For as long as Steve Hurlburt’s been working at the Winter Park Ski Resort, the wheels of the Zephyr Express have been working longer.
“It’s always been an institution here, it’s been here since 1990,” said Hurlburt.
Now after 28 years of year-around use as the main lift at Winter Park, the Zephyr’s last days are here.
“It’s time for a change,” said Hurlburt.
The iconic chair lift is set to be torn down in the spring to make way for a new gondola that will make up $16 million of a $28 million capital improvement project.
The ski area will also update its snowmaking but the gondola will help get more people up the mountain.
Currently, the Zephyr can carry 2,600 people an hour, but the new gondola will have cabins that can carry up to 10 people at a time.
“It's going to take 3,600 passenger every hour which is about a 100 more than the Zephyr does right now,” said Hurlburt.
That means wait times will be cut by about 15 minutes, and while that also means the end of an era, Hurlburt says the new gondola replacing it will help give Winter Park a lift toward the future.
“It’s a super exciting time to be at Winter Park,” he said.
