Surge in CA ski accidents links to weed, GoPros, and selfies.

[ski diva]

According to a report by the LA Times, California ski accidents are up nearly 50 percent over the last two years – statistics that news reports have attributed to a rise in GoPro use, selfie stops, and “THC-laced gummies.”

 

[VickiK]

Not surprised. I saw several folks cruising along, recording.
And gummies are popular and big business.

 

[santacruz skier]

Not surprised at all.

 

[Sheena]

This really isnt surprising. I wonder if it's true for other areas like CO with the legalization of substances

 

[RachelV]

It's hard to imagine gummies are more of an issue than alcohol, imho.

 

[santacruz skier]

It's hard to imagine gummies are more of an issue than alcohol, imho.

Thinking the same thing.

 

[Christy]

Does anyone have an LA Times subscription? Maybe you can copy and paste the original article? I thought accidents were super secret and resorts didn't release the stats. I'm glad that somehow the Times got them though!

 

[santacruz skier]

Does anyone have an LA Times subscription? Maybe you can copy and paste the original article? I thought accidents were super secret and resorts didn't release the stats. I'm glad that somehow the Times got them though!

paging @VickiK , @mustski , @skibum4ever , @WaterGirl to name a few.

 

[MotherDuck]

Does anyone have an LA Times subscription? Maybe you can copy and paste the original article?

I can see the original article, but it has several pages. It appears that LA Times got some stats from a state database of hospital visits.

"A Times analysis of a vast state database of hospital visits paints a much bigger picture: In California alone, more than 6,000 skiers and snowboarders visited emergency rooms in 2022 with injuries sustained on the slopes, according to data maintained by the California Department of Health Care Access and Information.

Of those, 193 were hurt so badly they had to be admitted to the hospital for extended treatment.

And the number of recorded injuries is rising at an alarming clip. Ski-related ER visits are up 50% from 2016 through 2022, the state data show. During that same period, the number of skiers and snowboarders remained essentially unchanged in California, according to industry data."

I thought accidents were super secret and resorts didn't release the stats.

You're right about that. The article also says:
"Public relations executives at Mammoth Mountain and top Tahoe resorts declined to answer questions about the number and types of injuries their customers sustain. And The Times’ efforts to talk with their ski patrollers, who usually are the first responders to accidents on the slopes, were rebuffed.

But former ski patrollers, emergency medical technicians and hospital staff in mountain towns confirmed they are seeing a rise in accidents — and place the blame on a few primary factors."

 

[VickiK]

Sorry, but if I come the LA Times article I'll post it.

 

[leia1979]

Anecdotally, because I ski more beginner terrain, I see a lot of obliviousness. People on phones. People who rented gear and just got on a chair lift with zero instruction and don't know how to stop. People who don't understand right of way. People who stop in the middle of a trail and block the path.

I got clipped by a guy bombing down the hill. Not even a sorry from him.

I came across a SF Chronicle article from 2022 talking about an increase in deaths:
"But it [the National Ski Areas Association] says the vast majority of the incidents involved men ages 21 to 30 who crashed into trees. Deaths typically occurred on blue-square runs — terrain suitable for intermediate skiers and riders — while catastrophic injuries (a term covering paralysis, limb loss or “significant neurological trauma”) happened on “all types of terrain,” according to another industry report."

 

[MotherDuck]

because I ski more beginner terrain, I see a lot of obliviousness

A ski patrol at Alpine Meadows told me 2-3 years ago that they were given instructions to be more restrict on those speeding at beginner zone. And he himself had taken away someone's pass. I wish all the ski patrols could be more proactive on enforcing mountain safety. But they are also mostly volunteers with the only benefit of a free ski pass.

Apart from skiing under influence(beers, gummies or GoPro), the LA article also mentioned the ever expanding terrain park is a big contributing factor for severe injuries(Dr. Howell below is a physician in Mammoth Hospital’s ER department).

"Also playing a role in the severity of the injuries Howell treats is the rapid expansion of terrain parks equipped with enormous ramps and giant halfpipes designed for the kind of soaring acrobatics you see in the Olympics.

Years ago, when kids built little ramps at the side of a ski run, ski patrollers would demolish them with shovels and threaten to confiscate the kids’ lift tickets.

These days, resorts build the ramps — massive ones — for their customers. They’re a big draw and feature heavily in marketing materials. The hype tempts inexperienced people to go faster, bigger and higher, with predictable results.

“It’s not uncommon for me to treat several patients on a given day who have suffered what amount to 40-foot falls when they overshoot the landing on big jumps,” Howell said. “These are just massive, massive falls, and they cause the kinds of injuries we only used to see in professional athletes.”"

 

[Christy]

During that same period, the number of skiers and snowboarders remained essentially unchanged in California, according to industry data.

I am very skeptical of this assertion, and we have no way of knowing if it's true. I think we may have talked about this here--ski resorts say visits are flat, but meanwhile, all of us are contending with more crowds when we ski. It is a fact that the areas in the WA Cascades are busier than ever; we see this in the fact that vehicle reservations are now required in places and parking lots regularly fill when they didn't used to. I suppose California could be different, but I don't see why it would be. So I personally wonder if the slopes are more crowded and that also contributes. Of course it would be terrible for business to admit that. Then they might have to do something like pay more ski patrol. Much easier to blame skiers for eating gummies.

 

[mustski]

I am very skeptical of this assertion, and we have no way of knowing if it's true. I think we may have talked about this here--ski resorts say visits are flat, but meanwhile, all of us are contending with more crowds when we ski. It is a fact that the areas in the WA Cascades are busier than ever; we see this in the fact that vehicle reservations are now required in places and parking lots regularly fill when they didn't used to. I suppose California could be different, but I don't see why it would be. So I personally wonder if the slopes are more crowded and that also contributes. Of course it would be terrible for business to admit that. Then they might have to do something like pay more ski patrol. Much easier to blame skiers for eating gummies.

