After making the announcement that they plan to spend $50 million worth of upgrades at Park City Mountain Resort and Canyons Resort in a single summer, Vail Resorts didn't stop there. The industry giant also announced yesterday that they plan to replace Vail Mountain's Avanti Express Lift (#2) with a six-passenger chairlift this summer. This comes just a few months after the company announced a $25 million summer mountain adventure park at Vail Mountain.
Although pending U.S. Forest Service approval, Vail's plans for the Avanti are similar in capacity and function to the Mountain Top Express Lift (#4). The Avanti is one of the main lifts on the front side of the mountain, serving intermediate and advanced terrain while dispersing skiers from Lionshead Village to mid-mountain.
The current lift is a Doppelmayr detachable quad installed in 1989. Current capacity allows about 2,800 people per hour, but the new lift (which will feature a loading conveyor and gates) should improve efficiency and capacity by up to 30%.
Okay, Vail. Any other big announcements coming out of the pipeline? Are you going to start a ski area on the moon soon?
· Vail Will Spend $50 Million to Create Biggest Ski Area in USA [Curbed Ski]
· Vail To Get Huge $25M Mountain Adventure Theme Park [Curbed Ski]
· What It Means To Ski in a Vail-Dominated World [Curbed Ski]