SANDIA PEAK TRAMWAY 40 years later, icon keeps riding along

The tramway holds a spot in the record books as the world's longest aerial tram.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) -- Louis Abruzzo remembers his father taking him hiking along the rim of Sandia Peak in the mid-'60s. Across a vast chasm to the west, the boy saw a glinting steel frame rising from a rocky shelf.
It was the skeleton for the second tower of the Sandia Peak Tramway. Yet back in the mid-1960s, there were no cables connecting the distant structure to the first tower.
"I remember looking way down to see the tower more than 7,700 feet away and wondering, 'How in the heck is this whole thing going to work?"' recalled Abruzzo, now president of Sandia Peak Ski & amp; Tramway Co.
Today, 40 years after it opened May 7, 1966, the tram is an Albuquerque icon and holds a spot in the record books as the world's longest aerial tram. It has hauled more than 8 million visitors on its 2.7-mile trip, a journey that starts 6,559 feet above sea level and climbs to 10,378 feet at the crest.
What you'll see
Passengers soar above cholla cactus and pinon trees near the base terminal, then pass aspen, scrub oak and ponderosa pine as the car climbs. Near the crest, Douglas fir and limber pine grow along rows of jagged limestone.
On a lucky day, riders might glimpse mule deer or bighorn sheep in the crags below. More than 200 species of birds have been spotted -- from golden eagles and redtail hawks to jays, wrens, woodpeckers and songbirds.
The tramway has improved access to the Cibola National Forest for skiers, hikers, mountain bike riders and other sightseers. A restaurant at the crest, opened in 1963, has been on the mountain longer than the tram.
When the original tram cars were replaced in 1986, the new ones had bigger windows -- helping children and wheelchair passengers take in the view.
"Not everyone can hike up or down a rocky trail. The tram has opened the mountain beyond the billy goats," Abruzzo said. "People can still drive around the back side to the crest, but it's a heck of a lot easier to board the tram and let electricity take you up."
Looking back
The tramway has been a New Mexico fixture for almost two generations. But without the visionary efforts of Abruzzo's father, Ben, and his dad's business partner, Bob Nordhaus, the whole enterprise wouldn't exist.
The men owned the Sandia Peak Ski Area on the sloping east side of the mountain. Nordhaus became enchanted by tramways while traveling through Europe in 1960 and was convinced one could deliver skiers from Albuquerque to the ski area.
The men needed about $2 million, which they raised in stock offerings, loans and lines of credit from nervous bankers. A Swiss engineering firm that had constructed trams in Europe was hired to build the structure. Its second tower, located at 8,750 feet, was built using helicopters because there were no roads that high up.
Preparations for this year's tourist season included coating the towers with rust-inhibiting primer and a fresh coat of paint. But the company continually performs preventive maintenance and replaces wheels, gears and carriages before they wear out.
"Not just for safety, but also for operation," Abruzzo said. "We want to stay open another 40 or 50 years."
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