- Timberline begins the NEPA process for a gondola from Government Camp to Timberline Lodge, requiring less than one acre of new permit area.
- West Virginia opens the first of two Doppelmayr gondolas in State Parks.
- A paraglider survives being caught in a moving gondola in Switzerland.
- Leitner’s apple ropeway opens in Italy.
- A funicular railway crashes in Portugal, killing 16 people, with the investigation focused on the wire rope.
- Leitner-Poma and Skytrac’s parent company invests in HKD Snowmakers; will consolidate DemacLenko and HKD in North America.
- A gondola to Disneyland is floated in Anaheim with unproven technology called Whoosh.
- The last day for Cannon Mountain’s tram will be October 26th; it’ll continue running for administrative purposes.
- Black Mountain, New Hampshire reports its highest skier visits ever but also growing pains with noise complaints from neighbors.
- The Okanagan Gondola previews the view from the top of the upcoming sightseeing lift.
- Killington’s former Sunrise lodge and base of the Northeast Passage triple are for sale.
- Homewood commences gondola construction.
- Here’s what happens to a glacier-pinned lift when the glacier recedes.
- Powder Mountain walks back its map showing DMI being installed for 2026-27.
Homewood
News Roundup: Retrofits
- US ski resorts report their second best season ever with 61.5 million visits.
- Colorado releases a detailed report on Winter Park’s gondola tower evener beam failure last December. Leitner-Poma will retrofit or replace similar beams on existing lifts and modify the beam’s design for future installations.
- The Kicking Horse gondola hanger failure remains under investigation but the resort will replace all hangers and not operate the gondola until mid-summer at the earliest.
- Homewood to install its D-Line gondola in 2026 after years of delays.
- McCauley Mountain to sell Hall chairs from the former Big double.
- The Covid-delayed Timber expansion at Tremblant is back on the table.
- The White Mountain National Forest seeks comments on Waterville Valley’s proposed village-to-mountain gondola.
- Eaglecrest, Alaska continues to lose money with its planned gondola still in the parking lot.
- Salt Lake Community College launches a training program for lift maintenance professionals.
- Wildcat’s Snowcat triple, which missed all of last season, to get a new haul rope, drive, controls, comm line and operator houses.
- A Park City billionaire acquires the PCMR Town Lift plaza, envisions a future gondola.
News Roundup: Contingency Plan
- Homewood to reopen next season but its D-Line gondola delivered in 2023 won’t be installed this summer.
- Powdr abandons plans to sell Mt. Bachelor.
- Powdr’s sale of Eldora is said to be in the final stages.
- Le Massif, Quebec signs on to the Ikon Pass.
- New details emerge from the antitrust case against the owner of Song Mountain and Labrador Mountain, New York; he plans to appeal.
- Whaleback, New Hampshire looks toward a new chairlift.
- Sun Valley seeks to be removed from a lawsuit filed by a homeowner regarding the placement of the new Flying Squirrel quad.
- Stratton’s American Express closes early and will reopen for summer later than normal for a major systems modernization.
- The Forest Service approves Steamboat to replace Sunshine Express with a six pack.
- The world’s second largest gondola network is proposed in India with 15 stations and 660 cabins.
- If Bluewood, Washington can’t complete its planned relocation of a used high speed quad from Austria next season, it will keep its Borvig lift and credit passholders $100.
- The US government implements a blanket 20% tariff on goods from the European Union and 31% on products from Switzerland, both major source regions for lift components.
- Skeetawk, Alaska works to repair its only chairlift but snow may run out first.
- Arctic Valley, Alaska’s T-Bar will be inoperable the rest of the season due to an incident damaging the haul rope.
- Holiday Mountain, New York looks to reopen long lost terrain with a third chairlift.
- Alta to realign Supreme this summer, re-doing every foundation and re-using towers and terminals.
- Castle Mountain’s expansion lift to be called Stagecoach Express.
- The owner of Berkshire East and Catamount would operate Burke Mountain under a proposed sale to local investors. The group also plans to refurbish the J-Bar and relocate Willoughby if the sale goes through.
News Roundup: Short Films
- Homewood’s new gondola is finally approved.
- Eaglecrest receives a key gondola construction permit.
- The Wall Street Journal covers several challenges facing Vail Resorts.
- Unionized Crested Butte lift mechanics authorize a strike should they be unable to reach a contract agreement with Vail.