This! There is no doubt that the Ikon resorts have been impacted by crowds - primarily on the weekends but there are also midweek increases. The biggest problems are on the beginner and intermediate terrain with the combination of crowds and low skill levels. I see this at Big Bear resorts and also at Palisades Tahoe. I can't speak to Mammoth because I only ski it in spring.

I also agree that alcohol is definitely at least as big a problem as gummies are! Two weeks ago we pulled up to a lift on the backside of Snow Valley. The guy behind us in line told his friend that he had been drinking beer all morning and wasn't even drunk. This is at 10:00 AM. Then he proceeds to ski out behind us and we had not yet sat on the chair. The liftie was on it thank goodness and stopped the lift, but not before it knocked him over. Luckily, we didn't have to ride up on his lap! I made note of his ski clothes and made sure to not drop into a run if he was behind me.

The resort pictured in the Video is Snow Summit (BBMR) and Ikon has turned that place into a ridiculous hazard on weekends! It is a river of people. I skied one run one Saturday last season and I was almost run over a least 3 times within a two minute period. Hence the ONE run! We skied weekends there for 15 years with no problem until Mammoth purchased the resort. To say the crowds are the same is an outright lie!

The article is behind a paywall.

 

[MotherDuck]

It is a fact that the areas in the WA Cascades are busier than ever; we see this in the fact that vehicle reservations are now required in places and parking lots regularly fill when they didn't used to. I suppose California could be different, but I don't see why it would be.

From my observation, the Epic and Ikon resorts in Tahoe are definitely getting busier than before, but some small independent resorts are seeing less traffic. So it's also possible that the total skier/rider population didn't change much, where they go has changed.

For example, to avoid the crowds at Epic and Ikon, I got a season pass at Homewood for 2022/2023 season. There were never lines more than 4-5 rows. Often time, I got to ski right into an empty chair. And on powder days, there is no need to rush to chase pow and I can make fresh tracks runs after runs after runs and only see a few other skier/snowborders insight. I really enjoyed the feeling that I had the mountain all to myself.

It took me a while to adjust after switching back to Epic this season and I have been avoiding weekend visits, especially Saturdays. The parking reservation system, although annoying, does seem to help with crowd control. 2-5 years ago when I had Ikon, I have had the experience of driving to Palisades on a weekend but couldn't find parking at all. That was not the worst. I also had a couple of experiences of not able to reach Palisade on a weekend after a good storm. The road 89 leading to Palisade was like a parking lot. I learned to check the Palisade operation status and confirmed the parking lot was full. Many people including me decided to make u-turns and head to somewhere else. One time we went to play snowball fight and the other time we went to Boreal and were able to find parking and get fresh pow.

Another Tahoe area resort Sugar Bowl limits the number of passes they sell each year as a way of crowd control. I went there 2 days during the spring break last year and didn't feel it was significantly more crowded than 3 years ago when I was there.

 

[leia1979]

Another Tahoe area resort Sugar Bowl limits the number of passes they sell each year as a way of crowd control. I went there 2 days during the spring break last year and didn't feel it was significantly more crowded than 3 years ago when I was there.

Really great points about redistribution of people! We went to Northstar for the first time a couple months ago. It was so packed that we hated it. I was super tense when skiing because there were people everywhere. The next day we went to Sugar Bowl instead. It was a night and day difference!

We have Epic passes but just go to Kirkwood because it's the least busy of the three Epic resorts around.

 

[santacruz skier]

Yeah, assume weekends are a zoo. We used to see cars lined up for 10 miles to get to Palisades when leaving Tahoe City on a Saturday to go home.

Skied one afternoon on a Sunday at Heavenly and once on the mountain, the crowds thinned out. But that was because I know the mountain pretty well and opted for the low angle tree skiing which was very good and not crowded at all.

Kirkwood has always been a good bet as a bit far if staying in No lake tahoe and at least 45 min in good weather from south shore. However, bay area skiers/snowboarders drive up for the day in droves as it's under 4 hours. Lodging is really nice at Kirkwood but pretty pricey for the weekend warriors.

OP mentioned Sugar Bowl and Homewood which are definitely less crowded. Also Sierra at Tahoe...

 

[elemmac]

I am very skeptical of this assertion, and we have no way of knowing if it's true. I think we may have talked about this here--ski resorts say visits are flat, but meanwhile, all of us are contending with more crowds when we ski.

I thought that “skier visits” are up, but number of participants is relatively flat…which would explain more crowding, and more visits would mean more injuries. Maybe alcohol, gummies or action cameras play a part…but I doubt they can attribute the full 50% rise in injury to those reasons alone.

Article from Snow Brains with graphs of participation and visits here.

 

[PollySid]

According to a report by the LA Times, California ski accidents are up nearly 50 percent over the last two years – statistics that news reports have attributed to a rise in GoPro use, selfie stops, and “THC-laced gummies.”

There are so many “skiers” who are really just straightliners. The only place I’ve seen a “no straightlining” sign is at Beaver Creek. Equipment and grooming is excellent; unfortunately, this seems to encourage many skiers to Be overconfident and ski way too fast. I’m amazed there aren’t MORE accidents from out of control speedsters.
It is a thing of beauty to see excellent skiers who are always in control.

 

[elemmac]

The only place I’ve seen a “no straightlining” sign is at Beaver Creek.

I saw a similar [big & orange] sign at Alyeska this past week…first time I’ve seen a sign like that.