Skiers Push For Change After Accidents

[SkiGAP]

Following the thread with interest. Two things occur to me.

One, there is a difference between *losing* control and skiing out of control. I mean, you can lose control if you hit an ice patch or catch an edge causing you to skid or go down and slide. I venture this has happened to almost everyone at some point in their skiing career. In this situation, you can hit someone without being negligent, in my view. It might still be your fault, but it would be understandable. It seems above that some posts are grouping all "out of control" situations into the same bucket, which I believe would be unfair...

Two, I wonder if those who we refer to as skiing out of control actually *know* they are out of control? They might only figure that out when they try to stop or turn. I hope very few people are intentionally skiing out of control, and rather are unintentionally skiing beyond their ability. So they need to understand their own abilities and mortality, to care about their surroundings (terrain and people), and t0 enjoy more than just speed. For this reason, I agree on the advertisements (for culture change) and on lessons being affordable.

And yes, I have been taken out by skiers and boarders who I believed to be out of control. I too want it to stop, so I am trying to put myself in the head of those people we are talking about, to better think about how to improve the situation.

 

[Christy]

Two, I wonder if those who we refer to as skiing out of control actually *know* they are out of control? They might only figure that out when they try to stop or turn. I hope very few people are intentionally skiing out of control, and rather are unintentionally skiing beyond their ability.

It's probably the same people that tailgate and cut people off when they merge. They aren't thinking about the "what ifs".

 

[bounceswoosh]

I feel so conflicted about these ladies' intent. On one hand, I can't think of a lot of sports where just participating on a non-elite level puts you in so much danger. I mean, we're talking a sport that from a physical perspective, people of "a certain age" can enjoy themselves, get exercise, and reap the mental benefits of a day outdoors. That is huge. On the other hand, I am antsy about what regulation would look like. Not that they are asking for anything extreme, but the US is known for its overreaction to liability concerns ...