Ski Safety Blog

Sadly, a second ski death has occurred at Breckenridge Ski Resort this season. A Florida man was killed Christmas Eve morning on an intermediate trail at Breckenridge. Summit County investigators said the man missed a turn from the intermediate Angel's Rest trail at the Monte Cristo trail and skied into a tree. He was not wearing a helmet and died from trauma to his head and pelvis, the Summit County Coroner's Office said in a statement.

The man died at Breckenridge Medical Center just before noon, about an hour after the accident. Breckenridge Ski Resort issued a statement through the Summit County Coroner's office: "Breckenridge Ski Resort, Breckenridge Ski Patrol and the Vail Resorts family extend their deepest sympathy and support to the family and friends of the man."

On Nov. 20, a 14-year-old Colorado Springs girl died from blunt-force trauma to her chest when she skied into a tree off a different intermediate run, Spruce Trail, the first reported ski death in Colorado this season. In 2008, the state had a record 17 fatalities, exceeding the previous record of 16 in the 2001-2002 season.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 3:20 PM | Permalink

This past Saturday a four-year old girl fell from a ski chairlift at about 4:30 p.m. A skier witnessed the girl fall from a chairlift and called it in. The girl fell from the Sunnyside lift about 30-35 feet at Alta Ski Resort. Alta is located just 25 miles southeast of Salt Lake City at the top of Little Cottonwood Canyon.

When ski patrol arrived, the girl was not breathing and was unconscious. Ski patrol was able to revive the child after performing CPR and took her to the landing zone for life flight at the resort. The child was taken by a medical helicopter to Primary Children's Medical Center in critical condition. The girl has since been updated to serious condition.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 11:16 AM | Permalink

A packed ski lift at a Wisconsin ski resort suddenly began running backwards yesterday, injuring at least a dozen people. Sauk County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Chip Meister said the incident occurred around 7 p.m. Thursday at Devil's Head Resort in Merrimac, about 25 miles northwest of Madison. The lift was operating normally until it stopped and reversed direction.

Dozens of skiers jumped off the lift, some falling more than 20 feet, to avoid smashing into a wall at the bottom. Eventually the lift was stopped and resort employees and rescue workers spent more than two hours getting skiers down, he said.

Seven skiers were treated at Sauk Prairie Memorial Hospital in Prairie Du Sac. Six had "muscular skeletal" pains and were released, and one person broke their ankle and was expected to be released Friday, a hospital spokesman reported. Seven others were treated at St. Clare Hospital in Baraboo, where six were treated and released, and one was treated for undisclosed injuries but was in stable condition.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 12:54 PM | Permalink

The International Ski Federation is calling on Alpine racers and coaches to help find reasons for the high number of serious accidents in World Cup races. The governing body is concerned about the trend and will review equipment rules for possible changes, FIS president Gian Franco Kasper said Friday.

Downhill world champion John Kucera, World Cup slalom champion Jean-Baptiste Grange and former women's overall World Cup winner Nicole Hosp are among those ruled out of the Vancouver Olympics because of injuries. TJ Lanning of the United States broke a vertebra in his neck and dislocated his left knee in a downhill race last month.

A working group of men's speed racers will meet next week to discuss the issue in Val Gardena, Italy. Slalom specialists will gather in Austria next month. Panels of women skiers and coaches are also scheduling meetings to help improve safety. Hosp's accident prompted Austria women's coach Herbert Mandl to call for slower course settings to help skiers adapt to their high-tech equipment, which has made racing more dangerous.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 3:35 PM | Permalink

For many foreign travelers, accidents on the slopes trigger travel insurance claims. Most Britons are failing to take out winter sports holiday insurance prior to their ski and snowboard trips, a report has suggested. AA Travel Insurance said that recession-hit holidaymakers are trying to "squeeze the most out of their income" and are therefore less likely to purchase the cover.

Research from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office cited by the firm suggests that 31% of travelers are failing to take out specialist insurance geared to the sports in which they will participate during the trip. The Good Ski Guide also warned recently that claim-triggering accidents on the slopes, such as collisions between skiers and snowboarders, are on the increase.

The Foreign & Commonwealth Office estimates that one in five Britons participate in winter sports every year. Christian Young, director of AA Travel Insurance, said: "Many people don't realize that collisions on the slopes are dealt with in much the same way as a car accident. If a collision is clearly your fault, you could well be held personally liable so insurance is absolutely fundamental ... it's there to protect others just as much as protecting you."

Posted by Linda Chalat at 3:23 PM | Permalink

Local police officers could be more noticeable on the lower slopes and terrain parks at Breckenridge Ski Resort this winter to enforce the Colorado Ski Safety Act. "In the past maybe it wasn't considered as much of a priority, but there has been some trend over the last couple years where we've seen more aggressive behavior," Breckenridge police chief Rick Holman said on Wednesday.

Town council on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to an ordinance for people accused of Ski Safety Act violations to be dealt with in town court. Previously, town police officers have cited people under the state law, which goes through Summit County Court. The act's criminal violations include skiing on a closed trail or out of bounds, skiing while impaired by drugs or alcohol and failing to give one's name and address to a ski area employee when involved in a collision with another skier or boarder. Increased visibility will be achieved with a modified uniform police officers can wear on the lifts and while skiing.

Though the town was recently in the national spotlight for decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana, Holman said he doesn't expect more people to be skiing stoned. Regarding discussions with the ski area, there have been "no conversations about expecting more people to ski under the influence," he said.
While Summit County Sheriff's Office covers any ski areas within the county, the town police department's jurisdiction goes about 150 yards up Breckenridge Ski Resort's lowest trails. It also includes the terrain park on Peak 8 as well as the gondola and other areas.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 3:08 PM | Permalink

Alex Singer, 22, a senior at University of Colorado at Boulder became the second ski fatality of the season last week. He was found dead Wednesday at the Wolf Creek Ski Area in southwest Colorado.

Singer, who was on an ungroomed trail, died of suffocation and hypothermia after falling into a tree well, the column of shallow snow that forms at the base of a tree, Mineral County (Colo.) Coroner Charles Downing said.

Another skier saw skis sticking out of the snow Wednesday and Singer buried head first in the tree well. Singer most likely fell Tuesday, after buying a half-day pass for Wolf Creek, which saw more than 4 feet of new snow fall last week. His brother said that by falling into a tree well surrounded by powder snow, Singer would have had a hard time pulling himself up.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 3:04 PM | Permalink

With the skiing season fast approaching, skiers are warned to look out for drunks on the piste and to remember that if you cause and accident whilst drunk, you will not be covered by insurance. Most travel insurance contracts include an exclusion regarding claims made as a result of alcohol consumption. Skiers should be aware of the risk they take if drinking when on holiday; insurance providers are fully within their rights to decline claims involving alcohol, as it is reasonable to assume adequate care was not taken," said Steve Williams, head of travel insurance at Confused.com.

Research from Confused.com shows that 24% of skiers admitted to drinking more than four drinks before skiing down the side of a mountain; this has led to one in four being affected by drunken skiers. These people either admitted to falling over in the resort after participating in après ski, falling on the slopes or being hit by a skier who had been drinking.

Surprisingly, some 41% of the over 30's believe to be covered for an accident, regardless of the fact it happened due to drinking alcohol. "The research also reveals its two core groups most likely to slurp and ski; men and those aged between 31-35. Thirty five per cent of males drink heavily and regularly on ski holidays, whereas over one in four 31 - 35 year olds admitted to the same thing," according to Confused.com

Ski insurance does not cover dangerous activities like bob sleighing, and should check that their cover includes personal liability in case of causing an accident or injury to someone else. While some European ski resorts employ staff to patrol the slopes and watch out for reckless skiing or drunkenness, it's up to the individual to control themselves.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 2:59 PM | Permalink

This weekend a Summit County deputy reported a woman was caught at Keystone Resort trying to use the ski pass of a man named Daniel. The woman claimed to be in the middle of a sex change. The deputy asked for the parents' phone number and the woman gave it to them. The boyfriend's father answered and said he knew nothing of a sex change. An hour later, the Keystone supervisor told the deputy there was a phone number on the ski-pass file. The deputy called the number and the boyfriend answered, informing the deputy that he had given the pass to his girlfriend. The woman then spoke with her boyfriend, then told the deputy that she was actually the girlfriend. She was arrested and booked on charges of theft of more than $500 and criminal impersonation.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 3:33 PM | Permalink

According to the National Ski Areas Association, helmet usage grew 12 percent last year over the previous season, and 48 percent of skiers and riders now wear helmets, up from only 25 percent six years ago. Some of that increase might be the imitation factor, said Troy Hawkes of the National Ski Areas Association, but much of it has to do with an increased awareness about on-snow safety.

According to the National Ski Areas Association, nearly 80 percent of children under 10 and 63 percent of adults over 65 wore helmets last season. Still, fatalities from skiing accidents during the past decade remained constant at about 40 per year. The National Ski Areas Association's Hawkes said the prevalence of helmets on professional and Olympic skiers and riders, as well as new designs and technology, have helped improve the helmet's image.
The 2008-2009 National Ski Areas Association National Demographic Study of more than 130,000 skiers and riders nationwide showed:

• 77 percent of children 9 years old or younger wore ski helmets.


• 66 percent of children between 10 and 14 wore ski helmets.


• 63 percent of adults over the age of 65 wore ski helmets.


• Helmet usage by skiers and boarders aged 18 to 24 was 32 percent, representing a 78 percent increase in usage for this age group since the 2002-03 season, when only 18 percent wore helmets.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 2:56 PM | Permalink

Every year dozens of holiday skiers return to Britain on stretchers and a few in coffins. Now the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is launching a don't-drink-and-ski campaign in an attempt to cut the number injuring or killing themselves on the slopes of France, Switzerland and Italy.

Posters at airports, stations and ski resorts will warn Britons "that alcohol can affect you more quickly at high altitude and limit your awareness of danger and cold.
Your reactions are slower, reckless behavior can lead to crime, alcohol abuse can simply ruin your holiday". The message is also being printed on beermats.
The move comes after a government study found that a third of British skiers and snowboarders aged under 25 were involved in accidents or mishaps caused by a mixture of "alcohol, altitude and adrenalin". The British consulate in Lyons, central France, said that at least 30 Britons died in the French Alps last year, half aged under 25. The region attracts about 400,000 British tourists every winter.

He said officials were concerned that tour operators were promising high mountain drinking sessions to holidaymakers who were unaware of the risks. The campaign also aims to encourage holidaymakers to take out insurance to cover injuries caused during extreme sports such as snowboarding. A total of 31 per cent failed to do so, according to the Foreign Office survey.

Nedjib Benammar, head of orthopaedic surgery at Albertville hospital in the Alps, said that 70 per cent of skiing accidents occurred after lunch, with tiredness or alcohol a contributing factor. "The rate rises partly because people have too many drinks at lunchtime, and partly because they go on skiing right until the end of day when they really need a rest."

The surgeon -- a member of the French Centre for Study and Research on Snow and Avalanches -- said he wanted a limit "like there is a drink-drive limit". Under French law, drunken skiers can be prosecuted only if they cause an accident.

French resort officials often complain about drunk Britons, but Dr Benammar said they were no more accident prone than other nationalities. "They are bon-vivants, so everyone knows that they've been out drinking. But others drink in private," he said.

Posted by Linda Chalat at 2:27 PM | Permalink