Dedicated Express Access Lanes

[GlacierBoy]

We are back at Alta/Snowbird today. Hard pack snow- the Wasatch needs a deep refresh

The non-RFID Express Access Lanes at Snowbird are definitely staffed by an employee who block the lane to check for credentials. No crowds today at The Bird due to weekday and hard pack snow conditions. We did not see anyone use the Express Lanes and there were no lift lines or very short lines. Anyone paying for Express today May have been pissed for paying up!

But good for Snowbird for being able commit resources, to hire and pay staff in this environment to stand at Express Access lanes at most of Snowbird’s major chairlifts! The employees are probably pretty psyched and bored s&$#less to stand around with nothing to do, but get paid

[GlenPLake]

I saw a brave and noble lift attendant hold a group of ‘fast passers’ while letting many regular folks out in front of them.

These folks were waiting for a while and getting mad, but the lifty held strong, made them wait a good few extra rounds before finally letting them go up. They might have gotten up a little faster than the regular line, but not by much. I went up a few chairs behind, and gave the guy a nod and a smile. The look I got in return made me know that this delay was no accident, and he got a full but silent round of applause from me with that nod and smile.

[snoloco]

I'm assuming this happened at Ramshead, since it's the only lift with a line set up that way. Something similar happened at Stratton last weekend. A group of fast passers tried to go before they were called, and were immediately admonished by the attendant, who also happened to be a supervisor.

[spanky]

Seems to be a non-issue this year. Even with the busiest day of the season last Saturday, not a single gripe about Express Lane. I wonder what the dynamic pricing was for last Saturday.

[nsvencer1]

Rode with two guys who said $79 and worth every penny. Said only bad part was getting too many runs and tiring out quickly. If you think about someone who bought a cheap ikon pass and already amortized a bunch of days, what's 79$ to move quickly on a good snow day?

[Killington_Lover]

Ramshead is a total mess on Saturdays. Thinking of moving on from K next season as lapping timberline is 90% what we come for. The line is second only to the K1.

[snoloco]

Rode with two guys who said $79 and worth every penny. Said only bad part was getting too many runs and tiring out quickly. If you think about someone who bought a cheap ikon pass and already amortized a bunch of days, what's 79$ to move quickly on a good snow day?

If you're only there for one day, and want to get maximum runs on the most popular lifts, then I could see it being worth it. As a passholder, I'm there a lot, so I'm fine with avoiding certain lifts on crowded days, and I know where to go to avoid the worst lines.

As for the comment about Ramshead, that lift is particularly awful. I consider it the worst line on the mountain. It's the only lift on that entire section, there's always a constant stream of ski school cutting in, and anyone trying to lap the Peace Park has to use it. Then you need to take into account the slow speed and frequent stops. Even after the Snowdon upgrade, it's still terrible. It really needs to be replaced.

[skiadikt]

Rode with two guys who said $79 and worth every penny. Said only bad part was getting too many runs and tiring out quickly. If you think about someone who bought a cheap ikon pass and already amortized a bunch of days, what's 79$ to move quickly on a good snow day?

If you're only there for one day, and want to get maximum runs on the most popular lifts, then I could see it being worth it. As a passholder, I'm there a lot, so I'm fine with avoiding certain lifts on crowded days, and I know where to go to avoid the worst lines.

As for the comment about Ramshead, that lift is particularly awful. I consider it the worst line on the mountain. It's the only lift on that entire section, there's always a constant stream of ski school cutting in, and anyone trying to lap the Peace Park has to use it. Then you need to take into account the slow speed and frequent stops. Even after the Snowdon upgrade, it's still terrible. It really needs to be replaced.

ramshead lift is probably the next lift that will be replaced. a bubble six.

[snoloco]

Honestly, I'm not sure a bubble 6 is even enough there, but that route if extended back to the true summit is probably too long to be an 8 pack.

[TJC]

Honestly, I'm not sure a bubble 6 is even enough there, but that route if extended back to the true summit is probably too long to be an 8 pack.

Add a Bubble 6 and keep the current Ramshead Quad. Get rid of the Subaru's in front of the parking lot and run the lift back to the peak.

That will really add capacity and allow for park laps on the weekends. Also solves the problem of Mountain Biking which could not go without this lift for an entire summer.

Add Bubble 6.jpg (641.63 KiB) Viewed 1119 times

[skiadikt]

Honestly, I'm not sure a bubble 6 is even enough there, but that route if extended back to the true summit is probably too long to be an 8 pack.

a 6 will increase uphill capacity by at least 50% which will make a huge difference. never getting extended to the summit. forget about the interconnect. that's at the bottom of the list.

[Mister Moose]

forget about the interconnect. that's at the bottom of the list.

Could I see a copy of that list?

[4-mile]

They could solve a lot of it by just doing the Rams Head half if the interconnect right now. Ssveral advantages:
-New 6 pack in current lift location helps the line
-Relocate current quad to RH peak as part of this half of interconnect means ypu don't need to purchase another lift to do this.
-Several new trails, mostly intermediate, will be added to RH , spreading people out.
-Upper mountain lift will alleviate some crowding at the base lift.
-Long beginner run out to interconnect X and back provides a great learning area without crossing other runs.
-New lift and terrain brings the excitemebt of expabsion
-one step closer to completing interconnect, without having to spend it all at once.

And for those that don't want the interconnect, the pico side would still not be done, so all those advantages still happen without "spoiling pico." It makes too much sense which is why it won't get done.

[Big Bob]

Hell, while you're at it thrown in an 8 pack.

[fdskier56]

Anyone know the deal with the current ramshead quad? I know it’s old but is it broken?

The last few weeks it has been stopping 3-4-5 times a lift ride. And that’s when the maze is empty at 815am.

When the maze is full mid day it has been stopping 6-7-8-9 times a ride. That I will blame on gapers and the scanner gates that never work…