Lower terminal seen from the Black Mountain Express.View up the line from the base area.Yan drive-tension station.Counterweight for tension.Loading area.Half towers followed by half towers.Upper part of the lift line.Tower 13.The breakover.Fixed top bullwheel.Looking down the line.Lift overview.
Access to Beavers, which is somewhat more mellow terrain, and might attract younger or less experienced riders. To be fair, Lenawee has greater access, but bars might still be important.
When they replace the lift, they will add safety bars. The new lift will be a double, but personal, I think they should do a triple chair as it is near the Beavers Lift.
Pallavicini is the one remaining lift at A-Basin to not have bars on it. All the other lifts have bars, and Pallavicini is the most direct way of getting to the Beavers, a lift that has bars.
I’ve wondered this for years.Randy (comment below) has the only explanation I’ve found reasonable. As a longtime lift mechanic, I’ve said for years they aren’t ‘safety’ bars, since they won’t keep a person locked in the chair.
Bars help us with fear of heights. Arapahoe has chairs that cross some serious high points I’d never be able to ride without the bar. Zuma has a 3 tier tower on it’s line that runs along the top of the trees. Lenawee crosses over dercum gulch run that has to be a good 1000 feet over the run (OK not really but seriously is high). I’m sure others with height issues would have panic attacks. One reason I haven’t ridden the Pali chair since my teen years when heights didn’t bother me.
Agree chairs are no safer with restraining bars in fact they may less safe with kids in some cases. Many kids fall out from improper use of restraining bars.
But—- The perception is that there safer and many riders want them. Restraining bars are pretty much a must have on ski school lifts.
So restraining bars are here to stay and will continue to be installed on existing lifts.
I understand that it’s a special lift, but oh my god. Imagine when KT-22 gets replaced and those chairs go on sale. Not sure how much a chair actually costs to buy from a manufacturer but these legendary lifts might make back a lot of money from these shenanigans.
Safety bars are really comfortable. I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to ride one without it. Even the ones without foot rests allow you to rest your hands. Also I definitely agree that it helps people afraid of heights!!! Also it’s an intelligent business move as if someone falls of them the resort could be sued.
Discussing safety bars and the use / non use of them is a bit like talking Republican vs Democrat or Trump vs Biden for president. As a Canadian living in Ontario, I grew up skiiing ski hills where use of the “pull down” bar was required. Personally i am afraid to be on a lift without using the bar. However i do understand that people decide for themselves that they do not want to use the bar, then make up reasons in their own head why they should not be required to use that bar help restrain them and other chair passengers. Opened a real hornets nest of opinions on this one. :)
Lift Blog 
I wonder if Pali will get bars since it now serves as access to Beavers, or if it’ll be gone too soon to matter.
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What does it needs bars for?
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Access to Beavers, which is somewhat more mellow terrain, and might attract younger or less experienced riders. To be fair, Lenawee has greater access, but bars might still be important.
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When they replace the lift, they will add safety bars. The new lift will be a double, but personal, I think they should do a triple chair as it is near the Beavers Lift.
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Why is everyone on here so obsessed with safety bars?
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Pallavicini is the one remaining lift at A-Basin to not have bars on it. All the other lifts have bars, and Pallavicini is the most direct way of getting to the Beavers, a lift that has bars.
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I’ve wondered this for years.Randy (comment below) has the only explanation I’ve found reasonable. As a longtime lift mechanic, I’ve said for years they aren’t ‘safety’ bars, since they won’t keep a person locked in the chair.
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Bars help us with fear of heights. Arapahoe has chairs that cross some serious high points I’d never be able to ride without the bar. Zuma has a 3 tier tower on it’s line that runs along the top of the trees. Lenawee crosses over dercum gulch run that has to be a good 1000 feet over the run (OK not really but seriously is high). I’m sure others with height issues would have panic attacks. One reason I haven’t ridden the Pali chair since my teen years when heights didn’t bother me.
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They’re replacing this lift this summer!
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Posted on Al’s Blog (COO) today regarding the retirement and replacement of the Pali chair in Summer 2020:
http://arapahoebasin.blogspot.com/2020/02/retiring-pallavicini-lift.html
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A-Basin will effectively become an all-Poma mountain.
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‘Safety’ bars are stupid and not needed.
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I saw someone fall off of a chairlift, its better to have them than to not have them.
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People fall of chairs with safety bars on.
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Agree chairs are no safer with restraining bars in fact they may less safe with kids in some cases. Many kids fall out from improper use of restraining bars.
But—- The perception is that there safer and many riders want them. Restraining bars are pretty much a must have on ski school lifts.
So restraining bars are here to stay and will continue to be installed on existing lifts.
LikeLike
The bidding for the chairs on this lift is currently at $5100 per chair… https://www.ebid.net/us/for-sale/pali-chair-arapahoe-basin-pallavicini-chair-192709696.htm
I understand that it’s a special lift, but oh my god. Imagine when KT-22 gets replaced and those chairs go on sale. Not sure how much a chair actually costs to buy from a manufacturer but these legendary lifts might make back a lot of money from these shenanigans.
LikeLike
Safety bars are really comfortable. I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to ride one without it. Even the ones without foot rests allow you to rest your hands. Also I definitely agree that it helps people afraid of heights!!! Also it’s an intelligent business move as if someone falls of them the resort could be sued.
LikeLike
Discussing safety bars and the use / non use of them is a bit like talking Republican vs Democrat or Trump vs Biden for president. As a Canadian living in Ontario, I grew up skiiing ski hills where use of the “pull down” bar was required. Personally i am afraid to be on a lift without using the bar. However i do understand that people decide for themselves that they do not want to use the bar, then make up reasons in their own head why they should not be required to use that bar help restrain them and other chair passengers. Opened a real hornets nest of opinions on this one. :)
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One of my favourite activities as a liftie in the summer was to ride upside down with my head off the front of the seat to freak out the tourists.
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RIP
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