Skiing Risk?

Age and safety - Skiing

Just like other physical sports, there is an element of risk in skiing. However, many of the accidents reported in the news concern people who were skiing off-piste. If you take proper training, stay on the pistes and observe basic rules of safety and common sense, skiing is no more dangerous than driving a car (probably less).

Start by choosing a ski resorts that offers an appropriate range of runs. Then, when on holiday, stay within your limits according to the conditions. All pisted runs are categorised from gentle green, to intermediate blue, difficult red and expert black.

• Green runs - these are ideal for beginners and young children. These are often called nursery slopes too 
• Blue runs - these are intermediate slopes - great for cruising - therefore they require few turns (and minimum effort). Look for resorts with wide blue runs. 
• Red runs - difficult slopes require the skier to carve tight turns. Sometimes these slopes can become mogul fields making the piste very challenging to ski. This is where the wheat gets sorted from the chaff. You might want to attempt one at the end of your holiday - but typically you�ll want to keep away until you�ve got 3 or 4 weeks skiing under your belt. 
• Black runs - expert slopes. Often narrow and steep, they require carved turns and maxiumum control. One mistake and you may slide you way to the bottom of the slope. There’s no obligation to tackle difficult runs - although you might find that you enjoy the adrenaline rush that comes from scaring yourself a bit!

Always remember that in icy conditions, all runs become more difficult and the risk of injuries increases - so you may wish to stick to the more gentle runs at these times. Likewise, soft powder snow in the morning can turn into thick leg breaking slush in the afternoon.

Equally, keep to the lower slopes in conditions of poor visibility or during times of freezing temperatures. For this reason, many families prefer village type resorts as these tend to have warmer (lower altitude) and more gentle slopes. Many Swiss or Austrian resorts fit this description.

People without families may want to go for the resorts with better snow conditions, such as many of the purpose built French resorts.