January 2008 - Posts
January 26, 2008
Hi Folks,
Last week I posted a blog called "The Great Debate over replacing Chair 9". As of this date, 89 people have posted a comment and over 2,000 people read that blog. Not bad participation over the last 6 days! I appreciate all the great input - this is one of the reasons I love the blog. It's great to hear from such a cross section of people: locals, visitors, 2nd homeowners, families, singles, employees, etc.
As you all can see by reading the comments to the last blog, there is no clear consensus on the answer. Actually, I didn't expect to get consensus but I did expect to get robust ideas, comments, and opinions - which we did in fact receive. This input has helped to inform my opinion regarding the future of Chair 9 - and I want to thank you all for making that happen.
Many of the people who commented also discussed other potential improvements to the lift/trail system at Telluride, which is also appreciated.
Today was a typical perfect day on Chair 9. Six inches of new snow Thursday night, big-round-soft bumps, and un-crowded slopes:
Even on a Saturday with perfect weather, the line at Chair 9 was never long:
These are the perfect Chair 9 conditions which everyone loves so much:
The Chair 9 north facing slopes stay soft for days after a snowstorm:
And of course Chair 9 has a Mardi Gras tree:
The tree skiing is famous - here's Log Pile:
And after a perfect day ripping it at Chair 9 - and across the other terrain pods of this great resort - everyone retires to the live music, cold brew, and relaxing chairs at Gorrono Ranch:
So, what is the future for Chair 9?
As I mentioned above, there are a lot of different opinions. My opinion is that Chair 9 should be upgraded to a high-speed quad sometime in the future - but not right now. There are other priorities that I believe are higher on the list.
My absolute number 1 priority for terrain and lifts is to put a fixed grip lift in San Joaquin Bowl. Here's a picture of this gift to Telluride skiing - the upper bowl:
Here is a picture of the lower part of San Joaquin Bowl:
The San Joaquin lift project has already been approved by the Forest Service in our Master Plan. The ski company just hasn't implemented the project. I have yet to find anyone opposed to this project - it's a very exciting project from what I hear in the community. I can't guarantee it will be built this summer but we're working on it.
As for Chair 9, we're going to proceed with engineering to add footrest/safety bars. It is likely that we will have to take some chairs off to make up for the additional weight of the equipment but given that the lift lines are all but non-existent, I'm willing to live with a small decrease in capacity for the increased comfort.
Additional hotel development in the Town of Telluride and Mountain Village will eventually help push the ski company to install a high-speed quad in the Chair 9 pod in the future.
We'll also take a responsible approach towards capital maintenance on Chair 9 to assure its reliability. Actually, she's been running very well this year except for the one 18" powder day in December that everyone remembers when the lift had a mechanical problem. The Lift Maintenance Department is working on a project list for the lift this summer.
I realize that some people will be happy with my position on this and others will think I've lost my mind. At least you know why we're doing what we're doing - and you can rest assured that your opinions have been carefully considered as we evaluate the future of the ski area. It's hard to make everyone happy in this business because so many people have different needs and expectations. We do our best to do the right thing though for all our stakeholders, guests, employees, and of course the owners of the resort.
So, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it. Feel free to post a comment - I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thank you! - Dave
January 20, 2008
Hi Folks,
Since I moved here last summer, I've heard much input and debate regarding the idea to replace Chair 9 with a high-speed quad. This blog is intended to allow people the opportunity to "weigh-in" on that debate.
Chair 9 currently is a fixed grip triple which hauls 1,200 people per hour uphill. A fixed grip triple normally hauls 1,800 people per hour but the existing lift was under-chaired, so to speak. It also moves at about 500 feet per minute.
A high-speed quad can haul up to 2,800 people per hour (depending on how many chairs are put on the line) and runs at 1,000 to 1,200 feet per minute (depending on the design).
Here is a picture of the upper terminal of the existing lift:
Here is a picture of the lower terminal:
The terrain served by Chair 9 is some of the best lift-served advanced and expert terrain in the world:
The views aren't bad either:
Winch-cat groomed runs, long bump runs, and gladed forests:
I'd like to hear your thoughts and will lay back with my opinions early on in this blog. I'll share a few thoughts toward the end of this string of comments/replies. Your input is valued - please feel free to post a comment! - Dave
January 13, 2008
Hi Folks,
On a serene, windless, and tranquil January day - after 5.5 feet of snow - it's easy to fall for this gift to skiing called Telluride..
