Skiers Beware. Skier Dies on Aspen Mountain

http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20130206/NEWS/130209920/1077&ParentProfile=1058

A woman who was standing on a ski run was run into by another skier. She died of head trauma. Both were wearing helmets.

A few days ago I heard a man talking on the phone after he had been run into by another skier. Broke his clavicle (collar bone) and injured his sternum. He was just standing on a run when another skier ran into him.

When you stop please make sure you stop on the side of the run in full view of oncoming skiers.

 

Over the course of my skiing life which spans nearly 40 years, I can count the collisions I have had on one hand. However, I have been involved in two in the last three weeks, alone. I have NO idea what people are thinking, and the quality of the skiing I have observed is atrocious.

It's a dangerous sport involving high-speed and stationary objects. Stuff happens, and when it does, it's not pretty. The laws of physics are not suspended on the mountain.

However, perhaps the most dismaying fact is that a plaintiff's attorney will now get ahold of it. The skier's code has a number of conflicts, even within the simple framework in which it is presented. And, this will likely end up in a criminal AND civil court.

Sad, all around.

CW

 

Snow boarders are especially hard to see bcuz they sit down. Sometimes behind a mogul. Have had some close calls in past years. Now I just assume some kid is sitting where I can't see them.

 

looks like another sport is going to get screwed up by idiots, lawyers and insurance companies

 

Operators have, for years, been insulated from liability. Although, least season a 14-year old boy died in an in-bound slide here at Vail (blunt force trauma). His family has sued, and the case passed summary judgment (against the operator, Vail Resorts). Ultimately, I think VR will prevail as the skier entered through a lower gate and hiked up to a closed gate, BUT the very fact that VR didn't win an outright dismissal was a bit surprising. Too much insulation and the operators may have less incentive to do their job correctly.

However, on-mountain collisions have often resulted in charges and litigation. For a while now. Problem is any fool with a credit card can get on the mountain...

CW

 

Yes. The laws are written to protect the ski industry. Several injuries on every mountain every day. If they had to litigate each one they would be bankrupt in fairly short order.

 

I've been going to Aspen twice a year for the past 15 years,had only one accident a while back when an instructor suddenly made a sharp turn right in my path (he himself was trying to avoid a sitting snowboarder).
He ended up being evacuated to emergency room with broken ribs and clavicle.
Last December went with my boys to DeerValley for a week,never before was so scared of skiing.
No snowboarders but skiing etiquette virtually non existent,Ajax is Versailles in comparison,families with small kids spread accross the run taking pictures, the worst.
On top of it, lots of kamikaze skiers going flat out because they can't turn....
Horror.....

 

Well, these operators almost certainly have extensive insurance that would cover the cost of the defenses, but the insulation that they have received has allowed them to under-insure. Worse, it breaks the chain of liability, which is an important tool in making sure the operators do at least the minimum to make the mountain safe. It's a kind of moral hazard problem.

Recently, here at Vail, VR has terminated grooming operations after 0830. As a result, the mountain is getting skied off faster, is much rougher and slicker and more complaints are coming in due to the poor(er) grooming. Vail has always prided (and sold) itself on top-notch grooming and corduroy. I'll wager a number of injuries are resulting from it, too.

While everyone realizes this is a cost-cutting effort to reduce fuel and labor costs and wear and tear on the cats, the question is whether VR has made the mountain less safe in some way and can get away with that due to their insulation from liability. Without liability attaching, who can hold them accountable for their insufficient actions?

CW

 

I've had trouble with sitting snowboarders too. You get these guys who will sit down right in the middle of the path and take their time strapping in. It's like sitting in the middle of the road with cars whizzing by.

 

I have never understood stopping in the fall line, good way to get smashed.

R.I.P. to them, anyway....

 

Personal responsibility rests with the skier.....much like maritime boat operations, if you hit ANYTHING it means YOU were the one failing to maintain control.

Hopefully.

That does not absolve idiots stopping in the fall line tho...

 

See Europe...skiing there is a much different affair...

 

I think I'll stick to mountain climbing----much safer.

Sad about the deaths though.

Pics not far from Aspen.

Dave
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^^
"Knife Edge?"

 

Yep, not that difficult, but sure is intimidating. No worries about someone else bumping into you though.

Dave

 

Grooming is down in Snowmass as well. For the last several years every blue run was groomed every other day. And there was always a noon groom. Now most runs are groomed once or twice a week and no noon grooms.

I just ski on groomed runs preferably that night rarely I will ski if groomed two nights before if the snow is good. they seem to blame this on a major effort to get SkiCo's carbon footprint down. Not going to make a difference if nobody skis. there have been no lift lines where I ski since after New Years. Vicious cycle. If they keep cutting expenses on grooming fewer people will come to ski. Sounds like Vail is in the same mode.

 

Previous Winter was the worst,skiing on Ajax was a torture for my back and my knees,it was like skiing on concrete with rocks sticking out.
Snowmass and Highland wasn't better either.
Going there in 10 days,hope it is better......

 

Cannot comment on Aspen's conditions, but here in Vail, the conditions have been improving. We had a good sized dump about a week and a half ago, and it's currently snowing.

I saw an article about a month ago saying that we were behind even last year's snowfall and base. And, as mentioned elsewhere, the grooming was definitely causing debris to come through.

I was up on Tuesday and the conditions were okay. I'd expect about the same to the SW. However, I would defer to my Aspen-based experts for their comments.

CW

 

I'd say it's up to the skier to decide what is safe to ski. Simple as that. Depending on someone else for your safety is like getting a green light at the crosswalk and stepping off the curb without looking both ways.

I would also assume that the people running the resort also ski themselves, or know at least one person they care about who skis there. Unless someone is a psychopath, the idea of holding even one person's safety in your hands is strong motivation to make responsible decisions.

Would the absence of lawyers from the planet, make people suddenly reckless with each other's safety? Not if they are decent human beings. Could the presence of lawyers cause things to be so impossibly safe that personal responsibility no longer exists, and anything fun is done away with for liability reasons. That, I can see.

 

While I am a proponent of tort reform (and I'm a lawyer), imagine the consequences when it's more difficult to hold parties accountable for their bad actions. This is, in effect, a product liability case.

Obviously, when I ski, it's up to me to decide what's safe and unsafe. That said, my last BIG injury was a tib plat frac due, IMO, TOTALLY due to a grooming failure. I realize, however, that skiing is a contact sport and there is attendant risk. For which I assume some liability. I also realize that no matter how good the grooming is, the mountain cannot be made entirely "safe". But, don't tell me that operators ought not to be above liability for their failures and mistakes, either.

It's a tension that won't be easily balanced. Remember, though, that it takes TWO to even initiate a suit. A client AND an attorney. Both have an opportunity to re-think the issues.

CW

 

Conditions are great here and have been for several days.

Life is good.

 

I was at Mary Jane today. Conditions are pretty darn good.

 

Winter Park generally has great snow. it's so cold.


BTW I taught handicapped skiing there before I moved to Aspen. Best handicapped skiing program in the world. the hc racers blew by me like I was standing still. LOL

 

I bet it was pretty gratifying to work with the handcapped skiers. Amazing just to watch how some of them get on a lift! Good stuff.

 

I struggle with that concept. Did they create a hazard? That is like blaming the State of Colorado for keeping a highway open when black ice suddenly appears and you hit it and lose control. No one forced anyone to ski or to drive. We decide to buy a lift ticket and accept certain risks and liabilities in doing so. As for out-of-control skiing, whole different matter--this gets to negligence. If someone can't or won't ski "under control" at all times, they shouldn't be on that run (or highway). Get better or get off and stay off!