The Gondola Experience

When you’re riding a chair it’s kind of like riding a moving bench, you can stare straight ahead and pretty much ignore who is on your side if you choose. Being on a Gondi is like being in a very small room where you’re sitting face to face with strangers. When you get on a Gondi you never know what you’re in for. It might be quiet, you might have a pleasant conversation with a stranger, or it can be a 10-15 minute horror show.

Unruly kids whose parents will not tell them to stop yelling, hitting, complaining, banging things, and getting up and down drive me crazy. Also, a group of friends who think everything out of their mouths is hysterical and are loud and won’t shut up can also be obnoxious.

Any thoughts or stories?

If things are really going my way, I'll only ride the Gondi once a day at Gore — first thing in the morning.  The line for first Gondi is a bit of a social scene. That first line forms because while Gore officially opens at 8:30, the Gondi can start loading as early as 7:45. It's always the same group of hardcores at the front. I know all those guys, but couldn't tell you the names of half of them.

Because it's the first ride of the day ... well if you've skied with me you know I'm excitable, especially early in the day.  But lately I've tried to do more listening. If I'm lucky enough to ride with someone from patrol, I'm all ears. What to ski?  With the families I encounter, I try to listen too.  The families are the real Gore core, and I want to know what they think.

I haven't really seen much bad behavior on the ride up. The lifties pack that sucker tight, and you basically can't move.

I guess I don't have a story - except that P.Mac did figure out this week that we have actually met, on the Gondi ... was it three years ago?  Good memory buddy!

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Haha, sounds like typical night skiing experience to me.

I try to arrange it so I know everyone in the gondola. Makes for a more "relaxed' experience.

But sometimes I get into a gondola with a bunch of randoms. When I have my uniform on, I try to be friendly, but when I don't, I try to just keep to myself and gut it out until I get to the top. One time I rode with a woman who said she hated all "-'icans", Mexicans, Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, etc. Some other guy goes, "What about 'Americans'?" I thought that was a pretty amusing takedown. Shut her right up.

mattchuck2 wrote

Haha, sounds like typical night skiing experience to me.

It was my first day night skiing at Creek this year and I bet that this will happen again.

mattchuck2 wrote

I try to arrange it so I know everyone in the gondola. Makes for a more "relaxed' experience.

Sounds like a good idea to me.

mattchuck2 wrote

One time I rode with a woman who said she hated all "-'icans", Mexicans, Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, etc. Some other guy goes, "What about 'Americans'?" I thought that was a pretty amusing takedown. Shut her right up.

Haha, where did this happen?

Gore

Let me guess.  It happened either during Christmas, MLK Weekend, or President's Weekend.

I just say to myself, consider the alternative. Like riding the old Killington double on a cold windy day and having it inevitably stop close to the top for five minutes. Or, the triple at Gore on the same cold, windy day.

Having a little experience riding the subway in NYC helps. A little.

I have always liked riding the Gondola for that reason.  Thank god Gore has crappy cell reception so most people can't be on the phone in the damn thing, that was all that happened last year when I spent a weekend at Stratton.  Since I ski midweek I can be a little choosier about who I go up with, so it usually works out well for us.  We occasionally get a miss, but overall most midweek skiers who are over the age of 22 (most are over the age of 62) are great to ride up with.  Always kind of amazing to talk to a 75 year old who is on their 3rd set of hips and still jumping into the woods to really put your life back into perspective.  

Once in a great while we get thrown in with the group of 13 year old boys as they go off on what is "gay" about the mountain.  Even worse we get the disgruntled long islander going off about how his taxes are paying for this place and how they are wasting money here (this was during the 2011-12 season...).  

I frequently ride the single line because I like meeting new people....sometimes you meet winners and other times they are winers...Generally, you get to know the crowd at WH....and on holiday periods, I only ride the gondi in the early morning.

snoloco wrote

 .  There is lots of drugs/alcohol and you are sure to hear lots of 4 letter words.

Some guys have all the luck

Footer wrote

IEven worse we get the disgruntled long islander going off about how his taxes are paying for this place and how they are wasting money here (this was during the 2011-12 season...).

We're not all bad down here .   I like riding the gondola with strangers. I have made a lot of new friends that way.  Obviously, some trips are more fun than others.  I'm not particularly fond of riding with a bunch of guys who haven't bathed in a while.

poindexter wrote

   .  I'm not particularly fond of riding with a bunch of guys who haven't bathed in a while.

telemarkers?

No kids. I tell people that the judge doesn't think I should be around children. They just shut up.

lolkl wrote

No kids. I tell people that the judge doesn't think I should be around children. They just shut up.

Careful.  Some people around here don't take kindly to jokes like that.

snoloco wrote

My story is from a chair and not a gondola.  There is lots of drugs/alcohol and you are sure to hear lots of 4 letter words.  I always wonder who the heck I am riding with and if they are doing drugs or drinking on the lift.

This happened to me one time at Killington.

On a Tuesday Morning. Guy offered me a nip from his 3/4 empty bottle of whiskey he kept in his coat.

Ahhhhh... no thanks, dude. I only drink AFTER 9:45 AM.

YUKON CORNELIUS wrote

snoloco wrote

My story is from a chair and not a gondola.  There is lots of drugs/alcohol and you are sure to hear lots of 4 letter words.  I always wonder who the heck I am riding with and if they are doing drugs or drinking on the lift.

This happened to me one time at Killington.

On a Tuesday Morning. Guy offered me a nip from his 3/4 empty bottle of whiskey he kept in his coat.

Ahhhhh... no thanks, dude. I only drink AFTER 9:45 AM.

It had to be close to 9:45, no???

It was the Glades Triple, so we were a couple minutes short.

I have an older story from the Stratton Gondola during my trip there earlier this year on 2/22.  We were talking about what trails were still good since it was about 3:15 and some were getting skied off.  Someone said "I want to avoid the blacks".  Of course the intended meaning was black diamonds, like the ski trail rating, but someone else yelled out "RACIST" as a joke as if they were talking about African Americans instead.  We almost fell out of our seats laughing when this happened.

Yukon, you worked at Alta and didn't drink before 9:45am ? weird. Or is that a "don't " as in don't anymore