West Dover, VT – Vermont’s Mount Snow ski area has announced that it has accepted a bid to replace the Summit Local triple chair lift with a new Leitner Poma high-speed detachable six-passenger bubble chairlift. The six pack chairlift will be the first of its kind on the East Coast.

“Our goal at Mount Snow is to provide the best possible product for our guests. We are continuously making upgrades to our infrastructure to ensure a quality experience for our guests. We feel that installing this state-of-the-art chairlift in order to increase our high speed capacity out of the main base area is in line with this commitment,” said Jesse Boyd, VP of Operations for Peak Resorts.

The new lift will have a ride time of just seven minutes, reducing the ride time of the current lift by nearly half. The new lift’s bubble chairs look like conventional chairlifts but have a plastic shield, or bubble, that encloses the chair. Bubble chairs provide shelter from inclement weather and the convenience of ski-on, ski-off loading and unloading. Unlike a gondola, skiers and snowboarders keep their equipment on, get on the chair as they would a conventional chairlift, and then pull the bubble down around them.

“Let’s face it, Vermont has its cold days. After review of several lifts, I believe this six pack lift best meets our needs. Its bubble chairs will provide protection on cold days without slowing down the loading process,” said Mount Snow General Manager Kelly Pawlak.

With this lift, Mount Snow will have three high-speed lifts in its main base area with a total uphill capacity of 8100 skiers per hour. This will greatly increase the time Mount Snow guests spend on the ski trails instead of waiting in lift lines.

Every night the chairs will be run off the line and stored in a heated storage barn, which has its advantages. First, the barn’s steady temperature helps to prevent fogging and ice build up on the bubbles. Second, should the mountain receive icing overnight, the lift line can be quickly de-iced, and the lift will be able to operate as soon as the chairs are deployed.

Along with the new six pack lift comes upgrades to the Grand Summit Express high speed quad. The upgrades include enclosing the terminal at the base of the mountain to shield guests from weather elements and replacing all 172 of the chairs with new chairs that feature safety bars with footrests.