This lift runs over the Carp River near the bottom.Loading area.Fixed return bullwheel.Lower lift line.Side view of the top terminal.View from the summit.Unloading area.Middle lift line.Tower 12.
You are correct. The drive and tension were on the bottom when this lift was Texas at Meadows. There was a ramp you had to climb to get to an elevated deck to load onto the lift. As a kid I remember both Texas at Meadows and Magic Mile at Timberline you loaded on an elevated deck. As soon as I got on the chair I would wedge my arm between the center pole and the back of the chair on one side and hang onto the handle on the outside of the chair with my poles to stop from trying to slide off. After loading you would come off the end of the loading deck and be approximately 10 feet in the air. Texas was a little easier to load as you would slide straight forward to the loading plaque where Magic Mile you would have to come in at an angle and load from the side on both the bottom or mid load station. Both of these lifts had large and long unload ramps. The first time I rode Texas was a windy white out, I will never forget the ride up and skiing down that day. On nice days both lifts had a nice ride up but also had a lot of days of a long, cold and windy ride up. The chairs swinging and hitting the halo hoops on the towers.
Sadly this lift has not run the past two winters. I have heard a multitude of reasons why. Anything from, “it’s missing a part that needs to be shipped in from Europe”, to, “it got struck by lightning,” to, “the earth is moving and it’s too dangerous to run the lift.” I have no clue if any of those are true or not but all have come from employees I know personally. Whatever the issue is I hope it gets resolved because this chair is a game changer when it’s running.
I really hope they get it running. It seems like the upper Midwest has a lot of these auxiliary lifts that barely/never run anymore and it’s disappointing. Especially since the expert stuff on this side is the only thing that makes the skiing at Marquette even close to the other UP hills to the west.
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What lift was this at mt hood?
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Texas, replaced by the Cascade Express in 1993
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I believe they reversed the set up. It was bottom drive at Meadows.
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You are correct. The drive and tension were on the bottom when this lift was Texas at Meadows. There was a ramp you had to climb to get to an elevated deck to load onto the lift. As a kid I remember both Texas at Meadows and Magic Mile at Timberline you loaded on an elevated deck. As soon as I got on the chair I would wedge my arm between the center pole and the back of the chair on one side and hang onto the handle on the outside of the chair with my poles to stop from trying to slide off. After loading you would come off the end of the loading deck and be approximately 10 feet in the air. Texas was a little easier to load as you would slide straight forward to the loading plaque where Magic Mile you would have to come in at an angle and load from the side on both the bottom or mid load station. Both of these lifts had large and long unload ramps. The first time I rode Texas was a windy white out, I will never forget the ride up and skiing down that day. On nice days both lifts had a nice ride up but also had a lot of days of a long, cold and windy ride up. The chairs swinging and hitting the halo hoops on the towers.
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Sadly this lift has not run the past two winters. I have heard a multitude of reasons why. Anything from, “it’s missing a part that needs to be shipped in from Europe”, to, “it got struck by lightning,” to, “the earth is moving and it’s too dangerous to run the lift.” I have no clue if any of those are true or not but all have come from employees I know personally. Whatever the issue is I hope it gets resolved because this chair is a game changer when it’s running.
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I really hope they get it running. It seems like the upper Midwest has a lot of these auxiliary lifts that barely/never run anymore and it’s disappointing. Especially since the expert stuff on this side is the only thing that makes the skiing at Marquette even close to the other UP hills to the west.
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