90 years of flirting and skiing adventures on the “She and Him Lift”
Published: Sunday, Dec 22nd 2024, 11:40
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90 years ago, on December 23, 1934, the world's first T-bar ski lift was set in motion in Davos. While the Swiss invention could count on a romantic bonus at the time, many such lifts were later replaced by chairlifts for reasons of comfort.
The development by Zurich engineer Ernst Gustav Constam initially had a J-shaped bar that a single person could clamp under their buttocks. The 270-metre-long lift on the Bolgenhang of the Jakobshorn in Davos was an immediate success and recorded 70,000 tows in its first season.
As early as the second winter, Davos ski instructor Jack Ettinger had the simple but ground-breaking idea of replacing the J-bar with a T-shaped double bar. The so-called "anchor" doubled the capacity of the lift and added a romantic factor. For years, the Anker lift was advertised as a "her and him lift".
Nostalgics rave
Older people still rave about the flirting opportunities and many nice encounters on the double chairlift. On the modern 6-seater chairlifts, on the other hand, people usually remain silent. The small group size of the short-term compulsory community inhibits the joy of contact.
Many ski instructors also swear by the T-bar lift. It extends the time actually spent on skis and trains coordination. As a side effect, however, inexperienced skiers also get training in conflict resolution.
Whether children or seasoned couples, the position of the stirrup, the feet or the question of who is now pushing whom to the edge of the track can be discussed animatedly for many hundreds of meters in altitude - until the redeeming mountain station or the moment when the bickering duo is transformed into a merry Mikado of skis, poles and many limbs by the inexorably uphill-striving stirrup.
Lift riding needs to be learned
Ski lift riding needs to be learned. Adult beginners are often surprised to find themselves on the ground as soon as they get on - after trying to sit on the T-bar. Children have more trouble "disposing" of the heavy bar when getting off and occasionally float over the plastic poles at the end of the lift track.
No wonder, "safe lift riding" is a top priority in ski schools. For ski instructors, lift lessons are an inexhaustible source of anecdotes. A perennial favorite is arriving late for lunch because the class only makes it up to the mountain restaurant at lunchtime on the third attempt.
It gets exciting for children's ski instructors when the T-bar lift leaves half the children's class spread out over the entire length of the lift in deep snow and the successful half of the class has to wait out the biting wind at the top station.
Challenging for boarders
The T-bar lift is a real challenge for snowboarders. To get on, they have to take one foot out of the binding and on long lifts, the bar presses painfully against the thigh.
While boarder couples can also find romance in the "spoon position" on the "her-and-him lift", strangers sometimes ride up in a confusingly intimate embrace. Fallen boarders experience real "action" when the T-bar gets caught in the leg-board angle and drags them helplessly up the mountain, wriggling on their backs.
Not least because of the snowboard boom, many snow sports resorts have increasingly replaced anchor lifts with chairlifts since the 1990s. Long T-bar lifts have virtually disappeared from large ski resorts. In addition to comfort, modern chairlifts offer greater capacity and speed, as well as independence from snow.
The hanger lift lives on
Nevertheless, T-bar lifts still account for almost half (44 percent) of the 1,650 cable car installations in Switzerland, not including small rope lifts and conveyor belts. A large proportion are located in low-lying ski resorts in the foothills of the Alps, where it is not worth investing in chairlifts due to the uncertainty of snow. For cost reasons, anchor lifts have a future in the Alps, especially in small areas.
T-bar lifts are also ideal solutions in beginner zones and fun parks. The trend-conscious, young freestyle riders of all people will continue to enjoy the old-fashioned romance of them-and-her for a long time to come.
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