Baldy’s Challenger lift down for four days

An electrical breakdown of the Challenger high-speed quad lift on the Warm Springs side of Bald Mountain on Saturday forced a closure of the lift for four days.

According to Sun Valley Company spokesman Jack Sibbach, ski area employees were able to get skiers off the lift Saturday by using a diesel auxiliary engine.

The auxiliary engine cannot be used for regular lift traffic, however, Sibbach said, and skiers were forced to use alternative lifts to go up Warm Springs.

The motor was shipped to Anaheim, Calif. to be rebuilt, Sibbach said, and was shipped back Monday night.

A maintenance crew was busy yesterday reinstalling the engine for the lift’s expected reopening this afternoon.

Sibbach said that skiers have still been able to access Baldy’s summit by riding a combination of lifts beginning with the Greyhawk quad that leaves the Warm Springs base near the bottom of Challenger lift.

From there, the Flying Squirrel double chair took skiers to the lower part of College Ridge where they could access any of River Run’s lifts, including the Exhibition quad or the Christmas quad to the summit.