Plattekill Lifts

sig wrote

raisingarizona wrote

The best thing about T-bars is that they don't get put on wind holds.

the beauty of hickory hill

at Hickory they just break......

x10003q wrote

There is zero reason to make the double a quad. Adding a corral to the double fixes the occasional line. If they are able to extend down to the farm, they would add a lift to serve that terrain. That would also reduce the occasional line on the double to ski right on. Also, the triple might need to be replaced before they add another lift. I would rather they expand snowmaking before they add/expand a lift.

I don't think there is zero reason to make it a quad. Everyone has said here that increasing snowmaking comes first, and I couldn't agree more. But when the time comes to replace the lift, a quad will likely be the only option because no one is manufacturing anything smaller than a quad any more. There's not a lot of used tripples out there that will go up for sale, but IDK.

I can tell you I don't think expanding down the road to the farm is realistic at all, but I shouldn't talk about that on the internet. What should happen first is they finish the snowmaking pond on top and turn the existing pond into a parking lot.

sig wrote

i have a better idea. lets replace it with a high  speed 6 pack and raise it 20 feet above the tree line. it would be fast and on wind hold tomorrow. we can all drive down there tomorrow and pull our pud waiting for the wind hold to get lifted.  sometimes less is better, especially on the trails.

That's a horrible idea.

I think that was sarcasm.

It's a different thing to say that the lift needs to be replaced and there are no doubles made anymore vs it should be a double.

Plus, can't you replace the guts of the lift and leave the poles and chairs?

IDK, root for Laz to have such a decision. Strong snowmaking ability during these mild years could make it happen for him.

Harvey wrote

can't you replace the guts of the lift and leave the poles and chairs?

Yes. That was sort of done to the Tripple this last summer. It sounds a little different now as a result.

Brownski wrote

I could add that when I look at Platty I see lots of options to expand terrain too: down to the valley floor below the snowmaking pond, off the backside etc... you could end up with lower skier density if you did that.

Because if there's one major problem that constantly plagues Plattekill, it's their outrageously high skier density.

You're right of course. I assumed the objection to a quad was that putting more skiers up the hill would make the trails more crowded so I was pointing out that with a little terrain expansion ... it's all speculative. As others have pointed out, snowmaking improvements will likely be the priority unless one of the lifts completely shits the bed.

Brownski wrote

 unless one of the lifts completely shits the bed.

Which will be very unlikely to happen because Hall lifts are very well made, and are easy to retrofit since they were all built to ANSI standards. Machine shops can easily retrofit parts for them based on old drawings. Much harder for lifts not made/designed in the US. It's expensive, but still much less than a new lift. Plattekill also has a spare parts lift leftover from Tanglwood.

Over the past few years, they have been galvanizing the chairs at a shop down in NJ which can't be cheap. I think they just finished this year. I'm guessing that means the lifts are there to stay for a while. My guess is when it comes time for a new haul rope, they may resort to a whole new lift.

That signature must have taken some thought (and/or drugs).

LOL, my brother Joe Snow came up with that. He doesn't post much around here.

I kind of want to use this:
"One can't call themself an all out Plattekill supporter if they root against their success"

But I'm afraid I'll get flamed for it. Anyone opposed?

not really sure if I like It or not. Maybe I'll keep my existing one.

Last I checked, in the many, many times I've skied at Plattekill (including many absurd powder days), I cannot remember waiting in line for more than 30 seconds.  The double is great.  Doubles in general are great.

Ok, aside from Plattekill lifts, I am going to complain about something else. This thread is a good place for it.

I don't like Freefall.  I have never liked it much, but yesterday, I finally convinced myself that It totally sucks. Here's why. First of all, this has nothing to do with the fact that it doesn't have snowmaking. It's just not in a good place. The biggest issue IMO is that it does not follow the natural fall line. If you were to actually "Freefall" on it, you would end up somewhere on the far skiers right about halfway down Plunge, only there's trees in the way. To me, that goes completely against trail naming protocol.  Your right ski is always lower than your left ski which is annoying. Some may say it adds to the challenge, but I just find it annoying.

 Also, the headwall is a complete disaster. No matter how much snow you have, it's always scraped off. This is because the headwall is concave instead of convex. Notice Plunge and Northface are convex. This allows the snow to hold better because there is not a definitive point at which the  headwall starts. I also find it more fun, because as you crest over it gradually gets steeper rather than starting out super steep and getting more gradual as you go down.  The reason the headwall on Freefall is so abrupt is because it starts right off the edge of Just Do It. it also makes it really hard to groom, and you can't actually take a groomer over the edge even with a winch because it's too abrupt. It's really no different than where Lower K27 starts off East Side drive at Hunter. Lower K27 has snowmaking so at least it holds snow, but it's complete boiler plate ice moguls that are impossible to ski if you don't have a lot of powder, or spring conditions. That being said, it's a low priority trail, and it's rarely open.

The remedy to this issue would be to blast out the skiers left, and pile up the skiers right. This would fix the fact the trail doesn't follow the fall line. It's going to be near impossible to fix the headwall, but a large pile of snow to bring it out would help. I don't think blasting it is a good idea because that would take away from the character of Plattekill, and I'm not sure it would really help much because it would end up cutting into Just Do It at the top. Also, at that point it would basically be a clone of North face. It already is in some ways.

I think that Freefall should have started further down Just Do It, but end in about the same place. This would have fixed the headwall problem, and it would have followed the fall line better. It would have also made the slope more interesting because it wouldn't be another straight down slope that parallels the lift but rather descend on an angle more similar to Blockbuster.  It also could have been narrower.  Can't go back now I guess, but I just wish they picked a better location.

Pretty sure but not positive that Freefall was cut before I was born 612 months ago.
Try the woods skiers left.

So there was 3  feet of snow and you were thinking about why you don't like a ski trail? Weird.

Sorry Ethan but you lost me here. Freefall is great. I think it has become my favorite trail this year

I'm still waiting on some great photos of tree skiing the new woods from yesterday. They're stuck on my brother's phone somewhere. I'll share ASAP.

Thehof wrote

Try the woods skiers left.

I did. Fantastic! Very few tracks in there as well.

But yeah, no doubt whatsoever yesterday was great. I just don't like Freefall. If I owned the mountain I would build a fence at the top, and stop mowing it. I am a good skier, and that slope has overcome me more than once.

No falls
No balls
Free fall as my father says " puts hair on your chest"
 Definitely  one of the toughest trails at Platty.

Thehof wrote

No falls
No balls

There's a signature worthy quote right there

I found falling to be a key part of my arsenal yesterday.  If you fall when you choose your skis can end up down hill.

I helped a girl up, who was not getting up alone, and her boyfriend was downhill.