Interest peaks in vintage chairs from decommissioned ski lift

Sun Peaks Resort plans to open for the ski season Nov.21 with a new chair lift, but many people are as excited, or more so, over a chance to salvage a piece of mountain memorabilia from the vintage 1979 conveyance that it is replacing.

The opportunity to buy a lift chair from the decommissioned Crystal Triple attracted so much interest that the resort decided to sell $5 ballots for the chance to buy one of the 80 old chairs to be soldat $350 apiece, plus tax.

We've been having the discussions with people as they reach out and express their interest," Sun Peaks marketing director Rob McCloskey told Daybreak Kamloops host Shelley Joyce. "There's a lot of nostalgia with the Crystal chair," he said.

Some of the prospective purchasers associate the old lift with laughter and happy memories, McCloskey said. They also received interest from construction workers who helped build it. Other chair-seekers remember the vintage conveyance from pre-1993 when the resort was known as Tod Mountain.

Some of the lift chairs have already gone to staff members and others who put in early requests. McCloskey said theyare surprisingly large objects once they're on the ground. But he's seen them customized as benches or gliding patio rocking chairs.

McCloskey said entry ballots are available until Nov. 8at sunpeaksresort.comand money raised from the ballot purchase will go to a local charity.Names will be drawn Nov.9.

With files from CBCRadio One Daybreak Kamloops