Colorado Ski Country USA

Press Room

Denver, CO, Winter 2009-10 - Colorado Ski Country USA's (CSCUSA) 22 member resorts specialize in bringing smiles to skiers' faces, but CSCUSA resorts get serious when it comes to their guests' safety. Resorts proactively encourage safety on the slopes and also remind guests of their own responsibility to know and respect Your Responsibility Code. Your Responsibility Code is a set of principles that each skier should follow for safe skiing and riding.

While the Colorado ski industry recognizes that skiing and snowboarding are activities with inherent risks, it also stresses the importance of managing those risks by skiing and riding responsibly. Simply knowing the Code is not enough, but understanding and following Your Responsibility Code can make the difference between having a safe experience on the slopes or not. CSCUSA encourages skiers and riders to share Your Responsibility Code with their friends and family with whom they ski or ride, and to make sure that they know, understand and follow it.

CSCUSA's 2009 ski patroller of the year, Jason Rogers of Telluride, stresses the importance of the first tenet of the Code, "being able to stop or avoid other people or objects on the hill" to ensure skier safety and the safety of fellow riders. Rogers joins other dedicated ski patrollers at CSCUSA resorts to make the Colorado skiing experience safe, while encouraging guests to responsibly enjoy the thrilling powder downhills for which Colorado is known.

"Like many things in life, preventative measures can really make a difference, and this definitely applies to skiing and snowboarding," Rogers explains. "In my job, I encourage skiers to ski and ride responsibly so that everyone on the mountain can enjoy this great sport. The best way to make sure people stay safe is to set a good example and to educate skiers about the Responsibility Code. That way the focus is more on prevention than response."

On behalf of its member resorts, CSCUSA promotes and works to raise awareness about educational programs that focus on skier safety. Such efforts include posting a Safety Tip of the Day on the CSCUSA snow report, spreading the word about resort activities surrounding safety promotions, and devoting a segment on a weekly CSCUSA radio show to a "ski tip of the week" that covers tips for safe and courteous skiing and riding, including knowing Your Responsibility Code.

All of CSCUSA's resorts around the state place a high value on the safety of their guests. They continually emphasize the importance of education in trying to manage the risks involved with skiing and riding. Many resorts post safety messages throughout their mountain. Along with education, resorts stress the importance of following signs and not ducking ropes or other trail closures. While many skiers also choose to equip themselves with safety gear to help prevent or mitigate injury on the mountain, individual responsibility is more important than any single piece of safety equipment.

Your Responsibility Code
Established by the ski industry in 1966, the seven principles listed in Your Responsibility Code are central to the idea of ski and snowboard safety. These principles are nationally recognized as essential components of on-mountain etiquette designed to keep skiers and riders safe while enjoying winter sports. The elements of the Code are:

1.    Always stay in control, and be able to stop or avoid other people or objects.
2.    People ahead of you have the right of way. It is your responsibility to avoid them.
3.    You must not stop where you obstruct a trail, or are not visible from above.
4.    Whenever starting downhill or merging into a trail, look uphill and yield to others.
5.    Always use devices to help prevent runaway equipment.
6.    Observe all posted signs and warnings. Keep off closed trails and out of closed areas.
7.    Prior to using any lift, you must have the knowledge and ability to load, ride and unload safely.

CSCUSA works closely with member resorts to put together programs and activities utilizing the Responsibility Code to foster safer ski and snowboard practices. Resorts draw special attention to these practices during Safety Awareness Week, a week-long industry-wide push for safety education. A description of some resort efforts for Safety Awareness Week and throughout the course of the season are highlighted below.
 
Arapahoe Basin
Among A-Basin's top safety priorities is teaching safe skiing practices to children from a young age. To do this, the Arapahoe Basin Ski Patrol visits the Summit County Middle School every November. Ski patrol members and Digger, one of the A-Basin avalanche dogs, review numerous safety practices and provide a search and rescue demonstration with the rescue dog. To complement this program, A-Basin Ski Patrol also hosts snow safety field days targeted at children, in conjunction with Colorado University and Colorado State University.

Additionally, A-Basin is home to Kids Club Arapahoe, a four-week program to help children become all-around knowledgeable and proficient skiers. Every year, kids who participate in Kids Club Arapahoe attend a safety day organized by the A-Basin ski patrol. Also, to teach Kids Club participants about avalanche safety, ski patrol demonstrates search and rescue techniques, avalanche dog search methods, and explains the use of an avalauncher, which is an avalanche mitigation device that launches projectiles into avalanche-prone areas. 

