Really enjoyed the interview. I knew chairlifts use a lot of electricity, but I had no idea a double chair of modest length would use that much! Would be curious to find out the cost of running a detachable chairlift. Might be a lot more than double the cost even though it's about doublke the speed. Seems like a lot of ski areas run their detachables at 900 feet/minute instead of the full speed of 1,000 or more, especially on weekdays. Might make for interesting future questions.
Was fortunate to visit Snow Ridge for the first time this season one week after you were there and it was still a powder day at Snow Pocket. Seemed like most people never even made it over there for whatever reason. Despite its medium size, Snow Ridge has an interesting "sprawl" and it takes a while to explore around and get the feel for it. I guess that's the way it works when you have a ski area along a ridge. A "mini Sunday River." Definitely hope to come back in the future!
"Ski Areas of New York also runs one of the most well-regarded lift-safety programs in the country, and serious chairlift accidents are remarkably rare here, in spite of more than 4 million annual skier visits."
I'd also like to add that the East Coast has a healthy lack of Yan Lift Engineering brand lifts lol. You go out West and you'll have resorts like the famous Sun Valley with a lift fleet almost entirely made of Yan lifts, formerly ticking time bombs for accidents till they were all retrofitted.
And again, great article and podcast Stuart! Once again, it makes me, a skier of the Cascades & Rockies, want to adventure out East one of these years.
Great article and podcast. I grew up North if Rome New York and learned to ski in 1970 at Woods Valley but had great trips up Turin Road to Snow Ridge! Half the time we drove up on a blizzard and bounced off snow banks with those rear wheel drive cars. It had only T bars at that time. It was an awesome place to grow up skiing!
Hi Nic, Dick Kavey here. Just finished listening to your Storm Skiing interview, very impressive!! Clearly Snow Ridge is in very competent and thoughtful hands. You’re interview was impressive both for your knowledge base and articulateness. I am just one of the many former Togg skiers who was more than disappointed at its closing and it’s secret sale at a frankly unbelievably low price (side off the book deals?) For 25 years Togg was a second family to me - as it was to many. Sorry I haven’t been up to visit The Ridge. My last times there were for races in the early 1960’s - a long long time ago in a different parallel universe. Please give my best to your mom ,dad and sister! Next season I’ll going to grab Bryce Button and make the journey - I hear that he is susceptible to bribes involving Coors Light. All the best!
Really enjoyed the interview. I knew chairlifts use a lot of electricity, but I had no idea a double chair of modest length would use that much! Would be curious to find out the cost of running a detachable chairlift. Might be a lot more than double the cost even though it's about doublke the speed. Seems like a lot of ski areas run their detachables at 900 feet/minute instead of the full speed of 1,000 or more, especially on weekdays. Might make for interesting future questions.
Was fortunate to visit Snow Ridge for the first time this season one week after you were there and it was still a powder day at Snow Pocket. Seemed like most people never even made it over there for whatever reason. Despite its medium size, Snow Ridge has an interesting "sprawl" and it takes a while to explore around and get the feel for it. I guess that's the way it works when you have a ski area along a ridge. A "mini Sunday River." Definitely hope to come back in the future!
"Ski Areas of New York also runs one of the most well-regarded lift-safety programs in the country, and serious chairlift accidents are remarkably rare here, in spite of more than 4 million annual skier visits."
I'd also like to add that the East Coast has a healthy lack of Yan Lift Engineering brand lifts lol. You go out West and you'll have resorts like the famous Sun Valley with a lift fleet almost entirely made of Yan lifts, formerly ticking time bombs for accidents till they were all retrofitted.
And again, great article and podcast Stuart! Once again, it makes me, a skier of the Cascades & Rockies, want to adventure out East one of these years.
Great article and podcast. I grew up North if Rome New York and learned to ski in 1970 at Woods Valley but had great trips up Turin Road to Snow Ridge! Half the time we drove up on a blizzard and bounced off snow banks with those rear wheel drive cars. It had only T bars at that time. It was an awesome place to grow up skiing!
Hi Nic, Dick Kavey here. Just finished listening to your Storm Skiing interview, very impressive!! Clearly Snow Ridge is in very competent and thoughtful hands. You’re interview was impressive both for your knowledge base and articulateness. I am just one of the many former Togg skiers who was more than disappointed at its closing and it’s secret sale at a frankly unbelievably low price (side off the book deals?) For 25 years Togg was a second family to me - as it was to many. Sorry I haven’t been up to visit The Ridge. My last times there were for races in the early 1960’s - a long long time ago in a different parallel universe. Please give my best to your mom ,dad and sister! Next season I’ll going to grab Bryce Button and make the journey - I hear that he is susceptible to bribes involving Coors Light. All the best!