Most Common Place for On-slope Fatalities: Blue Groomers

The Daily Coloradoan (article no longer online) had an interesting article last year (January 27) about injuries and fatalities on the slopes. Among the points made in the article:

• On average, 37 people die each year while skiing or snowboarding–about the same number of people who die from lightning strikes and tornadoes.
• Over the last 50 years, the annual rate of reported injuries from skiing and snowboarding has declined by 40 percent.
• Between 1990/91 and 2000/01, the rate of snowboarding injuries doubled.
• The most common location of fatalities is a groomed, blue slopes. (I’m suspecting that this is due either to collisions with riders and skiers, or collisions with trees just off the slope.)
• Helmet use is up. But while helmets can reduce the frequency and severity of less serious injuries, the rate of fatalities from head injuries has not decreased with the rise in helmet use. That’s because helmets don’t do much good for skiers or riders when they go over 12 miles per hour.
• The most common ski injury is to the knee; the most common snowboarding injury is to the wrist.

The lesson: Follow the responsibility code. Be alert. And wear a helmet–but don’t let it lull you into taking on more risky behavior than you otherwise would.