Aging ski infrastructure

[raisingarizona13]

That terrain behind that chair sure looks like fun flowing alpy.

[XXX-er]

^^^ but i guess even a cheaper surface lift is out of reach when you have zero money for new lifts or even replacement of older lifts.

I don't think there are too many of those around anymore in any kind of shape to bother installing

That old Ford Lehman you must have seen in the shop last Saturday came out of the prairie T, it's in good shape but the gearbox is old and fucked, stuff that old is held together with bandaids and there are no parts

[Bunion 2020]

^^^

When we were looking at lifts for the Headwaters area I pushed hard for a surface lift.

The few that were used and in good shape were expensive as hell. New was out of the question.

We bought a used Yan Double from KW (Hole in the Wall chair) and did a rebuild on it.

Much more cost effective.

[XXX-er]

The reason they pulled the old engine is they couldn't get drive parts so they are having to get stuff machined from scratch mid season when (not if) it broke down so the new used setup should break down less and have some spare parts still available

[ACH]

The beautiful Padded Seats on Chair2.
you'll never fully experienced Alpental till you have the pleasure of being evacuated from her swinging grip.

elegant as fuck indeed

Hmmm, trip report?

[Benny Profane]

No matter how much testing they do somebody does something they didn't test for

My favorite was an ATM that would not acknowledge envelopes when deposited because the sun shone down the slot confusing the photo cell but it only happened on sunny days in late fall when the sun was at the right angle in the sky and then the bug would go away till next year

How about that poor fucker driving the Tesla (well, he wasn't actually driving, of course) a little while ago who got annihilated by a tractor trailer that the software engineers didn't quite get to writing the code correctly that would see the white trailer at the right sun angle at the right time? Whoops. On to Mars!

[#######]

Smutt piece to create hysteria right around season pass sales? That's not gonna help. And the Krakauer-esque intro made me not want to read it anyway:

"Our nation's lifts are at the breaking point. We spent months researching past accidents and aging infrastructure—and found that it's time to act in order to avoid catastrophic failure."

Like Bunion said, if you maintain it it will run safely, and if you have enough spare parts (on hand or available) 27 years isn't that old.

[Benny Profane]

Smutt piece to create hysteria right around season pass sales? That's not gonna help. And the Krakauer-esque intro made me not want to read it anyway:

"Our nation's lifts are at the breaking point. We spent months researching past accidents and aging infrastructure—and found that it's time to act in order to avoid catastrophic failure."

Like Bunion said, if you maintain it it will run safely, and if you have enough spare parts (on hand or available) 27 years isn't that old.

How old is your car? Washing machine? Heating and air conditioning units?

I mean, seriously, do you expect any mechanical item in your life to last for more than 25 years, especially if it sees heavy use by thousands of people in bitter winter weather?

Nothing lasts forever.

[mcski]

There are many, many planes still flying much older than 25 yrs.

[Benny Profane]

Constant, daily commercial use?

[raisingarizona13]

[QUOTE=sicktird;4825114]


Well I'm no engineer but I'm going to say that this pic is definitely not fucking elegant.

[#######]

How old is your car? Washing machine? Heating and air conditioning units?

I mean, seriously, do you expect any mechanical item in your life to last for more than 25 years, especially if it sees heavy use by thousands of people in bitter winter weather?

Nothing lasts forever.

Apples to Oranges.

[#######]

[QUOTE=raisingarizona13;4825148]

Well I'm no engineer but I'm going to say that this pic is definitely not fucking elegant.

No, but it had nothing to do with maintenance, more like a cats winch cable getting caught.

[Benny Profane]

Apples to Oranges.

You hope.

[#######]

You hope.

and you're no mechanic

[Benny Profane]

No, but I play one on TGR.

[Angle Parking]

How old is your car? Washing machine? Heating and air conditioning units?

I mean, seriously, do you expect any mechanical item in your life to last for more than 25 years, especially if it sees heavy use by thousands of people in bitter winter weather?

Nothing lasts forever.

Granted the OP's article strikes an alarmist note. And i agree with Gary that the compliance (at least here in BC) is strict and thorough. And for the record, i'll ride our 30 year old chair all winter without a second thought, BUT, that doesn't change the fact that some day in the relatively near future that thing will need replacing and what happens then? Indeed, nothing lasts forever.

[DoWork]

Mad River Glen replaced an aging single chair with a new single chair. One of the directors of the hill said it would take a while to get tracked out after a dump and we wanted to keep it that way. Elegant as fuck.

"We're the last people around doing stupid shit the way they did it in the black and white days- it's really unique and fun, much the way a handlebar mustache and non-Rx glasses with a fedora are."

[Ted Striker]

There are many, many planes still flying much older than 25 yrs.

Constant, daily commercial use?

Yes. There are many 757s, 767s, and A320s built before 1991 still in passenger service at the majors in the US. 737s and MD80s built in the 80s still fly at some smaller companies. And if you look at night freight, remote areas, and third world, you'll see airplanes dating back to WWII still in commercial service.

[TAFKALVS]

What chairlift gets run on a daily basis at full capacity? Even at a hill with downhill mountain biking the average chairlift only runs 200 days a year, and only a select few days each year where every seat is full. I'd say the life of the average chairlift is pretty easy compared to other forms of transportation like buses and planes.

[comish]

Don't boobs even need a replacement every 10 years or so?

Mt. Baldy lift maintenance method's: Wack bullwheel with bamboo pole really hard till it starts moving. If it stops, wack it some more. Confidence inspiring no. Did it work to get the pow that day, yes.

Also, well played by the drunk v sober maggot on calling himself out. I laughed.

[Benny Profane]

Yes. There are many 757s, 767s, and A320s built before 1991 still in passenger service at the majors in the US. 737s and MD80s built in the 80s still fly at some smaller companies. And if you look at night freight, remote areas, and third world, you'll see airplanes dating back to WWII still in commercial service.

Ok, but, 95% of parts in all of those planes have been replaced a number of times, mandated by the FAA. Thank god for the FAA, and its rigorous inspection and rules. You don't want planes falling out of the air, do ya?

[mcski]

Fuselage, airframe. Not replaced much. It's amazing metal fatigue isn't involved in many crashes. So ya, yay inspections.

[DoWork]

Ok, but, 95% of parts in all of those planes have been replaced a number of times, mandated by the FAA. Thank god for the FAA, and its rigorous inspection and rules. You don't want planes falling out of the air, do ya?

Why would you assume that no parts in a chairlift have been replaced in much the same manner?

[Benny Profane]

Because it's not written into Federal legislation.

Besides, apples and oranges.