Off The Beaten Path

Big Mountain Free Lift - 1st February 2006

Whitefish, MT (Wednesday, February 1, 2006) - Big Mountain Resort has announced that the ski area's new carpet conveyor lift dubbed the "Big Easy" is operational and available to the public free-of-charge. The 350-foot long lift is a moving carpet that transports skiers and snowboarders to the top of a newly graded beginner slope by standing on the moving surface. Guests access the lift from the Outpost Day Lodge.

The Village Lift (Chair 6) now operates at full-speed to transport skiers and snowboarders to the upper village area from the Outpost area. A lift ticket (lower-mountain or full-access) is required to access Chair 6. With longer daylight hours, Big Mountain Resort has extended its lift hours as of today. Chairs 1, 11, and the lower lifts now close at 4:30 p.m., Chair 7 closes at 4 p.m., and T-Bar 2 (weekend use) closes at 3:45 p.m.

The Big Easy lift is the first step of a redesign of the skiing and service operations in the Outpost area. Foundation and utility work for a major Outpost Lodge expansion occurred during summer 2005. Construction of the day lodge is scheduled for the coming summer, with the goal to have it operational for the 2006-07 winter season.

Plans for the new day lodge include a substantial expansion to create a central location for mountain services including the Snowsports Center, kids' center and day care facility, rental shop, full-service cafeteria, main ticket office, guest services, seasonal lockers, group space, and day-use basket-check. In addition, plans include a viewing lounge to enable guests to watch skiers and snowboarders on the beginner slopes, as well as additional parking and drop-off zones. The resort is planning to install a new beginner chairlift this summer to the east of the Big Easy carpet.

In addition to the Outpost area expansion, resort management is currently working with the Whitefish City Planning Staff, the city planning board, and the local community in updating the current master plan for Big Mountain Village. The resort will announce a second round of public input sessions in mid-February.

"We're updating the master plan to better address the current status of the resort and the opportunities for future improvements," said Fred Jones, CEO of Big Mountain. "During the process, we are soliciting input from the public, particularly regarding what they would like to see at Big Mountain in the future and how to strengthen Big Mountain's ties with Whitefish."

"A lot has happened since the existing plan that was approved in 1992 was put into place," he continued. "The basic plans and approvals have a lot of validity today, but realistically it's time to re-look at the plan and adjust it so it is responsive to current conditions and creates a collective vision for the future of Big Mountain."