The NEW Magic Mountain

[KustyTheKlown]

this again? who gives a shit about a totally non essential lift being delayed.

 

[bdfreetuna]

Red Chair was mostly ski-on last Sunday. A couple times there was a 1-2 minute line. I bet a grand total of zero people showed up to Magic this season and were actually pissed off they rode chairs painted red instead of painted black.

this again? who gives a shit about a totally non essential lift being delayed.

I wouldn't mind if the black chair ends up going just a *little* faster than red chair

 

[MG Skier]

So, I am that first year full season pass holder. I have skied Magic 8 or so times this year. I have never waited more than 10 minutes other than opening day. (I ski mostly Sundays due to schedule or vacation periods.) Would the Quad have been nice, yes. Faster, most likely. Necessary...only on the most INSANE of days. With the Green chair in play as I have said before, it works! Hoping to actually get there this Sunday! I need to get my pass to days skied at Magic ratio down a little further!

 

[RustyGroomer]

Sully makes a habit of embarrassing Magic posts. This is no different.

 

[bdfreetuna]

Trying to figure out if Friday, Saturday or Sunday will be the "pick of the weekend" @ Magic

I'm not betting on a late season

 

[Hastur]

I'd pick Sunday. with the afternoon warmth, whatever naturals are still open should loosen up by then and Sunshine Corner should be party time. Show up late and stay late. Spring Skiing Style. should be a bump line or 2. It should be a great day. Wish I was closer to day trip it.

 

[prsboogie]

Read the Alpine Update, officially moved the Black Quad to next season. I know it’s a special situation at Magic and they don’t NEED the new lift cause Red is just so damn good and reliable, but I would be absolutely pissed if I was a season pass holder. I don’t mean the pass holders with condos in the immediate area that are 150% Magic diehards. I’m thinking more about the first year pssholder that maybe came from another mountain.


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Why exactly would that be? Because they busted their asses to get something done and ran into problems that were completely out of their control and as you stated have no bearing whatsoever on their day to day operations? Or because they were completely upfront and verbal about every step of the project and the delays as they occured?

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[Killingtime]

Red Chair was mostly ski-on last Sunday. A couple times there was a 1-2 minute line. I bet a grand total of zero people showed up to Magic this season and were actually pissed off they rode chairs painted red instead of painted black.



I wouldn't mind if the black chair ends up going just a *little* faster than red chair

The red chair line on Saturday was 4-5 minutes tops in the morning. After 12:00 it was down to under a minute with an occasional ski-on. Green chair line was non-existent. On cold, windy days it would be nice to get to the top faster though. Looking forward to the black chair some day but I'm not gonna lose sleep over it.

 

[Slidebrook87]

I would be pissed because it was offered as a season pass benefit. When something is advertised as part of a season pass that isn’t exactly cheap, I would expect to give it. It’s not necessarily about the lift being there, but it’s about it being promised for this year. Magic has had a history of postponing lift projects and this is a good example of it.


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[Vaughn]

I would be pissed because it was offered as a season pass benefit. When something is advertised as part of a season pass that isn’t exactly cheap, I would expect to give it. It’s not necessarily about the lift being there, but it’s about it being promised for this year. Magic has had a history of postponing lift projects and this is a good example of it.


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If you think Magic is lying about their lift contractor problems, just say it. This mealy mouthed 'history of postponing lift projects' is pathetic. They say it was a contractor problem - if you know otherwise, type it down and explain how you know they're lying about what happened on this specific project.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

you act very entitled about lifts. especially for someone who doesnt even pay for their own pass.

platty just posted a surprise 1-3", and it looks like all snow for them thru sat AM. i think thats my move this weekend.

 

[Hastur]

My entire family have been seasons passholders for the last 3 years. Even used a seasonal program there for the past 2 seasons. There is really no comparison to how it has been the past 3 years and how it was operated previously when I used to come sans family for the occasional powder day opening

Things are moving in the right direction with occasional setbacks. By the opening of next season they will have completed 2 new to them lift installs, plus lodge improvements, snowmaking improvements, etc. Really amazing and as someone who works with financials for small companies, a lot to bite off for such a small entity.

Still no urinal dividers, but I hear they are still in the 5 year capital plan.

It seems the new management gets blame for the old owners/operators a lot, like Slidebrooks post above. I can't understand that based on what I have seen the past 3 + years.

 

[bdfreetuna]

I would be pissed because it was offered as a season pass benefit. Magic has had a history of postponing lift projects and this is a good example of it.

you realize it's new owners up there, right? Maybe we can blame them for the mountain closing in '91 too?

I also didn't know the plan was to only let season pass holders ride the Black lift this season.

People getting pissed over stuff like this beyond anyone's control = :dunce:

 

[prsboogie]

I would be pissed because it was offered as a season pass benefit. When something is advertised as part of a season pass that isn’t exactly cheap, I would expect to give it. It’s not necessarily about the lift being there, but it’s about it being promised for this year. Magic has had a history of postponing lift projects and this is a good example of it.


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Actually they did not postpone anything. Their contractor is the reason it's not completed. Why don't you ask Do Work or Jamacaman how they feel about the lift not being completed?

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[Newpylong]

This again?