In addition to their children-centered events, A-Basin also plans to host the 8th Annual Beacon Bowl and Avalanche Awareness Day in February, 2010. Proceeds from the day benefit the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC). On Avalanche Awareness Day, A-Basin will hold an avalanche school with assistance from CAIC. Interested backcountry skiers and riders will benefit from the lessons taught in this three-day course in all of their future backcountry adventures.

For novice skiers and riders, general safety talks are also available. Groups visiting A-Basin are given the opportunity to hear a safety talk at the beginning of the group ski day. A member of the ski patrol welcomes the group and reviews the Arapahoe Basin trail map along with the Responsibility Code and the Colorado Ski Safety Act. 

Aspen/Snowmass
Aspen Skiing Company hosts a number of safety initiatives at its four mountains, which target different safety issues that guests should keep in mind. For the resort's efforts, Aspen Skiing Company has won the NSAA Heads-Up National Ski Area Safety award for six out of the past seven years.

Safety is Aspen/Snowmass' number one priority everyday throughout the season. During National Ski Safety Week in January, several demonstrations and contests highlight various safety initiatives that are practiced throughout the year. For backcountry and big mountain skiers and riders, Aspen Highlands and Aspen Mountain host avalanche safety days. Aspen Highlands holds an Avalanche Dog Demo event, in which highly trained K9s show guests how they locate avalanche victims. Aspen Mountain hosts Beacon Basin demos to teach skiers and riders how to use a beacon to locate avalanche victims. As part of these educational programs, instructors demonstrate how a beacon transmits signals to another beacon in order to help rescuers detect a victim's location.

To teach kids about safety initiatives, Aspen/Snowmass hosts a variety of children-centered programs. Buttermilk hosts a Kids Safety Day that includes a safety poster contest and educational activities. Snowmass puts on a Safety Carnival with demonstrations and games for kids. Additionally, all four Aspen/Snowmass resorts are launching a Safety Video Contest new for the 2009-10 ski season, in which the resort encourages kids and teens to make their own safety videos and submit them at the end of the season. 

To accommodate the growing number of terrain park enthusiasts, the resort has added a new initiative to its terrain park safety education program, called "Smart Style". As part of this program, Snowmass and Buttermilk are arranging a series of question and answer forums on terrain park safety. These will be held throughout the season at the top of the parks at each mountain.

In addition, all four Aspen Mountains recommend helmet use and require all children under 12 to wear a helmet when taking lessons.

Crested Butte
The safety program at Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) runs year-round and promotes a "Play it Safe" message both internally and externally. To kick off the winter season, local ski patrollers visit Crested Butte schools to promote skier and rider safety and avalanche awareness, and to introduce the resort's famed avalanche dogs. In addition, ski patrol offers avalanche safety information, including transponder practice sites and workshops, and avalanche dog demonstrations, throughout the winter season.

Skiers and riders also can visit the Safety Tent located at the base of the mountain during the 2009-10 season. The Safety Tent is open from Thursday through Sunday during non-holiday periods and daily during the holidays, and features giveaways such as water, sunscreen, stickers and safety bracelets, as well as sun smart information, terrain park safety tips and knee-friendly skiing literature. Representatives from the Mountain Safety (Yellow Jackets) team and Guest Services are on site to answer questions and promote the Skier Responsibility Code.

During Safety Week, guests and local residents will find many of the same programs offered throughout the winter season, as well as some new safety-focused activities designed to raise awareness and act as a mid-season reminder. In addition to the Safety Tent located at the base of the mountain, CBMR staffs another Safety Tent at the top of the Silver Queen chairlift to target more experienced skiers and riders. The resort also hosts a Safety Adventure Hunt, a Crested Butte-focused scavenger hunt, encouraging participants to explore the resort's safety initiatives and programs and meet many of the individuals tasked with maintaining safety on the mountain. Prizes are awarded for completed entries, and clues are designed to target skiers and riders of all ability levels, including green (beginner), blue (intermediate) and black (advanced) tracks.

This year, the resort also will feature an "Extremes Evaluation" program. Before tackling CBMR's famed extreme terrain, guests can take part in an informal evaluation on Rachel's Run located off of the North Face chairlift. Rachel's Run is a black diamond (advanced) trail where ski patrol and ski school representatives will evaluate individual ability in preparation for exploring the resort's Extremes.

