How to Navigate Portillo Ski Resort’s Slingshot Lifts

Portillo’s slingshot lifts are also known as “Va et Vient,” which is French for “come and go,” a playful way to describe what riding one feels like. They were built in 1960 as a clever workaround to the area's persistent avalanches, which would have taken out any standard chairlift towers in their path. 

So instead of chairs and towers, Portillo Ski Resort built something closer to a Poma lift on steroids: a suspended surface lift that pulls you up the slope using a T-bar to hold onto and a small disc that you tuck between your legs for support. Each lift is really a system of pulleys anchored into the mountain above, hauling five skiers or riders up the pitch side by side. As with a traditional Poma or T-bar, your skis or board never leave the snow as you're towed uphill, not lifted off the ground.

Read More: When & Where to Ski South America

The slingshot lifts are only recommended for expert to advanced skiers and riders, for a couple of reasons. First, they serve expert-only, off-piste terrain — the Roca Jack, Condor, Las Vizcachas and El Cara Cara, four steep avalanche chutes with no easy way down. Second, the dismount itself takes some getting used to. It can look intimidating from the platform, but our Ski.com travel advisors who've ridden it firsthand say it's actually a blast once you commit. Check out Ski Portillo's video below to learn what to do (and what not to do) to stick the dismount.

• Before loading, watch how the rider ahead of you does it, and don't hesitate to ask the lift operator for help if it's your first time.
• Skiers: keep your poles in one hand, and use your free hand to position the disc between your legs while holding onto the T-bar for support.
• Snowboarders: leave your back foot unclipped until you arrive at the loading area, then strap in just before the lift pulls you uphill.
• If you’re riding by yourself, choose one of the middle spots for balance.
• If you’re on the end with the rope, make sure the outer rope isn’t wrapped around your skis or board. 
• Once loaded, stay centered over your skis or board (leaning forward or back can throw off your balance).
• Focus on letting the disc and the pull of the cable do all the work—your arms are just there for balance, not to muscle your way up.
• Always remain in the designated towpath and never zig-zag. Skiers, keep your skis parallel. 
• Stay a consistent distance from the riders beside you and try not to drift into their path.
• Plan your dismount with your fellow riders before you reach the top, so everyone knows what to do and when.
• Remember to unload one person at a time, and the rider on the end with the rope always gets off last.
• Unload only at the designated area, unless the lift stops and ski patrol instructs you to unload elsewhere.
• Leave the unloading area promptly to keep the path clear for the next group.
• If you fall, try to clear the path immediately, then remove your skis and exit the towpath.
• Have fun!

Ready to take on the rare slingshot lifts and tackle Portillo's epic terrain? Our Ski.com Mountain Travel Experts can handle all the details, from navigating the all-inclusive resort to finding the best powder stashes, and can bundle your bookings to help you save.