Yesterday was our first day of being in the field! We got a quick tour and learned what was expected of us and where to go for each department. After that, we got to shred it up!! It was definitely my best day of the season so far! The glades had at least a foot of powder in them! I wish Burke would get some snow! It was an awesome way to start out Practicum!!
Today was awesome!! First half of the day was spent with the Lift Ops guys! I learned about RFID technology and got to see the different aspects of being a liftie. Its a pretty laid back position which is cool...Its colddd though! I ended up with frostbite on the bottom of my feet but no big deal! Means I'm hardcore! I worked the Flyer high-speed detach at Jay which doesn't involve much. Just gotta make sure everyone gets on the lift properly and when people don't read signs, you have to reiterate to them. A lot of people wondered why the gate wouldn't open for them and mostly it was because they put their pass in a pocket with their cell phone or credit cards which makes it not work (There's mad signs everywhere saying to put your pass in a pocket without anything else in it). There's a handheld computer device to check as people are coming through and season pass holders have a picture that shows up to prevent the sharing of passes. There's a computer in the lift shack that shows a lot of information. It has a diagram of the chairs and proximity switches and zoning for the anti-collision system. Everyone was excited that I have a level 1 lift mechanic certification because some of the lift mechanics there don't have it.
The second half of my day was spent on the tram where I was able to be more involved with the actual operations! I did a lot of counting people to make sure the tram didn't get overloaded. I also got to drive the tram a couple times! I was really cautious and the dial is really touchy so I ended up stopping the tram a few times before it actually reached the loading dock. I also rode the tram a couple times and I got a tour of the bottom and top tram rooms. I got to see the hugeeee counterweights for the tram! Holy crapp they are like 10,000 pounds!
Everyone that I met today was a bunch of goof balls! They just like to have fun which is why they're in the ski industry. Everyone was really happy and most of them have been working at Jay for a while! My first day of working was definitely a day I will remember! Next time I get to ride with ski patrol and do ski school!! I can't wait to ride arounddd and enjoy the trails!
From a sustainability perspective, operating the lifts and tram doesn't really have much relation to it. There is an electric motor for the tram which is more sustainable than the back-up gas motor, but that's about it.
Operating the lifts and tram is a very important part of service. Without these things, customers would not be able to make it up the mountain easily. I spent my morning at the high-speed detachable Flyer quad lift and from a service perspective, it is very important to have at least one high-speed detach that brings guests to the top of the mountain. A long lift ride is normally not preferable so it is important to have the option of a faster ride. Also, the tram offers protection from the wind while riding it, making it very pleasing to the guests.
Safety is very important when it comes to running the lifts and tram. Many things could go wrong such as people falling out of chairs, people getting hurt, or the lift breaking. Also, the lift mechanics need to use safety precautions when working on the lifts. Two people had to ride in the crow's nest on top of the tram at one point during the day to check out the brakes to make sure they were working properly. They had to wear harnesses that were connected to the crow's nest to prevent them from falling off. I learned that long ago, there were not many safety precautions and the lift mechanics suffered because of it. Now that there are so many rules and regulations, the mechanics are able to stay safe.
As mentioned before, having chairlifts and a tram available to customers is extremely beneficial. Without the lifts, customers would have to hike to the top of the mountain, allowing for only a few runs to be taken in a day and a very tired guest!
The lifts benefit the employees the same way as guests. When the employees are free riding, it provided them with a quick and easy way to get up the mountain. Also, having lifts creates many jobs. It takes 4 or 5 people run a lift and 4 or 5 people to run the tram. It is not difficult work but it needs to be done by someone.
Again, the lifts benefit the owner and management because the customer pays to use them. People pay for a lift ticket or season's pass so that they can use the lift. The more lift tickets are sold, the more money the mountain makes.
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