I can add a little to what Nick Kempe published on parkswatch: The SavetheCiste campaign obtained a series of annual reports [2015,16,17] that the CairnGorm Mountain business operator [CML] commissions each year by an external consulting engineer who examines the condition of the concrete tower foundations on all of the surface lifts on the hill. We cross referenced the reports and also took our own reference pictures of every tower base on every lift on the hill. We then produced a report of our findings and that was scheduled to be published on parkswatch [and elsewhere] yesterday.
Lets just say that we have concerns that extend beyond the condition of the Funicular.
The report will be published next week without any alterations or amendments.

Kind regards

Olderalan

Plot thickens!

If it's a pish year weather wise and this money pit attracts the crowds for their 'snow' then it might open their eyes tae whats really important and bring them tae invest properly..

I doubt they could put a chair up before the season starts so buying in snow is a sensible enough decision considering the state of the shit hole. Probably the first wise decision since before train was conceived..

Sounds like it will make an interesting read. I am curious as to the structural basis of the funicular and in particular:

the piers that support the gravitational load and how they are getting on...in 2016 some of the thurst blocks were showing signs cracking and

how the pre-cast concrete beams are joined. The in-situ grout fill can't take any of the horizontal load, so there must be a joining fixture in there as most of the piers have slip plates so no horizontal forces are applied to them.

Depends on where they put the snow factory and how they operate is. Even so, the for beginners they will be limited to the car park tow and the sunkid, which probably have a combined capacity of 200 people /hr.


Would be quicker to walk to the Lecht….they will have plenty of lifts operating this year.

Not many beginners oot when its a pish season, yet this shithole gets the media attention and if they have runs open they'll get a dose of loving fae the twats on tv and radio.

I'd have the spring slush pup as far as up possible, let gravity get involved tae help with costs and probably clad the fecker in wood after I'd had a look at whats doing what inside it. That's obviously before I sunk the place after running up massive debts, then like a phoenix out the orange flames I'd be back with the same kinda name, assets and debt free with loads of snow making, chairs and log fires about the place that I got for nowt.

If they fix that train the next move should be going serious on snow making and then reinstate the ghosts and some. Wee Aviemore could maybe start advertising winter skiing breaks for rip aff prices if they had snow the majority of winters.

It has been installed and hopefully the Techno folks will be firing it up this week coming.



Nice to see a smile on some staff faces knowing "She" will be gone very soon. Normally when a company goes bust the general manager is walked off site with in hours, strange she is still there. Now is time to rebuild the family spirit and happiness of the day to day working people on the mountain she so cruelly destroyed. There is no place for 80's style aggressive management these days especially when so much is relied on the good will of the staff to keep the day to day operations going.

Graeme





Edited 2 times. Last edit at 17.13hrs Sun 2 Dec 18 by WindyMiller.

Attachments: Snow factory.JPG (229kB)  

The new fan guns they bought on poles or getting moved about?

Graeme, do you if the factory will be permanently installed there or be moved up to the sheiling?

Not sure on both counts. I have not been on the mountain all that much recently due to work comitments and have not been chatting with the staff as much as normal. I have not see the guns yet,don't know the plans. When I spoke with Colin at the end of last season he had the idea of a snow factory at the old unload area of the car park t-bar allowing the snow to be pushed up and down the lower runs. That was long before actually being able to get one. They have made a concrete slab for one of the containers to sit on so looks as though it will be here for some time. It would take a lot of ground work to have it half way up the slope. Levelling, power and water, not a quick fix.

Graeme

I don't know either, but long term, I'd like to see them on poles, 6 of them down the length of the M1/M1 Poma, 2 left portable by the Sheiling/Top of the Car Park T-Bar (the TR8's can handle milder temps better than T-40's, apparently) and then the T-40's doing Gunbarrel and Zig-Zags, the TF-10 at the top of the White Lady/Lady Luck where snow sometimes struggles to accumulate, but not having been to CG for quiet some years, Im not as familiar with the terrain as I used to be.

No idea where they are going to get all that power (Over 360amps per phase) and water from.

Seems to me like they would need at storage pond in the Ciste or below the sheiling or a water pumping station down in Glenmore to provide the quantity of water they will need, so I don't quite see how 2&2 go together here!

Nothing another million or two won't fix. At the expense of the other resorts of course.

There’s more water more consistently available on CairnGorm than at the other four. Power is more complicated but the distances involved in upgrading are smaller than the Lecht or Glencoe. Glenshee needs to grid connected going forward, but it would need strategic investment to create a through main as there isn’t enough juice at the Braemar or Spittal.

Makes you wonder what players are lurking waiting for any new licensing deal after the administration of the currentor licensee. The decision has little logic on the face of it...

Thanks for the info!

I'd like most of em on poles too and if Cairngorms is the one tae go full coverage first then let them have the cash, if they can make it work it could open up funding fae more than just the public at the other centres..

A holding pond would probably cost more than a million up there but has it's benefits and the chat about hydro electric should be acted on. Pity the one at Glencoe never got aff the ground when that was talked bout yonks ago..

The Lecht has better terrain for a real proving grounds but Cairngorms get the coverage so I really aint bothered about them getting cash thrown at them for something like this.

Cairngorms has the accommodation in place tae be able tae handle and really benefit fae what a proper snow making system could bring. Nevis is second best placed, the rest would need serious investment tae target more than just day drips or a handful camping for a few days if they went full hog on snowmaking....