You don’t see people change this fast very often. Skiers and snowboarders increasingly are using helmets. In fact, the latest survey shows helmet use is up 12 percent in just one year.
It is interesting to note this at a time when one of snowboarding’s stars, Olympic hopeful Kevin Pearce, is recovering from severe head injuries.
The National Ski Areas Association reported on the switch to helmets:
- “77 percent of children 9 years old or younger wear ski helmets;
- “66 percent of children between 10 and 14 wear ski helmets;
- “63 percent of adults over the age of 65 wear ski helmets;
- “Helmet usage by skiers and boarders aged 18 to 24 is currently 32 percent, representing a 78 percent increase in usage for this age group since the 2002/03 season, when only 18 percent wore helmets.”
Resources
- Ski-injury.com, which has has stats and details.
- “Ski Helmet Use Surging, but With Some Resistance,” the Glenwood Springs (Colo.) Post Independent.
- “Helmets Becoming More Common on the Ski Slopes,” The New York Times.
The Times reported:
“His accident — and the fact that he was not wearing a helmet — underscores the increasing concern over the risks posed to recreational skiers and snowboarders from head injuries. It also highlights one of the bigger shifts in ski and snowboarding culture over the past half-decade: once used exclusively by professional and competitive amateur skiers or snowboarders, helmets have become far more common across the United States and are now widely considered to be a critical piece of equipment, even for novices.
“Helmet use has increased rapidly over the past few years, in large part because of the attention brought by a rash of high-profile accidents involving celebrities. Michael Kennedy, Sonny Bono and Natasha Richardson were all killed in ski accidents, and none of them were wearing helmets.”
