J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by admin

Jasper's Marmot Basin ski area in Alberta, Canada has recently been awarded the 'Best Longest New Lift' title by Ski Canada Magazine. There may not have been many contenders in Canada this year, with few new lifts added but nonetheless the award recognises the significance of the massive new ski lift project and the vast improvement it has made to the ski area.

The new Canadian Rockies Express gets skiers and riders to the top of the upper slopes in less than half the time it took previously and has significantly changed the way the mountain is skied. Ski Canada also awarded Marmot Basin with 'Best Off The Mark' for their earliest opening ever, November 11, 2009.

This season Marmot Basin has been setting new attendance records, with record snowfall, the area's new lift and a new and much bigger terrain park all contributing to the successful season so far that has surpassed expectations.

"We knew we had a winning season on our hands with the installation of our new high speed quad chair but the skier turnout this season has been phenomenal", said Brian Rode, Marmot's VP of Marketing. "Marketing a ski area is a whole lot easier when conditions are this good and you have the biggest new chairlift in North America"

With three months still left in Marmot Basin's long season, skiers and boarders have plenty of time to take advantage of the near perfect ski conditions and try out the new chairlift at Marmot Basin.
Courtesy of and © Snow24 plc

You'd have to be very unlucky with the snow to have a bad time in LDA at that time of year.

If you're confident off the pisted runs then there's little to choose between Les Deux Alpes and Alpe d'Huez IMHO - both have huge amounts of easily accessible and relatively safe off-piste and both have their share of steeps and gullies if that's your bag. You can ski over into La Grave for a day from LDA too (do NOT do that without a guide though). If you're not comfortable with that then you'll probably enjoy the great big wide pistes that go on for miles... :D ...though the fun is usually between them...

The so-called "bottleneck" in LDA is, I presume, the long, fairly narrow Green that returns beginners and timid inters to town... but the Black alternatives (Valentin and Diablo?) are not going to be busy in early March and both are (I think!) usually groomed so not too fierce. If the snow is half decent (highly likely given current depths and recent temperatures) then there are some straightforward off-piste runs back too.

Now that our very own Sherrif Pabs has run the Fernie Cowboy outta town... back to Banff prices please...

A second new quad chairlift has been announced as being under construction in New Zealand ahead of the southern hemisphere's 2010 season.

Novices and families will benefit from new Express Chairlift at Coronet Peak ski resort which accompanies a significant upgrade of the 'Big Easy' novice area.

The Meadows double chairlift at Coronet Peak will be replaced with the new Leitner-Poma detachable quad chairlift which, for a number of reasons, will be the first of its kind to be installed in the Southern Hemisphere.

The existing novice terrain is to be re-graded with a new link back to the lift and an additional beginner area will be created adjacent to the existing Magic Carpet conveyor lift.

The new express quad chair includes a range of safety features, including an automatic loading carpet that takes skiers and riders to the load point making it super simple to get onto the chair.

A first in the Southern Hemisphere, it also features an automated safety bar which descends over passengers as the chair leaves the lift terminal and rises prior to disembarking at the top. There is also a "kid stop" mechanism designed to ensure very young skiers don't slip underneath the bar – it comes up between their legs to keep them in place.

The new chairlift terminals will be located in approximately the same place but capacity will increase to a maximum of 2000 passengers per hour. The existing chair moves up to 1200 per hour.

Ski Area Manager Hamish McCrostie said the improvements to novice and beginner facilities completely rounded out the Coronet Peak experience making it more fun than ever for beginners, novices and families.

"This upgrade will exponentially improve the overall beginner and novice experience. Facilities for learners were really the last key areas we needed to work on to bring Coronet Peak up to true world-class standard.

"The new chairlift will be safe and easy for children to ride without accompanying adults, which will free up parents to ski or ride the rest of the mountain if they wish. The new base area will also provide plenty of extra space making learning more fun for both first time and novice skiers/riders. We're looking forward to welcoming all learners with a greatly improved dedicated area for fun in the snow. "

The 2010 improvements are part of a five-year multi-million dollar redevelopment programme which has elevated Coronet Peak to true international status. The redevelopment has included the installation of the six-seater Greengates lift, a massive snowmaking system and a stunning new base building which provides state-of-the-art facilities and magnificent views across the Wakatipu Basin.