- Breckenridge lift staff stage a one day sick out in protest of employee housing conditions, closing several lifts on Wednesday.
- Pioneer at Park City hasn’t opened this season due to an offseason deropement still being repaired.
- Blackcomb’s Glacier Express to be closed a week or longer due to a possible gearbox issue.
- Mount Snow’s Challenger has been inoperative since January 13th.
- Mammut sponsors a short film exploring the transformation of Shames Mountain, British Columbia into a community co-op.
- British Columbia opens public consultation for the proposed Bridal Veil Mountain Resort.
- A gondola transit network in Oshawa, Ontario could cost CA$1.1 billion.
- Reed Hastings explains his sweeping changes at Powder Mountain including four new lifts in one summer and partial privatization.
- Chicopee, Ontario explains why its three new lifts aren’t spinning yet.
- Bristol Mountain partially rope evacuates the Comet Express.
- Ditto for the Mt. Hood Express at Mt. Hood Meadows.
- The Balsams extends approval for long-delayed redevelopment.
- Mont Farlagne, New Brunswick reopens its only chairlift after a month-long closure due to a bullwheel issue.
- Ischgl invites guests to help build a life size replica of a 3S gondola cabin with Lego bricks.
- The latest New Hampshire tram board minutes hint at a possible new lift for Bretton Woods.
- Mountain Village and Telluride begin planning their new gondola in earnest.
- Vermonters ask Why hasn’t Burke Mountain sold? as receivership fees surpass $12 million.
- Sugarbush gets all but one of its chairlifts going after a challenging start to the season.
- Several videos show the chaotic aftermath of the bullwheel detachment in Spain last week.
- Colorado releases the Winter Park gondola crack incident report, a full report of investigation remains in progress.
News Roundup: Explorer
- Vail Resorts reports improving pass sales and will build four new lifts in 2025 at Andermatt-Sedrun, Perisher and Park City. Vail also teases future projects at Vail Mountain and Park City.
- A snowboarder is airlifted after falling 47 feet from the Ruby Express at Keystone.
- Nordic Valley, Utah looks to public tax dollars to fund new lifts.
- The State of Colorado contributes $250,000 toward reopeing Cuchara’s Chair 4.
- The union representing lift mechanics, electricians and patrollers at 13 western resorts changes its name to United Mountain Workers to reflect broadening ambitions.
- Drayton Valley, Alberta permanently closes, will liquidate assets including its T-Bar.
- The proposed private ski resort with D-Line gondola near Steamboat submits permit applications.
- It takes 8,400 horsepower worth of generators to run Steamboat’s Wild Blue Gondola off the grid.
- Meanwhile a dispute over using natural gas for snowmelt delays progress on a detachable replacement for the Wildhorse Gondola at Steamboat.
- Homewood’s master plan is recommended for approval next month.
- Grouse Mountain may replace the cabins on the Red Skyride.
- Sponsored job: Shop Technician at The Gondola Shop in Fruita, Colorado.
News Roundup: Pleasant
- Snoqualmie’s Alpental and Summit West maps show new chairlifts in new alignments.
- Bear Valley’s 24-25 map shows the new Koala quad and Kuma shortened to become Cub.
- The new Pipestone Express hits Lake Louise’s map.
- Lost Valley shows off its first new lift since 1971.
- New legislation in Alberta I mentioned last week could revive Fortress Mountain.
- Doppelmayr publishes a fresh magazine issue.
- A nearby town is interested purchasing Eldora from Powdr.
- Alterra officially owns Arapahoe Basin.
- Snowhaven, Idaho may not open this season.
- Local leaders aren’t thrilled about the Forest Service’s proposal to only allow ticketed guests on the future Taos gondola.
- Human error is eyed in a French aerial tram crash that injured eight workers.
- A hearing is scheduled for next month re: Homewood’s revised master plan.
News Roundup: Battery Powered
- West Virginia State Parks delays opening of the new Pipestem gondola to spring 2025.
- A tower crane working to build the Grands Montets 3S in Chamonix collapses due to wind and ice.
- Keystone installs solar panels on the Bergman Express to power ancillary functions such as lights.
- Perfect North transforms the Red Chair into an LED light show for the holidays with individual chairs lit by batteries.
- ORDA plans to build not one but two people mover chairlifts at Mt. Van Hoevenberg.
