Rank The Lifts at Your Favorite Ski Areas

Surprising maybe but Pico has some amazing views from the top

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I'm living vicariously off east coast updates right now as it dumps sideways outside locally and I'm still too sick to ski. No weekend pass either. Ugh. this is fine, everything is fine :D
 
raisingarizona said:
Ranking lifts at a single ski area seems biased based on ability really.
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It is kind of a funny concept when you think about it. I mean I’m way more into this stuff than your average skier and if I tried doing, say, Pico- which is a mountain I really like- I’d be reduced to saying stuff like “the fixed grip double with the old fashioned towers on the upper mountain skiers’ left” and “the quad on the upper half of the hill”. There aren’t many people with the encyclopedic knowledge of ski lifts to give Sno the kind of back and forth he’s probably looking for. Both those lifts/terrain pods rock BTW.
 
Brownski said:
It is kind of a funny concept when you think about it. I mean I’m way more into this stuff than your average skier and if I tried doing, say, Pico- which is a mountain I really like- I’d be reduced to saying stuff like “the fixed grip double with the old fashioned towers on the upper mountain skiers’ left” and “the quad on the upper half of the hill”. There aren’t many people with the encyclopedic knowledge of ski lifts to give Sno the kind of back and forth he’s probably looking for. Both those lifts/terrain pods rock BTW.
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A slope and outpost. All I've got.
 
Brownski said:
It is kind of a funny concept when you think about it. I mean I’m way more into this stuff than your average skier and if I tried doing, say, Pico- which is a mountain I really like- I’d be reduced to saying stuff like “the fixed grip double with the old fashioned towers on the upper mountain skiers’ left” and “the quad on the upper half of the hill”. There aren’t many people with the encyclopedic knowledge of ski lifts to give Sno the kind of back and forth he’s probably looking for. Both those lifts/terrain pods rock BTW.
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haha! yup, I can't hang in that regard.
 
snoloco said:
I'm going to rank Whiteface next. The tallest ski area in the east operates a fleet of 9 lifts, and has worked with various manufacturers over the years, including Riblet, Hall, Garaventa-CTEC, Doppelmayr, and Skytrac.
1. Cloudsplitter Gondola

A recent refurbishment has breathed new life into what was once a tired old lift. Before that, it would not have been anywhere near the top of this list. This is the highest vertical lift in the Northeast and it's running faster and more reliable than it has in a long time. Being an enclosed lift, it's very useful to warm up on frigid days that are oh so common at Whiteface. It follows a unique profile with two very steep climbs split up by a dip in the middle. You also get excellent views of the Wilmington Notch while riding.
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This is all true. However.....
snoloco said:
There are so many terrain options off of it from blues like Excelsior to blacks like Mountain Run or Mackenzie, to glades,
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The terrain choices only exist for advanced skiers and even for advanced skiers there are issues.
1. There is zero green off the signature lift on the mountain that happens to be enclosed. A gondola is a bread and butter lift for new skiers, little kids/parents, green skiers, low blue skiers. Fail.
2. Excelsior is a difficult blue at best that is made more difficult by its usual icy conditions. There are no other choices for blue skiers. Fail.
3. If you are skiing Excelsior, it becomes a high speed raceway for the advanced skiers. Farther down, you might choose Lower Northway and/or Lower Empire which act as a drain for the advanced trails and glades off Approach. Now there are more advanced skiers going mach schnell and pulling Gs as they head down the mountain.
4. As for advanced skiers - yes it serves everything off Little WF and a bunch of high speed blues - but the almost 1/2 mile runout below the midstation is a useless waste of energy and boring. It is particularly true in the spring when the LWF double is not running and you are skiing thru puddles and heavy corn in order to get back up the mountain.
In the excitement to get a Gondola like Gore, ORDA has created a lift that really does not fully serve any group of skiers and sliders and completely misses the huge amount of people who are not quite at the competent blue level. This is why I ranked it the worst lift at WF.
snoloco said:
but the lift alone is enough to earn the top spot.
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Valid point for lift lovers.
 
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