National Ski Council Federation Newsbeat
February 2015
Oregon court muddies legal waters of negligence claims at Mt. Bachelor; Implications Abound. The small print on the back of a ski lift ticket is now in the legal spotlight, following a decision by the highest court in Oregon that such waivers are “unenforceable” and a snowboarder injured at Mt. Bachelor’s terrain park can sue the resort for damages.
The ruling pits the “inherent risk of skiing” against the rights of an injured individual to claim negligence on the part of the resort. The impact of the ruling, which has been said to “unwind 30 years of law” that has favored the resorts, likely won’t become clear for several years – both in Oregon and other states. More. SnoCountry
Snowboarder found guilty for Breckenridge crash. A Colorado man has been found guilty of reckless endangerment and third-degree assault, both misdemeanors, over a snowboard collision with a child at Breckenridge Resort last April. Snowboarder Matt Grannell was riding on Breckenridge’s intermediate Pioneer trail on Peak 7 when he collided with the six-year-old female victim. A caution sign in the area warned of limited visibility due to a blind rollover. Grannell, who broke his ankle in the incident, is currently awaiting sentencing. More. First Tracks!!
New findings on safety: some surprising, some not. Three new safety-related studies suggest that helmets reduce head injuries, ski and snowboard injuries overall are trending downward, and that terrain parks have not led to an increase in catastrophic injuries. All three studies are in the process of being published in the upcoming ASTM STP: Selected Technical Papers 1582, which will appear this spring. More. SAM
Airbag Approved, but Ski Racers Largely Shunning It for Now. Broken collarbones. Shattered shoulders. Internal bleeding. Punctured lungs. Those injuries, and worse, are possible every time a world-class skier plunges out of a starting gate and slides down a snowy racecourse. Given that, it is not surprising that skiing’s international governing body recently approved for use an airbag safety device that has been in development for nearly four years. But many racers have expressed reluctance toward the new technology. More. New York Times
Colorado’s Powderhorn announces $5 million in winter and summer Improvements. Powderhorn Mountain Resort will be investing $5 million over the next few months to upgrade both winter and summer operations. At the top of the list is the replacement of the fixed grip Take Four quad with a new detachable, high-speed quad from Leitner-Poma. The new lift will cut the ride time from 13 minutes to just six, giving Powderhorn skiers and riders an opportunity to double their daily vert. More. First Tracks!!
Aging athletes, new skis spur snowboarding’s slide in popularity, but experts see reversal. Aging athletes, new skis and a lack of snow are ganging up on the once-edgy sport of snowboarding, which has seen a marked drop in participation over the last decade. More. Fox Business via Google Alerts
Bozeman startup revitalizes a piece of the American textile industry. Most companies that trade in merino wool source the raw ingredient from Australia and New Zealand. “All of that wool practically needs a passport to get from the farm to factories in Asia and then to the stores in America,” says Duckworth co-founder Robert Bernthal
Hold on, thought Bernthal, Montana’s semiarid climate and oxygen-deprived mountain air grows great wool too. So in 2013, Bernthal partnered with ski buddies Graham Stewart, a textile specialist, and John Helle, a third-generation rancher in Dillon, Montana, whose family keeps some 10,000 Rambouillet sheep. The trio created Duckworth—it’s essentially a wool and apparel company. More. Mountain Magazine
New equipment innovations on display at Stratton demo. The big news at the recent Eastern Winter Sports Reps Association (EWSRA) on-snow demo held at Stratton Mountain in early February was improved helmet technology and ski waist widths trending narrower. More. NorthJersey.com
SnowSports Industries America’s President David Ingemie to step down in 2016. After 34 years as president of SnowSports Industries America, David Ingemie will step down as president following the 2016 SIA Snow Show.
“The industry has been incredibly lucky to have David Ingemie as the driving force behind SIA for 39 years,” said Bob Gundram, chair of SIA’s Board of Directors and CEO of C3. He added, “David has been instrumental in working with the Board on defining what SIA is today and next steps to guarantee its future success and a smooth transition.”
Ingemie joined SIA in 1976 as marketing director and became president of the non-profit organization in 1981. During the span of his 39-year career at SIA, David has worked diligently to grow snow sports participation and sales and has focused on strengthening the core organization and trade show. More. Trade Show News Network Ed. Note: David Ingemie participated in the 2012 NSCF Annual Meeting in Telluride.
|
|
