Roth on Ski Safety
In many of my entries, I talk about skiing safety, but I think it needs more emphasis, maybe even continual emphasis. Here are the seven rules of slope safety to keep you and others out of danger:
1. Always stay in control and be able to stop or avoid other people or objects.
2. People ahead of you have the right of way. It’s your responsibility to avoid them.
3. Don’t stop where you obstruct a trail or aren’t visible from above.
4. Whenever starting downhill or merging on to a trail, look uphill and yield to others.
5. Always use devices to help prevent runaway equipment.
6. Observe all posted signs and warnings. Keep off closed trails and out of closed areas
7. Prior to using any lift, you must have the knowledge and ability to load, ride, and unload safely.
I’ve been thinking hard about the code of skiing. The most important in my mind is number two which doesn’t apply to you but really applies to all the people who are going to pass you.
As a senior skier I tend to ski slower and more carefully along the side of the trail and respect the code by announcing when I’m going to pass a skier well before I do. I ski at a speed that allows many people to pass me. I feel there must be a way to educate others who, when passing me, don’t say a word or shout “watch out”. I learned to ski in the 60’s and 70’s and announcing my intention is ingrained in me. The big question is how to indoctrinate many others who don’t apply this simple safety and courteous practice? If this was the armed service, their teaching methods would be to repeat it 100 times until it was engrained into your brain.
I think one solution would be to put up a permanent banner in the lift line where no one will miss it. If they take 10 runs a day they’ll see it 10 times. Unless they can’t read, it should eventually sink in. Wouldn’t that be nice? It’s the most important rule on the slopes and would prevent many accidents. I also think the logo for the Snow Angel Foundation is one we should all adopt. I plan on getting a patch to wear on my jacket just to give them the exposure. I know that Killington and other ski areas have partnered with the Foundation and will give the cause a great deal of exposure.
Last year at Whiteface the Foundation did have signs up in two locations in the lift line that said, “respect the zone”, meaning the 15-foot radius that is the “no ski zone” as one is passing. The signs were very small. They should be banners across the entire lift line so no one can miss them.
I avoid weekend skiing just because it’s crowded with hundreds of people zooming by you at speeds where they may be in control of or not! I also try to ski the wider trails and stick to the edges to give people the most room to pass. Lastly, I look for the most out of the way, unpopular trails on any mountain. Believe it or not there are many.
Today, our equipment is designed better and better for safer skiing. We have helmets to help prevent head injuries, heated equipment to prevent frostbite, and even inflatable vests for speed racers who might have a bad fall. Maybe someone should design ski clothing with airbags!
However, no matter how much you do personally, it’s the other guy you must worry about! I now have the ski pole extensions designed by SKI GUARDIAN and called MY SKI SPACE. Let’s see how much they’ll help keep people away.
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Totally agree with telegraphing your intention to pass. As a Level 3 Cert instructor that was part of every class. Unfortunately, the younger generation never adopted the practice. Big YES for the banner idea!!!!!!
8. Don’t suddenly turn across the hill.
Depending on telegraphing your intentions is fraught with danger. How many times, when overtaking a cyclist, do you yell ON YOUR LEFT, only to have someone turn their head to the left and cross in front of you? The problem is assuming that the person isn’t listening to their earbuds or they don’t have hearing difficulties. I am definitely more than 15 feet away from someone on the slope when I pass.
Chic, thanks for the positive response. Had the ski guardians on my poles yesterday at mount snow and not too many incidents!?
My wife and I are 69 and 67 respectively. We avoid crowded mountains on weekends and ski weekdays whenever possible. This is my 60th year skiing but my wife didn’t start until her mid thirties and she’s a careful (read slow) intermediate. She only skis greens and gentle blues so she’s not a moving obstacle on blacks. Last year she was broadsided by an out of control teenage girl who skied away without saying a word. Last weekend we were slowly skiing up to a lift line when an adolescent sped between us while yelling “move it!” Yesterday an adolescent skied through the corral at speed without saying anything and gave my wife a death look when she said “That’s pretty rude.” There was no reason for him to cut her off because the mountain was so uncrowded there were empty chairs going up. Killington has recently initiated safety patrols (orange jackets) whose job is to watch out for yahoos, warn them first, and pull their pass if there’s a second infraction. We saw one of them pull a boarder out of line and politely give him a stern warning and then broadcast his description to the other orange jackets over the radio before letting the kid go. I applaud Killington for taking this step and think more mountains should adapt this practice. I ski 40+ days a year and have seen some outrageously dangerous behavior.
