- Okemo Mountain Resort announces new fixed-grip quad and conversion of the Jackson Gore Express into a bubble quad called Quantum 4. Their press release (falsely) claims Okemo will be the first resort in North America with two bubble lifts.
- The last two victims of a 2010 de-ropement at Sugarloaf settle their lawsuit with Boyne Resorts, or more likely their insurance company. Next up: claims from the victims of this year’s rollback.
- Mont Cascades’ new TC quad lift will be a Doppelmayr Eco-Drive.
- Adanac Ski Hill in Ontario wants $1.8 million from taxpayers to replace their T-Bar.
- Lutsen Mountains breaks ground on the most expensive lift project ever at a Midwest ski area.
- Marshall Mountain, Montana is for sale for $2.95 million. Its lifts – a Thiokol triple and Poma T-Bar – haven’t spun since the 2002-03 season.
- The British Columbia Safety Authority releases its incident report on Crystal Mountain’s de-ropement and it’s not pretty. The ski area has been closed ever since the March 1, 2014 incident.
- Add San Diego to the growing list of cities that want to build a gondola. This one would have 8-passenger cabins and two mid-stations.
Sugarloaf
Sugarloaf Announces Lift Safety Upgrades and Website
Yesterday Sugarloaf Mountain Resort, the site of two of the worst lift accidents in recent memory, announced $1.3 million in lift safety upgrades including a new Doppelmayr drive terminal for the lift that rolled back in March. The mountain will also launch a new website devoted solely to lift safety and maintenance with a tip line for anyone to submit questions and concerns about lifts. All of this is moving forward despite Sugarloaf’s looming sale.
The King Pine Quad, a 1988 Borvig, rolled-back approximately 460 feet on March 21, 2015, resulting in numerous injuries. Skiers went around the bottom bullwheel at high speed and many others jumped off. Sugarloaf’s internal investigation found that the drive bullwheel’s drop dog failed to deploy due to a faulty switch and the lift was eventually stopped by an operator who manually activated the lift’s emergency brake. The state has not yet released its investigation into this incident. King Pine and its sister quad called Timberline were both closed for the remainder of last season.
New Roundup: Ouch!
- Crowdfunding campaign to put up a used Riblet double in BC not going very well.
- Skier-lift tower collision ends badly at Deer Valley.
- 2 Borvig quads at Sugarloaf won’t reopen this season. Spokesperson says they have not decided what to do for next year.
- Woman wants $75,000 after maze sign fell on her at Park City Mountain Resort last season.
- Doppelmayr’s April 2015 Wir magazine is now online. Check out their new chair suspension (page 17) and new work carrier design (page 25.)
- Deropement and rope evacuation at Winter Park.
- Three days in, conservation group vows to kill Squaw’s Base-to-base gondola plan.
News Roundup: Reset and Go!
- Sugarloaf shuts down 2nd Borvig quad lift.
- Sugar Mountain, NC to build a base-to-summit Doppelmayr six-pack.
- Leitner-Poma might have to pay $222k back to the State of Colorado. This summer doesn’t look to be too busy for them either.
- Vail Resorts goes to Australia.
- Lift operator sued after boy hanged from backpack tangled in a chair.
- The State of Pennsylvania is “not normally in the business of ski-lift construction.”
- Another child falls from a chair, this time in eastern Canada. Seems like there have been a lot of similar incidents this winter particularly with children.
