Joshua Vigeant, 31, of Pembroke, N.H., was snowboarding Cannon Mountain with a group of friends early Sunday afternoon when he was found dead on the lower Turnpike trail, which was closed on Sunday. He was not believed to have been wearing a helmet.

There were no witnesses to Vigeant’s accident. An investigation into the cause of death is ongoing.

A week earlier, a 19-year-old Massachusetts man was killed while skiing Cannon’s Zoomer liftline trail when he lost control and slid into rocks in a closed area.

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1. Teen skier without helmet dies at Cannon Mountain
2. VIDEO: Mass. teen remembered in NH ski accident

WARREN, Vt. –
For longtime snowboarder Mary Simmons, wearing a helmet at the Sugarbush Ski Resort has become second nature.

“Now after so many years, I feel kinda naked without my helmet,” said Simmons.

The hardware is something Simmons has in common with countless other snowboarders, including professional rider Kevin Pearce .

The Vermont native fell hard during a training run last week in Salt Lake City and severely injured his brain, despite the fact that he was wearing a helmet.

Pearce’s injury hasn’t made some snowboarders, who don’t protect their heads, think twice. They argue injuries while snowboarding come with the territory.

“Going that big, as big as they do at the Olympic level, if they knock their head, they’re going to knock themselves out. It’s just the sport, it’s what happens,” said snowboarder Sky Gale, 22.

But Dr. Rob Williams, of Fletcher Allen Hospital, who’s become an advocate for helmet use, doesn’t agree.

“There’s no downside whatsoever to wearing a ski helmet. If you have a helmet on the odds are much better that you’re going to survive an accident than if not,” said Williams.

According to Williams, head injuries on the mountain could be cut in half if more people wore helmets. But until ski resorts start mandating helmets, wearing one will remain a personal choice.

SOURCE: http://www.wptz.com/news/22176800/detail.html

British actress Natasha Richardson lived in the limelight. She was the daughter of famed actress Vanessa Redgrave and wife of Irish-born actor Liam Neeson. But at 45, she died of a brain injury, after falling down on a beginner’s ski slope and walking away feeling fine.

“She suffered from what some people call a walk, talk and die syndrome,” explained Michael Singer,the chief executive of BrainScope, part of a holding company owned by AOL (America Online) founder Steve Case.
Singer says a mobile brain scan device, like the one his company is developing, could have saved the actress’s life.

“Our device had it been employed – we believe – would have detected that it would have been a relatively severe traumatic brain injury, and therefore, would have clarified for her and everyone on the scene that she had a very severe problem,” he added.

Singer says that BrainScope’s device, which is still being developed, will be portable, battery-operated, inexpensive and user friendly whether by coaches on the sidelines or army medics in the field. Today, brainwave detecting EEG machines are found mainly in hospitals. They are costly and require advanced technicians to use.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 1.4 million people suffer from traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) each year. But that number could be much higher because many mild brain injuries go undetected and undiagnosed.

“We don’t know how many people encounter mild traumatic brain injury. There are many people who get bumped on the head and are woozy for a minute but they never get an evaluation,” said Dr. Dan Cohen, a former U.S. Defense Department physician now working as a healthcare consultant.

He says prompt diagnosis for even mild brain injuries is crucial since, if repeated over time, they can lead to life-altering cognitive defects. Singer’s group says twenty percent of soldiers deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan are returning with varying degrees of TBI’s. Since they often tend to underplay their injuries, eager to get back to work, knowing their level of brain injury quickly could mean a trip to the hospital instead.

“Right now there’s no gear,” said Dr. Cohen. “The medics are doing battlefield assessments you know can you count my fingers can you recite a few things by memory you know they are doing very primitive limited tests, tests of limited applicability.”

Cohen says it’s too early to endorse BrainScope’s device, but the research looks promising. He compares it to mobile external defibrillators now in widespread use today.

“Whoever would have thought that you would have a device on the wall that you could grab off the wall when someone drops down and seems to have had a heart attack, you wrap it around the chest,” he added. “The machine [portable defibrillator] tells you what to do and you stand back and the machine delivers electricity and saves somebody’s life. Whoever thought we would have had that?”

BrainScope is gathering head injury data from patients around the country. Their mobile device could be submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for review and clearance within a year.

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1. Salt Lake City to Host Brain Injury Conference

It was 8:30 a.m. on Nov. 12. Long and his 18-year-old son, Braden, a ski racer, were strapping on their boots inside the chalet at Copper Mountain in Denver, about to hit the slopes for a day of training.

Thirty kilometres away, at Arapahoe Basin, Longs other son, Richard, 15, was already on the hill, training with the Ontario Alpine Ski team.

Thats when he got the call from an Ontario coach. Richard had crashed.

He left the trail and the trail dropped off, Long, who was born and raised in Orillia, said from his Clarksburg home, just west of Collingwood. It was really bad.

At an estimated speed of 80 kilometres per hour, Richard, Canadas top developmental skier, lost his balance on the Lower Ramrod run, tried to stop by digging his skis into the snow, left the trail down a 12-foot embankment, and flew headfirst into a rock and a tree.

Doctors at Denvers St. Anthony Central Hospital say the boys helmet, which split in half in the crash, likely saved Richards life.

