Olympic fever has taken hold at Deer Valley, Utah: Capital improvements totaling $18 million will add 560 acres of skiing for the 1998-99 season. The expansion, which includes the neighboring development of Deer Crest, will be serviced by four new lifts from Garaventa CTEC: a detachable quad, two fixed-grip quads and a detachable four-passenger gondola. Snowmaking is also increasing, with top-to-bottom coverage of all nine trails in Deer Crest and a mile of new pipe in the primary expansion site, Empire Canyon, accessible before only by snowcat. Now the 4,928-foot-long Empire Express detachable rises 1,300 vertical feet, cruising along at 1,000 fpm. The new lifts at Deer Crest will allow access to Deer Valley from the far side of the resort, site of a new parking lot and ticket office. The gondola will carry 1,900 pph in 46 cabins, with a VTFH of 2,565, while the two fixed-grip quads contribute capacities of 2,400 and 1,800 pph to bring the area’s total increase in uphill capacity to 34,800 from 25,600 pph. Although capacity is increasing, the limit on ticket sales will remain 4,500 per day, constrained by the limitations of the day lodge—a problem to be remedied next season with the construction of a lodge in Empire Canyon.
Loveland
Capital improvements at Loveland, Colo., amounted to $3.5 million for the 1998-99 season. This covered renovating the base area, increasing snowmaking and installing the “highest four-passenger chairlift in the world,” which accesses the resort’s summit on top of the Continental Divide. The new lift, a Poma fixed-grip quad, rises 1,255 vertical feet to reach the summit at 12,700 feet, increasing the area’s vertical drop to half a mile. With a capacity of 1,200 pph, the lift travels a slope length of 4,742 feet, reaching terrain previously accessible only to hikers. Loveland’s landmark Clock Tower ticket office was relocated to a new plaza area, which has a heated surface to prevent snow buildup. Located on the plaza is a new 5,000-square-foot retail sport shop that also hosts the Loveland Adventure Center, where guests can demo equipment ranging from skiboards to shaped or telemark skis to snowboards. Snowmaking capacity has been increased with the purchase of nine SMI Wizard fan guns, while the ski school will benefit from the addition of a new Pisten Bully specifically allocated for use on beginner terrain.
Heavenly
Nearly $10 million of capital improvements at Heavenly, Calif., encompasses two new Doppelmayr detachable quads, increased snowmaking, a 3,450-square-foot daycare facility and an expanded Perfect Turn Kid’s Center. The explosion shown here is the footing of the old triple being blasted out to make room for the new Gunbarrel Express detachable quad, which rises 1,588 vertical feet in less than four minutes, cutting ride time by 8 minutes for a capacity of 2,400 pph. The new Stagecoach Express detachable quad travels a slope length of 5,710 feet to mid-mountain on the resort’s Nevada side, with a VTFH of 3,816. The 6,740-square-foot Kid’s Center is serviced by a 1,228-foot-long rebuilt triple engineered by Lift Engineering, using Yan components from the lifts replaced by the new detachables. The California rental shop added a million dollars’ worth of new equipment to accommodate 20 percent more guests. Snowmaking was added to two trails, expanding coverage to 69 percent with 5,000 feet of new pipe and 75 guns from McKinney Industries. Finally, a Bombardier winch cat and a Pipe Dragon round out Heavenly’s grooming fleet.
Mad River Glen
Just in time for the 50th anniversary season of Mad River Glen, Vt., the installation of a new Garaventa CTEC fixed-grip double marks the resort’s first major capital improvements since 1982. Don’t worry about crowded slopes at the Vermont resort—management proudly points out that the new lift has the same 800 pph capacity as its predecessor, though the design capacity of the new lift would allow an eventual increase to 1,200 pph. The new lift rises 1,400 vertical feet at a speed of 500 fpm, crossing 15 new towers with the old drive station remaining in use. Marking another milestone for the resort, the Mad River Glen Cooperative fulfilled its original purchase agreement in April by selling the 1,667th share, giving its loyal skiers outright ownership of the area.
Mountain Creek
In New Jersey, a nearly-new resort is rising out of the remains of Vernon Valley/Great Gorge, rechristened Mountain Creek by new owner Intrawest. The $20 million Phase I of a $50 million master plan involved removing 13 out of 15 existing lifts on the area’s four peaks, demolishing buildings, discarding useless snowmaking equipment, clearing overgrown trails and cutting two new trails. Five lifts are going in: four Doppelmayrs—one detachable eight-passenger open-air gondola, known as a cabriolet lift, two detachable quads and a fixed-grip quad—and one Partek fixed-grip quad. The cabriolet was chosen over a six-passenger chair because, says General Manager Robin Smith, “We questioned whether our clientele of primarily beginner and intermediate skiers could consistently load a six-pack, but we knew that, being New Yorkers, they could load elevators.” Mountain Creek’s cabriolet is the first in the U.S., with a capacity of 3,000 pph. It covers the 3,906-foot slope length at 1,000 fpm, rising 856 vertical feet. The two detachables—3,317 and 5,556 feet long—also travel at 1,000 fpm, with capacities of 2,400 pph each. The Doppelmayr fixed-grip quad is planned for eventual conversion to a detachable, with an initial capacity of 1,600 pph and a design capacity of 2,400 pph as a detachable. In addition, two SunKid conveyor lifts are being installed in learn-to-ski areas. On the snowmaking side, the system being engineered and installed by Flowtronex required 26 miles of new pipe and 714 new hydrants, costing $8.5 million. Guns for the system are a combination of 450 HKDs and 65 SMIs. The snowmaking system connects five lakes on top of the mountains that hold approximately 750 million gallons of water. Rounding out the grooming fleet for this season are three new Bombardier BR400-Plus grooming vehicles and a Pipe Dragon.
Fernie Alpine Resort
Fernie, B.C., is doubling in size for the 1998-99 season with the installation of two of Leitner’s first three lifts in Canada, increasing skiing terrain to a total of 2,000 acres. The new lifts, both quads—one detachable, one fixed-grip—are opening up three adjoining bowls and increasing the area’s vertical rise by 400 feet to 2,800 feet. The detachable quad rises 2,215 vertical feet at 1,100 fpm, carrying 1,800 pph a distance of 1.6 miles. The fixed-grip has the same capacity, traveling a shorter distance of 3,937 feet and rising 1,394 vertical feet, with a speed of 452 fpm. To accommodate future construction (within the next two years) of a planned village development around the base of the detachable, crews moved 85,000 cubic yards of earth to properly position the lifts. Other improvements at Fernie this summer included renovation of the Tamarack Building, which houses ticket sales, office, retail and rental operations. In addition, a new 7,500-square-foot maintenance building went up, and snowmaking will increase with the addition of two new fan guns. The snowgun manufacturer had not been decided upon at presstime, but will be selected as part of a group purchasing deal with Fernie’s sister areas in the Resorts of the Canadian Rockies, owned by Charlie Locke.