Also new this year, CBMR will partner with local police, firefighters, mountain rescue teams and paramedics to deliver a "safety off the slopes" message. Local avalanche forecasters and the U.S. Forest Service will be on hand to further promote safety within the larger mountain community.

Copper Mountain
Copper's Safety Fest, held in conjunction with Safety Awareness Week in January, offers skiers three days of education, demonstrations, and giveaways, focusing on helmet safety, search and rescue information, and terrain park safety.

Copper Mountain ski patrol helps reinforce Copper's guest safety initiative with safety talks and avalanche dog demonstrations. Each day, guests are invited to visit all of the Safety Fest tents to earn a chance for the daily prize drawings, which include skis, snowboards, lodging, Tubing Hill passes, seasonal ski lockers and more.

In addition, guests can approach their Terrain Park and pipe progression in a safer, more controlled environment at Woodward at Copper, the first indoor/outdoor ski and snowboard camp on the planet, with the 20,000 sq ft Woodward at Copper Barn that gives guests access to Snowflex® jumps, foam pits, a spring floor, and trampolines. Participants develop their tricks in The Barn and progress in Copper's nationally recognized terrain parks and Superpipe, which will help them to stay safe when hitting jumps and tricks on the mountain.

Monarch
Monarch's commitment to safety starts with children in the resort's local community. Each season prior to opening day, Monarch sends representatives, including Ski Patrol, to the Salida Middle School, where Monarch representatives remind students of the importance of snow safety. This educational program includes subjects like Your Responsibility Code, safe practices on and off of the mountain, health, and the importance of proper instruction.

Monarch has implemented a Safety Committee to address current and future safety issues. The Committee meets once per week to discuss and implement new procedures that have been proven to decrease accidents within each department. The Committee also provides sun exposure awareness to guests and employees through the national Sun Smart program.

Monarch Mountain is also proud to announce the opening of its BCA Beacon Basin. The Beacon Basin is a roped-off area within walking distance of the Panorama lift, where guests and staff are encouraged to practice avalanche transceiver retrieval. Multiple beacons are wired to a separate control panel, which can be customized to various search scenarios. This new program has been extremely popular with guests and local groups, such as Search & Rescue teams and snowmobile clubs.

Powderhorn
To stress the importance of practicing proper mountain etiquette, Powderhorn produced a video centered on Your Responsibility Code, featuring the resort's new 'Mogul the Moose' mascot. The video is aired on Powderhorn's local cable channel and throughout the lodge. The video can also be viewed on the resort's website and on the Powderhorn YouTube channel.

As part of Safety Week, Powderhorn sponsors a safety poster contest for kids, inviting elementary-aged children in resort communities to design safety-related posters and to begin thinking about the importance of safe skiing at a young age. 

The resort will also dedicate an entire run during safety week as a Slow Skiing Zone for skiers to hone their safety skills and to promote family skiing. In addition to this run being spotlighted during safety week, Powderhorn maintains other slow skiing areas and terrain during the entire season.

Purgatory at Durango Mountain Resort
Purgatory is carving fresh tracks for safety with its new online skier safety initiative. The resort's online module consists of a dedicated safety website with a quiz to test skier knowledge and understanding of Your Responsibility Code. High scorers could win a discount on their season passes.

Along with promoting online community participation in safety efforts, Purgatory encourages direct participation to improve the resort's safety programs. The Yellow Jacket Program at Purgatory invites community members to volunteer on the resort's safety patrol and to help shape resort safety programs.

Also, to involve the community in safety initiatives, the local paper prints "blotters" throughout the season to inform people about how many passes have been revoked and why. Through this public education effort, Durango Mountain Resort hopes to discourage unsafe practices that lead to passes being confiscated.

Additionally, the Snow Monsters Program, official mascot of the US Ski & Snowboard Team, is used to reiterate the safety message to children. Snow Monsters holds a safety awareness poster contest for elementary-aged children, and their website offers a weekly quiz on skiing know-how.

Silverton Mountain
Rope-duckers are not welcome at Silverton Mountain. The resort, which specializes in expert and advanced terrain, has a zero tolerance policy for poaching closed runs or cutting through closed areas. Ski patrol maintains guest safety by closing runs due to unsafe conditions, exposed obstacles or hazardous terrain. Violating closures or participating in other unsafe skiing and riding practices at Silverton will result in the loss of season pass or lift ticket.