Thanks to Killington and ski safely on the slopes.
I was at Mt snow and saw zero ski patroller and a group of people at the slow down signs asking the skiers to slow down.
as a 26 year patroller we used to punch tickets and passes as a warning so if they were stopped again the next patroller would know they had been warned and would pull their ticket or pass
with the hole in it they would shamefully have to go get their pass replaced
out of bound skiers in avalanche areas would have their passes pulled and if they were rude we would have them charged as the ski area is in a national park
Thank you for your thoughtful artical. Safety is important as is courtesy. The rudeness you describe is disheartening but fitting to the present time. And, kudos to Killington for its safety patrol and pulling tickets – all areas should be doing this.
Chic, thanks for the positive response. Had the ski guardians on my poles yesterday at mount snow and not too many incidents!?
Mike,
Thanks for the article about safety. We should not have to fear so much when on the slopes and ski areas should pay more heed to this important concern. Thanks to Killington for trying to do something about it. Hopefully your banner could read SPEED, SPACE, SELF to get Snow Angel’s simple message across. We need to find a sponsor to produce a couple thousand of such banners and distribute them to the ski areas.
Maybe a helmet manufacturer? David?
I totally agree about your safety rules, especially #2. I just am recovering from a disregard of this rule. I’m a West Coast skier, age 81, and this happened at Alpine Meadows. I was hit by a snowboarder going fast who hit me from behind and to the left. He didn’t even slow down or stop. Result was 2 broken ribs and a concussion. Fortunately my ski buddy was right behind me. Although he didn’t see the impact he got my skis off and called the ski patrol. They came quickly and got me to their First Aid Station by sled. They diagnosed my injury and suggested I get an X-ray to confirm. Kudos to the Alpine Ski Patrol and to their prompt reply to my report and safety suggestions.
This was my first ski trip of 2025 and I was concerned about my skiing ability and endurance after hardly skiing at all the last 2 years due to caring for my wife. I never expected to be blind-sided by an out of control, speeding snowboarder. I’m hoping to be able to ski this season after the estimated 4-6 week recovery and don’t intend to let this unsafe behavior deter me from enjoying the sport that I love. I’ll certainly be cautious as I return to the slopes.
I heartily endorse and support your safety suggestions.
So sorry to hear of your mishap. When we ski we are playing the percentages. We must do everything we can to protect ourselves and others. I now also have a flashing led red light on the back of my helmet.
Thanks to Killington and ski safely on the slopes.
I was at Mt snow and saw zero ski patroller and a group of people at the slow down signs asking the skiers to slow down.
Groomed trails actually frighten me. It is the combination of grooming to such an efficient degree which eliminates most, if not all turbulences nature creates on mountain trails. Turbulences includes bumps, mounds, boulders, etc. With these kept or created on the trail it requires skill and control of speed to avoid. Under control skiing would be needed to handle them or to avoid them. Otherwise, speed is un-govern. Skiing is an unsupervised sport and with today’s selfishness and low morals toward other people, this cocktail is powerfully dangerous. I feel sorry for the ski patrol. Their creator, C. Minot Dole just wanted to help the injured get to safety. Not become the police. I would like to see more mountain personnel on the trails and to have authority to deactivate, once they are caught up with, dangerous action people’s RFID pass when a mountain personnel witnesses a dangerous action on the trail. These mountain personnel need to have a camera lenses gadget that follows their eye and the photo/video can be downloaded to base personnel. When the violator’s RFID pass fails to open their liftline gate they will be directed to go to the ticket center and they’ll be confronted by base personnel showing a big screen picture of the cause of their loss of privileges. We are going to have to go back to the old adage of “school of hard knocks.”
G pod idea, maybe very hard to get camera on them?