Having a second functioning summit lift was not a prerequisite for purchasing a season pass. Nothing was "promised". I am sure Geoff and his crew will address directly any concerns with pass holders who personally have taken issue. My hunch is the number of complaints can be counted on one hand.

As for the "history" of postponing lifts, let me give some background info on that and the lift industry in the Northeast as a whole. The Green Chair which was started, and then aborted under prior ownership, can't be pinned on current Magic. Current Magic's first installer died for christ sake, of course that is going to have an effect on the schedule. There are literally 4 outfits that do this type of work in the Northeast - Poma, Dopplemeyer, Skytrans, and Pjister Mountain Services. Poma and Dopp aren't really affordable and already have busy schedules. Skytrans is a whole different conversation better left offline. That leaves Tim Pjister. This was not a lift that could just be slapped together. Remember, the components sat out in the elements with zero work done to them for ~15 years. I am honestly amazed it was able to be resurrected.

Now the Black Chair. Permits were received in January of '19, that doesn't leave much time for an independent installer to clear a new liftline (which is gnarly terrain to get equipment into), complete site work and begin the install. Tim does great work but he is only human. The small guys don't have the vast arsenal of subs at their fingertips that Poma and Dopp have or the leverage to tell people to jump. They also are required to deal with their other customers, they can't just send someone else on the bench. Personnel issues are also felt much more with smaller outfits. You can bet your house Magic is not happy having to take two seasons for the install. It is easy for folks who have never been involved in a lift install (or another project of this magnitude) to sit there and make statements, but oftentimes the circumstances are far more complex.

Both of these massive lift projects are going to have a profound effect on the value that Magic offers, but I see the majority of the complaining from casual observers/customers.

 

[jimmywilson69]

Sounds pretty awesome for a place that has been dead and on life support for its entire existence to be installing 2 new lifts in 3 years. I hope to check it out some day

 

[slatham]

Read the Alpine Update, officially moved the Black Quad to next season. I know it’s a special situation at Magic and they don’t NEED the new lift cause Red is just so damn good and reliable, but I would be absolutely pissed if I was a season pass holder. I don’t mean the pass holders with condos in the immediate area that are 150% Magic diehards. I’m thinking more about the first year pssholder that maybe came from another mountain.


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I think it would be highly experience based and personal. Did you buy a pass expecting no lines and got pissed there were 15 minute lines over MLK/Pres? Or did you not experience long lines (by your definition) so it was a non-issue? Then layer on top of that one's empathy (or lack thereof) toward the realities and struggles of a small, independent area trying to improve. I think you'll find a broad spectrum of responses, and certainly not IMHO a ground swell of resentment and purchases of IKON/Epic passes for next season.

 

[slatham]

This again?

Having a second functioning summit lift was not a prerequisite for purchasing a season pass. Nothing was "promised". I am sure Geoff and his crew will address directly any concerns with pass holders who personally have taken issue. My hunch is the number of complaints can be counted on one hand.

As for the "history" of postponing lifts, let me give some background info on that and the lift industry in the Northeast as a whole. The Green Chair which was started, and then aborted under prior ownership, can't be pinned on current Magic. Current Magic's first installer died for christ sake, of course that is going to have an effect on the schedule. There are literally 4 outfits that do this type of work in the Northeast - Poma, Dopplemeyer, Skytrans, and Pjister Mountain Services. Poma and Dopp aren't really affordable and already have busy schedules. Skytrans is a whole different conversation better left offline. That leaves Tim Pjister. This was not a lift that could just be slapped together. Remember, the components sat out in the elements with zero work done to them for ~15 years. I am honestly amazed it was able to be resurrected.

Now the Black Chair. Permits were received in January of '19, that doesn't leave much time for an independent installer to clear a new liftline (which is gnarly terrain to get equipment into), complete site work and begin the install. Tim does great work but he is only human. The small guys don't have the vast arsenal of subs at their fingertips that Poma and Dopp have or the leverage to tell people to jump. They also are required to deal with their other customers, they can't just send someone else on the bench. Personnel issues are also felt much more with smaller outfits. You can bet your house Magic is not happy having to take two seasons for the install. It is easy for folks who have never been involved in a lift install (or another project of this magnitude) to sit there and make statements, but oftentimes the circumstances are far more complex.

Both of these massive lift projects are going to have a profound effect on the value that Magic offers, but I see the majority of the complaining from casual observers/customers.

Good post, but I want to clarify two points . There are only 3 firms that will install old lifts, Pfister being one. Can't recall the others, but Poma and Dopplemeyer will not install an old lift, at least not for a customer who isn't buying new lifts.

As for clearing the liftline, the contractor/subcontractor was delayed, so Do Work and team went and cleared the line, in a week from what I heard. Above and beyond what other ops teams would do.

Separately, the new Black Lift is absolutely required for the future of Magic. They need more capacity to draw a larger crowd without long lines, redundancy to the summit, and to take the burden off Red and extend its life.

 

[Newpylong]

I got a quote from Dopplemeyer to (re)install our T-Bar. Dopp provides Hall parts and would gladly have done the install, for the right price.

Besides Skytrans (which I already mentioned), there is Skytrac (owned by Poma) and Randy from Ropeways Construction (but he is downstate NY and tends to handle smaller projects in the Poconocs). So yes, slim pickens.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

where do you work?