Lookout Pass – Lift Blog

News Roundup: Fresh Logo

October 4, 2024October 4, 2024Peter Landsman16 Comments

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: D’oh!

March 8, 2024Peter Landsman6 Comments

A skier tries to jump over Lake Louise’s Top of the World Express, runs into a chair instead.
Powderhorn closes the Flat Top Flyer all week for maintenance.
Magic Mountain celebrates the last new lift opening of the year.
Epic Pass prices increase approximately 8 percent, Crans-Montana will be added subject to closing.
Ikon Pass increases a similar amount, goes back to unlimited days at Crystal Mountain, Washington.
Indy Pass adds Big Moose, Maine; Mt. Eyak, Alaska; Mt. Washington, British Columbia; Powderhorn, Colorado; Steeplechase, Minnesota; Wintergreen, Virginia and Wisp, Maryland.
Massachusetts issues an RFP for operating Blue Hills Ski Area.
A man dies aboard a chairlift at Lookout Pass due to a medical emergency.
Timberline Lodge closes Bruno’s for the season due to gearbox failure.
The world’s longest gondola is on track to open late next year in the Caribbean.
Powder Mountain hints it may alter plans to make three quad chairs private for homeowners next season.

News Roundup: Doubles Save the Day

December 16, 2022Peter Landsman12 Comments

Many big openings this weekend including Lenawee Express at Arapahoe Basin, Big Red at Whistler, Seven Brothers at Loon Mountain, North Bowl Express at Heavenly, Eagle Peak at Lookout Pass and Black Bear 6 at Camelback.
Palisades Tahoe launches the Base to Base Gondola tomorrow but it will operate as two separate lifts and close Sunday for more work.
Vail waits for a weather window to fly the pilot line for Sun Down Express, nears the finish line on Game Creek Express.
Doppelmayr and Steamboat unwrap Wild Blue cabins.
Kimberley load tests the Northstar Express following a year of repairs.
New Sunnyside at Alta won’t be finished by Christmas; the Albion double will spin until it opens.
The new high speed quad at Telluride won’t open until late January due to labor challenges.
FourRunner goes down at Stowe and the nearby Sunrise Six isn’t finished yet. Lookout saves the week.
A “series of setbacks to electrical infrastructure” delays opening of new lifts and the entire Big Boulder ski area.
Cuchara won’t reopen lift-served skiing this year after all.
Giants Ridge debuts a new VistaMap.
Sun Valley launches a website dedicated to next summer’s lift projects.
As the investigation continues into the Mont-Sainte-Anne gondola incident and the mountain remains closed this weekend, Resorts of the Canadian Rockies seeks a public-private partnership to renew its Quebec infrastructure. Quebec’s Premier isn’t sold on giving public money to RCR.
The Governor of New Hampshire wants replacement of the Cannon Tram to be voted on by the legislature, a funding mechanism could be selected this year with the earliest possible opening in late 2024.
Ski Utah previews the upcoming Burns Express at Deer Valley.
Wisconsin approves a pared down master plan for Granite Peak with two expansion lifts, one on each side of existing terrain.
Homewood forges ahead with plans to go private for homeowners only.
The sightseeing gondola proposal in Vernon, British Columbia moves forward.
An idea to connect Detroit with Windsor, Ontario by 3S gondola is back.
Construction begins on the new D-Line gondola at a California vineyard.

