A Winter Run
By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org
This is a big day at Loon Mountain.
Today they will officially cut the ribbon on a new era in lift transportation.
I went up to the resort for a few runs on Thursday to take a look at the as-yet unopened Kanc 8, a new eight-seater housed alongside Governor Adams Lodge.
The skiing was quite good on Walking Boss with the full length of the trail holding a firm base and a few inches of fresh snow from the night before.
The bottom half of the mountain was a bit crusty and skied off but the top was in very good shape, with the exception of some of the steep spots which shined like porcelain.
I was glad I had bought the $75 “Full Monty” sharpening for my old Soul 7 rock skis at Rodgers ski shop in town because I needed the sharps.
But I did not encounter a single early-season rock lurking under the fresh uncut powder on the edges of some of the trails where I ventured occasionally.
No one was there.
The lift ticket was $53 and well worth my five top to bottoms, as I got the thrill back of making big arc turns and taking in the views. Breathtaking at times. There was plenty of room to spread out and I did just that.
I was able to use the gondola and chair by myself and enjoyed the peace of being alone in it, as COVID-19 rages around, and even enjoyed my new iPhone super acoustic ear pods to crank some tunes to keep me company as the lift moved swiftly up to the views of the Franconia Range.
Kancamagus 8
I will look forward to checking this baby out when she starts turning.
Dubbed “NORTH AMERICA’S MOST TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED CHAIRLIFT!” which has finally come East in a press statement,
It replaces the Kancamagus Express Quad, and I recall attending that ribbon-cutting a mere 30 or 40 or so years ago.
The Kanc 8 will transport 3,500 skiers per hour to the top of some of Loon’s most popular terrain.
The thing is automated to the T and has a really Swedish or Danish-looking building to store its chairs at night, which is larger it seems than the neighboring Governor Adams Lodge itself.
This new high-speed chairlift will not only gobble crowds in line super quick, it also features an automatic restraining bar, individual footrests, and an adjustable loading carpet for young skiers and riders.
The D-Line is tech-heavy. It holds 205 new developments, including 31 innovations and 14 patents, making it the most modern chairlift in the world.
The press release says “Featuring new Doppelmayr Direct Drive (DDD) technology, a gearless drive allows whisper-quiet operation and low maintenance while increasing energy efficiency.”
Other notable highlights of the new Kancamagus 8 include:
– Travel speed of 18 ft. per second, or 1,100 ft. per minute
– Weather-blocking tinted bubbles
– Raiseable loading carpet
– Conical towers
– Bike haul capability
– Time travel. Just kidding on that one. No time travel. Just fast time to the snow.
This new arrival to the New Hampshire ski landscape came from Austria and work on it has been intense this past fall. But it’s done!
Work really began last April with the dismantling of the Kanc Quad, which I loved and will sorta miss for all the days I rode it to ski races with my late husband, Tom, and our daughter, Eliza.
Masks
The deal with masks is this: If you are inside a building or in a high activity zone like a lift line, you need one. Not everyone was playing that game but I was.
It is a pain and another layer of stuff to deal with, yes, but if it keeps me and those around me safe from this pandemic we are in and allows me to ski I say to you, “shut up and stick it on your face.”
At least it provides some level of warmth and you don’t need it on when you are skiing or riding. That is all. Be considerate, please.
Starting Slowly
The season is hopefully a long and healthy one for all of us and the last thing we need is a wrenched knee or hurt shoulder or to end up in the woods with ski patrol.
It is hard for me to go slow on the hill, admittedly, but I did that for the first run with lots of turns and just getting a feel for being on top of my skis. And I limited my runs to five, about 2,000 vertical each, to start, which is nothing, really.
Having a season pass and living within an hour’s drive allows me to walk away after a few without feeling I left money on the table and enables me to just see how I feel, the next day.
Truth hurts but I have to admit after the fourth run, my knees were aching.
Perhaps it was the mountain biking last week in the desert near Zion, Utah but I am feeling my age. I should have pre-gamed it with Advil.
It was nice to be able to get back out there and I will be writing periodically about my adventures for InDepthNH.org this winter and other publications, so keep an eye out and get out and about yourself.
InDepthNH.org’s Paula Tracy learned to ski at Pats Peak in Henniker in 1972 and has been looking for ways to fit it into her work life ever since. Her first ski column First Tracks was for the Salem (Mass.) Evening News. She then wrote one for the New Hampshire Union Leader and later for WMUR. Paula now writes A Winter Run for InDepthNH.org when she is not busy on her State House reporting.