# Run numbers and the slope chart

> What length, vertical, average pitch, the steepest stretch and the slope chart on a run’s page measure, and from what terrain.

Canonical: https://getsnowcat.app/help/run-numbers/

## Page facts

- Status: Available in Snowcat 1.6.28, the App Store build.
- Plan: Free (every rider)
- Checked against the app: October 27, 2026
- Part of: Snowcat Help, https://getsnowcat.app/help/

## The numbers on a run’s page

Every run’s page shows the same set of numbers. They are free for every rider. Distances are in feet, or in miles from 2,640 ft up, and angles are always in degrees, never percent.

| Number | What it measures |
|---|---|
| Length | The run’s horizontal length along its mapped line, as on a map. It is not the distance along the slope. |
| Vertical | The net drop from the top of the run to the bottom. |
| Average pitch | The angle whose rise over run is vertical over length. A run that drops 500 ft over 2,000 ft is about 14°. |
| Steepest 150 ft | On runs Liftie has rated: the steepest sustained stretch of 150 vertical feet. |
| Steepest point | On runs without a Liftie rating: the steepest single map segment longer than 16 ft. |
| Faces | The direction the run faces, on an eight-point compass. Shown when the run is steeper than 6° on average and isn’t a traverse. |
| Top, Bottom | The elevation at each end. |

## Which terrain each number uses

Length, vertical, average pitch, faces, top, bottom and steepest point are measured on 30 m satellite terrain at the points of the run’s mapped line. Steepest 150 ft comes from 1 m lidar, the same measurement as [Liftie’s rating](https://getsnowcat.app/help/liftie-rating/). So on a short, steep pitch the two can disagree, and the lidar figure is the sharper one.

## Steepest 150 ft

The window is 150 feet of vertical, not of distance. Of every stretch of the run that drops 150 vertical feet, it is the one with the steepest average angle. It is the crux that Liftie’s rating starts from, and the slope chart marks it.

## The slope chart

The chart draws the run’s profile from top to bottom. Your iPhone works it out from the resort’s map package: it samples the terrain about every 33 ft along the run on a 12 m terrain grid, smooths it in proportion to the run’s length, and draws about 90 points at most. The steepest stretch is drawn in red and labeled “Steepest” with its angle in degrees.

If the terrain for a run is missing, the chart says “No elevation for this run yet” instead of drawing a guess. Because the chart comes from the map package, it works without signal once the package is saved with Keep offline, a Pro feature.

## What a run is

Each run is one mapped center line. The left and right sides of a wide run are not measured separately, and the numbers describe the line, not every way across the slope.

## Steep, exposed or technical

These come from the lidar measurement and appear as reasons in Liftie’s rating sheet: steep entrance, long sustained pitch, drops, cliff bands, chutes, tight trees, rock and a no-fall zone. The app doesn’t detect cornices, mandatory airs or moguls, and it doesn’t show a share of the run above a given angle.

## Status and surface tiles

A run’s page has tiles for Status (Open or Closed), Surface, Groomed (Yes or No) and Visibility. Status and grooming come from the resort’s report, which Snowcat reads once a day at 6:30 AM before the lifts open. A run that opens or closes later in the day is not reflected until the next morning. A run groomed today also moves Liftie’s rating a little easier, as [the rating page](https://getsnowcat.app/help/liftie-rating/#daily-change) explains.

## Every way down

A lift’s page lists the ways down from its top: chains of named runs that end at a base, a lodge or back at the same lift. It lists up to eight, easiest first, then shorter. Terrain parks are left out. Each row shows its length, its drop and its steepest angle, such as “1.1 mi · 1,615 ft down” and “17° max”, and is rated by the hardest run on it.

**[Pro]** The full list needs Pro. On Free you see the easiest way down, dimmed, with “Every route down with Pro”. The list comes from the map package, so it works without signal, without times or waits.

## What this page doesn’t cover

The app doesn’t compare runs side by side, filter runs by number, or let you report a wrong number from the run page. See [What’s coming](https://getsnowcat.app/help/whats-coming/).