 Poster: A snowHead
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Given the choice which do you prefer?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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We are getting bored aren't we?
Gondolas with seats...
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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skis off - bad
skis on - good
skis on snow - very good
but
sharing t-bar with enormous bavarian pipe smoker - not so good.
Can I be the only one who really loves the stately uphill skiing afforded by the poma? solitude, peace, a time to reflect and relax.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Mystery option number three please Bob.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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red 27, Yes.
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Chondola for me. Preferably The Sun Jet at Hochwurzen 
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Chairlift unless it's heavily snowing or really windy. You can enjoy the view much better and plan your next off piste. In addition there's no need to carry your skis.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Unless cold/windy, chair. More time to relax and look at the view.
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fabricem, welcome to Snowheads
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Timberwolf, Good choice - sadly did not spend enough time on that hill on my last trip to Schladming. 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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under a new name, thought so - explains why they're so uncrowded.
another important point to remember here is that for those of us who expereince early-morning altitude sickness (Billious Jagerous to give it's medical name) then less people are inconvenienced by profuse 'liquid laughing' if one avoids the gondola
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red 27, unless you are stood under the chairlift. 
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You know it makes sense.
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Chair bear all the way
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Gondie when cold or making out.
Chairlift when sunny.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Chairlift for uninterrupted view/piste planning no faffing on stairs (depending on where you are) while carrying skis and gondola when its seriously icy cold/removing gloves to drink/text whatever. Any lift rather than no skiing
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Chairlift every time. Hate taking skis off and love sitting down with the knickers on my face.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Chairlift every time. It may sound stupid to some but reason I won't go back to Val Thorens is too many gondalas and cable cars
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| patricksh wrote: |
| Chairlift every time. It may sound stupid to some but reason I won't go back to Val Thorens is too many gondalas and cable cars |
Sadly out of necessity perhaps? The funitels operate in higher winds than chairs, the cable cars can conquer the steepest of slopes and it can get freakin cold up there 
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the funitels are much faster than a chair though (if you don't have to queue to much or wait for the next one that is..) Otherwise, defintiely the chair because carrying skis is a hassle.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Old chairlift (like Schindlergrat in St Anton). Most people hate them so there's usually less of a queue and less people stealing the goods from the top, but secondly, I quite like the blasts of icy wind/snow - reminds me that I'm not in a theme park.
Or if you brought your bong I hear chairs with bubbles can be pretty good...
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Chair unless it bitterly cold and windy, or it's a really old one that takes hours.
One advantage not yet mentioned is that on a chairlift, it's one bum per seat only, so you're never going to be packed like sardines like in the big cable cars.
Gondolas win for faffing, snacking, and general rearrangement of clothing 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Ganjolas rarely have slots big enought for 21st Century skis. On the plus side they're a massive bonus for singles line hoppers as no-one ever fills them even at peak time.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Chair because gondolas seats are always too small
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Modern chair I think one with a canopy for when the weather gets really bad I always hate the faffing around involved in getting on and off most gondolas
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You know it makes sense.
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Gondola are not cable cars. The latter are typically used in terrain too steep for chairs. So there's nothing to compare.
Chairs are not t-bars. The latter are left over from history and only time will see them disappear. Not worth comparing
Between those chair and gondola, I prefer gondola.
I like being able to stretch my legs, without skis attached, during the gondola ride. Try that on a chair!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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It depends,
For lifts that supply return-cycle skiing, skiers/boarders almost always prefer chairlifts (for comfort now with heated seats and canopies) because they do not have to remove their equipment for each lap, and, as skiers/boarders are dressed for cold weather, entering gondolas can cause goggles to fog up, snow to melt, etc.
Gondolas are by far the prefered lift for non-skiing sightseeing guests, and are also excellent for access lifts that are typically only used by skiers once or twice a day. They are also an excellent choice if used as an access lift that travels through different climate zones- i.e. raining at the base station but snowy up higher. Gondolas are also preferred when connecting to large mountain facilities such as restaurants for logistical reasons, or for lift systems which will be used year-round versus primarily during winter months only.
Chondola or Combi lifts offer the best of both worlds, especially when configured with a higher chair ratio to gondola cabins on the line, as skiers/boarders almost always require more uphill capacity than non-skiers. On those lifts, skiers typically ride chairs, unless they are cold, or can see that the lineup for the gondola cabin is shorter. ( I agree with Bones that the length of queue is almost always the most important consideration!)
The 3 lifts listed above are all 'mono-cable" aerial lift systems which have engineering restrictions- for example the current Euro Lift code limits the maximum height of chairlifts to 15 meters above the ground, while gondolas can travel higher provided that emergency evactuation can be completed vertically to the ground from each gondola cabin in the event that the lift is stopped. (Most skiers who have been around the block have ridden chairlifts that are far more than 15m above the ground, but those are all older installations which are "grandfathered"). Anytime the profile is very extreme (large rock faces, etc), a more secure lift system must be used, which in Europe is primarily some form of reversable (jig-back) tramway (cable cars per ABC's note). Those lifts have far better wind performance, and they also have an operator who is available to assist in the event of an emergency evactuation.
As a skier, my least favorite lifts are reversable trams- they have low capacites & large lineups- so the operators always fill each car to maximum - 100 people with backpacks crammed into a cable car is the least comfortable experience of all. And they deliver all guests to the top in one large pulse- I'm sure many people have "stampede"stories about being in the first cable car to the top on a powder day.
So, to summarize, as a skier, I prefer gondola access lifts to get me up the mountain, chairlifts to do midmountain laps, and cable cars to get me to the top of that rocky spire so I can descend off-piste down the backside of it!
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Poster: A snowHead
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skierguy_75, WoW... you must be bored 
Timberwolf, I was going for that lift too...
It's quite funny as whenever you start approaching it another decision has to be made... chair, chair, chair, gondola???...
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Whichever gets me where I want to go!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Broadly chairs over gondolas for me hate the faff time of gondolas and cablecars
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Well thank the all mighty for the invention of the Chondola now starting to pop up all over Austria and one in Verbier.
A mix of Gondola bubbles and 6 man chairs on the same lift everyone is a winner!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Fattes13, hear here. If only they'd stick in the odd poma in there too then it really would tick all the boxes 
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I think it's possible to overthink some things...
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Chairlift, especially if it's got a canopy.
I've yet to be in a gondola which has seats, has slots large enough for fatter skis AND windows that aren't covered in condensation so you can't see out.
I much prefer being able to look around the mountain on a chairlift, it's also easier for spotting lines and laughing at falls
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| abc wrote: |
Chairs are not t-bars. The latter are left over from history and only time will see them disappear. ! |
Not true - surface lifts will always have a place in glaciated terrain and as a ultimate access for higher level terrain IMO (with lower uplift requirements).
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red 27, You are not alone, my favorite lifts are Pomas.
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FAQ
