News Roundup: Targhee & Park City Approved

Peter Landsman15 Comments

Mt. Seymour Proposes Ambitious Expansion

Peter Landsman16 Comments

Mt. Seymour could become the largest of Metro Vancouver’s three ski area under a new development plan released this week. Currently the local’s mountain operates just three chairlifts and one surface lift, which could grow to 14 lifts over the coming decades. Seymour lies within Mount Seymour Provincial Park and could increase its footprint from 581 acres to 825 with comfortable carrying capacity rising from 1,717 skiers per day to 4,561. Whistler-based Brent Harley and Associates (BHA) crafted the plan. “We have the potential to expand our winter operation with excellent higher elevation intermediate terrain, mountaintop food and beverage with 360 world-class views, and a little more space for us all to breathe,” wrote Mt. Seymour. “We already carefully control our capacity to avoid overcrowding, but we all need more space.” Potential full buildout could include four new quad chairs, two double chairs and two-T-Bars. Summer offerings would grow significantly with a via ferrata, mountain biking, hiking, zip lines and more.

First could come a new Brockton Chair, which dates back to 1970 and remains one just four Murray-Latta lifts on Earth. Phase 1b also includes nearby Summit and Percy quad chairs, adding intermediate and advanced terrain. “Unique, undulating topography of the slopes will result in remarkably playful and dynamic ski terrain featuring natural bumps, rolls, and banks sought after by experienced skiers,” the plan notes. Summit would be quite long and include an intermediate station about two thirds of the way up. A double chair called Flower and access T-Bar could be built alongside Summit.

Phase three includes a new Ridge chair, located near the former Ridge double chair which stopped operations circa 2008. This fixed quad would service beginner and intermediate progression terrain. “The proximity of this lift to the rental and ski school buildings makes it very accessible to newer skiers and well suited to ski school lessons,” BHA noted. Ridge could also service a future downhill bike park.

A new quad called De Pencier would probably come last, offering a distinctive alpine experience. This phase would also include construction of a Haul Back T-Bar and Exit chair to facilitate egress. The final phase also mentions the possibility of a gondola from the foot of the mountain to the ski area similar to the Blue Grouse Gondola at nearby Grouse Mountain. “Gondolas are increasingly being employed in resort and recreation contexts where onsite parking capacity is limited or where additional vehicles would detract from the desired experience,” BHA noted. “The development of a gondola at MSR would address parking capacity issues at the resort and reduce traffic on Mount Seymour Road.” This high dollar project would need to be studied extensively in partnership with BC Parks.

Mt. Seymour plans to host an open house on June 11th from 4:30 to 7:30 pm at the Parkgate Community Centre. Comments on the plan can also be submitted online.

Pulse Gondola to Open at Circuit of the Americas

Peter Landsman2 Comments

Leitner-Poma will construct a unique gondola at Circuit of the Americas near Austin this year, serving an exclusive motorsports club. It will be the third modern gondola in Texas following installations at the State Fair of Texas in 2007 and the Franklin Mountains in 2013. The lift will exclusively carry members of The Circuit, a year-round membership club featuring track access, rooftop pools and dining. The gondola’s Alpha drive station will occupy a portion of the clubhouse’s second floor. From the drive, riders will descend over four towers and Turn 1 of the track, unloading on the second floor of the pit building. Sigma will supply Diamond cabins with capacity for six passengers, which will run in four pulses of two.

Gondolas and chairlifts are increasingly popping up at non-ski point of interest throughout the United States. Over the past two years, non-ski lifts opened in Arkansas, Colorado, North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia serving everything from zoos to bike parks. Texas will join that list when The Circuit opens in 2027.

News Roundup: Colorado Couloir

Peter Landsman28 Comments

News Roundup: Montana Moves

Peter Landsman18 Comments

Loon Mountain Plans Gondola Replacement

Peter Landsman23 Comments

One of the smallest-gauge gondolas in North American skiing could soon be headed for retirement. The Forest Service today posted Loon Mountain Resort’s application to replace the four passenger White Mountain Express Gondola with a 10 seat D-Line model from Doppelmayr. The new flagship would follow roughtly the same alignment and be constructed in 2027 or 2028. “The current gondola is one of the oldest detachable lifts in New England and nearing the end of its life cycle,” Loon wrote in its application to the White Mountain National Forest. “Visitation at Loon has increased significantly since 1988 when the current gondola was installed. Increasing the uphill capacity of the existing lift from 1,000 people per hour to approximately 1,800 to 2,400 people per hour would better serve guests.” Ten passenger cabins aren’t required to achieve such capacity but they’ve become the gold standard globally for gondolas. With ample space, families can ride together, lessons don’t need to split up and wheelchairs or mountain bikes are easily accommodated. Loon’s parent company, Boyne Resorts, recently partnered with Doppelmayr to install a similar 10 place gondola at Big Sky Resort. Like at Big Sky, I expect the new Loon gondola will feature Omega V cabins, heated seats and a direct drive.

The bottom terminal will move uphill and out of the Octagon Lodge while the top terminal will sit near the current one. Carrier parking will be included at one or both stations. The 7,000 foot long lift line will need to be widened from 35 feet to 65 feet, resulting in up to five acres of disturbance. At last week’s National Ski Areas Association convention, Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment Michael Boren told the industry the Forest Service plans to work expeditiously moving projects through environmental reviews. The Forest Service expects to analyze Loon’s project via a Categorical Exclusion, the lowest of three levels under the National Environmental Policy Act. A smaller pulse gondola project is also currently under review by the Town of Lincoln, which would connect Loon’s South Peak base with RiverWalk Resort at Loon Mountain. It’s possible Doppelmayr could construct both lifts at the same time.

When Loon’s existing gondola is retired, Telluride and Deer Valley will operate the only remaining four place gondolas in North American skiing.