Messages posted by : Mike from NS
If you plan to look up take a look at the Heavens Above site first and get the predictions for the space station and shuttle pass overs :!: ... not to mention lots of other space stuff..... No sense wasting a developing painful neck :mrgreen: Mike .... oppps I wondered off piste ... sorry Dave :wink: |
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All the bad stuff happens only to others..... :mrgreen: Mike :wink: |
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True ... Little kids, for example, don't usually grasp the concept of risk. When the skier has developed some skill, ability, control and confidence for the conditions before them, recreational skiing is indeed a relatively safe activity. However the little girl passing beneath the lift I was on last weekend screaming her head off while travelling straight down the hill and completely out of control is one example of the many factors that come into play in determining a dangerous level of the activity. She almost took out two or three others missing them by inches. I think she may be able to grasp the risk concept a little better now. The out of control skier is just one factor that puts a risk factor in skiing. Tell my friend who was cut off by a boarded a few weeks ago and sustained 2 broken ribs and a cracked one just how safe it really is. If the hills and their insurance companies felt there was no risk, they would likely not insist on their clients signing waivers. Mike |
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Well I'm not going to debate how high or low risk skiing may be. Too many factors come into play. For some of us, the places we ski sets the level of risk. In some parts of Atlantic Canada we ski mostly on ice and in my mind this elevates the risk level over that if skiing in powder. Also the risk level I suppose may be related to opinion. There are many opinions out there which consider skiing as a high risk sport. Just as Tony and Ian are not fans of the anti-helmet side of the equation I am not a pro-helmet type of person. Wearing a helmet for skiing works for me. It helps keep my ears warm and helps to avoid bumps with the safety bar. And since I absolutely refuse to wear a hat or toque, the helmet is my choice of head gear. So far forcing people to wear helmets in the rinks is just talk but more and more are wearing them during skating. I'm not one - I don't mind the cold of the rinks. Wearing a helmet here as on the slopes is likely a sensible choice but ... each to their own. What is also sad about this whole incident of the accident is as Rose pointed out of how this tragedy has been used to market helmets in the name of safety. Although it strikes me this is simply cheap fear mongering in extremely poor taste. I for one would be sure not to purchase anything from an outfit looking to profit in such a manner. From the little we know or will ever know of the accident, we will likely never know if wearing a helmet would have brought any different conclusion. Mike |
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As everyone has said, this is a sad event for sure. We all realize we are in a high risk sport and accidents can easily happen. The thing we learn from this is more proof of how even a simple fall on a relatively safe slope can be so devastating. Also learned is that even a simple bang to the head should be checked out.
My wife and I have worn helmets since we took up skiing; but the most whacks to the head, which increased our appreciation of the head warming helmets, happened from bringing the safety bar down on the chair lift. Ian, they just make sense! However to each their own - until wearing helmets becomes legislated. It is easier to join the helmeted world of one's free will than to be forced into one. Mike |
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Trencher, Maybe there is a new sharpening technique shown in the video. Did you notice the sparks when he crosses the tram rails? If you were to hit these at the right angle ...volia... instant tuning :!: But what are the chances ??? Also a tad difficult to carve in asphalt I expect! :lol: Mike :wink: |
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swskier, But the Canadian niece should be used to very hard skiing surfaces if she skis in Nova Scotia. We ski on ice !! I don't greatly exaggerate. Most of the snow we ski on is man made which isn't dry enough and it freezes as hard as steel. A good base... With luck it may snow and with more luck the snow may not turn to rain before the storm finishes. We have had 12 storms this winter and only one had not turned to rain or drizzle. It was a joy to shovel after than one on New Year's Day!! This girl probably skis at Martock or maybe Wentworth. I get to Wentworth, a 90 minute drive, once a year and Martock, a 45 minute drive, once or sometimes twice a week. Both are great places but Wentworth is a bigger hill. Mike :wink: |
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Yeah, LM that was a neat ad. I guess the people that came up with that one were "stuck" in their office on one of those days that should be declared a "ski day" and they had skiing on their minds. :roll:
Today was one of those days here and my wife and I and a friend went to the "other" hill in NS, (Wentworth). We had a blast and a surprise as the hill was in great shape despite the 2 inches of rain and 9C weather last weekend. They did have lots of freezing rain too, in that area. Some people still have no electrical power - disrupted by that weather. :shock: I don't think we have any thing like a dry slope here. Only in the UK, pity! A dry slope may be better than no slope I suppose. (Oooooo... That will start a discussion.....) Mike :wink: |
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