Lift in the mountains: description, principle of operation, photos and reviews

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:41

To be able to ski down the slope, skiers and snowboarders must first get to the top of the slope. They are helped by special lifts in the mountains, thanks to which they can quickly and easily get to the top. What types of these devices are there and how do they differ?

Resort Equipment

The question of the name of the ski lift in the mountains is asked by many of those who are going to ski. They call it the funicular. All ski resorts report on their websites what types of lifts they can meet. This is so important because they differ in how they work and how they are used. Therefore, before your first skiing trip, you should definitely familiarize yourself with the specifics of specific resorts.

Thanks to this, it will be possible to use the device without any problems, increase the safety of skiers on the slope. It must be borne in mind that you should not use the lifts in the mountains called funicular without reading the instructions. This can even lead to injury.

Cable car

All lifts work thanks to the cable car. A cable car is a suspended structure that moves upwards. In Moscow, there are similar lifts on Sparrow Hills.

Gondola

Associated primarily with Alpine ski resorts. In Russia, it can be found only in a limited number of resorts. This is an installation consisting of several small suspended trolleys, each of which can accommodate several people.

Tow bar

This ski lift has a separate design. As a rule, they are carried along the slope, and in order to use them, it is not necessary to remove the skis and put them back on before the exit. These devices are designed to carry only one person, although sometimes there are similar ones, but designed for several people at once.

Tape

This is the easiest type of lift to use in the mountains and is almost exclusively found on slopes for learning to ski. In this case, the skier stands on a special ledge, which lifts him up at a relatively small angle.

Chairchair

A chair lift in the mountains, unlike previous variations, can be used not only by skiers and snowboarders, but also by ordinary tourists who want to admire the beauty. The mechanism in this case consists of one or more seats located every few meters, which are in constant motion. They can slow downstops, which allows you to safely leave the seat, or move at a constant, slightly reduced, speed.

Do not forget during such outings that skiing is one of the more dangerous winter sports. In addition to the appropriate equipment and clothing, care must be taken to familiarize yourself with the instructions for the lifts in the mountains.

History

The drag lift was a patent by a Swiss-German engineer, invented in 1934 in Leipzig. The first such design of its kind was launched in November 1934 in Switzerland. The cable car is very similar to it in its functioning.

Stuck. What to do?

Since then, there have been a lot of stories in which people got stuck on a lift in the mountains. This is associated with skiers' fear of funiculars. As a rule, they are afraid only at first. At the same time, there are many failures in the operation of structures every year. Manufacturers are still improving them.

Reviews

Zermatt is, according to many ski tourists, the best place with the most beautiful panorama in all of Switzerland and in the world. Above this most famous and southernmost Swiss ski resort, the characteristic silhouette of the Matterhorn (4478 m) rises majestically. This is a highly located ski resort in the Alps - you can ski here in the summer.

In winter, skiers and snowboarders have at their disposal 360 kilometers of beautifulprepared trails. The peaks and foothills are connected by high quality ski lifts. According to tourists, training national teams in a number of sports from all over Europe meet here. The upper station of the cable car on the Little Matterhorn is the highest facility of its kind in Europe.

According to reviews, the slopes of the resort are very diverse, however, in order to fully appreciate their diversity, you need to have fairly good skiing skills. The longest run (from the Matterhorn in Zermatt) is up to 25 km long.

The resort of Zermatt, according to visitors, has pistes that are suitable for families. Particular parts of the resort are especially good for children. They are meant for beginners. For kids, there are special slides.

Many Internet users leave reviews about the resort of Laax. The Swiss ski resort, which includes the resorts of Flims, Laax and Falera, is an ideal winter holiday destination for skiers. Moreover, it is important to note that visitors can ski both on ideally prepared slopes and beyond.

There are only a few places in Europe that offer the same services to guests, as tourists note in the reviews. This region, located in the canton of Grisons, is aimed at visiting the whole family. In Laax, almost 30% of the routes are blue and 19% are green. Therefore, when planning a vacation in this place, tourists do not worry about where the children will ride.

Also, experienced skiers will find quite difficult routes here. The total length of prepared ski slopes in the region is 235 kilometers. The longest of them is about 11.

All routes in this resort are interconnected by a system of lifts, among which, by far, the most famous and most popular is the modern one, with 6-seater cabins made in collaboration with Porsche.

The lift system owes its futuristic design, among other things, to the cooperation with the automobile manufacturing concern. The lift system is a unique combination of safety, comfort and state-of-the-art technology. Seat heaters are installed on the rear sides of the seatbacks.

The lifts have another characteristic feature - after leaving the station, the sofa automatically rotates 45 degrees, so that passengers can admire the mountain scenery instead of looking at the back of the skiers sitting in front of them. Reviews of those who are fond of ski tourism indicate that these are excellent lifts, one of the best in the world. This is also why the resort attracts a huge number of tourists every year.