Nearest of misses

Hey how 'bout that Pine Knot..rated a diamond today...everybody just kinda pickin their way down and then near the bottom some men came zoomin down, one launched off a whale and jumped right over the very top of a little girl!!! She was only about 3.5 ft tall. He went all "OMG" in flight and while flailing about, his ski tail hit her helmet as he passed over her.

I was stopped, witnessed the whole thing and yet I could not believe what I had just saw.

He was a large guy and made a big jump going fast....if he'ld landed on her or hit her.

I skied down to her mother, who was freaking out, then over to the dude who had collapsed after landing and was just laying on the ground.

I went over to him and I told him about it. Yes sir.

He just laid there, saying over and over " I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry...".

I think the guy was sorta in shock and did feel extremely bad about it,fwiw.

But seriously, it was a very bad, nightmare scenario near miss.

People have no business skiing like that on a packed narrow trail, holiday period,, and with the absolute landmine field that Pine Knot was today.


Yes Virginia, there truly are Guardian Angels. I saw the handy work of one today. PTL!

It wasn't me! I promise!

Glad to hear she's ok.
 

I've seen several major near misses this season.  My son was hit by a boarder that took off and his Nysef coach couldn't track the guy down.  Also a ski school class had an out of control boarder nearly miss a serious accident.  The boarder tried to elude both the instructor and a safety patrol staffer.  He was eventually stopped and his ticket taken.  He then again escaped a certain discussion with state troopers but his name tracked back to him from the ticket and this person now no longer welcome at WF and is on a no ticket sale list.

I'm sure that in part its due to more folks sharing less terrian but that is no excuse for skiing out of control or unsafely because we must SHARE the slopes we do have.  Per the skier / rider responsibility code those down hill from you have the right of way unconditionally.

There is no leeway for skiing too fast right now - please ski / ride safely and use your head.  Think of how bad you would feel about hurting a small child not to mention the potential legal consequences to you.

Coach is right - it's about reduced terrain, and also IMO icy surfaces.  Plus early season people seem to be full of "energy."

Neve got clocked by a snowboarder on Thursday.  I made a mistake that I won't make again - I was skiing in front of her.  We'd been taking turns playing follow the leader and I was ahead. Big mistake.  By being behind you can fend off snowboarders or fast skiers and also by being in front I had to get back up the hill to get to her.  Luckily a patroller was right there and he picked he up and stayed with her until I got there.  Not a good feeling.

Whiteface was a little scary at times yesteday, lots of people on limited terrain, icy patches and many skiers on terrain they had no right to ski(ability wise) and even worse taking their young children along. As Harvey said, ski behind your kids for protection. Its also a reason I wont ski with music, I want to have some warning time even if only a split second to ward off or try to avoid anyone out of control.

Ah, the pleasures of holiday skiing. This year Xmas week is like most Thanksgivings, it seems. Good reason to buy the restricted non holiday pass and save some money.

Is it just me, or, has the popularity of snowboarding increased this stuff over the past decade? I swear, almost all of the incidents I read of involve one of those little lunch tray brats. My elbows get real sharp when one of them tries that stuff around me.

Saw the same thing years ago at Sugarbush. Some yahoo jumps a big roller on a blue rated trail, only thing was on the other side was a trail that merged into that trail. You couldn't see it from above. He almost took out a line of little ones playing follow the leader in ski school. Stupid. If you can't see whats on the other side maybe you shouldn't jump it.

Benny Profane wrote

Is it just me, or, has the popularity of snowboarding increased this stuff over the past decade? I swear, almost all of the incidents I read of involve one of those little lunch tray brats. My elbows get real sharp when one of them tries that stuff around me.

In case any of you haven't seen this. Heh, even though the kid is being respectful, it sounds like the patroller has had enough.

What is going to stop this behavior?