- Hunter names its new quad chair Otis.
- Planning documents show the alignment and D-Line equipment for a planned gondola at Stagecoach, Colorado.
- More ink on the unfortunate closure of Homewood this season.
- The world’s shortest T-Bar to be built with only 5 Ts.
- A criminal trial begins regarding the deadly gondola collapse in Turkey last spring.
- Garaventa installs a robotic cargo loading system on the world’s steepest aerial tramway.
- Kendall Mountain, Colorado suspends pass sales due to lift maintenance.
- Killington’s CEO talks about future lifts beyond Superstar; how the sale to locals went down.
- Park City weighs possible routes for a transit gondola from Old Town to Deer Valley.
- Mt. Waterman, California sells to a new owner promising private powder days.
- Powder Mountain won’t sell any lift tickets on weekends in February.
- Sun Peaks’ new trail map shows the West Bowl expansion.
- Indy Pass to announce new resorts next week.
News Roundup: No Boundaries
- Homewood will miss the 2024-25 ski season.
- Closed Big Tupper, New York to be auctioned November 7th.
- A ranch owner in Nevada’s Ruby Mountains explores building the region’s first ski resort.
- Black Mountain, New Hampshire is sold to Indy Pass, may become a community co-op.
- San Francisco to assess an urban gondola route between a light rail station and hospital.
- Bloomberg explores broad community benefits from Mexico City’s growing gondola network.
- The No Boundaries Pass won’t return this year, citing Indy Pass exclusivity policies.
- Killington’s new owners share details about the future.
News Roundup: Fresh Logo
- Poma introduces a totally new logo.
- Telluride residents will vote whether to fund a new Mountain Village gondola November 5th.
- Riverbanks Zoo & Garden in Columbia, South Carolina plans to debut a Leitner-Poma eight place gondola in 2025.
- Indy Pass to host a community meeting on the future of Black Mountain, New Hampshire tomorrow.
- Homewood presents an updated master plan with a new gondola and replacement Ellis chair.
- Powder Mountain carves out, re-brands three of its lifts as a private ski area called Powder Haven.
- Hidden Valley, Ontario offers up retired chairs from the Red and Blue lifts.
- Doppelmayr’s first TRI-Line nears completion in Switzerland.
- Vail Resorts and the Town of Vail reach an agreement to develop a fourth base portal, likely including a new gondola.
- The reopening of the Palm Springs Tramway following a maintenance period is postponed a second time due to “unforseen technical difficulties.”
- Eaglecrest warns the Black Bear chairlift may not operate at all this season due to “significant mechanical damage.”
- Lookout Pass’ new trail map shows a future Lift 6.
- Deer Valley previews an all new trail map by Rad Smith showing expansion lifts.
- Spirit Mountain retires the Double Jaw lift and is selling the chairs.
- A woman falls out of a gondola during high winds in China.
- OSHA reaches a settlement with Park City regarding the death of an employee who fell from a lift in 2023, dismisses a proposed $2,500 fine.
- The Province of Quebec and Resorts of the Canadian Rockies reportedly reach an agreement to improve lift infrastructure at Mont Sainte-Anne.
- Bear Mountain’s new Midway six seater will feature a loading conveyor and 3,200 skier per hour capacity.
- Sublette towers flew last Wednesday above Jackson Hole.
News Roundup: 750
- Leitner plans to offer the ConnX multi-model gondola system from 2025 after passing tests in Hungary.
- A progress report on the first Doppelmayr TRI-Line in Switzerland.
- Also on the first MND Orizon detachable in France.
- MND inaugurates a new production facility to support the Orizon line.
Skytrac celebrates its new facility in Tooele, Utah.
Bartholet releases its 2024 reference book. - Alta clarifies it supports a Little Cottonwood gondola.
- White Pass adds chairs to boost capacity on the Great White Express.
- A viral video shows a lift being jostled by a small tornado.
- Homewood now plans to build its already-delivered D-Line gondola in 2025 and upgrade Ellis in 2030.
- Burke Mountain delays summer opening to mid-July due to a mechanical issue with the Sherburne Express.
- Marmot Basin to sell chairs from the Knob double.
- Jackson Hole to auction Sublette chairs.
- Beartooth Basin is for sale.
- I visited my 750th ski area this week, marking the completion the Canada Lift Database.
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