Midweek on the South Ridge

Southside_Bobby · Post by **Southside_Bobby** » Nov 20th, '23, 10:55

It was mentioned in another thread that K plans to run the SRQ this season on Tuesdays and Thursdays, in addition to Fri-Sun. I hope this is true, and I will even assume that it is, because I want it to be true that badly.

Running the SRQ on Tues and Thurs (I will call them my South Ridge "T" days) gives it equal importance to the Canyon lift, as it should have. Both lifts will now run five days a week.

I always thought the zero-sum argument about these lifts was a weak one. Like they couldn't afford to run one lift an additional two days a week.

This means that the SRQ will no longer be treated like an overflow lift, only to be used on crowded days. It is an integral link in K's lift system. The system was broken without it.

Enjoy your Pico powder Thursdays (the worst kept secret in town). You know where I will be.

my poor knees · Post by **my poor knees** » Nov 21st, '23, 15:37

I'll drink to that!

skifaster · Post by **skifaster** » Nov 21st, '23, 20:12

I hope this is true....

Southside_Bobby · Post by **Southside_Bobby** » Feb 29th, '24, 10:35

I would be interested to know an estimate, from those who ski K almost every day, of how many Tuesdays and Thursdays it has run.

From what I can tell reading the reports here, not many.

newpylong1 · Post by **newpylong1** » Feb 29th, '24, 13:45

The staff and runtime for Canyon should be shifted to South Ridge. Navigation is broken, or much harder without it. Mid-week you can lap the K-1 (even if you don't want to take your boards off) as fast as riding the Canyon Quad. It goes up empty mid-week.

If both lifts are going to be underutilized and lose money mid-week, you might as well run the one that makes it easier to get around the mountain.

ozzy · Post by **ozzy** » Feb 29th, '24, 18:15

newpylong1 wrote: ↑Feb 29th, '24, 13:45 Mid-week you can lap the K-1 (even if you don't want to take your boards off) as fast as riding the Canyon Quad. It goes up empty mid-week.

Still would rather ride the CQ4 on nice days

skidogg · Post by **skidogg** » Feb 29th, '24, 18:23

run cq4 7dw run nr4 mwf srq tt all 3 ss

Dude GFY · Post by **Dude GFY** » Feb 29th, '24, 18:43

skidogg wrote: ↑Feb 29th, '24, 18:23 run cq4 7dw run nr4 mwf srq tt all 3 ss

Yes. This makes my brain hurt a little though

4-mile · Post by **4-mile** » Feb 29th, '24, 19:53

This is our 3rd year in a row doing a M-F ski week in late February. The first year of the 3 was my wife's first time at Killington. We have yet to see the South Ridge Quad run.

My wife likes the place but she HATES the slog around the K-1 lodge. I don't have words to express how much she hates it. They really need to have a functional way to get from the east side over to the main basin. Sadly the solution already exists in South Ridge, but if they don't run it then their customers' views of the place are clouded by this negative experience. When others ask about K she says positive things about the place, but also mentions that slog as a big negative, every time. Is that the impression Killingtion wants it's customers to have? (And before you bring up the Snowshed Ramshead tunnel, she thinks that is worse than the K-1 slog.)

The discussion shouldn't be which ones of NR4, CQ4, and SR4 should run which days. It should be why aren't all 3 of these open every day during the main part of the season.

newpylong1 · Post by **newpylong1** » Feb 29th, '24, 20:15

I think even the most entitled customer could realize that running all 3 of those 7 days a week is unnecessarily lighting money on fire. The solution is likely SR 7 days per week because the place is busted without it and some combination of CQ4 and NR4 the other 5 mid-week days.

4-mile · Post by **4-mile** » Feb 29th, '24, 20:31

If I had to analyze each of the 3:

- SR4 - I agree the mountain doesn't function right without it. It should run 7 days/week. With some snowmaking and groomibg focus on upper and lower pipe dream and advertisong the high elevation beginner experience they can get usage.

- NR4 - It serves valuable high elevation intermediate terrain and is used quick extensively. It is important to run 7 days/week.

- CQ4 - This is the only one of the 3 that could go to less than 7 days/week and not really be a problem. It is not accessible by beginners or intermediates so it doesn't get quite the usage. It's really more of a convenient alternative to the box.

snoloco · Post by **snoloco** » Feb 29th, '24, 21:54

I don't see a need for all 3 to run midweek, but I like the theory of running North Ridge every day and alternating Canyon and South Ridge. I wouldn't want to see Canyon not run at all Monday-Thursday. Lapping the K1 sucks because they run it at a snail's pace on weekdays, and then add in the time to take off skis and put them back on.

skiadikt · Post by **skiadikt** » Mar 1st, '24, 07:03

snoloco wrote: ↑Feb 29th, '24, 21:54 I don't see a need for all 3 to run midweek, but I like the theory of running North Ridge every day and alternating Canyon and South Ridge. I wouldn't want to see Canyon not run at all Monday-Thursday. Lapping the K1 sucks because they run it at a snail's pace on weekdays, and then add in the time to take off skis and put them back on.

strike up the band, throw a parade - snoloco and i agree on something.

sorry newpy, can do way more canyon laps on the chair than the box.

newpylong1 · Post by **newpylong1** » Mar 1st, '24, 19:20

I think a stopwatch would probably say otherwise w/no line.

snoloco · Post by **snoloco** » Mar 1st, '24, 20:34

The Canyon Quad takes about 8 minutes and 15 seconds to ride. If the K1 runs at the full 1000 fpm, then it's 6.5 minutes from when the doors close to when they open. But you need to add in the time for taking skis off, walking down the stairs and through the queue, walking down the stairs at the top, and putting skis back on. That adds another minute at least. So we're up to 7.5 minutes. But the K1 never runs at full speed. On the weekdays I've been there this year, it has only been running at 800 fpm. That adds another 1.5 minutes to the cycle, so we're up to 9 minutes. Then add in the time to ski the runout and the run on Great Northern to the canyon trails unless Downdraft Headwall is open. It's always much longer lap cycle if you take the K1 instead of Canyon, which is made longer by the fact that they run it slow, especially on weekdays. You'll get more vertical, but the best part of those runs is the parts you can get to from the Canyon Quad.

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