RICHMOND, Vt. (WCAX) – There was anticipation in the frosty air of Richmond Friday as one special skier was living out a lifelong dream.
“I’m so excited to have the rope tow first run and I was going to get to go up the lift first,” said Marilyn Cochran of Cochran’s Ski Area.
Cochran, as her namesake suggests, is a part of the famed Cochran family that opened the ski area. She was almost the first to ride the area’s first-ever rope tow. “My brother jumped in front of me to be first up the lift. So, his son, Jimmy runs the ski area, so it was Jimmy’s idea to have me be first up the lift this time,” Cochran said.
So when it was time to cut the ribbon, Cochran didn’t hesitate. Up she went, and many others followed.
“If you go to a bigger mountain, they have humongous, giant, high-speed quads, this is our version of a high-speed quad. It requires fitness, and it’s probably faster, honestly,” said skier Ethan Ship.
The rope tow is an old Vermont ski hill tradition but this one is a new take — it’s fully electric. It was engineered and built by a local firm and was funded completely by donations.
It takes only a minute to get a skier up the hill and is expected to increase lift capacity by more than 25%, perfect for when it’s busy with racers or kiddos who just want to go, go, go.
“The rope is kind of heavy, but it’s really fast and it gets you up higher than the older one, so it’s better.” said skier Lila Ship.
The lift will be open as long as there’s snow.