Steamboat
Steamboat carries out many efforts to promote preventative safety measures among its skiers and riders. Steamboat's unique safety program, SlopeWise, defines what is expected of all employees and guests and what will not be tolerated at the resort, as well as clearly outlining the consequences for failure to comply. The SlopeWise initiatives are incorporated in all resort collateral, pre-arrival destination correspondence and into a comprehensive awareness campaign including resort signage, daily reports, advertisements and a dedicated safety brochure. Steamboat also incorporates safety tips into the resort's recorded snow reports via telephone and internet.

Additionally, Steamboat has improved the resort's ability to respond to medical situations on the mountain. The resort added two additional automated external defribulator (AED) units this year to its rapid response medical arsenal within ski patrol. This unit is capable of viewing and recording cardiac rhythms as well as administering life-saving cardiac shocks. 

Steamboat also has a unique on-call program, in which seven local physicians and another five local paramedics exchange being on-call through the resort's mountain/ski patrol radio network for free skiing privileges.

Like many Colorado resorts, Steamboat participates in National Safety Awareness Week, the Head's Up Safety Initiative, and the Lids on Kids Program to promote helmet use among children.  

Throughout Safety Week, Steamboat carries out a number of safety-oriented and mountain awareness activities, including safety demonstrations, on-mountain contests, Boeri helmet promotions, coupon giveaways for guests who can recite parts of the Responsibility Code, ski school safety demonstrations, and employee competitions.

Sunlight
Sunlight strongly encourages helmet use among all of its employees and guests. To encourage kids to purchase and use a helmet, Sunlight's ski and snowboard instructors are given helmet purchase discount cards to supply to their ski school students.

Additionally, Sunlight partners with Grand River Hospital to provide helmets for 100 kids per season. Kids are also given a safety skiing workbook to teach them the importance of the Responsibility Code and proper mountain etiquette.

Telluride
Telluride has a two-fold strategy to increase its safety programming for the upcoming season. The resort will boost the number of ski patrol and mountain ambassadors who will help to prevent unsafe situations and respond quickly to resolve any potentially unsafe situation that arises.

The other element of Telluride's safety program is to encourage helmet use. The resort rents a free helmet to students in its ski and ride school and will continue to encourage its ride school participants and other guests to wear helmets when skiing or snowboarding.

Winter Park
Winter Park recently initiated several programs to educate skiers and riders about their safety and responsibilities. The Dark Territory pass program requires skiers and riders to view an orientation video, sign an additional liability waiver, and pay $20 before being issued their pass to the limited access park, Dark Territory, for the season.  

In addition, if a day ticket holder is skiing or riding irresponsibly or violating safety policies, ski patrol and resort staff may attach a red tag to their lift ticket as a warning. The tag lists elements of the Responsibility Code. Violators who hold a season pass must attend a Skier Education class before they have their pass returned.

Winter Park Ski Patrol also conducts several outreach programs including slope and winter safety presentations for children at area elementary and middle schools each winter.  During Safety Awareness Week, the resort holds an annual Responsibility Code poster contest with the winners spending a day shadowing ski patrol and experiencing slope safety firsthand. Elements of Your Responsibility Code are displayed along with a cartoon depicting the message on tower pads throughout the beginner terrain to help the entry level skiers and riders learn the Code.  In addition, the Code as well as other safety messages are posted on "Ski Friendly" signage on chairlift towers visible to uphill traffic.

Wolf Creek
Wolf Creek takes significant steps to ensure mountain safety. To start, the resort mails the Responsibility Code to all season-pass holders to read and sign to show that they understand these important guidelines.

The resort also gives ski and snow safety lectures in local libraries to children and adults in order to help families understand safe practices when they ski together.

The resort hopes to inspire thinking about safety through its safety poster contest. Children who participate can win family ski trips and other great prizes by illustrating safety tips.

Additionally, Wolf Creek offers extensive avalanche awareness activities for guests. Interested Wolf Creek skiers can work directly with Wolf Creek patrol on drills to find beacons in buried backpacks, using transceivers and avalanche dogs.

Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA) is the not-for-profit trade association representing Colorado's 22 ski & snowboard resorts. CSCUSA is the global voice of the Colorado ski industry. The Association's primary functions are concentrated in marketing, public policy and public relations. Information about CSCUSA and its members can be found at www.ColoradoSki.com, on Twitter @ColoradoSkiUSA and on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ColoradoSkiCountryUSA. This release and other press information can be found in the online press room at http://media-ColoradoSki.com.