DRC East Auxiliary Repair

If you've been skiing here for the past few days you may have noticed that the Double Runner East lift (also referred to as Double Runner B or DRC B) has been closed. This is due to some ongoing repairs that our lift maintenance staff is making to the lift's auxiliary engine. 

Every chairlift is required to have an auxiliary (back up) engine. These are diesel powered engines that are used to run passengers off of the lift in the event that the lift's primary drive stops working, whether due to a power outage, mechanical problem, or other reason. 

Auxiliary engines are tested daily for every lift, and last week our lift mechanics noticed that the DRC East auxiliary engine was making an unusual sound. They removed the engine and brought it back to our maintenance garage, where our team of engine mechanics was able to look at it. Upon closer examination they discovered that bearings on the crankshaft needed to be replaced. New bearings and a new crankshaft are scheduled to arrived this week, and if all goes according to plan, we expect to have the lift back open as early as Wednesday. 

The good news is that these repairs do not affect Double Runner West, which has been operating as normal throughout this time. DRC West has a separate auxiliary engine that is operating normally.