News Roundup: Changing Hands

September 23, 2022Peter Landsman1 Comment

Vancouver’s transit authority begins the station design process for the Burnaby Mountain Gondola.
Three Park City residents who own Pacific Group Resorts expect to close on Jay Peak next month.
Burke Mountain may also soon be sold.
Arapahoe Basin creates a podcast episode all about Lenawee Express construction.
A Basin also explains why a big drop in skier visits is a good thing.
Energy prices where many of the world’s lifts are operated and manufactured could spike eight fold this winter.
Eaglecrest’s new gondola arrives in Alaska.
Sugar Bowl joins the Mountain Collective.
Hunter Mountain will sell chairs from the Z Lift next week.
A thousand page report outlines negligence and poor management leading to deaths of 14 people on an Italian tramway last year.
Dry Hill, New York gets new owners.
The top station building for a 125 passenger aerial tramway partially burns in Switzerland.
The Forest Service seeks public comments on Copper Mountain’s proposed Timberline six pack.
The General Manager of Whitecap Mountains, Wisconsin assumes full ownership.
A new neighborhood adjacent to Mayflower Mountain Resort will feature its own chairlift.
Mt. Bachelor’s new Skyliner six pack will be D-Line.
Loveland and Lookout Pass fly lift towers into place.
British Columbia determines a volunteer ski patroller injured in a chairlift de-ropement is eligible for worker’s compensation.
Leitner wins a four station urban gondola contract in Colombia.
Here are some official and unofficial updates on the Palisades Tahoe Base-to-Base Gondola.
Also an update on Thunder from Jackson Hole:

News Roundup: Gunstock & More

July 29, 2022Peter Landsman14 Comments

Indy Pass signs its largest partner yet by skier visits: Mt. Hood Meadows.
Former Indy Pass resort Marmot Basin joins the Mountain Collective.
Some 300 people show up to what was intended to be an executive session of the Gunstock Area Commission to discuss legal, financial and employment matters. Two commissioners end up walking out. Another meeting is scheduled for today.
Resigned Gunstock Area Commissioner and former Stowe CEO Gary Kiedaisch attempts to un-resign.
A New Hampshire State Representative alleges former Gunstock General Manager Tom Day improperly donated $500 in public money to Governor Sununu’s 2020 re-election campaign.
Organizers of a music festival set to take place at Gunstock next weekend threaten legal action if the Panorama high speed quad doesn’t run as contracted.
Deer Valley and Mayflower work toward an operating agreement.
Eaglecrest General Manager Dave Scanlan goes on the radio to talk about the gondola project.
Skytrac is still hiring folks to build ski lifts, particularly at Jack Frost and Big Boulder in Pennsylvania.
Smugglers’ Notch gives a rundown of all the work that goes into servicing a bullwheel.
Sierra at Tahoe completes haul rope replacements on two more lifts.
A bolt tightening contractor is hit by a tram carriage and seriously injured at Jackson Hole.
Skytrac begins building on Eagle Peak at Lookout Pass.
Greek Peak starts construction of a new Chair 3.
Utah Olympic Park’s big expansion won’t be open to public skiing with limited exceptions.
The first D-Line in California is approved, will feature unique angle stations.
Closed Connecticut ski area Woodbury goes back up for sale.
The company seeking to build a gondola in Edmonton, Alberta would pay $1.1 million a year to lease city right of way.
A woman found dead under Anakeesta’s chondola last night is believed to have fallen from the lift, which remains closed today.
Two men are killed while working to build a Doppelmayr gondola in France.
Below is the July 8th Notice of Noncompliance the Forest Service sent Keystone regarding unauthorized road construction in Bergman Bowl. Since the letter is three weeks old, Forest Supervisor Scott Fitzwilliams sent an update on where things stand.

keystone-nonc-letter Download

News Roundup: Quad For Sale

February 18, 2022Peter Landsman13 Comments

In an op-ed, Vail Mountain Vice President and Chief Executive Officer Beth Howard says the company is evaluating wages for next season.
Mike Goar pens a similar letter to the Park City community.
New Hampshire governor Chris Sununu says his office is working to address complaints about Vail Resorts operations at state-owned Mt. Sunapee.
Indy Pass adds Sunlight, Colorado.
A 7 year old is expected to be okay after falling 35 feet from a chairlift at the Florida State Fair.
New York State issues an RFP for the North Creek Ski Bowl detachable quad project at Gore Mountain.
Here’s a preview of the Lookout Pass Eagle Peak expansion, set for a CTEC quad this summer:

Hickory won’t reopen this winter due to lift inspection timing.
Jackson Hole lists the Thunder chair for sale.
With a new gondola costing up to $22 million after a two to three year wait, Eaglecrest looks at purchasing a used 15 passenger pulse gondola from Austria.
A chairlift-served bike park is proposed near Evergreen, Colorado.
Sierra at Tahoe shares its latest recovery update with a focus on the 12 different comm line patches needed on seven different lifts.
The incident report from the Beech Mountain water line mishap is made public.

