Detachable vs Fixed Grip Lifts

It's not up to date. I did it October 2021. Any updates welcome.

FWIW it's not super accurate because every area measures acreage differently.

It all started with this shot from Plattekill:

front-four.jpg


Every chair loaded, trails wide open.
 
Harvey said:
It's not up to date. I did it October 2021. Any updates welcome.

FWIW it's not super accurate because every measures acreage differently.

Every chair loaded, trails wide open.
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Assumes all acreage skiable (has enough snow) with all lifts spinning.

Tis only a hypothetical case for max density scenario.
 
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x10003q said:
Mt Holly Resort, Holly, Mi., has 2 high speed quads serving 350 vertical feet and 100 acres - about the same size as Mt Peter.
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So resting on a chair meets your approval for upgrading from tbar to chair, but getting in more skiing by upgrading to a high speed lift does not meet your approval. Fixed grip lifts are intimidating to a lot of people. HS lifts open the ski area to more people.

At Stratton there are 3 major lifts out of the main base area - the Gondola, the AMEX HS6, and the South American fixed grip quad. When it is crowded (or the gondola is closed, very common due to wind) they run the South American. The top terminal is visible from inside the midmountain lodge. There are times when we are sitting in the lodge and watching the South American stop every 5 chairs because people fall coming down the ramp. If that was a high speed lift it would rarely stop.

High speed lifts give me the opportunity to ski more than fixed grip lifts. Since we know that fixed grip lifts can be designed to deliver just as many skier to the top of the lift (and in some cases more) as high speed lifts, the so called crowding issue during busy time is nonsense. I am all for less time on the lift and more time on the snow.
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Being a Midwest skier I can say that having the option of a high detachable lift is nice when things are not very busy and you can get some vertical in on a 300'-500' hill. But on a busy Saturday the line for the highspeed lift can be way to long and the fixed grip is ski on and it makes more sense to just take the fixed grip.
The place I ski the most does not have any highspeed lifts and they have no plans of installing them and for some reason I don't miss having a highspeed when I ski there.
 
Campgottagopee said:
I don't want no stinkin HSQ at GP. For our vert I can't see where the added cost would be a benefit.
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I remember having this conversation with Big Al back in the day at HLL, I was saying now that you have this nice hotel GP needs a HSQ and him saying a fixed grip is all that it needed. He was ultimately right, it just took ten years and a bankruptcy...

Love me some opening bell HS6 laps at blue before the masses arrive, can get a full day in before 10:30. Also love skiing all day FG pace at uncrowded areas like Platty and Greek. It all depends on the area.

Don't like sloooow FG's at more crowded areas like Elk

edit: The *vibe* of the mountain is a determining factor as well, enter Magic, sometimes you just have to sit back and enjoy the ride.
 
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MiSkier said:
But on a busy Saturday the line for the highspeed lift can be way to long and the fixed grip is ski on and it makes more sense to just take the fixed grip.
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Having a mix makes sense for medium and large resorts that are close enough to large metropolitan areas to end up with lift lines > 5 minutes at times.

Snowshoe in WV has high-speed lifts, as well as fixed-grip. Silver Creek was created as a separate ski area and eventually bought out. Short trails, all fixed-grip lifts, all trails lit for night skiing. That makes it a good place on a busy Saturday when skiing with beginners or cautious intermediates.

When Waterville Valley was planning new terrain on Green Peak, they considered a detachable quad. Ultimately moving an old triple made far more sense financially given the cost difference. My understanding is that there is rarely much of a line for the Green Peak triple on busy weekends or holidays. Given that even the groomed trails are relatively narrow, lower density because fewer people want to ride a fixed-grip lift is a better fit.

Bogus Basin is a non-profit with plenty of skiable terrain of all types, about 2600 acres with 200 acres lit for night skiing. The most recent lift upgrades were two fixed-grip quads, for about the same cost as one detachable. Bogus has several lifts out of the main base. It has multiple peaks and more than one way to get away from the "front side." Since the market is mostly locals, it was clear the Friday I was there that people knew exactly which lifts made sense for a first ride. It wasn't always one of the high-speed lifts. My ski buddy and I rode up the beginner lift first for a view of the base. So we watched as people got in line for the other three lifts, which opened a little late that morning.
 
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