• I talk six-packs with the Vail Daily.
• Heavenly’s Comet Express remains closed following a Jan. 1st rope evacuation, apparently due to a gearbox issue.  This is one of the reasons Vail Resorts is replacing its fleet of 1980s-vintage detachable quads.
• Doppelmayr and the United Nations are hosting a week-long urban mobility ropeway class in April.
• The New York Times tells the tale of Big Sky Resort.
• Ski patroller severely injured in fall from chair at Terry Peak.
• Gondola proposed to serve airport in Vietnam’s congested largest city.
• BC Parks considers a gondola to Mt. Seymour to alleviate parking and traffic problems.
• Ski Area Management‘s lift construction survey dropped this week.  Highlights from its outlook for 2017:
  • “We’re off to a strong year for ’17, there are lots of people asking about lifts…It’s very positive compared to the previous two years.” – Jon Mauch, Senior Sales Manager at Leitner-Poma
  • “There’s a lot of enthusiasm about what could happen under a Trump administration.  People expect deregulation and a more business-friendly climate.” – Mark Bee, President at Doppelmayr USA
  • “We’re seeing lots of requests quotes, lots of major modifications and retrofits…It’s all being driven by the age of the existing lift infrastructure.” – Carl Skylling, General Manager at Skytrac
  • I’ve already identified 29 new lifts likely to be built in 2017, pacing well above the last few years for mid-January.
• Slovakian manufacturer Tatralift debuts its third detachable lift using a Wopfner grip.  That makes seven companies capable of building a detachable lift globally – Bartholet, BMHRI (China), Doppelmayr/Garaventa (Austria), Leitner–Poma (Italy), LST (France), STM (Turkey) and Tatralift (Slovakia.)

Continue reading →