Located 20 minutes drive from central Queenstown, Coronet Peak ski area is scheduled to open on Saturday 5 June.
Courtesy of and © Snow24 plc

Grouse Mountain ski area in Vancouver, currently open 24 hours a day for snow sports in celebration of the Olympic Games, is also celebrating the inauguration of its impressive new 65m high wind turbine, The Eye of the Wind. The inauguration ceremony this week launch of Vancouver's first commercially viable wind turbine was attended by BC Premier Gordon Campbell, and over two hundred local and international dignitaries.

"Wind power is an important part of building B.C.'s clean energy future," said Premier Gordon Campbell. "Congratulations to Grouse Mountain for leading the way in adopting this clean source of power and showing the world the potential for wind energy in British Columbia."

The Eye of the Wind is the only one of its kind in the world equipped with an elevator accessing a panoramic viewPOD to visitors, providing an close-up view of wind energy at work and panoramic views over the city and coastline. The structure also has the distinction of being the first commercial wind turbine in the Lower Mainland, and forever changes the face of alternative energy in British Columbia.

With no gears and minimal noise, a quiet revolution is underway at Grouse Mountain. As wind power rapidly revolutionizes the world of alternative energy, Grouse Mountain's Quiet Revolution is a deliberate and sustained pursuit of balance and responsibility, both in ecological and economic terms.

"Our sustainability revolution began two decades ago and, since then, we have pursued alternative power sources to become more energy self-sufficient," says Stuart McLaughlin, CEO and President of Grouse Mountain Resorts. "The Eye of the Wind will inspire visitors who ascend Vancouver's most celebrated peak each year to return home to begin a Quiet Revolution of their own."

The various elements of The Eye of the Wind were sourced from ten countries spanning four continents, with the structural assembly completed in fall of 2009. Lifting over 290 tons of components represented a monumental feat to erect the three tower sections, hub, generator, nacelle, viewPOD and three blades. Grouse Mountain and Italy's Leitwind Technology partnered the project. Leitwind is part of the Leitner Technologies Group, a name that has been a synonym for high performance technology of ropeways and snow groomers since 1888.

"It was an outstanding team effort starting from design to manufacturing through installation that made this dream come true - a unique MW-class turbine on top of Grouse Mountain," said Anton Seeber, CEO of Leitwind. "My gratitude goes to all the extraordinary people around the world who believed in this project and worked on it."

The revolutionary wind turbine is completely privately funded without any subsidy, and is capable of producing 1.5 megawatts of energy. The Eye of the Wind is expected to off-set up to 25 per cent of Grouse Mountain's entire operational electricity needs annually.
Courtesy of and © Snow24 plc

Eljay wrote:And this is good reason not to be eating that last pancake!

OMG :shock: Did you have to do that? :lol:

...and I ate the last pancake too... :oops:

Pistehors report two fatal avalanches in the French Alps and Pyrenees over the last week.

La Foux d'Allos

A professional piste patroller age 27 died Monday afternoon 15 February after being covered in a slide. He was skiing off piste in the commune of Allos in the Alpes de Haute Provence. He was a local and was skiing with 3 other patrollers, all on their day off. The victim strayed from the group, and set off an avalanche which carried him away. His three companions immediately rescued him and tried in vain to revive him. The avalanche risk was 3 at the time of the incident.

Pic du Midi

On Wednesday(10/2/2010) two local riders were caught by an avalanche under the Pic du Midi in the Pyrenees around 14h00. The two men, aged 28 and 36 were descending towards la Mongie by the south-east facing Coume du Pic when they triggered a snow slab. One of the men was carried over cliffs before hitting one of the cable car pylons. An impact that proved fatal for the skier. The avalanche risk was 3/5 but there had been fresh snowfall. The weather was fine and warm.

Further incidents included a guide injured in La Grave.

The Times report the death of a Scout in a Scottish avalanche yesterday.

The party of 24 Scouts, all from Kent, were in the mountains despite a warning from SportScotland Avalanche Information Service yesterday morning of a "considerable" risk of avalanches in the area.
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Off-duty members of the Kinder Mountain Rescue Team, based at the Peak District in Derbyshire, saw the snow slide and raised the alarm shortly before 3pm. Mountain rescue teams from Lochaber and RAF Kinloss helped to find Mr Young, who was taken by helicopter to Belford Hospital in Fort William.

It is believed that Mr Young may have triggered the avalanche when he fell through snow that was overhanging a ridge.

The full report is here.