Intrawest issues helmet requirements

okay, I never read a more important part.. it's only for students and children or something. but still...

at all mountains? or just whistler? whistler is gnarly enough, that makes sense to me

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/helmets+mandatory+Canada+biggest+resorts/2056194/story.html

"...announced that helmets will be mandatory this upcoming season for all children and youth in ski and snowboard programs, and for all students in terrain parks, regardless of their age.

The company is also recommending that all skiers and snowboarders at its resorts use ski helmets in the 2009-2010 season.

While helmet use will remain a voluntary choice for most guests at Intrawest resorts, school programs there previously allowed parents and guardians to opt out of having their children wear helmets.

This waiver will no longer exist."

Required for kids in learn to ski/snowboard programs and "students" in the terrain park. Seems pretty fair.

What parents would opt out of having their kids wear helmets?

more than you wanna think.

yeah its only for students and stuff like that. you can still be a badass mofo if you want

Makes sense that all kids in programs have to wear helmets, And the student thing is totally unenforcable unless you have some sort of student lift ticket thing.

I really don't see the problem with wearing a helmet, concussions are not fun.

dude helmets are expensive! lol but seriously i bet there are parents out there who dont want to buy one cuz they want to save money or just cant afford it.

helmets are smart and anyways, their also really warm

Makes sense. Limit liability, appease insurance providers and make the hills safer.

And again, everyone, this is just for students in ski school.

As a Pre law major... this makes complete sense. The insurance liability for mountains is huge, and students are going to push the boundaries in many ways while skiing, thus leading to more head injuries over the length of a season. Schools also have to worry about sue happy parents, who will do anything to make a quick 4 million because they're son wasn't required to wear protection (insert joke).

No one wants to see paralyzed/dead students and kids anyways.

Happy winter 09/10!

Not sure about that. Skiing is expensive. (Stating the obvious). Adding a helmet on top of the price for all of the other gear, the food at the resorts, lift tickets, and transportation to and from is such a MINOR addition. I see where you are coming from though, people can be cheap.

What's more costly?

An $80 helmet or the few hundred dollars at the medical center getting checked out after knocking your head?

yea i missed that the first time. thought it was everyone. stupid misleading headlines

Depends on your health insurance.

or seeing as it just applies to students they probably rent them for like 5 $

I decided to pick up a helmet last year and I love it



I paid around 120 bucks and it's super light it's perfect

This is all good news for a little lower insurance....but the problem is, is that a lot of people coming to visit a resort or take lessons....the general population spending tons of money at your local resort, rent, not only skis and boots, but helmets as well. If you have done any research at all about helmets youll learn that a helmet is not good anymore after one significant impact. How significant? idk, but the point is, is that a significant impmact is not visable once that person returns the helmet at the end of the day/week. So that helmet still circulates at that retal shop and is used by hundreds more.

So first off, the helmets that these kids or adults mamy rent aren't always going to be safe in the first place. Sure, maybe only the shop employees will know this. But really there is no way for them or anyone else to tell if that helmet is still safe. Besides large visable damage.

So, when your kid or adult in a lesson in a helmet gets a head injury, they go wtf? my helmet didn't help. Then they start thinking, was this helmet safe? Then they do research and bingo, they find out what i stated above. They get their self a good lawyer in the snow sports industry, which there are lots of in places like denver. And BAM lawsuit filed and they will win, because that shop, whether it be associated w/ the resort or not, gave them a faulty helmet. And then the shop comes back and says we had to, the resort makes us for the lessons. So a big huge mess.

Still a good idea? No, unless everyone has thier own helmet. And think of all the people that come and take lessons from your mountain. TONS, they want to rent. The last thing this industry needs is less people taking lessons and not coming into the sport because they didn't have a helmet. Even though ski school was one of only two departments at resorts in the past few years that has not declined in terms of income, the other being Food and Bev., this is not something that needs to be forced on the income source that makes our life of skiing everday possible.

Wait until Intrawest sees the impact it will have on lesson purchases.  I give it 1 year.  Ski schools already have a tough time selling lessons.  The economy sucks, and you're going to tell the Wall Street types that come out and take private lessons so they can cut lift lines that they have to wear helmets.  Ski Schools that make customers jump through more hoops to take lessons will feel the pain.  This is not an anti helmet rant.  Wearing a helmet should continue to be a choice.  Ski areas that try to force people to wear helmets are going to get beat up.  It's that simple. 

It's no different than a mountain bike park requiring riders to wear helmets while riding.

You're using the services provided by a company, you play by their rules.

i dont give a fuck if you dont want to wear a helmet. its saved my life 2 times and from many bad concussions. this is on the fine line of freedom and strict law but i think its a good thing its mandatory now. you cant replace your head or brain kids, only takes one fall to turn you into a veggie. use a brain bucket

helmets are handy for like not bleeding off rails and stuff...but honestly only work if you're going 12 mph and under, or thats what i heard.

definitely not true. think about when you fall and your head snaps back/forward. it is certainly moving a helluva lot faster than 12 mph.

most ski helmets that ive seen are multiple impact...