I took a 20-year break from downhill skiing and discovered that everyone is now wearing a helmet. This surprised me because all of the people I know who have been injured when skiing suffered from torn ACLs, broken legs, knee problems, etc. It also surprised me because the people I have read about being killed when skiing collided with trees and decelerated so definitively that it is tough to see how an inch-thick helmet would bring down the G forces to something survivable (this article makes the same point).
Given how warm it was in Beaver Creek, I’m wondering why it wouldn’t make just as much sense to wear a bike helmet. Is there a significant difference, other than insulation, between a bike helmet and a ski helmet? Ski helmets seem to cost a lot more and casual skiers may already own a bike helmet and not need to spend $10-12/day renting a ski helmet.
The deeper question is how these helmets are supposed to work. If your head hits the snow, won’t you be sliding and therefore will avoid a concussion? If your head hits a tree at full speed, won’t you be dead? Under what circumstance does the ski helmet make a big difference in the severity of injury? (“Ski Helmet Use Isn’t Reducing Brain Injuries” is a nytimes article from 2013 on the subject) Finally, is there a difference between snowboarding and skiing with respect to the value of helmets? To my casual eye the snowboarders seem to be more likely to hit their heads.
I’ve gone through the same analysis and still haven’t gotten a helmet for myself yet for skiing. Every year, I become more and more an outlier for doing it “old school”, even in the Rockies. Maybe I’ll finally break down and buy one next season. Who knows.
Helmets are not designed to prevent concussions. The purpose is to reduce the chance of a cracked skull. Or to give you a feeling of safety.
Person v. person collisions?
Clearly you never went down on hard snow, clearly you never skied in the forrest and clearly you never got hit with poles, skis, safety bars etc. intentionally or by accident. No helmet will protect you against hitting a tree, but that is hardly the point. Can’t remember how many times I avoided needless pain because of it.
Helmet was one of the best investments in ski equipment I ever made (also longest lasting, even outlasting poles). Why not a cycling helmet? That one only protects against hits from the top and requires an extra hat underneath.
MICHAEL SCHUMACHER SKI ACCIDENT — Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher hit his head while skiing in the French Alps resort of Meribel on December 29 2013. He was wearing a helmet when the accident happened just off piste, between two ski runs. He was operated on for a brain haemorrhage and left in a coma fighting for life. His manager confirmed he had left hospital and was no longer in a coma on June 16 2014. He went home to a special rehab room in September 2014.
Michael Schumacher was considered one of the top two or three Formula 1 drivers ever. At the time of his accident he was in excellent physical condition. It was not a high speed crash.
Google for more details. Tragic loss.
The helmet is a more stable platform to mount your GoPro onto.
Good comments here. Also ski helmets are designed to keep ones head warm (and vent when too warm) while bike helmets are designed with keeping ones head cool. And of course every sport (climbing, etc) has their own line of helmets – fashion to some extent, but also functionality (who wears goggles with bike helmets?)
Helmets are very useful when in a long line to get on a Gondi, and someone with skis on their shoulder rotates and whacks you hard in the had.
Imagine a 20 year break from programming, and jumping back into it, Phil. Nothing has changed!!! 🙂
That’s true, Paul, except that there are a buttload more Java libraries, each one claiming to be the one true path.
For snowboarders, the most common injury is to break the forearm or the wrists when falling forward. I never appreciated this until I was snowboarding at Laax and fell forward while crossing an icy part of the piste. I hit my head and wrists against the ground, and had what felt like a 5-second long black-out experience. Good thing I had the helmet on. But I wouldn’t call what I do real snowboarding anyway, more like falling down the mountain. One thing I don’t understand about crashing into the trees, why don’t these people just fall to the side like I do when I lose control of my snowboard? That seems to stop me pretty fast no matter what I am doing. But I’ve never been on a “black” piste, which is the most difficult. Only blue and red. Still, I think helmets are worth it, mostly for person-to-person collisions.
In the Schumacher case, I suspect he would have been better off with no helmet as he would likely have been killed instantly, rather than suffering a catastrophic brain injury that apparently there is no reasonable likelihood of making any significant recovery from.
I do the opposite: use a ski helmet for winter biking commutes. Particularly useful when crossing the Harvard bridge on a windy day, and the ear pads are quite comfy!
@George: Or to give you a feeling of safety.
Encouraging one to ski even more recklessly.
Well, there’s a lot less snow & a lot more people than 20 years ago. Running into people could be an issue.
If you wanted real protection for your head, you would want to use a motorcycle helmet. Those also protect the jaw, as long as you don’t use a silly half helmet.
I’ve worn a helmet for skiing ever since I bounce my head (wearing a helmet) off the pavement while cycling around the corner into a car going the wrong way on a one-way street.
Helmets reduce the chances of an injury. I’ll take those odds.
Why not wear a bicycle helmet while skiing Beaver Creek? Good manners, mostly? 90% of skiing is about projecting the right message to your fellow WASPs on the slopes.
Actually I just wore my bicycle helmet while skiing in the Italian Alps.
Pros:
The helmet fits my big head (I can’t be sure to find the right size at the resort)
I save 20$
Cons: it doesn’t cover the ears, so it can get a bit cold on the ears.
Even if a helmet is useless 50% of the times you’re being injured, it *might* help and it’s not that much of a bother to wear one. Especially not when you’re used to wearing a helmet..
As for the old question on why renting ski equipment is so horrendously expensive.
1. Collusion amongst business owners
2. People going by car may bring their own equipment with ease. The rental shops are not courting this audience. They have their eyes and prices fixed on people travelling to the mountains by air. The hassle and expense (2*120$ with Lufthansa) of bring your own gear is huge. They just set their prices accordingly.
Beginning snowboarders, in particular, are quite likely to land on the back of their heads, after letting their heels drop when facing the slope. Helmets are good for that. I’ve worn a helmet snowboarding for years, but I’m considering stopping that, to remind myself to slow down. I very rarely wear a helmet when cycling.