- The Goldbelt Tram closes indefinitely after cars entered stations at higher than normal speed last night, injuring several employees.
- Powder Haven announces a sixth private chairlift called Foxtrot.
- The Town of Mountain Village continues investigating the circumstances surrounding elected officials’ attempted purchase of Telluride Ski Resort last December.
- Alberta ski resorts worry permanent daylight savings time will reduce competitiveness with other regions.
- New Hampshire launches an investigation into Vail Resorts charging a blended sales tax for passes that include both in state and out-of-state mountains. Vail responds with plans to offer a New Hampshire-only pass tax free.
- Doppelmayr may finance part of a proposed sightseeing gondola in Butte, Montana.
- Lifts at the former Talisman Mountain Resort in Ontario to be demolished.
- Doppelmayr’s latest customer magazine highlights projects at Big Sky and Killington.
- Poma releases its 2025 Reference Book.
- Leitner-Poma previews new North American-specific surface lift and detachable terminal models.
- The only ski area in Tennessee changes its name back to Ober Gatlinburg.
- A local school district may provide 20 percent of funding for a new chairlift at Hogadon, Wyoming.
- London’s urban gondola loses corporate sponsorship and plans a pivot toward tourists.
- Snow Partners to introduce both a national Indy Pass competitor and a Midwest Snow Triple Play.
Maintenance Accident Kills One, Injures Another at Mt. Hood Skibowl
A work carrier fell from the Upper Bowl chair at Mt. Hood Skibowl Thursday morning, killing one employee and injuring another. According to the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office, a third employee on scene placed a call for help and began CPR. Deputies responded along with Hoodland Fire, Clackamas Fire, American Medical Response, Search and Rescue volunteers, and U.S. Forest Service law enforcement. “Medics reached the patients shortly after 10 a.m.,” read a statmement from the Sheriff’s Office. “One person was conscious and breathing. The second patient did not have a pulse. Despite lifesaving efforts, that person was pronounced dead at the scene.” The surviving patient was transported by helicopter to a Portland hospital. The incident will be investigated as a workplace death and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been notified.
The lift was not open to the public at the time as Mt. Hood Skibowl is currently between winter and summer operations. Riblet constructed the Upper Bowl chair in 1975.
Instagram Tuesday: Crunched
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Pure
- Poma reveals a new gondola cabin called Pure mimicking “egg” cabins from the company’s past.
- In Turkey, eight people are sentenced to prison for negligence related to a deadly 2024 gondola crash.
- Parents in Pennsylvania face felony charges for allowing a five year old who fell off a lift to ride alone.
- Worldwide skier visits reached 399 million in 2024-25, a new record.
- Aspen comments on the status of both Nell Bell and 1A replacement projects.
- Colorado’s new sightseeing and biking gondola to open for public rides on May 9th.
- Doppelmayr reaches €500 million in sales in Vietnam with 32 installations and zero skiing.
- Casper, Wyoming to fund a new chairlift for Hogadon Basin with a mix of public and private money.
- Whaleback, New Hampshire seeks $350,000 in donations to replace a haul rope and perform offseason maintenance.
- A proposal to revive Brodie Mountain, Massachusetts includes four lifts.
- Vail Resorts visitation and revenue trended worse in March and April than earlier in the season; pass sales for next season are also trending down.
- Vail’s new Chief Revenue Officer signals a shift toward improving service and experience at existing resorts.
- A landowner opposes Vail’s efforts to get a lawsuit over Park City lift easments thrown out.
- Steelhead Systems opposes Bluewood, Washington’s efforts to force delivery of lift parts via an injunction.
News Roundup: Revival
- Americans flock to Canada to ski, particularly Banff.
- Jay Peak also proves popular; in a podcast episode, Jay President Steve Wright says “we will be adding more high speed detachable lifts” and is about to make a down payment on one.
- An update on the accelerating revival of Black Mountain, New Hampshire.
- Possible approval of a new sightseeing gondola in Georgia is delayed while traffic and sewer studies are prepared.
- The new bike park lift in Arkansas will be named OZ Express.
- Vail Resorts seeks dismissal of a lawsuit disputing Park City Mountain’s right to operate Iron Mountain Express and Timberline.
- Telluride’s proposed replacements for lifts 7 and 8 inch closer to approval.
- Sugarloaf is around halfway through approval for a Timberline replacement.
- Meetings continue regarding Loon Mountain’s proposed pulse gondola with no timeline for construction.
- Colorado Governor Jared Polis to help cut the ribbon of the Mighty Argo Cable Car April 24th.
- Le Massif reportedly remains interested in a merger with Mont-Sainte-Anne.
- Reed Hastings discusses the favorable economics of private ski areas like Powder Haven.
