• Welcome to AlpineZone, the largest online community of skiers and snowboarders in the Northeast!

    You may have to REGISTER before you can post. Registering is FREE, gets rid of the majority of advertisements, and lets you participate in giveaways and other AlpineZone events!

Lift Evac at Mt. snow

Euler

Active member
Joined
Jan 28, 2007
Messages
1,063
Points
36
Location
Southern Vermont
Just saw this via Facebook...any firsthand reports? Gonna suck for the Mt. if they cant get it running by St. Paddy's Day they get a HUGE $17 crowd IIRC.

[h=2][/h]Bluebird Express Harness Evacuation

03/15/2014 – West Dover
On Saturday, March 15 the Bluebird Express lift experienced a mechanical issue that prevented it from being able to restart. At 12:50 p.m. a harness evacuation was called and teams of trained Mount Snow staff were deployed along the entire lift line to lower guests from the chairs. It took approximately an hour and thirty minutes for teams to safely lower roughly 306 guests to the ground, which is a rate of 3.3 guests per minute. Mount Snow staff attends mandatory training for such occurrences multiple times a year. The resort’s chairlift mechanics and the lift’s manufacturer, Leitner Poma, are evaluating the issue in an effort to get the Bluebird Express operating again as soon as possible.
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
One of my friends daughters was on the Bluebird just about even with the top of the Ego Alley lift when it stopped. She was evac'd after about an hour. Apparently now her FB page is full of new selfies that her and her friends she was on the BB with at the time took while waiting for the evac! :)
 

Glenn

Active member
Joined
Oct 1, 2008
Messages
7,691
Points
38
Location
CT & VT
We skied down the base about 5 minutes after it happened. (Came over from Carinthia) They had already cleared the line at the BlueBird and the Grand Summit had a huge line. The skiing was marginal, so we took off. Since the base area was a zoo and the lodge was packed, we opted to de boot by our vehicle in lot A. There was a lot of activity on the hill; they sent out two grommers and there were snowmobiles zipping around under the lift.

Based on the snow report, it won't run today or tomorrow. Like Euler mentioned, big bummer for the crowds that'll be there tomorrow for the $17 lift tickets. Hopefully, they can focus on sending up full chairs with minimal stoppage on the Grand. Lines are gonna be long today and tomorrow.

Pic from yesterday around 1PM; Grand Summit line.


. ImageUploadedByAlpineZone1394973675.849565.jpg


Sent from my iPad using AlpineZone mobile app.
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
9:30AM warm up break report - it's cold out! There's about 2" of fluff on top of a generally groomed surface, its cold out, all base area lifts that are running are 10-15 chair tops wait right now, not nearly as crowded as yesterday so far, its cold out, loose talk is the BB is down until wed or Thurs depending on when the replacement part arrives and the VT lift inspectors can arrive after the repair is made. I wish it felt like March 16th, not January 16th out!!
 

thetrailboss

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jun 4, 2004
Messages
32,331
Points
113
Location
NEK by Birth
9:30AM warm up break report - it's cold out! There's about 2" of fluff on top of a generally groomed surface, its cold out, all base area lifts that are running are 10-15 chair tops wait right now, not nearly as crowded as yesterday so far, its cold out, loose talk is the BB is down until wed or Thurs depending on when the replacement part arrives and the VT lift inspectors can arrive after the repair is made. I wish it felt like March 16th, not January 16th out!!

Wow. Bummer for a newer lift. What is the problem?
 

thetrailboss

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jun 4, 2004
Messages
32,331
Points
113
Location
NEK by Birth
OK, now this really sucks:

We have discovered that it was a gearbox issue and our crew is working diligently to get the necessary part here. Once the part arrives, we will work around the clock to fix it in an effort to get the lift running again as soon as possible. Please check the snow report for updates and thank you all for your understanding.
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
OK, now this really sucks:

Should be spinning again by Wednesday or Thursday. The replacement part(s) are supposed to arrive from Europe on Monday and then it's apparently the combo of Mount Snow mountain ops folks and Leitner-Poma reps working non stop until its been replaced, and then just getting the VT lift inspectors on site to certify that it's safe to operate again.

