Your Favorite Lifts to Ski

[wallyk]

Any lift where there is no line......on a powder day......

 

[Wilhelmson]

When conditions are right the moguls under Fourrunner at Stowe are steep enough to make your legs burn but easy enough to stay in a relatively straight line.

The headwall at Jay isn't much of a trail but is cool when there's more snow than this.

 

[Ken_R]

Im trying to think which lifts out of so many good ones and the first few that came to mind, because I have had so much FUN lapping them over the years, are:

Chair 9 and Chair 8 at Loveland. I dont ski Loveland that much but when I do, its almost always a Powder Day! Chair 8 is just hard to beat for lower angle but still fun untracked powder. Bring your PHAT skis and Chair 9 accesses the Ridge, no need to say more.

Chair 6 and the T-Bar at Breckenridge. Super fun terrain and good steep skiing off of those lifts and most times, great snow. Amazing Views

Orient Express Lift at Vail. Yes, I know, Vail is crowded but, this lift accesses so much acreage of fun terrain that one can find some solace in the trees and also off the ridge to skiers left into Siberia Bowl.

Birds of Prey Lift at Beaver Creek. When its good (Powder or Groomed) this area offers some really great wide open steeps that will test your judgement in regards to speed control. You can get just a LOT of vert while still having plenty of line choices down the several runs off the top.

 

[geepers]

I have one criterion not on your list, and it is the most important of all by far:

-It must service superior terrain.

Umm...item 3 Provides access to a good range of interesting terrain

 

[Tricia]

Off the top of my head, but I am sure I am missing some...

Single Chair (Mad River Glen)
KT (Squaw)
Palli (A-Basin)
Tram (Jackson Hole)
Pony Express (Steamboat)

Honorable mention:
Molly Hogan (A-Basin)...the Dread Molly Hogan takes no prisoners

I will second most of these, with the exception of Pony Express, only because I have never ridden it.
I would also like to add...
Granite Chief (Squaw)
Birds of Prey (Beaver Creek)
Chair 23 (Mammoth)

 

[UGASkiDawg]

Basic criteria for a good ski lift:

1. A good vertical rise - around 1800 feet as a minimum
2. Fast - anything under 250 ft/min (that'd be just over 7 minutes for 1800 ft vertical) is getting tedious. This effectively rules out anything without detachable loading as those things are too slow.
3. Provides access to a good range of interesting terrain - not everyone in a group can ski ultra every run or wants to endlessly repeat the one good run.
4. No bad vices like: poor loading/unloading areas; highly exposed areas in predominant weather; frequent stopping due to novice skiers; frequently put on wind hold; no leg rests.
5. Good passenger haulage rate to keep lift lines at bay.
6. Provides good view on the way up of some descending skiers - for entertainment.
   
7. Quick ski in/out access to food/drink.

Other than that, who cares. The lift is just a means of getting to the top of good runs.

Not a single one of these item makes this slightest bit of difference to me.

What makes a good lift ...

1. The terrain it serves
2. The terrain it serves
3. The terrain it serves
4. You get the message

 

[Average Joe]

The one I am getting on.

Well, would a Bell Ranger count?

Why not?
Bonus points of you took a G5 to the Ranger.

 

[Carl Kuck]

Any lift that takes me with some friends that are as stoked as I am to be there on some tasty, uncrowded runs pretty much works for me. Keep in mind that these days my idea of a good time is, in addition to that lift selection concept just outlined, pretty much carving oriented. Easier on the knees, too...

OK, OK, Hmmmm…

DV: Northside Express, Silver Strike Express

Mammoth: Chair 5 (13 is a lot of fun too)

PC: Bonanza, Silverlode

NorthStar: Backside Express

Squaw: Gold Coast Express

… and then some. See above.

 

[dbostedo]

Not a single one of these item makes this slightest bit of difference to me.

What makes a good lift ...

1. The terrain it serves
2. The terrain it serves
3. The terrain it serves
4. You get the message

Isn't #3 on the prior list pretty much the same as your first 3? I mean, without the emphasis, of course.

 

[sbooker]

I've not read through the whole thread so I'm more than likely duplicating things here. Keep in mind this is coming from a '15 days a year' permanent intermediate so it won't reflect what most on here (more expert bias) want.

