SAM Magazine—Big Sky, Mont., March 8, 2018—Big Sky Resort plans to install North America’s first eight-passenger chairlift ahead of the 2018-19 winter season. The “Ramcharger 8” will be a deluxe Doppelmayr D-line high-speed lift, featuring heated seats and blue bubbles. The new lift will replace the existing Ramcharger high-speed quad.

A fully integrated high-resolution LED screen that spans a good portion of the back end of the new lift’s lower terminal will provide up-to-date information and engagement, such as weather reports, resort updates, promotions, events, and more for those waiting to board the lift. The lower terminal will also be positioned 50 feet uphill from where the current lift’s lower terminal sits, creating additional space in the base area.

Ramcharger 8’s uphill capacity will be 3,200 passengers per hour with a maximum speed of nearly 1,000 feet per minute. Each chair will weigh about 2,200 lbs., and will be wind-resistant to around 60 mph. The loading carpet will raise and lower for guests of varying heights.

"My family is proud of its 42-year commitment to southwest Montana and will continue the momentum that is underway at Big Sky Resort," said Stephen Kircher, president of Big Sky parent company Boyne Resorts. "We are excited to bring the biggest chair in the world to Big Sky, and to work with the resort team and community to recognize the resort's full potential.”

The existing Ramcharger quad will be relocated and udnergo modifications, replacing the Shedhorn double chair. It will shorten the current lift ride by nearly two-thirds.

When these two installations are complete, Big Sky will have built four new lifts since 2016, when it opened Powder Seeker, a high-speed, six-passenger bubble lift with heated seats, along with a fixed-grip triple chair with a loading conveyor.