Upstone Materials Inc. – Lake Placid, NY
Upstone Materials Inc. supplied materials to the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA). ORDA has been working on renovating existing buildings and adding new construction of their facilities for the Winter World University Games – the largest university winter multi-sport competition in the world. The event happens every two years in a different city and will be coming to Lake Placid, NY in 2023.
Various projects throughout the Saranac Lake/Lake Placid region were needed including a mountain coaster, a new zip line, and two large projects: 1) the Mt. Van Hoevenberg Base Lodge – a mixed-use facility with a practice bobsled track; and 2) the Whiteface Mid-Station – a facility that will include food and beverages with a dining area located at the mid-point up Whiteface Mountain.
Through the winter months of 2019, Upstone supplied concrete from their Plattsburgh ready-mix facility to the Mt. Van Hoevenberg Base Lodge. This allowed the construction of the facility to continue throughout the winter month. In the spring of 2020, the work transitioned to the Saranac Lake ready-mix facility for concrete supply. The last major pour is at the base lodge for the push track, which is the track the bobsledders use to push the sled down the luge. There is an emphasis on quality and timing for this pour, as the track will be used for demanding practice runs. Upstone was integral in the planning process and testing of a test pour for the push track. Thanks to the experience and skills at Upstone, they were able to get the concrete perfected for when the actual push track is poured.
The Whiteface Mid-Station is a less complicated building in design but still provided its own challenges, one of which is the three quarter-mile trip up Whiteface Mountain. With some spots hitting 20% slopes, one can imagine the attention and focus it takes to drive a concrete
truck up the steep mountain. A dozer was used to hook a tag line onto the truck in case of a mechanical failure halfway up. They also made sure the road had sufficient grounding to allow the trucks to travel the road. The professionalism that Upstone drivers provided was astounding when driving this risky road and showcased the confidence in Upstone’s ability to supply concrete for the project.