Resort. “We believe that local ownership will allow us to be even more responsive to the needs and desires of our community and guests.”
The sale is expected to close this fall. In an email to employees, Powdr said it also plans to list Eldora, Colorado; Mt. Bachelor, Oregon and SilverStar, British Columbia for sale in the coming weeks. The Park City-based company expects to retain Boreal, California; Copper Mountain, Colorado; Snowbird, Utah; Soda Springs, California and Woodward Park City, Utah as its only five alpine ski areas. The company has been expanding its portfolio of Woodward action sports parks of late and bidding on concession contracts with the National Park Service in order to diversify its portfolio.
During the Powdr era, Killington made significant upgrades to its infrastructure including a new K-1 lodge, Snowdon bubble six pack, North Ridge quad and new cabins on the K-1 gondola. The Beast faces significant ongoing capital needs, however, including a replacement for the Superstar Express and a higher capacity lift on Ramshead Mountain. “We are grateful to Powdr for their stewardship over the years, as Killington saw substantial improvements to infrastructure, snowmaking capabilities, and year-round growth,” said Gross and Ferri. “For our families, Killington is more than just a business or asset to own; it is our home. We are thrilled to guide the mountain into a substantial investment phase. Mike and his leadership team have done a great job, and we look forward to giving them the resources to up our game and continue to evolve Killington as a leader among world-class resorts with strong local roots.”
Instagram Tuesday: Timberline
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
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