Ready to ride: With new chairlift, Great Bear readies for season

Your next ride up the slopes at Great Bear Ski Valley is going to be a lot different.

The new Skytrac quad chairlift is up and running, offering an easier and more modern ride up the hill.

“We think this is just going to be such a positive for the area,” general manager Dan Grider said. “This is about six years in the making we’ve been waiting to get this done, and we can’t thank the city enough.”

Here’s a preview of what to expect.

There’s a more spacious loading area.

The chair doesn’t have a middle post anymore, so it’s easier to load.

There’s a retention bar for added safety.

And, “once people get to the top, they’ll be very surprised. There’s not this steep unload anymore,” Grider said. “We’ve reengineered that a lot, (so it’s) easier to get off the chair. Overall, it’s just going to be more efficient for our guests and for our staff.”

The old chairlift, which was about 40 years old, was salvaged and resold in pieces to the public as a fundraiser that took in about $35,000.

“It’d be very interesting to see where these chairs ended up,” Grider said. “We’ve seen a few photos.”

One of them went to a Sioux Falls family with a ranch near St. Lawrence in central South Dakota.

John Koch, who also built a “bourbon barn” for socializing with the beverage of choice next to it, installed the chair overlooking a pumpkin patch and sunflower field.

Great Bear also made plaques out of other sections of the chairlift that were sold as a fundraiser and continue to be available.

The season ahead

The season unofficially kicks off this weekend with Great Bear’s OctoBEARfest, a three-day event starting Friday that offers discounts on passes, gift cards and lessons. Click here for details. 

On Saturday, there will be additional activities and a food truck, and the lift sponsor will be revealed at 1 p.m.

You can ride the new chairlift for free from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

“You know, you’ll have to walk back down, but it’s a nice ride up,” Grider said.

Behind the scenes, Great Bear is readying for the time when you can ski down the hill. There’s a new rental check-in system this year, and new rental gear recently arrived. There’s maintenance happening in the terrain park. And hiring will start in early November.

“We have about 200 people on staff,” Grider said, adding many are high school and college students, “and it’s kind of cool to work out here.”

Employees receive a reduced-price season pass, and wages have been increased this year, though “I’m hoping that this is a unique, fun place to work, and I’m really counting on that helping us out,” he said.

As for opening day? Last season it was nearly the end of 2020 before skiing and snowboarding could start on a limited basis because of a mild December.

For now, it’s still too soon to tell.

“It’s almost like hurry up and wait,” Grider said. “But we’re very, very excited about it.”