- Aspen Mountain’s Lift One project inches closer to reality.
- Aspen Skiing Company reports skier visits declined 2.3 percent last season.
- Colorado as a whole reports its second best season ever, down five percent from last year’s record.
- New Hampshire was down four percent.
- Vail Resorts reports a 5 percent increase in lift revenue but a 7.7 percent decline in visits with season pass unit sales down 5 percent for next season.
- Colorado’s Estes Park Tram reopens after an extended closure.
- Nordic Valley works to reactivate Apollo, which missed last season.
- Legoland New York’s new 10 passenger gondola to open June 24th.
- A Park City resident files an appeal of Deer Valley’s Lift 7 approval.
- Sun Peaks flies towers for the new West Bowl Express.
- Leitner’s 2023 annual report is out highlighting global projects.
Instagram Tuesday: Angel
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Bonus Project
- Ski Santa Fe proposes a second chairlift project for this summer, replacing Easy Street #4 with the old Santa Fe Super Chief #1.
- The Balsams extends a deadline to complete phase one construction, may refurbish existing lift infrastructure.
- Dave Scanlan, the general manager behind installing a 35 year old used pulse gondola from Austria, is ousted from his post leading Eaglecrest, Alaska.
- MND’s prototype detachable nears completion in France.
- Big Sky’s old Six Shooter is spotted at Sugarloaf.
- The capital of the Dominican Republic to build a third urban gondola line.
- Deer Valley may pour concrete for more Expanded Excellence lifts this summer to get a jump on next year.
- Cochran’s, Vermont secures a grant to design and engineer a used T-Bar.
- Mont Grand-Fonds says its upcoming Doppelmayr six pack will be the first of its kind in Quebec.
- Jackson Hole’s new Sublette will feature Leitner comfort chairs.
- Snowmass to auction Coney Glade chairs.
- Mount St. Louis Moonstone also lists Poma quad chairs for sale.
- Work begins on the Aspen Meadows project adjacent to Brian Head.
- Quebec records six million skier visits, a decline of 10 percent from last year’s record.
Instagram Tuesday: Tooele
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: In Memoriam
- U.S. skier visits totaled 60.4 million this season, down from last year but fifth highest ever.
- The Colorado Supreme Court rules a liability waiver doesn’t protect Crested Butte from a chairlift fall claim.
- Huff Hills, North Dakota may pack up and move to a new location.
- Leitner-Poma parent company HTI reports a 13 percent revenue increase with strong sales in North America.
- Alterra-owned Schweitzer postpones the next phase of the Schweitzer Creek Village expansion.
- Castle Mountain plans to reinstall a 1988 detachable from Sunshine Village as soon as next summer.
- The municipality of Park City approves Deer Valley’s proposed Lift 7.
- Park City Mountain to begin construction shortly on the new Sunrise Gondola.
- A Maine developer will try again to revive Big Moose Mountain.
- A proposed lift-served bike park in Conifer, Colorado moves toward public hearings.
Instagram Tuesday: Flying Out
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Ambitious Plan
- Homewood submits a revised master plan with a new Madden Gondola.
- West Virginia’s governor celebrates a new state park gondola with another on the way.
- Willamette Pass’ proposed master plan includes six new chairlifts.
- Sugarbush to hold a chair auction.
- The first Doppelmayr TRI-Line detachable goes vertical in Europe.
- Powder Mountain will save the outgoing Paradise quad for future use.
Winter Park Eyes Beginner-Focused Lift Upgrades
As I reported on Friday, Winter Park Resort is seeking Forest Service approval for a major revamp of the Discovery Park learning zone. The project, contemplated in the 2022 master plan, has four major lift components. First the Gemini Express would be replaced by a 10 passenger gondola, allowing beginner guests to upload and download as foot passengers. The 2,400 foot long gondola would start closer to the Village at Winter Park than Gemini and unload at a new children’s ski school building, where a variety of conveyor lifts are planned. The new gondola will be a workhorse capable of carrying 3,600 passengers per hour. One reason for such high capacity is this gondola could eventually become the third section of a town-to-village gondola long envisioned as a way to reduce traffic.
Once new skiers and riders are ready to progress to chairlifts, two new options will sit near the learning center. The current Endeavour triple will be replaced by a 2,400 pph detachable quad in a shorter alignment. The Discovery double will be upgraded from a double to a short fixed grip quad carrying 1,600 skiers per hour.
The final component of the plan is a new Cooper Creek six pack. This 2,700 foot long lift would load below the bottom of Olympia Express and rise 365 feet to the Cooper Creek Summit, carrying 2,800 guests per hour. Five new beginner trails would be constructed with new snowmaking throughout. As part of the project, the aging Looking Glass double would be removed. All told Winter Park would retire four chairlifts dating back to 1966, 1984 and 1993, replacing them with three new chairlifts and a gondola.
The Forest Service is preparing an Environmental Assessment and welcomes public comments. The agency expects to publish a decision in the first quarter of 2025 and construction could begin next summer.
Breckenridge Plans Peak 9 Lift Upgrades
A new two stage gondola and six passenger chairlift could be coming soon to Breckenridge’s popular Peak 9. The Forest Service and Breckenridge have begun scoping for the project, which would boost out-of-base capacity, better serve beginners and improve mountain circulation. A new mid-mountain learning center would be constructed, allowing Breckenridge to join the growing list of mountains moving learn-to-ski away from congested base areas.
The gondola, first proposed as a one stage gondola in the 2022 Master Plan, would load in the Peak 9 base area adjacent to the Quicksilver Super6. A whopping 43 percent of Breckenridge skiers use the Peak 9 portal and the gondola would add 2,200 seats per hour. The new lift would cross over Quicksilver and travel to the new Frontier learning center, where a cabin storage facility and two conveyors are planned. The Camelback platter would also be relocated from the base of Peak 9 to this zone. Gondola cabins would make an angle change at the learning center station and continue to an unload point near the top of the existing A-Chair. While A services excellent beginner terrain, the 1975 Riblet triple sits underutilized due to its long ride time and would be removed. The existing Eldorado platter is also slated for removal without direct replacement.
The second major component of the project is a detachable replacement for the existing C-Chair, a Riblet double that dates back to 1972. The faster six seat lift would carry 3,000 skiers per hour and follow the existing alignment, crossing under the Peak 8 SuperConnect. Both the bottom and top terminals would shift slightly higher on the mountain. The C SuperChair would rise 1,250 vertical feet become the sixth detachable lift on Peak 9.
The Forest Service and Breck plan to host an open house for the public to learn more about the project on May 22nd from 4-6 pm at the Maggie. Public comments will be accepted until June 13th and the USFS intends to reach a decision around the end of the year. If approved, construction could commence in summer 2025. The gondola learning center project is likely to be built first, followed by the C-Chair replacement in a later season.
Instagram Tuesday: Solar Storm
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
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