Ski lifts are the cars of the ski slope, just without pretty much any of the standard safety features, and strung up dozens of feet above the ground. This makes ski lifts extremely precarious in windy situations, as evidenced by this terrifying video taken at a ski resort in Vorarlyberg, Austria, on Wednesday.
It looks like quite the terrifying ride.
Some of my colleagues said the skiers should have taken off their skis and jumped. I disagree, as the height in this situation is what I find so terrifying. Some of the comments on the Facebook claim the violent swinging is due to the skiers not being evenly dispersed along the chair.
It’s not exactly clear why the ski lifts were running, as Europe has been under assault from winter storm Eleanor this week. According to The New York Times, there has been one death reported from the storm, a skier who was hit by a falling tree. A train in Germany also derailed reportedly due to a fallen tree, and there have been warnings of avalanches in Austria.
The storm brought with it lightning, heavy rain, hail, and wind speeds of up to 100 mph, moving across Ireland, Britain, and into mainland Europe. Since yesterday, many resorts have decided to close for the storm. Probably a smart move.