News Roundup: Life Behind Lifts

November 5, 2021Peter Landsman5 Comments

Gunstock teases a multi-lift expansion with details to come in December.
Magic Mountain won’t have summit access until at least December 18th due to ongoing lift projects.
A CBS primetime reality show features an hour of ski area maintenance!
Kirsten Lynch takes over as CEO of Vail Resorts.
Sierra-at-Tahoe eyes an early 2022 reopening.
A Mayflower construction update.
Doppelmayr releases a new Wir magazine.
The Cascade Skyline Gondola proposal gains a key endorsement.
The final logging take place for the Eagle Peak expansion at Lookout Pass.
Whistler Blackcomb highlights this summer’s big ticket lift maintenance projects.
Sundance names two new quads Outlaw Express and Stairway.
MND reports improved results with lift and snowmaking sales up 32 percent.
Alberta Parks says it will open Hidden Valley this season in the absence of a private operator.
Hickory, NY looks likely to reopen after six seasons.
Big Sky’s new map is out showing Swift Current 6.

News Roundup: Planning Ahead

October 1, 2021Peter Landsman12 Comments

Indy Pass signs on Manning Park, British Columbia; The Rock, Wisconsin; and Seven Oaks, Iowa.
Big Snow American Dream will remain closed several more weeks following last week’s fire.
Leitner-Poma to build the previously announced Lakeview Express at Mt. Rose next year.
The gondola to the gondola at Breckenridge nears approval.
Rad Smith completes his largest illustration yet – a new map for Big White in the style of James Niehues.
Another protest takes place against a gondola in Little Cottonwood Canyon.
Nitehawk continues fundraising for a new chairlift as it nears a second season without one.
Lookout Pass works to convert Timber Wolf from a double into a triple.
Alpine-X seeks to raise up to $5 million through crowdfunding.
An Iowa county agrees to purchase Sleepy Hollow, a chairlift-served tubing park.
Palisades Tahoe renames two of its chairlifts Resort Chair and Wa She Shu.
Doppelmayr arrives on site to assess and make recommendations regarding the storm-damaged chairlift in Gallix, Quebec.
Amsterdam could see a river crossing 3S gondola.
Sundance will host a party on October 10th to celebrate the final rides on Ray’s Lift before removal.
Another gondola concept emerges in Los Angeles.
Lake Louise’s new high speed quad will be called Juniper Express.
Camelback says it has completed an extensive inspection and certification process for its lifts and implemented additional safety protocols in the wake of last season’s chair fall.
Stuart Winchester gets the latest from Aspen Snowmass CEO Mike Kaplan on 1A, Pandora’s, Coney Glade, Burnt Mountain, Goldenhorn and other lift projects.
The Superior National Forest will host a virtual open house Tuesday regarding the Lutsen Mountains expansion.
West Mountain unveils plans for its first detachable lift, including an intermediate station.

