Your Worst Draglift

A snowHead

The Carpark T-bar on CairnGorm is always good entertainment when the Ptarmigan Bowl lifts are closed and beginners are low down the mountain. Beginners + T-bar + downhill uptrack = Toofy Grin

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I found the drag that takes you up to the back bowls at lake louise far more exhausting than any of the double blacks it leads to.
The disadvantages of being a boarder

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The Seigneurs lift in Flumet is long, and very steep. There are signs periodically saying "si vous tombez", pointing to the left through a substantial forest. The other side of the stretch of forest you come to a steep black run, often and mogulled. Once you have got down that, the ONLY way to go is back up the same lift. Or, if truly desperate, there is a bus about once every three weeks to Crest Voland. The run is also pretty low in altitude so in bad snow periods you have to hop from patch of snow to patch of snow, over the tree roots.

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There are 2 which i shall hate till I die
1) in Praz de Lys which lifted everyone at least 12 inches off the ground and re-arraged your vocals
2) the twin t-bars from Samaun back to Ischgl, long since gone but my feet ache just at the thought of them

I found the thread Skullie

I knew I was right about T bars Shocked

Luckily I've been told that there isn't one in VT Very Happy

In Switzerland my friends are going to help me learn to use a chairlift, they are threatening to put me on the T bar there. It looks hellishly steep Skullie

I looked on the piste map tonight - it leads to a red and a black run!! hurray - I've got a good excuse not to have to use it Very Happy

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Allegedly the longest T bar in the world is in Heiligenblut, Carinthia, Austria. I've been on it. It was longer than a very long thing on a long cold long night.

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Bode Swiller, Laughing

There was (is?) a twin drag-lift on the way to Valloire from Valmeinier which I used a couple of times in my second week on skis. It had no 'launch-control' so almost everyone was thrown 3 feet into the air (I think some larger chaps avoided it) and I would guess that 1-in-4 fell off when they hit the floor. Made for a looong queue that day. Once aboard, it was very exposed to an icy blast - and seemed to take forever to reach the top.

There's also one in Val Cenis which is very steep, goes round a corner and is sandwiched between a wooded ditch and a steep mogul field. I tried it once, was thrown off at the corner, spent about 20 mins getting to the bottom again - then I decided not to try it again Embarassed

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T-bars are the work of the devil Evil or Very Mad

So not too keen on either the Alp Dado or the glacier lifts in Laax. An instructor once insisted on taking us up the Loze drag instead of the Chenus bubble in C1850 once - I'd spent the whole week falling off the simplest drags, just having a 'mare, and I nearly had kittens on the Loze one. Thankfully no T-bars in Courchevel, button lifts I can cope with, but still prefer chairs given the choice

Megamum, the key to T-bars is to relax.

You know it makes sense.

Elizabeth B, I need to tell this to my youngest 'cos he believes the key to T-bars is to pretend he is fishing for marlin

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

HTN,

A snowHead

Also hate T-bars, as they make my knee hurt, but buttons are not always better...

There are a few in Risoul that are brutal - go on for days and days, and that's after starting by being yanked a good 4 feet in the air (does provide entertainment as you are queuing though!). They then go up variably very steep inclines, and almost flat/downhill buts (so you get the 'button-melvin'), with the steep bits regularly crossing over paths through the forest, so nice slapping of skis onto flat ice, before having to kind of will them to go with the incline again rather than jam into it. All icy, all just lovely of course.

Then out of the trees, and oh my god the wind. Slams into you from one side, leaving you in the interesting position of fighting with yourself, feet determined to stay in deep icy ruts, rest of body bending perilously to the left, arms trying to control the rest.

Ugh!

D

A snowHead

The drag lift in the Gers Bowl (flaine) is pretty intense, both very long and steep (something like 500/600 metres vertical), think knees screaming in agony. Unfortunately the skiing is just so good in there you have no choice but to do it over and over again.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

For me the old Creux drag lift back from Courchevel 1650 used to be the worst. Glad it has now been removed.

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the last one Very Happy

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I agree with levart. Took a group of friends (never even stood on skis before) up a drag lift in Ischgl last year. I stood at the top and watched ALL 8 of them fall (with varying degrees of hilarity). Cruel I know but very very funny! Although the best I saw was a guy who came skiing with us on the beginner button lift in Soll. First time around he let go of the bar too late and got lodged head first in the poles at the top (oh and the lift hit him in the head). Second time around (in a panic at a repeat of his last trip up) he let go far far too early and took out a kids ski school of about 8 four year olds plus their instructor. Not funny for those involved, very funny for those watching. Twisted Evil

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Red Leon, Can your remember the name of the lift in Val Cenis, so I can avoid it?!!! Laughing

I'm going there this weekend

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My first ever memory of a drag was in La Clusaz on my first ski trip from school. Dressed like a pink marshmellow courtesy of C&A (showing my age) ( thanks Mum - I didn't look cute) I followed my beginner group to this thing. Hadn't listened to the advice so got the thing and sat on it. back bottom on the back of my skis, I held on for dear life with everyone shouting "stand up" at me. Impossible. Made it to the top but the dismount wasn't very pretty.

Remember a viscious one in Morzine, nearly yanked my head off as it propelled me upwards and forward. Never thought I'd get air from a draglift.
Another class one was a long drag in Andorra - many years ago. Was taking 2 beginners to a run I'd spotted that morning. Got them on safe and sound. Got on behind them. Knew it was a long one so lit a ciggie. Was nice and relaxed, smoking, weaving the skis around, next minute.....OFF big time into a load of powder. 2 beginners looking round and I'm shouting " I'm ok, I'll see you at the top". Longest hike I've ever done!

I try to avoid them now.

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Avago,

Looking at the piste map I think it's "TK de la Ferme". The blue run from the top of the bubble takes a sharp left turn after a few hundred yards. The TK starts just there.

However, I have to say,

1. If you get to the top of the TK, there's a blue run down to the top of the bubble (not that I got there, of course Embarassed

)
2. Just because I am (was?) utterly incapable of staying on the lift or getting back down once I had fallen off, there's no reason to assume it's beyond you. I doubt you're as crap on skis as I am.

Incidentally, I've just remembered there's another drag I struggled with (but didn't fall off - Wooohoo!!). I'm not sure but I think it's TK de la Tomba which I remember was v steep at the beginning. There's some lovely skiing rom the top IIRC

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Worst I have ever experienced were on the Hintertux Glacier in October.

It was absolutely freezing, and very windy. People were being blown over on the way up.
They eventually stopped the lift early due to the conditions, but not before we'd seen one guy go all the way up holding the T in front of him with his arms rolled around it (like it was a roll of carpet).

Wasn't helped by the lack of any assistance at the bottom, probobly due to the v high average std with the race teams and everyone there...

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Are in Sweden has the best drag lift, to get the top of the mountain it's either a 15 minute walk from the highest lift or a tow rope behind a piste basher or skidoo. 2 tow ropes behind the piste basher with 4 people per rope clinging on, but the skidoo is better - 1 rope and 5 people clinging on for dear life as the driver goes like a lunatic.

Help!!

Your Worst Draglift

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