Ski Lift Etiquette

Going off a tangent in the Whiteface conditions thread, I figured I'd start a new thread on this topic.  Here's my list of ski lift do's and don't's.

Do:

Make room for single riders
Be ready to go when it's your turn to load or merge
If not ready, move aside and let the people behind you go
Lower safety bar even if only one person on the chair wants it down
Make sure everyone is ready before lowering safety bar
Alternate lanes if not directed otherwise by staff
Follow instructions of the lift staff
Use equipment racks on gondolas if available (more room for people inside)
Wait at the top (away from unload ramp) if your group is in separate places in line


Don't:

Smoke or vape in a gondola or on a bubble chair under any circumstances
Play music at a volume that other passengers (those not in your group) can hear
Use the singles line as a group and not split up to fill seats
Yell between chairs unless absolutely necessary to decide to get off at a midstation or for safety reasons
Block entrance of lift line or load ramp if unsure whether your group is riding that lift
Ask for the lift to be slowed for you or your kids unless you're a total beginner
Hold places in line and let people cut in

Anyone have anything they'd like to add or change?  I'll edit in suggestions that I agree with.

Don't lower the freaking safety bar before asking if everyone is ready.

I've had too many times where I'm unbuckling my boots and somebody just randomly pulls the safety bar down on my head almost knocking me off the chair.

I bet you're fun at parties.

I believe this is the post you were referring to

Hoser wrote

Then first Gondi run, I hear advertisements. I ask, what is this?   Local guy I have seen many times says his radio, and its playing loud ads.  Then goes to music. Must be phone on speaker.  I ask, oh, glad the Gondi isn't piping marketing and music in.  He says, yes its me enjoy it and if you don't want to be social then ride the lifts not Gondi.  Another guy spoke up and said the lifts aren't loading yet, and I said right otherwise I would be, but that's not the point.  Music all the way up.  I says its not a social thing, its the advertising and forced music.  

I’m surprised to hear about this at Whiteface. It sounds like that guy gets a lot of grief for his behavior, based on his comments. Earlier this year I got on the cabriolet at Mountain Creek with junior. It was full, including us, a couple guys about my age and three dudes in their early twenties (estimated), one of whom immediately pulls out his phone and hits play. Thump thump thump- house music starts blasting out of a Bluetooth speaker in his backpack. I honestly was kind of amused cause the guy was going on and on to his friend about how he had a second phone with him, just for the music and his buddy was requesting songs  for later and stuff. I found it funny that they were living up to the stereotype of cluesless, self involved rich city kids, no regard for the people around them. They were like SNL characters they were so clueless. So I looked over at junior and he had a giant grin on his face, like, “I know these guys are bugging my dad and I know he has no filters at all so.... something funny ahead”. So, more to entertain junior then anything else, I say to the dude with the music: “Does it bother you knowing that you’re making everybody around you think you’re a douche with that music?” His jaw hit the floor and he stammered something like “I always ask first...” bullshit, bullshit, bullshit and eventually got around to “would you like me to turn it off?” So I was like “let your conscience guide you” and he turned it off. Junior was indeed entertained.

Brownski wrote

“I know these guys are bugging my dad and I know he has no filters at all so.... something funny ahead”

Add the kids (normally 14 or older) dropping f-bombs continuously, especially with young kids in the cabin, to the list. clueless society!

Brownski wrote

  So I looked over at junior and he had a giant grin on his face, like, “I know these guys are bugging my dad and I know he has no filters at all so.... something funny ahead”. So, more to entertain junior then anything else, I say to the dude with the music: “Does it bother you knowing that you’re making everybody around you think you’re a douche with that music?” His jaw hit the floor and he stammered something like “I always ask first...” bullshit, bullshit, bullshit and eventually got around to “would you like me to turn it off?” So I was like “let your conscience guide you” and he turned it off. Junior was indeed entertained.

Bwahaaa!!!

Good for you Broski

People with twin tips taking 2 of the slots in the Gondi pisses me off

yesterday a clueless snowboarder put his board with the binding facing the cabin so no skis could be put in - Jay was not amused and had the kid put it in the cabin.

Sounds like Hoser ran into the pump house dudes - Bobby is cool and will turn his music down but the big dumb one is socially clueless or just completely drunk all the time - I'm not sure which it is - could be both.

Do:
Ask before smoking
Heckle poachers if they can't handle the terrain being poached

Don't:
Disagree--Use the singles line as a group and not split up to fill seats
Jump from the lift.  I've done it and, man, does the rope ever shoot up.
Spit on towers.  Or put anything on them*
Ask for the lift to be slowed.....first time I got on a chairlift (center pole double), age 6 or so, I asked my dad if the liftie would slow it down.  My dad said, "you're getting on it like this or you're not getting on."