My over-60 friend was hit by a snowboarder at a Maine resort last week. She was standing at the edge of the trail waiting for her group to join up.  By all accounts, it was a deliberate hit (or done on a dare) because the 5 other snowboarders were standing below watching and laughing.  It was no laughing matter for her - she has a number of serious bruises and a torn muscle in her shoulder from the hit.

How about the snowboarders who think it's funny to ski into the lift lines and knock over people?  I saw that, too.  

Where is the Ski Patrol and why aren't they pulling tickets?

Last year, DH was clobbered by a first day beginner on a blue slope at Killington.  She couldn't turn or stop, and ran into him, knocking him off his feet.  As a result, he tore both R and L meniscus. She told him that he was in her way???? Really?  She wanted to click back into her skis and go on down.  I told her if she moved before the ski patrol got there, I would dog her down the hill until I found one.  When the patroller got to my DH, he escorted her back to the Magic Carpet to learn to ski!!!!  Seriously.  Yeah, and she was all apologetic once the ski patroller got there.  

Are the resorts too afraid to violate the so-called rights of the little thugs?  To hurt their wittle feelings?  Sniff, sniff.  

The Skier's Responsibility Code has been around for ages.  The Ski Patrol used to clip tickets as a warning and pull them on the second offense.  They weren't afraid to pull for a first time serious offense either.

If the Patrollers start enforcing it, the word will get around and the behavior will stop.  So what if this is the strictest mountain in NY?   It will also be the safest for the rest of us.  

James, he has had enough. Snowbasin fired him today... I feel pretty bad for him even though he was clearly out of line.

I was taking a break just above the spot where Broadway, Upper Valley and Easy Street all begin (the Coon Pit) at Whiteface today. There was a boarder just above the drop down to easy street who had apparently had enough of snowboarding ... he decided to simply send his board down Easy Street. He literally just let it go down ... on it's way to smashing into the Lookout Mountain Triple loading area, it VERY narrowly missed hitting two people. When I say narrowly ... I mean less than three feet in both cases.

This was NOT a kid ... I'd say the guy was probably in his early 20's. Based on his appearance, I'd have to guess Queens, Staten Island or Philadelphia. The worst part of holiday periods ... Tourons!!!!

Christmas week always seems to be short on snow and open terrain and long on inconsiderate skiers and boarders.  

Face4Me wrote

I was taking a break just above the spot where Broadway, Upper Valley and Easy Street all begin (the Coon Pit) at Whiteface today. There was a boarder just above the drop down to easy street who had apparently had enough of snowboarding ... he decided to simply send his board down Easy Street. He literally just let it go down ... on it's way to smashing into the Lookout Mountain Triple loading area, it VERY narrowly missed hitting two people. When I say narrowly ... I mean less than three feet in both cases.

This was NOT a kid ... I'd say the guy was probably in his early 20's. Based on his appearance, I'd have to guess Queens, Staten Island or Philadelphia. The worst part of holiday periods ... Tourons!!!!

 
If that would have hit someone and they did it willfully it would have been assault with a deadly weapon - just like throwing a rock off a highway bridge.  I would have went over and given that guy a few choice words and reported him to the safety patrol folks - since he would have been walking down he would have been easy to for them to snag

Tourons are a hazard to ADK society but we do need their money.  To all tourist folks don't be a Touron - please be considerate and safe, please enjoy yourselves, and then please come back and spend more money.

Last year I was on Showcase and got clipped from behind by a skier.  He told me I skied in front of him.  I informed him that I had the right of way as I was downhill from him.  He reluctantly asked if I was OK and I told him I would prefer an apology rather than an inquiry.

As for small kids, there is nothing cuter than a toddler/pre-schooler on skis and nothing as nerve wracking on a crowded day.  I always skied right behind them, to absorb the impact of an out-of-control skier.  I love seeing little munchkins on the mountain but we had a lot of near misses and I do not miss the anxiety of a small child on the mountain.