I do know that there were folks from mountain ops working a good part of the day today (Sunday) in the top drive terminal on the Bluebird, so once the new gear box is on site, my guess is that much, if not all of the removal of the old one will be completed. And if it's like past issues with other mid season lift repair jobs, they'll be a very detailed, picture filled blog post about the whole process posted soon after the job is complete
 

Newpylong

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 20, 2005
Messages
4,938
Points
113
Location
Upper Valley, NH
Besides yesterday at least it's down Mid week... Makes you appreciate keeping the ol' Yankee Clipper around :)
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
Besides yesterday at least it's down Mid week... Makes you appreciate keeping the ol' Yankee Clipper around :)

After 17 rides on the Grand Summit yesterday in the cold and wind, I was reminded why I love the Bluebird! ;)
 

Twism86

New member
Joined
Feb 11, 2014
Messages
139
Points
0
Location
Highland Park, NJ
Website
gardenstatetrout.com
Thats quick for getting everyone lowered down! If there is any chair to be stuck on around here, that is the one!

I wonder how long you have to be stuck before the ground starts looking pretty close??
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
My bad I thought it went down yesterday around noon not Saturday.

Did they fire up Ego?

Ego was running Sunday (can't remember if it was or wasn't spinning on Saturday as a) everytime I was in the main base area before the part broke on the BB the line wasn't more than 5 to 7 minutes and my wife and I were skiing with a friend who hadn't been to Mount Snow in 15yrs so we were in full mountain tour guide mode catered towards a low intermediate.

Sunday, from what I experienced the lines for the Grand Summit were mostly in the 5 or so minute range with the exception of right around 2 o'clock when for whatever reason it seemed like 1/2 the people there wanted to ride it and the line overflowed the queue lanes for about 10 minutes. Even this morning during $17 St. Patrick's Day tickets the base area lines weren't bad at all (3 to 5 minutes) - just a bunch of people commenting on how they wished the BB was running so they could get a warm ride!! Mount Snow put some signage up this AM in front of the usual BB queue area stating that it was down for a mechanical issue and that they apologized for the inconvenience
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
Thats quick for getting everyone lowered down! If there is any chair to be stuck on around here, that is the one!

I wonder how long you have to be stuck before the ground starts looking pretty close??

I was evacuated from the Ego Alley lift at Mount Snow on MLK Day of '13 - it was COLD and because of wind hold issues that AM Ego was as far up the hill from the main base area that you could get that morning - I was stopped about 30 feet up in the air just past the top of the yardsale trail. Took about 75-80 minutes from when the lift stopped until I was roped down - towards the end in the cold and wind I will admit to thinking once or twice that "its only about a 30 foot drop, there's folks dropping 100 foot + cliffs in ski movies these days....." ;-)
 

Domeskier

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 15, 2012
Messages
2,274
Points
63
Location
New York
I will admit to thinking once or twice that "its only about a 30 foot drop, there's folks dropping 100 foot + cliffs in ski movies these days....." ;-)

If the chair has foot rests you can dangle from, that would make it almost doable! I have often considered investing in a self-evacuation kit, but I figure it would just get me hurt.
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
If the chair has foot rests you can dangle from, that would make it almost doable! I have often considered investing in a self-evacuation kit, but I figure it would just get me hurt.

The drop wasn't as concerning to me as the FLAT landing I would of had!!! Had I been over some pitch(and I was 21 as opposed to 41 at the time, and there was about 2 feet of powder as opposed to windblown hard pack, and I had had a second glass of iced tea at breakfast and needed to REALLY use the bathroom ;) )then it *might* of been doable! :lol:
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
Are the part(s) and labor costs still under warranty?

Yup - on the Mount Snow passholders site today it was said that there's a 5yr warrantee on the Bluebird (it turned 2 in December) and they showed a picture of the 3" diameter metal rod that when from the main drive motor into the gear reduction box that snapped clean off pretty much where the rod met the gear ring/wheel :eek: )

The guitar case sized, 1,000lb replacement should be on site after being flown in from Europe today either tonight or early tomorrow!!
 
Top