Ski Lift International (SLI) [1] was an aerial lift manufacturer based out of Incline Village, Nevada. [2] SLI was established in 1965 [3] by co-founders Samuel G. Bonasso and Joseph Sugarman, with Bonasso as its first president. The company built 46 lifts, mainly double chairlifts, from 1965 until 1973. SLI had a prototype gondola and triple chair, but it is unlikely that these designs were ever used. SLI chairlifts can still be seen at ski areas such as Catamount Ski Area. The company was known for inventing the first maintenance-free bail chair, well before competitors such as Riblet or Hall. SLI shipped pre-welded towers and terminal parts to the ski areas, avoiding welding on site. SLI was purchased by Riblet Tramway Company in 1973[ citation needed ]. Since then more and more of these lifts have been removed due to mechanical failures or the need for higher capacity. These lifts are currently very rare and are still rapidly disappearing from the earth.
Alpine Slide-Big Bear Lake, California double
Bryce Resort, Virginia A Double
Sapphire Valley, North Carolina A Lift Double
Bryce Resort, Virginia B Double
Diamond Peak, Nevada Ridge Double
Iron Mountain, California (CLOSED) - Chair 1 (Double)
Iron Mountain, California (CLOSED) - Chair 2 (Double)
June Mountain, California 4 Double
June Mountain, California 2 Double
Aspen Mountain, Colorado Shadow Mountain Double
Wolf Ridge, North Carolina A Double
Telluride, Colorado 7 Coonskin Double
Telluride, Colorado Oak Street Double
49 Degrees North, Washington 2 Grubstake Double
49 Degrees North, Washington 3 Payday Double
Teton Pass, Montana Chairlift Double
Bighorn, Wyoming Beginner Double
Heavenly, Nevada World Cup Double
Wolf Creek, Colorado Nova Double
Blacktail Mountain, MT Crystal Double (former C-5 at Crystal Mountain, WA)
Ober Gatlinburg, TN Blue Double
Mountain Run, Virginia (CLOSED) - Double
Whistler Blackcomb is a ski resort located in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. By many measures it is the largest ski resort in North America and has the greatest uphill lift capacity. It features the Peak 2 Peak Gondola for moving between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains at the top. With all of this capacity, Whistler Blackcomb is also often the busiest ski resort, often surpassing 2 million visitors a year.
Heavenly Mountain Resort is a ski resort located on the California–Nevada border in southeastern Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. It opened for business on December 15, 1955 and has 97 runs and 30 lifts that are spread between California and Nevada and four base facilities. The resort has 4,800 acres (1,900 ha) within its permit area, with approximately 33% currently developed for skiing, boasting the highest elevation of the Lake Tahoe area resorts with a peak elevation of 10,067 ft (3,068 m), and a peak lift-service elevation of 10,040 ft (3,060 m).
Yan Lift, incorporated as Lift Engineering & Mfg. Co., was a major ski lift manufacturer in North America. Founded in 1965 and based in Carson City, Nevada, the company built at least 200 fixed-grip chairlifts, as well as 31 high-speed quads. The company's lifts have been involved in the deaths of five people and the injury of at least 70, the worst record of any ski-lift maker operating in North America.
The Riblet Tramway Company of Spokane, Washington, which operated from 1908 to 2003, was once the largest ski chairlift manufacturer in the world.
An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs. They are the primary onhill transport at most ski areas, but are also found at amusement parks and various tourist attractions.
A detachable chairlift or high-speed chairlift is a type of passenger aerial lift, which, like a fixed-grip chairlift, consists of numerous chairs attached to a constantly moving wire rope that is strung between two terminals over intermediate towers. They are now commonplace at all but the smallest of ski resorts. Some are installed at tourist attractions as well as for urban transportation.
Sun Peaks Resort is an alpine ski resort located in Sun Peaks, British Columbia, Canada, 56 km (35 mi) northeast of Kamloops.
Kratka Ridge or Snowcrest is a skiable area on Waterman Mountain in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, California. Located 36 miles northeast of La Cañada and Pasadena along the Angeles Crest Highway, it reaches a height of 7,515 feet.
Big Sky Resort is a ski resort in the western United States, located in southwestern Montana in Madison County. An hour south of Bozeman via U.S. Highway 191 in Big Sky, Montana.
June Mountain ski area is a winter resort in the eastern Sierra Nevada of California, located near June Lake, southeast of Yosemite National Park.
Kicking Horse Mountain Resort (KHMR) is a ski resort located 6.4 kilometres (4.0 mi) west of Golden, British Columbia, Canada. It features over 120 trails across more than 3,486 acres (14.11 km2) of skiable terrain and a 1,315-metre (4,314 ft) vertical drop, currently the sixth largest of any North American ski resort. The resort, named after the nearby Kicking Horse River and Kicking Horse Pass, spans the easternmost slope of the Purcell Mountains overlooking the Rocky Mountain Trench. It is located roughly 7 kilometres (4 mi) east of Glacier National Park and 23 kilometres (14 mi) west of Yoho National Park.
Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (JHMR) is a ski resort in the western United States, at Teton Village, Wyoming. In the Teton Range of the Rocky Mountains, it is located in Teton County, twelve miles (20 km) northwest of Jackson and due south of Grand Teton National Park.
The Magic Mile is an aerial chairlift at Timberline Lodge ski area, Mount Hood, Oregon, U.S. It was named for its unique location above the tree line and for its original length. When constructed by Byron Riblet in 1938, it was the longest chairlift in existence, the second in the world to be built as a passenger chairlift, and the first to use metal towers.
Crystal Mountain is a mountain and alpine ski area in eastern Pierce County, Washington, United States, located in the Cascade Range southeast of Seattle. It is the largest ski resort in the state of Washington and lies within the Mount Baker–Snoqualmie National Forest. The resort is accessible from the Seattle–Tacoma metropolitan area via State Route 410.
The Summit at Snoqualmie is a recreation area in the northwest United States, located on Snoqualmie Pass, Washington. It provides alpine skiing and snowboarding, Nordic skiing, mountain biking, winter tubing, and scenic lift rides. Owned and managed by Boyne Resorts, it is 52 miles (80 km) east of downtown Seattle on Interstate 90.
Breckenridge Ski Resort is an alpine ski resort in the western United States, in Breckenridge, Colorado. Recognized for acres of skiable terrain across five mountain peaks, it welcomes thousands of skiers and snowboarders each season. Just west of the Continental Divide in Summit County, it is perennially one of the most visited ski resorts in the western hemisphere. Breckenridge is owned and operated by Vail Resorts, Inc.
Vail Ski Resort is a ski resort in the western United States, located near the town of Vail in Eagle County, Colorado. At 5,289 acres, it is the third-largest single-mountain ski resort in the U.S., behind Big Sky and Park City, featuring seven bowls and intermediate gladed terrain in Blue Sky Basin.
The White Pass Ski Area is a ski area in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, in the Cascade Range at White Pass in the state of Washington. It is located 53 miles (90 km) west of Yakima on U.S. Route 12, and 53 miles (90 km) east of Morton. As the crow flies, the pass is 25 miles (40 km) southeast of the summit of Mount Rainier and 30 miles (50 km) north of Mount Adams.
Crested Butte Mountain Resort is a ski resort at Mount Crested Butte in Gunnison County, Colorado, United States.