Bar up or down?

[saratogahalfday]

I see a young man fell to his death in Montana recently, where he was basically blown off the chair (it had no bar).

I treat safety bar use like seat belt use, it's simply automatic. Plus, it's state law in VT.

I don't see the cultural bravado in not using it.

What say you?

 

[Sbob]

I see a young man fell to his death in Montana recently, where he was basically blown off the chair (it had no bar).

I treat safety bar use like seat belt use, it's simply automatic. Plus, it's state law in VT.

I don't see the cultural bravado in not using it.

What say you?

Junior high ski trip in the 70’s. I got on a double with a fellow classmate who convinced me to leave the bar up. We were at the high point 60’? Lift slammed to a halt and rolled back 100’ and slammed to a halt again. Now we’re 45° tilting backwards.
I cussed him out and said this is the reason they put bars on !

I often tell this story to many scoffers while riding up , fun watching their eyes get huge.

 

[SlowPokePete]

I got enough to be scared about.

I put the bar down.

SPP

 

[riverc0il]

I see a young man fell to his death in Montana recently, where he was basically blown off the chair (it had no bar).

I just did a search. The haul rope derailed due to the wind (that is the working theory). The man did not get "blown off the chair". Any amount of wind that would blow someone off a chair would not allow a lift to operate. If the lift had a bar, maybe there is a different result, maybe not. But the skier was not "blown off the chair".

I am agnostic to bars. I do whatever other people on the lift want to do, up or down (I always load from the singles line). If I ski in Vermont, I generally prefer to put the bar down. I don't like getting yelled at by patrol.

If you put the bar down, notify your fellow riders and make sure no one is bending forward. My biggest chairlift fear is having a bar hit me on the head and knock me out, and that causes me to fall from the chair. I've been clocked a few times. Now, I am now very wary of other people's aggressive bar pulling tendencies.

 

[Andy_ROC]

I just did a search. The haul rope derailed due to the wind (that is the working theory). The man did not get "blown off the chair". Any amount of wind that would blow someone off a chair would not allow a lift to operate. If the lift had a bar, maybe there is a different result, maybe not. But the skier was not "blown off the chair".

I am agnostic to bars. I do whatever other people on the lift want to do, up or down (I always load from the singles line). If I ski in Vermont, I generally prefer to put the bar down. I don't like getting yelled at by patrol.

If you put the bar down, notify your fellow riders and make sure no one is bending forward. My biggest chairlift fear is having a bar hit me on the head and knock me out, and that causes me to fall from the chair. I've been clocked a few times. Now, I am now very wary of other people's aggressive bar pulling tendencies.

Good points. I always use the bar.

But it's no fun to have an overzealous bar slammer hit you on the head. So when I board I grab the bar immediately to stop any potential bar slammers. Once everyone appears situated I then announce"Ready for the bar?" Then we close it.

 

[tirolski]

Too much wind sucks.
No safety bar on chairs + a de-ropement in high winds = the other folks riding the lift who made it back to earth safely were lucky.

Red Lodge Mountain Confirms Deropement Caused Lift Rider’s Death

An “unexpectedly strong wind gust” caused the Triple Chair at Red Lodge Mountain to derope on Monday, leading to the death of a guest, the resort confirmed this morning. Thirty seven ye…

liftblog.com

My next ski season investment is tending to be an earn yer turns uphill setup.
Skiing is fun.

 

[Brownski]

There’s no reason not to put the bar down. Leaving it up is a dopey western bro culture flex. I always check with my seatmates and am careful not to hit someone or pinch their snow pants but you should be ready for it to come down anyway. It’s pretty hard to imagine getting hit hard enough to be knocked unconscious or concussed so I wouldn’t worry too much about that

 

[MarzNC]

If you put the bar down, notify your fellow riders and make sure no one is bending forward. My biggest chairlift fear is having a bar hit me on the head and knock me out, and that causes me to fall from the chair. I've been clocked a few times. Now, I am now very wary of other people's aggressive bar pulling tendencies.

I've developed a habit of putting my hand on the bar not necessarily to pull it down, but to keep it up until after my 70+ ski buddy is ready. He leans forward to protect his back when it's bouncy getting away from the bottom terminal. A bit deaf so saying something isn't always enough.

The worst case of bonking was at Big Sky a couple years ago. A guy slipped in from the Singles line without the liftie noticing. He sat down and immediately pulled the bar down hard and fast. It was a full 6-pack chair. When I yelled it was too late. The guy didn't apologize or even acknowledge he'd bonked someone at all. Never turned his head in our direction. Not a word the entire ride up.

 

[MarzNC]

There’s no reason not to put the bar down. Leaving it up is a dopey western bro culture flex.

Not exactly. It's old habits from when most, if not all, chairs didn't have a safety bar.

I was a bit surprised at how many seniors at Sun Valley didn't put the bar down. Not just men. Saw some women riding lifts together with the bar up. These were good skiers who probably have been carving up groomers for decades. Notice the same happening at the other Idaho mountains that have been around for 50+ years. The only place where most people put the bar down was Tamarack, which has only been functional as a ski resort for about a decade (initial developer went bankrupt).

The only person who seriously objected to my putting the bar down at Alta was a mother, or grandmother, riding up with a tween boy who was perhaps 7 or 8. This was a year or two after Alta adding safety bars (no footrests) to Collins. I asked politely before putting the bar down. After the bar was down, she glared at me, pointed to the boy, and said something like "I hope you didn't put it down for him." I was astonished. The boy seemed embarrassed.

Brian Head in southern Utah still has 4 triples with no safety bar. On the high-speed quad lifts (one on each peak) it seemed that half the people didn't put the bar down. However, there was no push back if someone wanted the bar down.

 

[Brownski]

The only person who seriously objected to my putting the bar down at Alta was a mother, or grandmother, riding up with a tween boy who was perhaps 7 or 8. This was a year or two after Alta adding safety bars (no footrests) to Collins. I asked politely before putting the bar down. After the bar was down, she glared at me, pointed to the boy, and said something like "I hope you didn't put it down for him." I was astonished. The boy seemed embarrassed

This person is a moron. Her ego was bruised because putting the bar down somehow implied they were not good enough skiers or something. She may not be a bro but that is bro culture in my opinion.