- Poma teases “a new icon for travel” to be revealed Tuesday.
- Leitner, Poma, Skytrac and Bartholet’s parent company reports record revenue – 60 percent from ropeways and nearly $500 million from North America.
- Homewood to auction chairs from the Madden triple with an unspecified portion going to charity.
- Utah Governor Spencer Cox visits Garaventa in Switzerland in advance of Doppelmayr opening a new facility in Salt Lake.
- Juneau set to formally cancel the Eaglecrest gondola agreement on May 18th and may try to resell the lift for $1.5-2.75 million.
- Following several recent postponements, 2026 lift construction will be down approximately 40 percent from the post-Covid high in 2022.
- As a legal dispute remains pending in a BC court, Ski Bluewood seeks an injunction to force shipment of four remaining containters to complete the Skyline Express project with a used lift from Austria. A hearing is scheduled for Monday and shipment would need to commence by May 1st in order for the lift to open next winter.
Instagram Tuesday: Finishing Touches
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
News Roundup: Fireside Chat
- Doppelmayr releases its 2026 Yearbook.
- Doppelmayr wins the contract to supply a 2,452′ long surface lift at Snowland, Utah.
- A haul rope snaps on a material ropeway in Switzerland, causing damage but no injuries.
- A cigarette thrown from a lift starts a spring wildfire in Italy.
- As a lawsuit with a used lift broker continues, Bluewood, Washington says it still hopes to complete the Skyline Express one year late but delays could continue.
- Blackcomb’s Crystal Ridge Express closes due to gearbox failure.
- Telluride shutters the Village Express for summer to complete an extensive systems modernization.
- Two proven and one unproven gondola manufacturer present their technologies for potential use in downtown Denver.
- Mammoth rope evacuates the High Five Express.
- Owners of Mt. Norquay discuss future plans plus competing with American-owned sightseeing ropeways and why Parks Canada no longer approves of a Banff-Norquay gondola.
- Neither possible manufacturer for the new Telluride gondola may meet Buy America requirements, potentially procluding the project from receiving federal funding.
- Whitefish Mountain Resort reports 457,000 skier visits, the fifth highest ever despite warm weather.
- A gondola to Winter Park Resort could shift the Town of Winter Park’s downtown around a future station.
Instagram Tuesday: Crystal Express
Every Tuesday, I feature my favorite Instagram photos from around the lift world.
Skytrac to Build New Chickadee at Snowbird
This weekend is your last chance to ride Snowbird’s oldest chairlift, Chickadee. On Monday, Snowbird will begin work to replace the 1972 Thiokol double with a quad in partnership with Skytrac. The new lift will come out from underneath the Snowbird Center deck, giving beginners more space to queue and load. Riders will also enjoy a loading conveyor, making boarding even easier. “The new and fully grown-up version of the Chickadee chair will continue to create the next generation of powder chasers, future Olympians and local legends, just with a bit more room to squeeze in your whole fam,” said Snowbird.
Interestingly this will be the first lift in Snowbird’s 55 year history not constructed by Doppelmayr or a brand it acquired. Snowbird and Skytrac plan to fast-track construction and christen the new Chickadee for summer operations some time in July.
News Roundup: End of the Road
- Indy Pass adds Upper Midwest mountains Whitecap, Camp 10, Paul Bunyan and Coffee Mill.
- Ikon signs SilverStar, BC as a full partner and Giants Ridge, Minnesota to its bonus tier.
- Alaska’s capital city is poised to cancel installation of a used gondola at Eaglecrest Ski Area after spending $8.3 million (this detailed presentation shows the project could be revived with private investment and would likely be profitable.)
- Pico retires the Outpost double with no immediate replacement.
- Lonesome Pine, Maine fundraises to replace its T-Bar.
- Also in Maine, Mt. Jefferson might install a used double from a larger resort.
- Germany’s Zugspitze blows up two glacier T-Bars due to melting.
- Switzerland opens a criminal investigation into last month’s Engelberg gondola detachment.
- Marquette Mountain, Michigan to install a new chairlift this summer, details TBA.
- Antelope Butte, Wyoming envisions a Westside intermediate lift.
- Colorado’s Mighty Argo Cable Car could open this month.
- The Boone’s Ridge wildlife center in Kentucky, which would include an MND gondola, to sell $70 million worth of bonds.
- Ski profiles the process to install new Elk Camp at Snowmass from factory to load test.
- After losing $1.6 million, the private operator of the Stone Mountain aerial tram will end its contract with the State of Georgia early and lay off staff. Aramark Destinations will take over operations June 1st.
- The Forest Service to close regional offices and relocate headquarters to Salt Lake City.
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