How could that be a near miss, that boarder was in control, was never going to hit the man in blue and was going for a little air. Skiing this holiday myself and my seven year old son have had dozens of closer incidents this week.
Mostly skiers in a full blown wedge tuck unable and never taught how to stop or avoid anyone. I really feel that ski patroller has issues with the younger generation. He now has time to cool off.

Jamesdeluxe wrote

Benny Profane wrote

Is it just me, or, has the popularity of snowboarding increased this stuff over the past decade? I swear, almost all of the incidents I read of involve one of those little lunch tray brats. My elbows get real sharp when one of them tries that stuff around me.

In case any of you haven't seen this. Heh, even though the kid is being respectful, it sounds like the patroller has had enough.

Oh Lord, there was an entire thread about this one over at TGR with thousands of views, and it really went viral on Facebook. The TGR thread has been deleted by it's author. a major act of cowardice. Poor patroller got fired just for dropping the F bomb. Patrolling is a thankless job. It's an ongoing situation, hope he gets hired elsewhere in Utah. That little s**t and his buddy whined a man's job away. Kids these days. I want to find the cameraman and taze him.

btw, Benny boards. Not much these days, but I've got a ton of days on the snow on the lunch tray.


edit. Wierd how the text turned into a link.

funny like a clown

Gunny J wrote

How could that be a near miss, that boarder was in control, was never going to hit the man in blue and was going for a little air. Skiing this holiday myself and my seven year old son have had dozens of closer incidents this week.
Mostly skiers in a full blown wedge tuck unable and never taught how to stop or avoid anyone. I really feel that ski patroller has issues with the younger generation. He now has time to cool off.

OK, here I go again. The moron actually jumped right in between an instructor and a tiny, what, three, four year old in total beginners land. I'm not being a drama queen when I say that he could have killed the kid, if he caught his back edge and backslammed him. Been there, almost done it, but I was just falling as I was learning once. The instructor is not really instructing at that point, he's just out there tending to his little flock, mostly against this stupidity. Maybe it's because I'm from NJ and have had figures of authority say similar things to me when I was a dumb little moron at times, I'm not shocked at his little outburst. It was wrong, though. But, unemployment wrong? Hell, the kid deserved a talking to for his clothes, to start.

Skiing is populated by some of the most selfish, clueless and entitled morons I have ever met. I'm shocked sometimes at the bad behavior I encounter at ski hills, and, yes, by young snowboarders who think they bought a lift ticket to a video game.

Hard to make a judgement when you weren't there but a few observations:

The kid says "he gets stopped all the time for going too fast."  That doesn't exactly help his case.

And the patroller dropping the Fbomb indicates some anger or attitude that should be absent from this kind of interaction.

Here's the moment in the video when the boarder gets close to the bystanding skier:



I'm no boarder but it looks like plenty of other kickers are coming up so he didn't have to pick the one right next to the guy in blue. The trail (by EC standards) is practically deserted.  At least the guy in blue was facing up hill.  What scares the crap out of me is being passed (or Neve getting passed) with inches to spare when I'm skiing down hill. If I chose to make a wider turn, I'm toast.

Also interesting that at the end of the video someone else comes very close to the patroller or host and it doesn't even get noticed.

ausable skier wrote

I would have went over and given that guy a few choice words and reported him to the safety patrol folks - since he would have been walking down he would have been easy to for them to snag.

There was a patroller who was standing right there when it happened. He was taking video of his kid coming down from Summit Express, so he didn't see it happen. Funny ... when I was yelling "Runaway Board", the patroller never even looked over. I guess he didn't hear me.

I went over to him and told him what happened. The guy was walking down the Easy Street hill and the patroller went over to him. I didn't stick around to see what happened next.

Benny Profane wrote

 Skiing is populated by some of the most selfish, clueless and entitled morons I have ever met. I'm shocked sometimes at the bad behavior I encounter at ski hills.....

That is so true Benny. Just last Friday I found myself thinking that same thing. After years of observing it, I finally put a tag to it.....Ski Snobs.