News Roundup: Ramping Up

February 26, 2021March 1, 2021Peter Landsman29 Comments

Northeast gems Saddleback and Waterville Valley join the Indy Pass coalition, effective immediately.
Winter Park Resort looks for the Forest Service’s blessing to replace multiple lifts.
The Forest Service fully approves Keystone’s Bergman Bowl project.
Welch Village voluntarily withdraws the East Quad from service following an unspecified incident (now back open).
Guests of Mission Ridge love the Wenatchee Express and here’s the final episode of On the Way Up.
Spirit Mountain lends a hand to repair the chairlift at nearby Chester Bowl.
A girl is okay after falling from a Mohawk Mountain chairlift.
A child also falls from a lift at Saddleback.
Skyline at Pebble Creek is partially rope evacuated.
Lookout Pass eyes 2022 for new lifts servicing Eagle Peak.
More reports of stellar seasons from Iowa, New York and Pennsylvania.
Cabins return to the Sea to Sky Gondola with more on the way.
Mt. Bohemia considers building a lift in the Haunted Valley.
Timberline Lodge closes for three days following a messy ice storm.
Once a cartel hub, Medellín is a city transformed in part by a modern gondola network.
Waterville Valley President and General Manager Tim Smith discusses a future gondola, bubble six pack and other lift changes.
A rider who fell into a net along with another passenger and lift operator sues Snow King Mountain.
Murray Ridge secures a six figure grant to rehabilitate one of the world’s longest T-Bars.
MND reports revenue fell 5 percent in the second half of 2020 ($20.7 million in sales came from snowmaking and lifts.)
Aspen will delay the Silver Queen Gondola‘s summer opening to complete big ticket maintenance items.
Doppelmayr’s latest Wir magazine explores the Eiger Express.
Saddleback closes for a day to shorten the haul rope on the new Rangeley quad.
Poma will build an eight station urban gondola system in Madagascar with 274 cabins.
Parent company Dream Unlimited says Arapahoe Basin is on track for its second best financial year ever despite opening four weeks late.
Just two weeks to go until old lifts start coming down to make way for new ones.
Squaw will experiment metering skiers at gates to avoid long lift lines at Silverado.
The world’s largest urban gondola network might add four more lines.
Big Squaw reopens tomorrow, two weeks after this deropement.
A gondola is no longer a core component of the Oakland Athletics’ planned new stadium.
There’s talk of building a 7,000 vertical foot gondola on Mt. Kilimanjaro.

News Roundup: Preparing

July 3, 2020Peter Landsman15 Comments

Mont-Sainte-Anne is ordered not to operate its gondola until the lift is deemed safe.
A New Brunswick resort will pay a fine for a lift employee’s on the job injury.
All three Disney Skyliner gondolas are set to reopen July 15th.
Liftopia fights to stay out of bankruptcy as more ski areas say the company owes them money.
Silver Mountain celebrates the anniversary of a historic agreement to bring the world’s longest gondola to Kellogg, Idaho.
With its first chairlift complete, Skeetawk sets its sights on a much longer detachable quad.
Construction of the planned Valemount Glacier resort is delayed.
Cape Smokey begins building foundations for Atlantic Canada’s only gondola.
White Pass will switch rotation direction of the Basin quad, requiring a tower to be moved.
Snowy Range removes the Chute double’s drive terminal in preparation for a Skytrac Monarch upgrade.
Big Sky Resort launches first in North America self load, self unload bike carriers on Ramcharger 8.
The Forest Service approves expanding Summit Ski Area’s footprint to connect with Timberline Lodge & Ski Area.
The California zoo which debuted a detachable gondola three years ago finds itself on the brink of permanent closure.
As the Forest Service continues its review, the Town of Jackson once again takes up the issue of a Snow King Mountain gondola.
Mission Ridge will auction off chairs from the former Liberator Express.
A coalition including Alta, Snowbird, Ski Utah and Powdr launches a website and media campaign advocating for a Little Cottonwood Canyon gondola.
Last year’s addition of the Peak 1 quad allows Lookout Pass to launch summer operations for the first time.
Remains of a very old tramway in Utah may be removed.
Green Mountain Valley School celebrates groundbreaking for a state-of-the-art T-Bar at Sugarbush.
It took five long weeks to get a European specialist into New Zealand and able to splice the country’s first D-Line lift.
Hunter Mountain abruptly cancels its summer skyride opening and will share more information in the coming weeks.

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