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focker

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Just heats it at the bottom. There's electrical paddle contacts up on the carriage which contact a power rail. There's a box underneath the chair that I think is just a junction box for the seat wires, input cable. Not a battery or capacitor.

  • 16-21 seconds heating time in the station
  • 7.5 kW rated output based on a detachable 6-seater chairlift
  • 420 W per seat
  • Heating mat protected against short-circuiting and damp
  • Protection against overheating via clocked electrical power supply at low speed
https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/fullscreen/56526909/seat-heating-en


When it's really really cold, you basically don't feel heat but the seat isn't cold. When you do feel it, it's nice. Everyone is spoiled now.

Ok I see it just warms it up before you load onto it. Allowing no snow/ice to form and for your butt to not freeze when you get on the lift. That would still be really nice. Can't wait for next March!
 

focker

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Since this is the 'Advice on big sky' thread I'll ask this here.

We're heading out to Bozeman next march. We were originally going to ski 4 days to Bridger, then it became 2 days at Bridger and 2 days at Big Sky. Not I'm thinking about 3 days at Big Sky and only 1 at Bridger.

What's your guys opinion on this? Big Sky is basically around $200 more per day than skiing Bridger. Condo's cost about the same as I've found ski in/ski out condos at Big Sky that are pretty reasonable actually. We LOVE ski in ski out.

We like skiing groomers, trees and some steeps. We also like exploring.
 

James

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Ok I see it just warms it up before you load onto it. Allowing no snow/ice to form and for your butt to not freeze when you get on the lift. That would still be really nice. Can't wait for next March!
Well the bubbles close on the way down. That keeps the snow, and out here, non crystallized snow, off the seats. I doubt the heat is enough to do much melting in 20 seconds.

Also, if it's going to snow at night, they take the chairs off the cable and put them in the shed or under the shelter.

Now sometimes the counter balance isn't set right, and the bubble goes up on the way downhill. Then you get on a chair with snow on it and realize what a difference the bubble makes. This happens more with the 4 peeson bubble then the six. Don't know if it's just poor adjustment or the 4's are more susceptible to opening.

When it's windy, they want you to put the bubble down on the way up. A six person bubble is heavy. It's not easy to put it up but very doable by a good sized adult.

Bubbles open automatically at the end. The very end. Despite writing in four languages on the bubble, people don't believe it. I tell them it's a trust excercise. The foot rest goes up without any weight on it.
 

SShore

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I've skied at Bridger once on a mid week powder day and it was fantastic. Mid Week being the key. It was still more crowded with longer lift lines than I saw all year at Big Sky excepting the Saturday of Presidents weekend and a few days at Christmas. I've been in Bozeman on the weekend and seen the traffic to Bridger backed all the way to Main Street (16 miles). My opinion from the outside looking in is that Bridger, like many outdoor recreation places associated with Bozeman (Hylite canyon, the Gallitan River, etc.) are being loved to death.
 
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Talisman

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Since this is the 'Advice on big sky' thread I'll ask this here.

We're heading out to Bozeman next march. We were originally going to ski 4 days to Bridger, then it became 2 days at Bridger and 2 days at Big Sky. Not I'm thinking about 3 days at Big Sky and only 1 at Bridger.

What's your guys opinion on this? Big Sky is basically around $200 more per day than skiing Bridger. Condo's cost about the same as I've found ski in/ski out condos at Big Sky that are pretty reasonable actually. We LOVE ski in ski out.

We like skiing groomers, trees and some steeps. We also like exploring.


I haven't skied Bridger in a few years, mainly because of proximity to BS. Bridger is a fun place to ski and has the home town vibe going for it. March in SW MT is a fickle month with usually good base depths and the possibility for warm ups between snow storms. BS is huge and because of the different sun exposures and altitude usually has decent snow some place if one explores, Bridger has secrets, but is lower in elevation and more people scouring the ridge for the best conditions.

I say go for the 3 days at Big Sky and hit Bridger mid-week (hopefully MSU will have exams and keep the students away). As a buddy of mine says " The ticket window at BS is higher than the highest lift at Bridger." Not completely true, but BS offers lots of variety.
 

tch

What do I know; I'm just some guy on the internet.
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Big Sky has more terrain than 98% of any other ski areas you will visit. Along with that terrain comes variety.
Bridger has a reputation as "the local secret"....but there are reasons it is a "secret" (even if it's not).
Just sayin'.
 

milkman

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I don't know if you can allow for this but there can be significantly different weather between Bridger and Big Sky. There are days when it snows a foot at Bridger and a few inches at BS, or the other way around. On other days it might get to 50 degrees at Bridger and only 35 at BS. If you can make your decision based on the conditions on the day you want to ski you might find the conditions dictate the location.

