Resort opens first six-person chairlift
The new Snow Ghost Express scoops up the first chair of people on its grand opening day Dec. 30. From left to right is, Edwin Schenck, great grandson of resort founder Ed Schenck,Ericka Schenck, granddaughter of Ed Schenck, Bill Mulholland, U.S. Forest Service Tally Lake District Ranger, Dan Graves, former Whitefish Mountain Resort president, Mike Muldown, son of Whitefish skiing pioneer Lloyd "Mully" Muldown, and Mike Jenson, nephew of Russ Street. (Glacierworld.com photo)
Whitefish Mountain Resort's new Chair 4, Snow Ghost Express, delivers a group of skiers to Inspiration Ridge on Dec. 30, the lift's grand opening. (Photo courtesy of Whitefish Mountain Resort.)
Whitefish Mountain Resort’s first high-speed six-seater chairlift is open to guests after several years of planning and six months of construction.
The new Chair 4, dubbed the Snow Ghost Express, began shuttling skiers and snowboarders from the Base Lodge area to the top of Inspiration Ridge on the morning of Friday, Dec. 30, after a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The first chair was reserved for a group of people including relatives of Ed Schenck, who founded the resort with George Prentice 75 years ago, former resort president Dan Graves, Forest Service Ranger Bill Mulholland, Mike Muldown, son of Whitefish skiing pioneer Lloyd "Mully" Muldown, and Mike Jenson, nephew of Russ Street.
“I’m very excited about our new Chair 4,” said former resort President Dan Graves, who initiated the project. “It’s been a four-year process and to see it now running is a dream fulfilled. I think our guests are going to love it.”
The Snow Ghost Express replaces the old Chair 4, a much smaller lift that was installed in 1978, before the Base Lodge became the primary entrance to the resort.
The new lift provides better access to terrain on the front and east sides of the mountain that previously was underutilized. It also enables guests to reach the upper mountain from the Base Lodge more quickly, without a layover between Chairs 6 and 1. That, in turn, reduces traffic on other lifts as well as beginner terrain, improving the experience for guests of all ages and skill levels.
“We couldn’t be happier to see this project completed before the new year,” said current President Nick Polumbus. “This was a massive undertaking that presented plenty of challenges, but we know it will have a big, positive impact on the way folks experience this mountain and that makes it all worthwhile. We expect this investment will pay off in the form of shorter lift lines and better use of all types of terrain.”
The new Chair 4 was built by Leitner-Poma of America and utilizes a Leitner DirectDrive motor, advanced technology that does not require a gearbox to spill the bullwheel.
A trip on the new lift lasts about seven minutes and covers over 2,000 vertical feet. The lift has a top speed of 12.5 miles per hour and can take 2,200 people per hour to the top of Inspiration Ridge.
