Winch Cat Warning

12-20-08

We have an important safety warning for our area backcountry and telemark skiers. Brundage Mountain has many skiers and boarders who enjoy hiking our mountain after the chairlifts close in the evening and before they open in the morning. Generally speaking, these folks are aware of our mountain operations and understand that they are assuming responsibility for their own safety during these times. Naturally, we have no first aid workers staffed when our business is not open.

This year, however, we are working with a new piece of equipment which has raised our concern for the safety of these folks. It’s no surprise that we have Grooming Snocats out on the mountain continuously from the time we close at 4:30 pm until the time we open at 9:30 am. Most of the hikers know to keep an eye out for these large machines and do their best to give them a wide berth. This year, we’ve added a Winch Cat to our fleet. This means that at any given time, up to 1000 meters of cable is stretched over our slopes. This cable can move quite suddenly and dynamically with a large, working machine attached to it. This cable can be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to see. We suggest that stay off of any slope where they see the WHITE snowcat, because potentially 3,000+ feet of tensioned cable could be whipping around and seriously injure anyone in its path. We want to make sure these off-hours skiers and riders are aware of this added hazard, and we hope anyone who reads this will pass along the warning to their friends and acquaintances.