Regarding a heated chair, I think it's like a heated boot. You might not feel the heat except on a warm day but you always notice the difference compared to a cold chair. I'd take the convenience of a heated covered chair like Powder Seeker over a Gondola. 90% of folks at BS thought the luxuries on the Powder Seeker were overkill. Now 99% love it! The biggest impact for next year may not be the 8 place chair but moving Ramcharger to Shedhorn. Cutting the ride time in half plus adding more Blue runs on the south side will give a lot of folks their first exposure to the great expanse of the South side of Lone Peak.
 

skidrew

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The biggest impact for next year may not be the 8 place chair but moving Ramcharger to Shedhorn. Cutting the ride time in half plus adding more Blue runs on the south side will give a lot of folks their first exposure to the great expanse of the South side of Lone Peak.

Agree with that . . . is the plan to cut some more runs over in Shedhorn? I skied a bit over there most recent trip (last week), but the visibility at the top of Shedhorn was a bit hinky so we didn't spend too much time there. I feel I missed out on a lot, except perhaps slow rides up the double.
 

Talisman

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Agree with that . . . is the plan to cut some more runs over in Shedhorn? I skied a bit over there most recent trip (last week), but the visibility at the top of Shedhorn was a bit hinky so we didn't spend too much time there. I feel I missed out on a lot, except perhaps slow rides up the double.
Too bad the viz didn't cooperate as there is some fun skiing off of Sheddy and the coverage this year is fantastic. Did you make it to the Dakota chair? There are some great lines there before the sun scorches the snow.

A HSQ at Sheddy should attract more people if they are willing to skate Cow Flats or find the worm holes to avoid CF.
 

SShore

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It's worth the trip over thy Sheddy just to see how the other .001% live (in their second or third home) at Yellowstone Club.
 

skidrew

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Too bad the viz didn't cooperate as there is some fun skiing off of Sheddy and the coverage this year is fantastic. Did you make it to the Dakota chair? There are some great lines there before the sun scorches the snow.

A HSQ at Sheddy should attract more people if they are willing to skate Cow Flats or find the worm holes to avoid CF.

I didn't but had hoped to . . . was skiing with my daughter who got a bit wigged out. I was hoping to persuade her to do a couple more runs. Guess it will be next year!
 

focker

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I don't know if you can allow for this but there can be significantly different weather between Bridger and Big Sky. There are days when it snows a foot at Bridger and a few inches at BS, or the other way around. On other days it might get to 50 degrees at Bridger and only 35 at BS. If you can make your decision based on the conditions on the day you want to ski you might find the conditions dictate the location.

Regarding a heated chair, I think it's like a heated boot. You might not feel the heat except on a warm day but you always notice the difference compared to a cold chair. I'd take the convenience of a heated covered chair like Powder Seeker over a Gondola. 90% of folks at BS thought the luxuries on the Powder Seeker were overkill. Now 99% love it! The biggest impact for next year may not be the 8 place chair but moving Ramcharger to Shedhorn. Cutting the ride time in half plus adding more Blue runs on the south side will give a lot of folks their first exposure to the great expanse of the South side of Lone Peak.

We'll likely be buying our tickets in advance (as well as lodging) to save $$ and have our trip planned out so we may get locked into skiing certain days as each resort. Right now our plan is to stay in Bozeman for a few days in a condo and ski Bridger and enjoy Bozeman and then go to Yellowstone for a day. After that we'll be getting another condo at Big Sky to ski there 2 or 3 days. With how cheap you can book lodging at Big Sky on VRBO there's just no point in driving back to Bozeman each day after skiing.

I know for a fact my family will love the heated bubble lifts and insane views that Big Sky offers more than Bridger. Big Sky probably suits my family's ski habits better than Bridger as well.
 

SShore

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We'll likely be buying our tickets in advance (as well as lodging) to save $$ and have our trip planned out so we may get locked into skiing certain days as each resort. Right now our plan is to stay in Bozeman for a few days in a condo and ski Bridger and enjoy Bozeman and then go to Yellowstone for a day. After that we'll be getting another condo at Big Sky to ski there 2 or 3 days. With how cheap you can book lodging at Big Sky on VRBO there's just no point in driving back to Bozeman each day after skiing.

I know for a fact my family will love the heated bubble lifts and insane views that Big Sky offers more than Bridger. Big Sky probably suits my family's ski habits better than Bridger as well.

There are pluses and minuses to staying at BS vs Bozeman.

