If I were overhauling the lift system and didn’t have financial constraints or whatnot, I’d make all the Yan triples into high speed quads and then doing the following:
1. Fort Apache is rerouted to end at the top of Sunrise Peak, so it has lapping terrain.
2. Geronimo and Eagle Feather become a single lift starting at Geronimo’s starting point but ending at Eagle Feather’s unload point.
3. Cyclone is cut back to the mid-unload station (similar to how Silver Star cut Powder Gulch back to its predecessor high speed quad’s midstation and replaced the part above that with a T-Bar), while a second high speed quad runs from the botttom of Hurricane Ridge to Cyclone’s old return station.
4. Spirit Ridge is realigned to end at the top of Loafer.
I like points 1, 2, and 4, but I would just replace Cyclone in the same alignment with a detachable lift and leave Spirit Ridge as it is. The mountain does not get the traffic to warrant separate lifts on Cyclone.
The original alignment of Spirit Ridge had the upper terminal located at the top of loafer, a few decades back. For whatever reason, it didn’t work out in the long term.
The problem with this idea, the runs on the west facing aspects of both Sunrise and Cyclone are RARELY open due to lack of snow coverage. Building any lifts to service these trails would be a huge waste.
And the announcement ended up being a disappointment. A rope tow or T-bar up Denny’s Way at least provides non-hiking access to Cyclone, but the terrain will require three lifts to lap. The place needs better management and has no excuse for floundering over the past 30 years when they have one competitor to serve a region of five million people.
And MCP/Snowbowl is acutely aware of this. Sunrise gets more reliable snow 30 min closer to some parts of Phoenix.
In 2010 Snowbowl had 2 Riblet doubles and 2 long slow triples. Since then theyre at 1 Chondola, 1 new fixed quad opening decent terrain, a new beginner fixed quad, and a HSS in a brand new long alignment that completely changed how the south half of the mountain skied. Oh, and they added snowmaking.
In that time… Sunrise has installed 0 lifts, opened 0 new trails, and has reliably closed one of their main peaks because reasons.
Lift Blog 
If I were overhauling the lift system and didn’t have financial constraints or whatnot, I’d make all the Yan triples into high speed quads and then doing the following:
1. Fort Apache is rerouted to end at the top of Sunrise Peak, so it has lapping terrain.
2. Geronimo and Eagle Feather become a single lift starting at Geronimo’s starting point but ending at Eagle Feather’s unload point.
3. Cyclone is cut back to the mid-unload station (similar to how Silver Star cut Powder Gulch back to its predecessor high speed quad’s midstation and replaced the part above that with a T-Bar), while a second high speed quad runs from the botttom of Hurricane Ridge to Cyclone’s old return station.
4. Spirit Ridge is realigned to end at the top of Loafer.
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I like points 1, 2, and 4, but I would just replace Cyclone in the same alignment with a detachable lift and leave Spirit Ridge as it is. The mountain does not get the traffic to warrant separate lifts on Cyclone.
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The original alignment of Spirit Ridge had the upper terminal located at the top of loafer, a few decades back. For whatever reason, it didn’t work out in the long term.
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The problem with this idea, the runs on the west facing aspects of both Sunrise and Cyclone are RARELY open due to lack of snow coverage. Building any lifts to service these trails would be a huge waste.
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Did Sunrise Park end up making their planned announcement of new lifts (among other things)? The scheduled time has since passed.
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Now Thursday. https://www.sunrise.ski/subscribe/
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And the announcement ended up being a disappointment. A rope tow or T-bar up Denny’s Way at least provides non-hiking access to Cyclone, but the terrain will require three lifts to lap. The place needs better management and has no excuse for floundering over the past 30 years when they have one competitor to serve a region of five million people.
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what a shame.
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And MCP/Snowbowl is acutely aware of this. Sunrise gets more reliable snow 30 min closer to some parts of Phoenix.
In 2010 Snowbowl had 2 Riblet doubles and 2 long slow triples. Since then theyre at 1 Chondola, 1 new fixed quad opening decent terrain, a new beginner fixed quad, and a HSS in a brand new long alignment that completely changed how the south half of the mountain skied. Oh, and they added snowmaking.
In that time… Sunrise has installed 0 lifts, opened 0 new trails, and has reliably closed one of their main peaks because reasons.
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