The Best Vertical Vs Time Riding Lifts Ratios in North America

[deadheadskier]

I guess I'm unusual. I don't correlate vert with enjoyment.

There's definitely some shorter vertical pods in the Northeast that are great, but there are others I don't care much for.

For example, I love the Cannonball pod at Cannon, but think Zoomer area isn't that great. Lots of great character trails off the Cannonball that feel longer than the vertical the lift serves. Zoomer trails are nice and steep, but are over in a blink of an eye.

Generally speaking though, my favorite ski areas tend to have long trails with big vertical serviced by fast lifts. Stowe, Wildcat and Sugarloaf are my favorites in their respective States and they all have that in common.

 

[from_the_NEK]

I addition to the Jay Trams transitions (loading/unloading) being slow, there is no "fast" way down from the summit back to the base of the tram. The most direct route is to huck off the Face (when it is open) but most of the time you would have to wind around on Northway. Then you have to follow the crowd down Goat and then grab Exhibition or Lower River Quai, then carry as much speed as you can onto Interstate or Harmony Lane without crashing into any beginners unloading from the Lower Mtn Quad. It is just not in the cards. Add to the fact that the 2100' vert stat for Jay is bogus too.

 

[from_the_NEK]

Back in the spring of 1998 I went for a spring day to Wildcat solo on my 210cm GS boards. Starting skiing at 9, was averaging 5 runs an hour alternating between Wildcat, Catapult, Lynx, and Polecat. I had a Powerbar in my pocket and quit at 2pm so I could drive home and have dinner with my parents. I got 25 runs in five hours for a little more than 50k of vertical in five hours.

And maybe there aren't enough skiers using Alpine Replay at Wildcat? There is a reason they are able to have an event like the Wildcat 100,000' Vertical Challenge.

The new chair at Burke gets honorable mention IMO

The Mid-Burke Express has a vert of roughly 1600'. The lift ride is about 8 minutes and it takes 2 minutes to get back down. So the 10 minute round trip is competitive with Wildcat in time but you are giving up 500' of vert every trip.
Technically the lift ride at Burke could be closer to 6 minutes if they ran the lift at its full capable speed. At that pace it would be comparable to the lapping Wildcat.

 

[xwhaler]

I much prefer slow lifts servicing character trails over fast lifts with straight down boulevards.
Hence why using Maine as an example I like Saddleback a lot more than the Loaf even despite the vertical difference.

Fast lifts serving narrow character trails seems to be a bit of a rarity....Wildcat being an awesome exception.

 

[Harvey]

I guess I'm unusual. I don't correlate vert with enjoyment.

Maybe it has something to do with being an old (and late to the game) tele dude. I like natural snow and trees.

Slow lifts are fine. Dark Side at Gore is so much fun for me, north facing wall-to-wall trees and boulders, slow lift with limited capacity.

I also think that runs under the lifts at Gore are some of the best: Dark Side lift line, High Pines, Double Barrel, Straightbrook, Old Gondi. 46er next year when it has plumbing.

Double at Plattekill is sweet too.

 

[jimk]

I also don't automatically equate a lot of vertical feet skied with a great ski day, but the former is often the result of the latter I usually like to poke around a mountain and explore interesting terrain as opposed to bombing hardpacked groomers all day. That's usually not my idea of an optimal day, but I'll take whatever the mountain is giving. I've skied 17 of the 30 places listed in the original post. Anecdotally, I think Keystone is one of the best places in America to log a ton of vertical, especially for an average skier. Snowmass and Beaver Creek too. If you catch these places on a quiet day they have numerous long HSQs covering terrain that is easy to rip for many upper intermediates. I would agree with others that the Wildcat Express is a fine Eastern candidate missing from the list.

As for a good place for an expert to rack up a lot of vertical on a fixed grip chair: I was at Arapahoe Basin one time about five years ago on the day they hold their annual Enduro event for charity. Participants ski/ride for ten hours straight using only the Pallavicini chair (bada$$ terrain) and alternate all day skiing approx. 20 different double black diamond lines off that lift. If I have it correctly the record is something like 76 laps @ 1329' each = 101,004 total vertical feet! To state the obvious, you get a lot of vertical compared to the length of the Pali lift
{Got to add MRG's single chair as a great place to also log black diamond vert on a fixe grip.}

Say what you may about Keystone's lack of bada$$ness, but here is a direct quote from a friend who has a home in Summit County, CO and swears by Keystone for logging big vertical:
"1) It actually is pretty easy to get in big vert days at Keystone, The Santiago lift gives you 1600 feet of vert for a 4.7 minute lift ride. That is the fastest ride in Colorado. It isn’t faster than any other high speed lift, it just covers less ground because it is goes up steep terrain. It’s pretty easy to get in 6-7 trips an hour (9600 to 11,200 feet of vert), and there are hours when you can get in 8 trips or 12,800 feet of vert. The chair is open for 6.5 hours per day. I normally ski both the Santiago and Ruby lifts in order to get some trail diversity. Doing so I normally can get in 10,000 to 10,500 feet of vert per hour.

2) Actually anyone can get used to skiing big vert every day. I takes commitment to skiing nonstop top to bottom runs, and it takes getting used to skiing pretty hard. When you start, it’ll wear you out. After doing it for a while, it really does get pretty easy. My first day over 40 k of vert was at Lake Louise a long, long time ago. I was a wreck at the end of the day. Now 40k is like an easy walk in the park.

BTW, I don’t get in 70+k of vert regularly. It’ something I’ve done maybe 6-7 times in my life. I don’t plan on doing big days. They just happen. The light has to be right. The snow has to be right. The lack of people has to be right. My skiing has to be right, and my attitude has to be right. When the stars are aligned, big days just happen. 40k is pretty regular."