Sugarloaf at Alta
Exhibition at Aspen Highlands
Gadzoom at Snowbird
Chair 23 at Mammoth
Symphony Express at Whistler
Every lift at Snowmass

Oh gosh there are so many! I've left out Larch Express at Lake Louise and Sacajawea (spelling) at Grand Targhee.

 

[UGASkiDawg]

Isn't #3 on the prior list pretty much the same as your first 3? I mean, without the emphasis, of course.

No reread his number 3. It has qualifiers as to what good terrain is that involves other than my opinion. I.E. what other can ( or want) to ski. Those things are irrelevant to MY list of best ski lifts. That's not to say I won't ski lifts that serve a variety of terrain with friends but those have nothing to do with my favorite ski lifts just with my favorite friends.

 

[Sibhusky]

I actually thought the #3 being referred to was the one in this list and we were enjoying wit about the differences.

Not a single one of these item makes this slightest bit of difference to me.

What makes a good lift ...

1. The terrain it serves
2. The terrain it serves
3. The terrain it serves
4. You get the message

 

[geepers]

Not a single one of these item makes this slightest bit of difference to me.

What makes a good lift ...

1. The terrain it serves
2. The terrain it serves
3. The terrain it serves
4. You get the message

Well, I would have thought item 3 on my list made that point. But I get it that your idea of good terrain is to suit yourself.

A question: would you repeatedly ride a really slow chair (e.g. the 24 minute Burfield chair at Sun Peaks) or seek for other options?

 

[UGASkiDawg]

I've never been to Sun Peaks but I've spent entire days riding the Pali chair at the Basin and never gone to one of their other lifts and it's old and relatively slow. It also serves the best terrain on the Colorado front range.

 

[dbostedo]

Pali, per Liftblog, has a less than 7 minute ride time. The Burfield takes more than three times that.

I've never ridden either, but 24 minutes sound like a looonnngggg time.

 

[noncrazycanuck]

it's painfully long when it stops
one buddy I shared a chair with got a nasty frostbite while it did.

sometimes you need multiple chairs to get back to that terrain.
Creekside base to Whistler Peak (about 5000 vertical) requires 3 lifts - 17 minutes, not counting the skiing between Red and Peak Chair and any lift line.
a number of other hills in this region require at least 2 chairs to do laps of their best.
Castle's 2 involves getting your head wacked on the first then freeze dried on the second - great terrain though.

as an aside
The new 10 person gondola at Blackcomb is listed at 13 minutes for about 4000 vertical, similar to Kicking Horse's 8 person

 

[David Chaus]

OK, I will admit to liking the Morrissey chair and terrain pod at Sun Peaks. There are some nice black diamonds and a double diamond run or two, but most of the trails are intermediate. The trails were laid out by a landscaper and snow cat operator, and the runs are interesting, none are super wide. There is a lot of rolling terrain, lots of tree islands, several places where the runs become gladed and you can criss-cross between one or two or even three runs, without cat tracks. Even the easiest green run, “the Sticks” is pretty cool.

It’s empty enough that if you want to cruise mach schnell you pretty much can as long as you’re in control.

 

[albertanskigirl]

I would say that right now, my favourite is Knob Chair, Marmot Basin.
In this picture you can see the Knob chair line - on the right side. It's the faint line going up into that cirque. It's an old slow double chair that gives access to all that terrain up there. The top of Marmot is a relatively easy hike to from Knob.


Other favourites in no particular order:
Topo and the Summit Platter (Lake Louise)
Divide Chair (Sunshine)
White Pass and Polar Peak (Fernie)

 

[Pdub]

1. Collins - Alta
2. Mineral Basin - Snowbird
3. Thunder - Jackson Hole
4. Dreamcatcher - Targhee
5. Paradise - Powder Mountain
6. Deep Temerity - Aspen Highlands
7. Sam's Knob - Snowmass
8. Superstar - Killington
9. Heaven's Gate - Sugarbush
10. Forerunner - Stowe

What they have in common:
-1500'+ vertical (Superstar and Sam's Knob being the exceptions with 1200')
-a great variety of steep, interesting terrain top to bottom
-easy lapability with minimal runouts and minimal crossover from other lift systems
-have enjoyed epic storm days lapping each of them for hours, with no lift lines
-safety bars!

 

[John Webb]

High Campbell lift at Crystal Mt WA Now gone. just claws it's way up a very steep hill- great terrain

The owners wife and other woman on ski patrol threw avy charges causing the entire hill to avalanche
down taking out towers and blowing away the lift base station.