Steamboat Resort Celebrates Full Launch of North America’s Longest, Fastest Gondola
Construction on Steamboat Resort’s $200 million Full Steam Ahead expansion began in June 2021, and more than two years later, the project is complete with Friday’s launch of the second-half of the Wild Blue Gondola.
With nearly 20 inches of snow last weekend, Steamboat Resort opened an additional 600 acres of terrain for skiers and riders Wednesday, meaning approximately one-third of the resort is skiable. The snowfall also brought the opening of the completed Wild Blue Gondola with a public celebration Friday morning in Steamboat Square.
Wild Blue, nicknamed “The Monster” by its lead engineer Peter Wiedemann, stretches 16,000 horizontal feet and takes skiers and riders from the base area to the top of the 10,384-foot Sunshine Peak in 13 minutes when traveling at full speed.
“The Wild Blue Gondola is a game-changer for our community and for our resort and the place we call home and the place we love,” said Dave Hunter, interim resort lead at Steamboat Resort. “It is the fastest, it is the longest 10-person gondola in North America.”
Wild Blue spans 3.16 miles and holds 171 cabins while running at 7 meters per second in section two. It features the single largest direct drive in the world, as well as the largest diameter haul rope in North America. A heavier haul rope means better resistance against strong winds. The price tag on the Wild Blue Gondola all together is in the double-digit millions.
Steamboat Springs resident John Bogler got in line Friday morning to celebrate the launch of new gondola’s second-half and to be among the first to ride its full length.
Hearing about the views on the ride up from his friends who are associated with the resort, Bogler said he was excited to take a look over the Yampa Valley himself and see the farthest reaches of the community that has grown so much since he first moved to town.
Bogler was most excited to test out Wild Blue’s speed.
“It is so much fun because you get up there, you can hit the snow right away and you’re off,” he said. “I spend most of my time up at the top anyway, so getting up there faster is better.”
Construction on the Wild Blue Gondola began in the spring 2022, with its first section launching in December 2022. The first section runs at six meters per second and takes guests from Steamboat Square to the resort’s learning center, Greenhorn Ranch.
Construction on section two of the gondola began immediately after the resort closed its winter operations in April.
The two sections can run together or independent of one another. If the top section needs to be closed due to windy conditions, guests will still be able to utilize the first section of the gondola.
The sheer size and speed of the gondola increases the out-of-base capacity from 6,000 people per hour to nearly 10,000 people, helping distribute skiers and riders across the mountain and easing morning congestion and the afternoon wave of guests.
“It’s the biggest, baddest lift installation that you can build,” Hunter said last December. “We expect it to perform better all-around. We will have uphill capacity of 3,200 people per hour (with just the Wild Blue Gondola).”
On Saturday, the resort will begin its First Tracks program, using the Wild Blue Gondola to give riders and skiers early access to the Sunshine Peak area.
Guests who purchase tickets for the program will load on the Wild Blue Gondola between 8-8:15 a.m. The gondola will then close at 8:30 to accommodate SnowSports School before reopening to the general public at 9 a.m.
The resort is reminding skiers and riders to be aware of tree wells and to keep a safe distance from the bases of trees in the newly opened areas after the mountain received more than 50 inches of snow in December.
Source: Steam Boat Pilot