Needle Rock stands tall over the Plunge:
Giuseppe's Restaurant, the San Joaguin Ridge and Gold Hill:
The portal:
Chutes under Chair 14:
View from the top of Chair 14 east:
From the top of Andy's Gold, looking over toward the infamous Black Iron Bowl hike-to terrain. Top of Chair 12 is on the right. If you're an expert, all you do is take the easy hike from the top of 12 up the ridge for any number of routes into the bowl:
Prospect Bowl and Bald Mountain hike-to terrain:
January is generally a slow time of year - no lift lines either. Dreaming of Telluride yet?
Feel free to post a comment or question - we love to hear from you! - Dave
January 8, 2008
Hi Folks,
Helitrax, the only helicopter skiing company in Colorado (based in Telluride - see: http://tellurideskiresort.com/TellSki/info/heli-skiing.aspx), mobilized at dawn this morning at the Top of Chair 12 to help set off controlled avalanches both within our ski area and to the south towards Ophir.
We received 4 feet of beautiful Colorado pow since last Saturday. The storm broke late last night so the Telluride Ski Patrol and the Helitrax crew loaded the ship with explosives during sunrise this morning:
If you look carefully you can see the helicopter in the middle of this shot. Patrol is tossing bombs on Black Iron Bowl:
Kaboooommm:
The team was also able to drop bombs on the northeast faces of Palmyra Peak - we're all wanting to move that direction!
I'm told the county needed the slide paths controlled before they could safely move heavy equipment in to clear the Ophir road (which we can all understand). Many people are stranded in the small alpine community from slides that came down and covered the road to Ophir Saturday night.
A huge THANK YOU from the community and the ski area goes out to Helitrax!! Your assistance is very much appreciated!
Just as Helitrax and our ski patrol cleans up and clears all avalanche danger, we're forecast for more snow tomorrow. I doubt we'll have the same quantity and wind associated with this system so it will just be another ordinary perfect pow day at Telluride! Are we having fun yet! What an incredible ski season. Some old-timers say this is the best season in 10 years - others say this is the best in over 20 years.
Photo credits for this blog go to Jeff Proteau, VP Resort Operations. Feel free to post a comment or question - we always love to hear your thoughts! - Dave
January 6, 2008 - posted at 11:50 am
Hi Folks,
Telluride Ski Resort got hit with a major winter storm starting yesterday. We've received 24 inches of snow and it's still snowing hard. Moreover, we are experiencing wind gusts between 45 and 60 mph in the upper elevations although it's quite calm down lower. The wind up above is causing huge drifts and low visibility which reduces our ability to do avalanche control work quickly.
Lifts 4,5,1, and 10 were open at about 9:00 am this morning.
Lifts 6 and 9 were open about 9:50 am. Patrol did create slide results in the 9 pod this morning in the Spiral Stairs and Mammoth. Upper North Chute slid on it's own twice last night. Kant-Mak-M had a slide at the reef this morning. The cliffs above Chair 4 had small slides that occured naturally. Chair 7 and the Gondola were opened about 9:50 am also. These delays were as a result of avalanche control work which was necessary before opening those areas to the public.
Chair 8 was opened but then had a mechanical problem which caused it to close down. It reopened at approximately 10:30 am. I heard people got rowdy down at the bottom terminal when they were told to use the gondola - that's not cool. I'd like to remind everyone that our Lift Maintenance staff was working on it and their first priority is safety.
Lifts 11, 12 and 14 are currently closed due to avalanche danger. At this point we cannot accurately predict when these areas will be cleared for public access. We'll just have to relax and wait until patrol is comfortable with the avalanche control work. It's slow going in these conditions.
Lizard Head pass was closed by the Colorado Department of Transportation due to avalanche risks so our employees from Rico are unable to get to work. This impacts all departments from food and beverage to lift operations to ski school. The road out of Ophir is closed due to an avalanche (I'm told 18' of snow is on top of the road) so 4 of our top avalanche pros could not get to work this morning.
So, the skiing is fantastic and we've pretty much gotten control of things again. We'll get Prospect Bowl and Gold Hill as soon as possible. Patrol will be working in Prospect the rest of the day doing control work. We plan to have everyone in early again tomorrow morning to do control work to open as much terrain as possible as early as we can. Feel free to post a comment or question. - Dave
Hi Folks,
Telluride set a record for December snowfall. Conditions have been great!
Powdery natural glades and a Telluride classic view:
Name that run?:
Territorial view from top of Chair 9:
It's going to be a great 2008 at Telluride! Feel free to post a comment or question - we love to hear from you! - Dave