*Aside from the WF Summit chair that has a 'Cheney skis in jeans' sticker.  Man, that's a good one.

D.B. Cooper wrote

Don't:
Disagree--Use the singles line as a group and not split up to fill seats

Not sure why you'd disagree.

What I'm referring to is when someone gets to the front of the singles line and then doesn't want to split up.  So they used it to take advantage of the shorter wait but didn't want to give up getting on the same chair or cabin.

Earlier this season at Whiteface (I think it was on Santa day, total shit show 30 minute line), a group of two in front of me got to the front of the singles line and tried saying they were two and didn't want to split up.  Neither Kelly, nor Jay was working that day and the people that were didn't know what they were doing.

I ended up taking matters into my own hands and sternly telling them that they had to split up to fill seats in the singles line.  They acted like they had no idea what I was talking about.  And just stood there.  I just gave up and went around them and got on as there was a line out of the ropes and cars about to go up half full because of their stupidity.  I was f*ing pissed!!  I hope the employees kicked them out of the line because if they didn't know how the gondola line works, then there's no way they knew how to ski down.

snoloco wrote

 

I ended up taking matters into my own hands and sternly telling them that they had to split up to fill seats in the singles line.  They acted like they had no idea what I was talking about.  And just stood there.  I just gave up and went around them and got on as there was a line out of the ropes and cars about to go up half full because of their stupidity.  I was f*ing pissed!!  I hope the employees kicked them out of the line because if they didn't know how the gondola line works, then there's no way they knew how to ski down.

Oh, yeah, you're right.  I was skimming over what you wrote a little too much.

Sno is one fucking unlucky dude.  I’ve never.....

Had someone smoke on a chair or gondola shared with me.  There was a group of vapers, but they asked permission and offered.

Had, or seen, someone openly play music on a chair or in the gondola.

Seen anyone in the singles line blatantly refuse to split up.

Seen people yell between chairs.

Seen someone whip out their Johnson and slap a a kid upside his head with it.

I mean, I’m not saying these things don’t happen, but everything bad that could ever happen has happened to Sno, multiple times.  That’s some seriously bad luck!

Do:
Get an AT or Tele setup, climbing skins, and a few like-minded friends
Go explore natural snow in the mountains
Keep loving skiing
Take an Avalanche Awareness course or two

Don't:
Keep getting annoyed by resort skiing
Expect everyone to conform to your rules (it simply won't ever happen, despite your best intentions, no matter how correct you may be...)
Need fences, lifts, electrical power

Do:

slide in to the interior seats on the gondi. Don't be the first one in and sit at the position closest to the door.


I got on a Gore gondi earlier this season. I'm ALWAYS last one in as my skis have to go in the snowboard box so I want to be last in-first out so it's easier for everybody else to get their stuff. Anyway, I did that and there were maybe 4-5 folks already in the cabin, I looked at the punk sitting right at the door position and said "you wanna move in?" He said "No." and just stared at me. So I clumsily climbed over him and took a seat and once settled in the following short conversation took place:
Me: "seriously? you couldn't slide over one spot?"
Him: "No. I have a leg injury and can't move very well"
Me: "Then maybe you shouldn't be skiing"

People like you are a dime a dozen at a ski hill.  Relax, is it worth it to get upset?  Why yell at uniformed customers.  They are the reason your dad does not have to pay a bundle for your seasons pass.

And just remember you never know who you are speaking with and not everyone plays by the same rules.   You may find your self tits up in the snow if you go mouthing off to the wrong guy or gal.

tjf1967 wrote

   You may find your self tits up in the snow if you go mouthing off to the wrong guy or gal.

you know it's only a matter of time  

tjf1967 wrote

And just remember you never know who you are speaking with and not everyone plays by the same rules.   You may find your self tits up in the snow if you go mouthing off to the wrong guy or gal.

In spite of my earlier post, I drum this into my kids heads every chance I get. There's a lot of "do as I say and not as I do" in my house. I tell them once they've been in sales for 19 or 20 years they can trust they're ability to size things up and shoot from the hip but in the mean time to play it safe.

If he didn’t have a leg injury already he might have left the gondola with one, after the “inadvertent” ski boot to the shin or knee he could have taken while someone clumsily climed past him.......

Brownski wrote

tjf1967 wrote

And just remember you never know who you are speaking with and not everyone plays by the same rules.   You may find your self tits up in the snow if you go mouthing off to the wrong guy or gal.

In spite of my earlier post........

I can’t say I didn’t think of you when TJ posted that.

Also, it does seem Sno may have lectured the wrong hombre!?