Keystone photos: http://www.epicski.com/a/keystone-co-a-pictorial

 

[JDMRoma]

Exactly your geographically challenged


Sent from my iPhone using AlpineZone

 

[steamboat1]

The only thing missing was not just offering the Pro Tip, but also including the "And I'm always 100% right" declaration he's famous for.

Pot meet Kettle.

 

[skiNEwhere]

I used to count the number of ski days to track how productive my season was, but I could ski for one run and call it a ski day. While I don't chase vertical per se, I do use that to analyze how much skiing I do in a season.

I aim for about 1,000,000 feet a season, going to fall short this season though.

Of course, if everyday were a powder day, the amount of vertical would be less so numbers don't tell the whole story. I'd much rather get 250,000 ft of 1 foot + powder than 1,000,000 ft of boilerplate.

In terms of quality vertical, Gold hill express at telluride is a clear winner in my book. I'm guessing it has about 1,200 ft of vert, but the terrain is killer and there's never a liftline.

 

[BenedictGomez]

Dark Side at Gore is so much fun for me, north facing wall-to-wall trees and boulders, slow lift with limited capacity.

Gore gets my vote for "most underrated mid to large sized eastern ski area". I'd hazard a guess that most eastern skiers have never skied there, lack of lodging likely being the main culprit.

 

[skiberg]

The most obvious omission is Kicking Horse. Nearly 4kft vert continuous.

 

[cdskier]

Gore gets my vote for "most underrated mid to large sized eastern ski area". I'd hazard a guess that most eastern skiers have never skied there, lack of lodging likely being the main culprit.

I'll second that vote. It really is a great mountain. I haven't been there in probably 6 years, so not sure if anything has changed in the area, but the town was always so lacking. Not only were lodging choices limited, but so were food choices. Unless something has changed, I could never see myself being a property owner and passholder there for that very reason as it is just too empty in the area. While the skiing would be great, everything else would be pretty boring.

 

[benski]

I think this list has a strong bais toward groomed terrain. Mogul/tree runs take 2-3 times as long.

 

[Harvey]

Re Gore: The lack of lodging thing is the answer that everyone cites. It could be that, but then why doesn't the existing lodging sell out? Not the right kind? There is no slopeside at the state owned areas in NY. Maybe that's the issue.

Personally I love skiing at a place without slopeside. Definitely in the minority on that.

I agree Gore is incredible. Definitely important to get shown around if you are new there and the mountain is all in play.

Back on topic one of the best days I had in 13/14 was at Snow Ridge. The small area has 500 feet of vert and the tree runs are about 400 feet. I think we did 20 runs all untracked, so about 8000 feet of powder skiing. One on my best days ever. Slow lifts, short lines, great snow, no competition, fresh tracks on every run all day long. To me that beats racking up 25,000 feet on your average groomer.

 

[Harvey]

I'll second that vote. It really is a great mountain. I haven't been there in probably 6 years, so not sure if anything has changed in the area, but the town was always so lacking. Not only were lodging choices limited, but so were food choices. Unless something has changed, I could never see myself being a property owner and passholder there for that very reason as it is just too empty in the area. While the skiing would be great, everything else would be pretty boring.

Love the town of North Creek.

If you were to add all the "amenities" you list Gore would no longer be ski on during holiday weekends. Would be good for the town, for sure, but I would probably ski more BC. Then again, I'm in a minority. I want to arrive for first chair, ski as long as I can, and retire by the woodstove to rest up for the next day. All I want to do is ski as much as possible, I don't value nightlife.

 

[cdskier]

If you were to add all the "amenities" you list Gore would no longer be ski on during holiday weekends. Would be good for the town, for sure, but I would probably ski more BC. Then again, I'm in a minority. I want to arrive for first chair, ski as long as I can, and retire by the woodstove to rest up for the next day. All I want to do is ski as much as possible, I don't value nightlife.

I'm not looking for nightlife in the Killington or Lake Placid sense, but something more like a bit smaller scale version of the Mad River Valley would be good for Gore.

 

[SIKSKIER]

The most obvious omission is Kicking Horse. Nearly 4kft vert continuous.

Not for 1 lift.The longest lift rises about 3600 ft.Whstlers gondola that goes to the roundhouse is about 3800 vert.

 

[Harvey]

I'm not looking for nightlife in the Killington or Lake Placid sense, but something more like a bit smaller scale version of the Mad River Valley would be good for Gore.

I agree. Things are moving along in Johnsburg but not as fast as I would imagine. Not sure why really.

 

[JimG.]

I stay in Lake George when I ski at Gore.

Don't mind the 25 min AM drive to the mountain.

Still learning the mountain; got the NYS 3 in 1 this season and never made it to Gore or Whiteface not worth it with the crappy winter. Skied there a lot in 14-15 and got to know my way around pretty well. The pods are spread out which I like. Some take effort to get to which I also like. I'm sure I don't know any secret stashes but there is a lot of awesome tree skiing at Gore; hope next season is better for snow, just bought my 3 in 1's for next season.

 

[Harvey]

Still learning the mountain; got the NYS 3 in 1 this season and never made it to Gore or Whiteface not worth it with the crappy winter. Skied there a lot in 14-15 and got to know my way around pretty well. The pods are spread out which I like. Some take effort to get to which I also like. I'm sure I don't know any secret stashes but there is a lot of awesome tree skiing at Gore; hope next season is better for snow, just bought my 3 in 1's for next season.

You sound like a Gore skier to me.

Welcome. :grin: