JayC
Veteran Member
Thanks for the pics. I enjoyed them. I always thought those snow machines were pretty cool.
Snow tractors
- Thread starter longway5
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The silver cats are nice. Lots of power and they can climb almost anything. Have fun riding along. I had only been in a cat with someone once before I got the job out here, and I knew that operating one of these things was something I wanted to do.
That's cool that your sister is out here. I'm impressed with the ski school out here; there are instructors with little kids all over the place out here. I grew up in Maine, and this is not only my first winter out west, but it was the first time I had ever skied out west. Now I'm thinking about this not being my only winter out here..
That's cool that your sister is out here. I'm impressed with the ski school out here; there are instructors with little kids all over the place out here. I grew up in Maine, and this is not only my first winter out west, but it was the first time I had ever skied out west. Now I'm thinking about this not being my only winter out here..
PineRidge
Super Member
Great looking pictures, thanks for sharing them with us. Lots of high tech stuff there.
dbelisle
Gold Member
Great pics, I really enjoyed them. I don't ski but love to snow mobile, The local clubs have Tuckers, Piston Bullies, Bombies, and track trucks, they aren't as impressive as your machines.
Dave in NH
Dave in NH
TMcD_in_MI
Gold Member
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( These cats have 330 hp turbo diesels (275 in the small blue cats) and can operate on slopes up to 100%. )</font>
The tractors are amazing. Thanks for the pictures. I had no idea.
Sorry to show my ignorance, but what is a 100% slope? Is that the same as 90 degrees - in other words vertical? /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif
Tom
The tractors are amazing. Thanks for the pictures. I had no idea.
Sorry to show my ignorance, but what is a 100% slope? Is that the same as 90 degrees - in other words vertical? /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif
Tom
ScottAR
Veteran Member
45 degrees... also measured as a 1 to 1 slope... Rise = Run... HTH
Very cool pictures. I've been trying to make time in my schedule, basically move things around so I can do the grooming at our local mountains but haven't gotten around to it. I've always wanted to try it, see what it's like. Looks like a lot of fun. Our resorts mostly if not only use Bombardiers. Yellow guys.
Here's what ours look like up at the resorts. Not sure how the models go on these machines, this is like brand new.
Blake
WA
Here's what ours look like up at the resorts. Not sure how the models go on these machines, this is like brand new.
Blake
WA
Attachments
TMcD_in_MI
Gold Member
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( 45 degrees... also measured as a 1 to 1 slope... Rise = Run... HTH )</font>
Thanks Scott. I get it. Rise over run, expressed as a percentage. I've done a fair amount of math, but never worked with percent slope before. So you could have a 200% or 300% slope. 90 degrees would be an infinite percent slope. Kind of a weird system, in a way.
Tom
Thanks Scott. I get it. Rise over run, expressed as a percentage. I've done a fair amount of math, but never worked with percent slope before. So you could have a 200% or 300% slope. 90 degrees would be an infinite percent slope. Kind of a weird system, in a way.
Tom
Yeah, I always wanted to run a groomer, but never thought I would have the time. Then I decided to take some time off from the "real world" and here I am. I am glad I did.
That is a BR350 with a winch. It is a new model, an update to the BR2000 (the silver cat in my pictures). It has a 350 hp Cat diesel and has lots of power and a great sound. We have four of them, two with a winch and two without. I've only got 15 min running one, not enough to get to learn the machine.
Winch cats are amazing. You can take full advantage of the cat's operating limits, climbing up and down really steep slopes. It is quite the sight to see a winch cat pushing a full blade of snow (with snow spilling over the top) up a slope you might have trouble walking up.
As for the color of the cats, I think Bombis are mostly yellow, but for the price you pay, you can get several different color choices. Vail decided on blue.
That is a BR350 with a winch. It is a new model, an update to the BR2000 (the silver cat in my pictures). It has a 350 hp Cat diesel and has lots of power and a great sound. We have four of them, two with a winch and two without. I've only got 15 min running one, not enough to get to learn the machine.
Winch cats are amazing. You can take full advantage of the cat's operating limits, climbing up and down really steep slopes. It is quite the sight to see a winch cat pushing a full blade of snow (with snow spilling over the top) up a slope you might have trouble walking up.
As for the color of the cats, I think Bombis are mostly yellow, but for the price you pay, you can get several different color choices. Vail decided on blue.
Rowski
Veteran Member
- Joined
- May 18, 2000
- Messages
- 1,474
- Location
- North Central Vermont, Jay Peak Area
- Tractor
- 2004 New Holland TN70DA with 32LC loader, 2000 New Holland 2120 with Curtis cab, 7309 loader
I'm like you... trees and steeps. Back 10+ years ago we were skiing where all the glades are cut now. Of course back then it was illegal (loss of trail pass) for tree skiing. I have not been on a pair of downhill skiis in 12 years. Snow plowing keeps me way to busy. I'm trying some backcountry waxless base skiis, lets me get out when I want and can.
Snow has been very poor this year. In the valley maybe 6" of base and in the hills 18" to 24". The big storm in the Northeast missed us. We got maybe 2" last night. We had our record year in '00 - 01' were we got 571" of snowfall.
I been hearing the news that the Western mts have been getting dumped with snow, like 10ft in a week or something like that.
Here are some maps of Seasonal Snow Fall and Snow Depth. As you can see we had a lot of thawing. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
Snow has been very poor this year. In the valley maybe 6" of base and in the hills 18" to 24". The big storm in the Northeast missed us. We got maybe 2" last night. We had our record year in '00 - 01' were we got 571" of snowfall.
I been hearing the news that the Western mts have been getting dumped with snow, like 10ft in a week or something like that.
Here are some maps of Seasonal Snow Fall and Snow Depth. As you can see we had a lot of thawing. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
sassafraspete
Platinum Member
- Joined
- Dec 14, 2003
- Messages
- 782
- Tractor
- Branson (kukje) 4020, 40hp turbo
Just curious....are any of your snow cats running Cummins engines?
GaryM
Veteran Member
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( That is a BR350 with a winch. . .Winch cats are amazing. You can take full advantage of the cat's operating limits, climbing up and down really steep slopes. It is quite the sight to see a winch cat pushing a full blade of snow (with snow spilling over the top) up a slope you might have trouble walking up.)</font>
Great photos, but not being a skier can you explain the winch deal? What do you do, hook the cable to something at the top of the slope and use the winch, and tracks, to power up the hill? And maybe use the cable to provide an anchor point if working across the hill?
Great photos, but not being a skier can you explain the winch deal? What do you do, hook the cable to something at the top of the slope and use the winch, and tracks, to power up the hill? And maybe use the cable to provide an anchor point if working across the hill?
You hit it right on....well, there might be another reason but being a skier, there are some double black diamond runs (the most challenging) that apparently need grooming. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif They're the kind that if not groomed every once in a while I'd imagine they can become very dangerous because of how the snow piles up and settles etc. They are definately something you don't want to walk down either.
Blake
WA
Blake
WA
Dutch445
Elite Member
Locally there was an accident with a ski hill groomer this past weekend... don't know all of the details of how it happened, but here is the article:
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Toggenburg Ski Center worker hurt on equipment
A Toggenburg Ski Center employee was injured Friday night when he fell from a piece of snow-grooming equipment, state police said.
Eric L. Waite, 25, of 1245 Mill St., Fabius, was riding up the mountain in a groomer with a tiller attachment about midnight.
He apparently lost his balance and landed on the ground, where he became entangled in the tiller.
The Fabius Fire Department responded and freed Waite. He was in fair condition Saturday night at University Hospital.
)</font>
Rumors said he was in pretty bad shape after being run thru the machine..
</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Toggenburg Ski Center worker hurt on equipment
A Toggenburg Ski Center employee was injured Friday night when he fell from a piece of snow-grooming equipment, state police said.
Eric L. Waite, 25, of 1245 Mill St., Fabius, was riding up the mountain in a groomer with a tiller attachment about midnight.
He apparently lost his balance and landed on the ground, where he became entangled in the tiller.
The Fabius Fire Department responded and freed Waite. He was in fair condition Saturday night at University Hospital.
)</font>
Rumors said he was in pretty bad shape after being run thru the machine..
Varmintmist
Platinum Member
You get to go to Vail, ski for free, run 300+hp equipment,....
They dont actually pay you, do they???
They dont actually pay you, do they???
Yep, you've got the idea. The snow condidtions change all the time on the mountain, so some days the snowcats may not be able to climb even moderate slopes. Somedays we can get traction on even the steepest. A winch cat can almost always make it up a trail.
Gravity is a big deal on a ski slope. All day people push snow downhill, and when we drive snowcats down, we also move a lot of snow between the tracks and the tiller. Half my job involves pushing snow back up with the front blade (thus why its a 12-way, I need all the control to match the slope). The steeper the slope, the less snow I will be able to push up, but it's the steeper slopes that need the most pushing, so we use the winch cats to push the snow up. Some trails get winched all the time (to steep to get with normal cats), others just once and a while when it gets too thin at the top.
Some slopes may be too steep or too soft for us to get good traction and we end up sliding down. It's hard to make a good pass with the tiller when the cat is sliding, so usually a winch cat will come in after and clean up the mess.
As a side note, the winches are all computer controlled. You can actually dial in how much pull you want on the winch cable. As for what the winch hooks up to, usually it's a steel post set in the ground up top, sometimes its a large tree, other times its another snowcat parked at the top.
Gravity is a big deal on a ski slope. All day people push snow downhill, and when we drive snowcats down, we also move a lot of snow between the tracks and the tiller. Half my job involves pushing snow back up with the front blade (thus why its a 12-way, I need all the control to match the slope). The steeper the slope, the less snow I will be able to push up, but it's the steeper slopes that need the most pushing, so we use the winch cats to push the snow up. Some trails get winched all the time (to steep to get with normal cats), others just once and a while when it gets too thin at the top.
Some slopes may be too steep or too soft for us to get good traction and we end up sliding down. It's hard to make a good pass with the tiller when the cat is sliding, so usually a winch cat will come in after and clean up the mess.
As a side note, the winches are all computer controlled. You can actually dial in how much pull you want on the winch cable. As for what the winch hooks up to, usually it's a steel post set in the ground up top, sometimes its a large tree, other times its another snowcat parked at the top.
That's some bad news. It's not a good idea to be rinding on a snowcat. The only place anyone should be while a snowcat is moving is inside the cab. The tiller will do some serious damage, if the tracks don't get you first.
I don't know why anyone would want to ride on the back of a groomer anyway. You should see the cloud of snow when we are running. It'd be a cold, wet ride up.
I don't know why anyone would want to ride on the back of a groomer anyway. You should see the cloud of snow when we are running. It'd be a cold, wet ride up.
JimMorrissey
Veteran Member
Rat,
Take a look at Jay Peak's seasonal snowfall in prior years ('01-'02 link below). They sometimes receive over 450" a year. Some years it will snow every night for weeks. This is a particularly poor winter in Vermont.
http://www.jaypeakresort.com/page.asp?intNodeID=16135
Take a look at Jay Peak's seasonal snowfall in prior years ('01-'02 link below). They sometimes receive over 450" a year. Some years it will snow every night for weeks. This is a particularly poor winter in Vermont.
http://www.jaypeakresort.com/page.asp?intNodeID=16135