Minuses:
Dining options are not as good at BS as Bozeman
Cost is Higher at BS

Pluses
NOT DRIVING THE CANYON every day
Sleep in
Ski late
ski in/out possible

Personally, I can't stress enough how much I hate that drive through the canyon. I always get stuck behind someone in a Subaru going 30 miles an hour the entire way (Is there some type of governor in Suby's that make them drive 10-20 miles and hour below the speed limit at all times) or have some big rig on my ass wanting to go 80 and pass around every turn.
 

SShore

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Agree with that . . . is the plan to cut some more runs over in Shedhorn? I skied a bit over there most recent trip (last week), but the visibility at the top of Shedhorn was a bit hinky so we didn't spend too much time there. I feel I missed out on a lot, except perhaps slow rides up the double.

The first time we went over there is year the light was so flat my daughter got a bad case of vertigo and my wife almost couldn't make it down. Went the next day with bluebird skies and it was magnificent.
 

focker

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There are pluses and minuses to staying at BS vs Bozeman.

Minuses:
Dining options are not as good at BS as Bozeman
Cost is Higher at BS

Pluses
NOT DRIVING THE CANYON every day
Sleep in
Ski late
ski in/out possible

Personally, I can't stress enough how much I hate that drive through the canyon. I always get stuck behind someone in a Subaru going 30 miles an hour the entire way (Is there some type of governor in Suby's that make them drive 10-20 miles and hour below the speed limit at all times) or have some big rig on my ass wanting to go 80 and pass around every turn.

Yeah we have to drive an hour to/from skiing here locally so when we go out west ski in/ski out is just so nice. What we really like is that if my wife or one of my kids wants to quit for the day we can ski back to the condo, drop them off, and then just keep skiing for however long we want. No one has to keep skiing when they don't want to or quit before they want to. Plus you can cook your own lunch 1 or 2 days out of the trip and save some money that way as well. We like to make a crock pot of chili in the morning so our lunch can be quick, cheap and hot.
 

Talisman

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Personally, I can't stress enough how much I hate that drive through the canyon. I always get stuck behind someone in a Subaru going 30 miles an hour the entire way (Is there some type of governor in Suby's that make them drive 10-20 miles and hour below the speed limit at all times) or have some big rig on my ass wanting to go 80 and pass around every turn.

I've learned to just relax and enjoy the view when behind slow pokes in the canyon. While it is better driving the speed limit, I think of all those traffic jams in other places: Cross Bronx Expressway, the 101 trying to get out of LA, Washington Beltway, Southeast Expressway in Boston. This patience gets severely tested when driving at 10 mph in a few inches of dry snow in a conga line of 20+ vehicles because an the lead slow poke won't use a pull out.
 

skidrew

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I've learned to just relax and enjoy the view when behind slow pokes in the canyon. While it is better driving the speed limit, I think of all those traffic jams in other places: Cross Bronx Expressway, the 101 trying to get out of LA, Washington Beltway, Southeast Expressway in Boston. This patience gets severely tested when driving at 10 mph in a few inches of dry snow in a conga line of 20+ vehicles because an the lead slow poke won't use a pull out.

I spent an hour going ~5 miles from downtown DC to the edge of DC where I live. I would trade any time for an hour from Big Sky to Bozeman (or vv), traffic or not.
 

BS Slarver

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The canyon has become known as the deadly commute. It doesn’t take a mathematician to count the crosses along the side of the road, I believe 50 at present or 1/ mile.
No powder day or prick waiting for you to show up at YSC to service their 3rd home is worth being in that much of a hurry.
 

Talisman

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The canyon has become known as the deadly commute. It doesn’t take a mathematician to count the crosses along the side of the road, I believe 50 at present or 1/ mile.
No powder day or prick waiting for you to show up at YSC to service their 3rd home is worth being in that much of a hurry.

I am fortunate that I don't have to commute through the canyon and it not terrible other than southbound during the morning commute and northbound during the afternoon commute. The other vehicles obviously require watching, but my only accident in the canyon was whacking an elk at night which totaled the car and elk, airbags were my friend.
 

SShore

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Agree with that . . . is the plan to cut some more runs over in Shedhorn? I skied a bit over there most recent trip (last week), but the visibility at the top of Shedhorn was a bit hinky so we didn't spend too much time there. I feel I missed out on a lot, except perhaps slow rides up the double.

I spoke with a guy last night that works in the outside dept at Big Sky and he said that with the high speed lift going in they are looking at putting in some more blue runs over there. He also said Cow Flats will look a lot different. Hopefully they can eliminate a lot of poleing.
 

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