Bogus Basin will replace the beginner Coach Chairlift on the front side of the mountain and the Bitterroot Chair on the back side of this non-profit recreation area this summer.
"We are community owned, community operated place," said Bogus Basin general manager Brad Wilson. "We have an obligation to teach people to ski. The longest line and one of the most difficult lifts to ride is coach."
Bogus Basin has looked into replacing Coach for a while. This two-seat chairlift dates back to 1981, it was moved to its current location in 1995 and a snowboarder we caught up with at the Dotty Clark Championships looks forward to the upgrade.
"I’m happy because I’ve fallen off of coach too many times and it’s very hard getting on and off," said snowboarder Astro Kurtz. "Bitterroot is also not that fun getting on and off."
Bogus Basin considered upgrading Coach to a high speed quad, but the lift isn't very long. They found out if they purchased fix-gripped quads from Sky Trac, an American company, Bogus could replace both Coach and Bitterroot for the price of one high speed quad.
"For under six million dollars we are going to replace Coach and we are going to replace Bitterroot," said Wilson. "So we are super excited to be able to do that this summer."
The Coach Lift upgrade will nearly double the lift to 1,400 feet long, but the ride time will remain the same. Beginners will also have access to 12 new acres a beginner run that ties in with Coach's Corner, another beginner run and an intermediate run to help skiers and snowboarders progress on them mountain.
"I love that," said Kurtz.
The Bitterroot Lift only runs on weekends and holidays, Bogus Basin hasn't made a decision on whether that will change with the new lift. However, they will brush cut some new runs in this area.
"So we have a lot of terrain changes on Bitterroot and new trails on Coach," said Wilson. "It is going to be a busy summer at Bogus Basin."
Bogus Basin also told us they will auction off the old chairs on these two lifts. That's always been popular with the public, I know I've always wanted to score an old ski chair.
"We are probably going to auction them off for several years because there are going to be a lot of chairs," said Wilson. "We will start with a small group of chairs, auction them off and see how it goes."
Skiers and snowboarders have until Sunday, March 3 to lock in the lowest prices for season passes for next year. I got my twilight pass as people have several options to choose from.
