PLN #1 (2nd semester)

Today I read an article titled "Skier killed after she hit tree at Mary Jane" by Kirk Mitchell basically telling about how a thirty nine year old women was killed after hitting a tree at Winter Park. It was reported that the women went unconscious at 9:02a.m. Ski patrols acted almost immediately giving the women CPR while transporting her to Seven Mile Clinic which was located at the base of the ski resort. Later, at roughly 9:30 the women was pronounced dead. An investigation of the cause of death is underway. This women was the tenth skier killed on Colorado slopes just this year and half of those by trees.

What Matters: What matters from this particular article is that people are dying and getting killed for a stupid reason. What is it going to take to tighten up the safety and security of innocent skiers? I think a realistic goal should be set and small steps taken to increase the safety of skiers and snowboarders. Maybe all skiers should be ordered to wear a helmet of put a wall of safety pads along heavily treed areas. I'm not quite sure of what needs to be done but I am sure that something does need to be done, and fast.

How this Affects Me: This not only affects me but many other people as well. I ski a lot during ski season and after reading this article I am diffidently going to be cautious and aware of my surroundings next time I go skiing. It is silly to think that something as stupid as a tree can kill a person but after reading this article I can see now that a lot of things can kill you while skiing and not just trees. Even just hitting another person or a small rock can send you tumbling down a mountain to your death. The safety level should be increased big time. When I go skiing I just about never see any ski patrol around so how are they supposed to know if someone is injured? Unless someone skis all the way down to tell them there's pretty much no way for them to know. What happens when you're skiing alone on a run with very few people on it? So, as you can clearly see the safety level for skiers and snowboarders needs to be greatly increased as to not have anymore deaths or accidents on the mountains.