Tips on Skiing Safely From the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
A day of family skiing in Canada ended with actress Natasha Richardson hospitalized with a severe brain injury. While this type of injury may be the exception and not the rule, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons offers some important information and tips on how to maximize safety while on the slopes.
- Be aware of the cold temperatures and slippery surfaces those frigid temperatures can produce on the ski slopes
- Always wear proper clothing and protective gear such as: helmets, goggles and padding, and make sure equipment is in good working order and used properly.
- Avoid cold muscles, tendons and ligaments they are more susceptible to injury. To avoid this, do some light exercises for at least 3 to 5 minutes, then slowly and gently stretch the muscles to be exercised, holding each stretch for at least 30 seconds
- When falling, try to fall on your side or buttocks. Roll over naturally, turning your head in the direction of the roll.
- Know and abide by all rules of the sport in which you are participating.
- Never ski, sled, ice skate, snowmobile or snowboard alone.
- Avoid participating in sports when experiencing pain or exhaustion.
- Take frequent water breaks to prevent dehydration and overheating.
- Become familiar with the whereabouts of fences, trees, rocks, open water and patches of ice.
- Stay on marked trails and avoid potential avalanche areas, such as steep hillsides with little vegetation.
- Be prepared for emergency situations and have a plan to reach medical personnel to treat injuries.
- Wear proper footwear that provides warmth and dryness, as well as ample ankle support.
- Pay attention to warnings about upcoming storms and severe drops in temperature to ensure safety.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in 2007:
- Snowboarding was the leading cause of winter sports injuries, sending 149,388 people to hospital emergency rooms, doctors’ offices, clinics and other medical settings.
- Skiing came in second with 131,454 injuries.
- Other sports and activities on the list include:
- Ice skating with 58,380 injuries
- Ice hockey with 47,594 injuries
- Sledding and tobogganing with 107,890 injuries
- Snowmobiling with 34,699 injuries
For more information go to www.orthoinfo.org
Source: American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
Early Winter Wonderland! The Wilder Kaiser-Brixental Ski World Kicks off the Winter Skiing Season This Weekend!
Winter has Begun: Even Some of the Lower Runs are Already Open!
Great news for all winter sports fans: this coming weekend (Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th November) the SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser – Brixental in Tyrol starts the winter skiing season. Around 40 lift systems are waiting for snow-hungry winter sports fans – along with outstanding piste conditions.
The snow gods have really made an effort this year. The precipitation over the last few days together with the freezing temperatures mean that the first winter sports fans will find optimal piste conditions – a number of connections between runs and a few of the lower runs down to the valley are already open. Initially the facilities will only be open during this coming the weekend, with full operations commencing with the official start of the season on Saturday 6th December.
An early highlight this winter will be the well loved SkiOpening from 12th to 14th December. Ski tests with a diverse range of brands provide the perfect opportunity to explore the Skiwelt’s new pistes and courses. A public favourite is the floodlit parallel-slalom on Friday (12th December), in which everyone can test their form in race conditions. There will also be music as part of the evening programme (free entry!). On Friday the “Jungen Zillertalern” will provide a taste of genuine Tyrolean folk music and on Saturday there will be rocking party sounds courtesy of “Frontal” and the “Hermes House Band”.
Current information about lifts and ski runs can be found at http://www.skiwelt.at
SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser – Brixental is the largest area of connected ski runs in Austria. It has 91 lifts and over 279 kilometres of ski runs of all colours, the majority of which have modern snow-cannon facilities (including all grades of difficulty, with 210 kilometres of piste that can be furnished with artificial snow, 11 km can be made ready for skiing within just 3 days).