Going downhill

Art Bentley

It took a tragedy as it often does, but resorts are suddenly paying

more attention to reckless skiers and snowboarders.

Mountain High in Wrightwood, 55 miles from Glendale via the Angeles

Crest Highway, launched its Mountain Safety Team in early December.

Members wear bright yellow jackets bearing that legend in large letters

on the back. They’re job is to be conspicuous on the slopes, especially

at places where accidents are more likely to happen, such as trail

intersections and run-outs to lifts.

They and their counterparts at a growing number of resorts around the

country are not out there to prevent bad falls or impacts against fixed

objects. Their mission is to forestall, if possible, collisions between

skiers, which can have fatal consequences. However, they can and do pull

lift tickets and are encouraged to do so when the situation warrants.

“Since a lot of our customers are younger and less experienced and not

that familiar with the safety code, we decided we needed to do it,”

marketing director Brad Wilson said.

The inspiration was a criminal case in Colorado. In mid-November a

jury convicted Nathan Hall, a former ski racer, of negligent homicide.

He became the nation’s first skier to be found criminally negligent by a

jury for his behavior on the slopes.

On the last day of the season in 1997, Hall, then a lift attendant at

Vail, was skiing extremely fast down the mountain after the chairs had

stopped running. He struck and killed another skier who was crossing the

trail. Hall, who will be sentenced later this month, could spend up to

six years in prison.

A perusal of the case file is sobering. A former high school racer,

Hall was a very good skier. His coach testified that he was ‘talented

and aggressive.’ The coach also said that under his tutelage Hall and

his teammates had been well schooled in skiing safely.

Apparently, Hall had a short memory. A county court judge witnessed

events leading up to the fatal crash, although he did not see the

collision. He testified that Hall was skiing straight down the fall line

very fast with his ski tips in the air, his weight back and his arms

extended in a vain attempt to maintain control.

Suddenly, he encountered a mogul field. As he flew off a bump, unable

to stop, turn or slow down, the victim, Alan Cobb of Denver, was

traversing across the slope directly below him. Hall hit Cobb “at such a

high speed that the force of impact between his ski and the victim’s head

fractured the thickest part of the victim’s skull,” according to the

file.

The investigating officer for the Eagle County sheriff’s office

testified that a “significant amount of speed is necessary to generate

force sufficient to cause this injury.”

He also said he knew of two other fatal collisions at Vail during his

11 years of service.

According to the file, Hall couldn’t have plausibly maintained he was

unaware his behavior was dangerous.

“Hall’s knowledge and training could give rise to the reasonable

inference that he was aware of the possibility that by skiing so fast and

out of control he might collide with and kill another skier unless he

regained control and slowed down,” the file notes.

None of this is written to cast aspersions on the sport.

Fatal accidents are extremely rare. For 30 years, skiing has afforded

this writer more pleasure than any other sport he’s tried and he has no

intention of giving it up.

However, any skier who does not realize that any slope is inherently

dangerous is crazy. The sensible not to mention responsible thing to do

is simply to act accordingly.

“It’s mostly just common sense but you’d be surprised how many people

don’t exhibit it,” Wilson said. “We want to educate people so that they

understand they’re responsible for their actions. Skiing is no different

from driving a vehicle.”

The easiest thing to remember is this: You are responsible for the

safety of the person in front of you. He may be making more turns than a

slalom racer. He may change direction unexpectedly. He may stop

suddenly to answer his cell phone. Nonetheless, if you hit him, you’re

at fault.

But how do you reduce the risk of being run over from behind? Perhaps

the best way is to take a long look to the rear before beginning a run.

Seek openings in the traffic before proceeding. You won’t have to wait

long for them. A pack mentality governs a lot of skiers and

snowboarders. They tend to ski in groups. People move down slopes in

pulses. Each time you stop, find an opening before you start again.

While in motion, keep your eyes moving as when driving. Check the

traffic on both sides frequently. Listen, especially for the loud crunch

that heralds the presence of a snowboarder. Then pray.