Document text
Snow safety equipment spotlighted By Sean Wolfe Ashland Daily Tidings When 10 year-old Devin Haug tumbled over an embankment on Mount Ashland this week, he received a concussion. What the skiing and snowboarding community got was a wake-up call. While Haug is now out of the hospital and recovering from his injuries, the fact remains that he was not wearing a helmet at the time. Moreover, the Grace Christian School ski program Haug was participating in does not mandate the wearing of helmets. Lori Tapp, mother of three, is one of the parents that participates in and helps coordinate Grace Christian's ski program. When asked whether she ensures her kids wear helmets while skiing, the question gave her pause. SAFETY FIRST - Two skiers and a snowboarder hit the slopes on Mount Ashland Thursday, well-protected with headgear. "I'm embarrassed to say this, but when they're roller-blading or biking, I make them wear helmets. (On Mount Ashland) I rented him a helmet, but after the first day, he said he didn't want to wear it. I looked at the ski tech, and said to him 'make sure he wears a helmet,' and the ski tech said 'you don't need it,'" Tapp said. "I thought it was funny that the ski tech cared more about winning my son's approval, but they're all 18 or 20, they're young, they're cool, and that's probably where he was at." Matt Faurot, 33, is the coach of Ashland High School's snowboard team, overseeing 47 students ranging from 14 to 18 years old. Faurot's rule is "no helmet, no way," and said that students in his charge must wear helmets at all times during practice and at competitions. "There are some studies that say helmets don't help. I disagree with that - I think they're a wise thing to wear. I've seen people get injured while wearing a helmet, but since I'm the coach and they're in my stewardship, I insist," Faurot said. But Faurot said he would stop short of mandating helmet use for everyone. "I don't think we need to make a rule for everyone. Before long, we'll all be walking around in bubblewrap. But if we're just talking about kids, then I probably wouldn't be against a law � For school groups, my gut feeling is that it's wrong, and we probably should enforce it more - because they're kids," Faurot said. Currently, there is no mandatory helmet rule on Mount Ashland, nor is there any such rule for school programs. That's typical of most ski resorts in the nation, and most school programs. While Roseburg Junior Academy has mandated helmet use for its student ski program just this year, the use of helmets for most programs remains optional, and at the discretion of parents and their children. David Schwartz, the principal for Roseburg Junior Academy said the school made the move to mandate helmets as the result of a student injury on Mount Ashland. "Last year, we had one boy snowboarding on top of Mount A, and he fell, hit his head, was knocked unconscious, and got airlifted out," Schwartz said. "I just don't see how you can have the insurance and liability without having helmets, because someone someday will sue a school. That's a self-centered reason. Another reason is that we have a lot of kids learning how to ski, and they fall down a lot. There's a lot of ice out there. I guess it just makes sense to do that if you don't want kids with holes in their heads." Rick Sahl, the snow sports services manager for Mount Ashland, said he requires helmet use in his Rippin' Riders program, that's because kids in the program are performing complex maneuvers in half-pipes and the like. Sahl maintains that helmet use should be optional, but acknowledged that resorts at Aspen and Vail, Colo. are starting to push the safety envelope. "In the ski industry, the only ski area that required helmets in children's ski school was Aspen, and this was the first year any ski area made that requirement. Vail followed Aspen, but those are the only two I know of," Sahl said. "Overall, though, safety awareness is on a steady incline. I would think that wearing a helmet is an added value, but I also think that speed control is the most important aspect of skiing safety." Helmet laws are old hat for boarders that spend their off-season practicing tricks at local skateparks. Last year's death of 23-year-old Talent resident Rory Ably at Ashland's skate park helped raise awareness of helmet safety - for skaters. Last summer, in the wake of Ably's death, barely a week went by without a no-helmet citation issued to skateboarders reluctant to wear a helmet while skating the concrete contours of Ashland's elaborate skating bowls. Faurot contends there's no comparison between the dangers of skating and those of snow sports. "Skateparks are concrete - you don't have the same amount of control, and the board is not connected to your body. I feel that you have more control skiing and snowboarding. Also, a lot of times, the conditions on the mountain help - you have slushy conditions, powder conditions - it's softer. But a skatepark has one condition, and that's bone-breaking hard," Faurot said. In a report released this month, the National Ski Areas Association continues to maintain that wearing of helmets on slopes "should be a matter of personal choice." The association also says in the event of a collision with a tree, rock, or a person at moderate or high speed "a helmet may not prevent or reduce a serious injury," and that wearing helmets can lend "a false sense of security." The report goes on to note that parents and snow sport enthusiasts should "educate themselves about the benefits, limitations and proper fitting of helmets." Despite discretionary helmet use, fatalities and serious injuries remain relatively low. In 2001, according to national statistics collected by the NSAA, in the 2001-2002 ski season 45 people died and another 50 received serious injuries - some involving paralysis and head trauma. That's out of an estimated 10.7 million skiers and snowboarders, and a far lower death and injury rate than bicycling, boating, swimming and scuba diving. Last year, NSAA launched its "Lids on Kids" campaign to provide information to parents about helmets and safety. Overseas, Dr. Mike Langran, the UK National Secretary for the International Society for Skiing Safety who maintains the Ski Injury Web site (www.ski-injury.com) offers a contrasting view. Langran writes that "Kids are statistically more likely to sustain a head injury, and therefore the argument for kids (to wear helmets) is stronger still." Langran acknowledges that helmets "are certainly likely to be of benefit in minor impacts, glancy blows and the like," and that "the crucial thing about a helmet is that it does not make you invincible." LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -