﻿ski 
  areas 
  catering 
  to 
  this 
  new 
  breed 
  of 
  fun 
  seekers 
  increased 
  from 
  152 
  to 
  197. 
  The 
  

   lift 
  and 
  tow 
  capacity 
  of 
  these 
  western 
  ski 
  areas 
  kept 
  pace 
  with 
  demand. 
  It 
  also 
  

   tripled- 
  -from 
  66 
  million 
  in 
  1955 
  to 
  215 
  million 
  Vertical 
  Transport 
  Feet 
  per 
  hour 
  

   (VTF/hr.f 
  in 
  1964. 
  

  

  In 
  1964 
  the 
  average 
  daily 
  capacity 
  per 
  ski 
  area 
  in 
  the 
  West 
  was 
  682 
  skiers 
  as 
  com- 
  

   pared 
  to 
  an 
  average 
  of 
  270 
  in 
  1955. 
  The 
  10 
  largest 
  areas, 
  in 
  fact, 
  had 
  an 
  average 
  ca- 
  

   pacity 
  of 
  3,000 
  per 
  day 
  during 
  the 
  1964-65 
  season. 
  These 
  10, 
  furthermore, 
  accounted 
  

   for 
  nearly 
  25 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  lift 
  and 
  tow 
  capacity 
  in 
  the 
  12 
  Western 
  States. 
  

  

  The 
  change 
  in 
  character 
  and 
  quality 
  of 
  these 
  lift 
  and 
  tow 
  facilities 
  was 
  apparent. 
  

   In 
  1955, 
  more 
  than 
  half 
  of 
  the 
  ski 
  areas 
  in 
  the 
  West 
  only 
  had 
  rope 
  tows. 
  Today, 
  three- 
  

   fourths 
  of 
  western 
  areas 
  have 
  cable 
  facilities 
  of 
  one 
  kind 
  or 
  another 
  --gondolas, 
  aerial 
  

   trams, 
  T-bars, 
  J-bars, 
  or 
  platter 
  pulls. 
  As 
  a 
  result, 
  the 
  uphill 
  journey 
  has 
  become 
  

   much 
  less 
  strenuous. 
  

  

  Large 
  areas 
  are 
  most 
  popular.^ 
  The 
  36 
  largest 
  --which 
  constituted 
  18 
  percent 
  

   of 
  all 
  the 
  ski 
  areas 
  in 
  the 
  West 
  --accounted 
  for 
  nearly 
  60 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  visits. 
  

   Medium 
  -sized 
  areas 
  that 
  offered 
  cable 
  service 
  accounted 
  for 
  23 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  visits 
  

   and 
  small 
  areas 
  with 
  cable 
  service 
  only 
  for 
  14 
  percent. 
  The 
  remaining 
  3 
  percent 
  of 
  

   the 
  visits 
  during 
  the 
  1963-64 
  season 
  were 
  handled 
  by 
  those 
  areas 
  that 
  offered 
  only 
  

   rope 
  tow 
  service. 
  

  

  Only 
  a 
  very 
  small 
  fraction 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  population 
  of 
  the 
  12 
  Western 
  States 
  are 
  

   skiers. 
  Of 
  the 
  415,000 
  skiers 
  who 
  in 
  the 
  1963-64 
  season 
  visited 
  western 
  ski 
  areas, 
  

   395,000 
  were 
  residents 
  of 
  the 
  West. 
  This 
  is 
  slightly 
  more 
  than 
  1 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  

   population 
  in 
  the 
  Western 
  States. 
  

  

  The 
  majority 
  (61 
  percent) 
  of 
  the 
  western 
  skiers 
  live 
  in 
  the 
  heavily 
  populated 
  

   Pacific 
  Coast 
  States. 
  California 
  alone 
  accounts 
  for 
  37 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  number 
  

   who 
  skied 
  during 
  the 
  1964-65 
  season 
  in 
  the 
  12 
  Western 
  States 
  (see 
  chart 
  next 
  page). 
  

  

  Capacity 
  of 
  lifts 
  and 
  tows 
  has 
  been 
  expressed 
  in 
  Vertical 
  Transport 
  Feet 
  per 
  

   hour 
  (VTF/hr.) 
  to 
  provide 
  a 
  uniform 
  and 
  comparable 
  measure 
  for 
  all 
  lifts 
  and 
  towSo 
  

   It 
  was 
  calculated 
  by 
  multiplying 
  the 
  actual 
  number 
  of 
  skiers 
  the 
  lift 
  or 
  tow 
  can 
  carry 
  

   per 
  hour 
  by 
  the 
  vertical 
  rise 
  of 
  the 
  lift 
  or 
  tow 
  in 
  feet. 
  See 
  page 
  38. 
  

  

  Areas 
  equipped 
  with 
  cable 
  facilities 
  were 
  grouped 
  in 
  three 
  size 
  classes: 
  those 
  

   having 
  a 
  capacity 
  of 
  1,500,000 
  VTF/hr. 
  or 
  more 
  were 
  classed 
  as 
  large; 
  those 
  having 
  

   a 
  capacity 
  of 
  700,000 
  to 
  1,500,000 
  VTF/hr. 
  were 
  classed 
  as 
  medium; 
  and 
  those 
  having 
  

   less 
  than 
  700,000 
  VTF/hr. 
  were 
  classed 
  as 
  small. 
  

  

  3 
  

  

  