The head of the ski patrol saw him leave the trail and heard the impact, said Long, a Barrie restaurant owner who lived in Midhurst for 15 years. They knew he was in serious trouble.

The Canadian Snowsports Association, Canadas representation on the International Ski Federation, has launched an inquiry into the crash.

Richard received CPR at the scene.

He was transported to hospital in Denver, where he spent the next 23 days fully sedated and suffering from severe brain trauma and internal injuries.

Once out of a coma that lasted two weeks, Richard was airlifted to Torontos Sick Kids Hospital. He has since been transferred to Bloorview Kids Rehab, a neurorehabilitation centre, where he receives speech therapy and occupational therapy, as well as specialized education five days a week.

Richards physical condition is improving, and he spends his weekends at home.

A left-temporal lobe brain injury has impeded his ability to speak and process language, however.

Richard, who plays guitar, has better success singing than he does at actually trying to think of the words, his father said.

There is no set timeline as to when Richard may return to skiing. With Olympic aspirations, the Whistler Cup champion and second-place finisher at last years world championships in Italy plans to get better and return to the slopes, but his parents are focusing on their sons health, first and foremost.

The Long family is grateful for the support theyve received since the crash.

Its a small community, sad Brammer, a ski coach of 25 years. Weve had e-mails from all over North America and as far away as Italy.

The most recent, an Ohio man, was critically injured when he lost control and hit a tree at the Peek-n-Peak resort. He was airlifted to a Pennsylvania hospital.

At Kissing Bridge, a 38-year-old beginning skier was hit in the head when a snowboarder lost control and collided with the skier, who was treated and released.

And at Holiday Valley, a teenager skier suffered head injuries when she hit a tree while skiing on Friday.

The accidents have safety advocates once again renewing the call for the use of helmets when skiing.

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1. Boarder injured in hill collision

Two seasons ago, the 22-year-old South Lake Tahoe boarder landed on his knee at Northstar, tearing a ligament. He said he turned a 60-foot-long jump into 100 feet. Last season, he injured it on the same day in the backcountry, landing hard from a 15-foot-high jump.

“My body kept turning, but my board didn’t,” he said. He hasn’t slowed down since.

“I can’t get hooked up on a mental block,” he said.

For McCrum and others of the same mind set, Barton Memorial Hospital operates two ski medical clinics at Heavenly Mountain Resort between the aerial tram and California Base Lodge and at Sierra-at-Tahoe’s Main Lodge. The clinics are intended to treat minor injuries, alleviating unnecessary hospital care. They’re equipped with X-ray equipment as well as nurses and doctors, who most often splint injured extremities.

Orr said sometimes the only thing between a recovery from a fall and a serious injury is catching an edge just right.

“More helmets are great to see, but we usually get concerned when we see this kind of weather. Anything can happen,” said Orr, a U.S. Ski Team doctor heading to Turin, Italy, for the Olympic Games next month.

“And I think it’s surprising that dozens of kids are doing things out there now that seemed so far beyond what we thought was the extreme before,” he said.

National Ski Safety Week is Saturday through Jan. 20. Barton’s director of emergency services, Tony Willen, and other local medical practitioners who see hundreds of injuries every month have some advice for South Shore skiers and snowboarders.

First, be aware and consider the conditions.

“The way the snowpack is (now), the impact is much like falling on concrete,” Willen said.

So far this year she’s noticed a high rate of compression/fracture-type cases come through the South Lake Tahoe facility. Rain has pounded down the snowpack, creating a hard surface that brings a spike in knee, wrist, collar-bone, shoulder and head injuries to clinics.

The Heavenly-Barton clinic recorded 242 patients in December, its first month of operation. In December 2004, 298 were reported – but that caseload could be attributed to the longer ski season, Heavenly clinic charge nurse Cindy Burkart said. The average age of those injured was 21. Snowboarding and skiing injuries were split evenly.

Burkart said the reasons for accidents echo the ski areas’ code of conduct: “Don’t ski out of control,” “Don’t ski too fast,” “Yield to the downhill skier.” Every year, South Shore resorts remind guests to practice common courtesy. Notices are posted on everything from season pass agreements to bathroom walls. The ski industry beefed up the notices’ presence since a Colorado skier was convicted of manslaughter for a fatal collision with another a few years ago.

The staff of Dr. Nita Schwartz at Kirkwood Mountain Resort’s clinic reported 160 cases in its first month. Beyond helmets, Schwartz said she’d like to see more snowboarders wear wrist guards. She cited snowboarders’ blind spots and pattern of turns as the reason for a high incidence of collisions between skiers and boarders.

“At least more snowboarders are wearing helmets,” she said.

Schwartz also looks to the popularity of terrain parks and videos showing tricks as other reasons for injuries.

“I think it’s the culture and mindset of the age group that leads to these injuries,” she said.

“We see a significant number of injuries in the snowparks,” Barton’s Medical Director Lars Ensign said, adding that sometimes the tricksters injure themselves on the rails and boxes.

“I feel for these guys who come in here concert pianists and jewelry makers and hit their hands,” he said.

Ensign said general fitness and stretching helps, but all the conditioning in the world may not help if the conditions are ripe for a skier and boarder to come down hard.

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1. Conditions, inadequate gear spell danger for snow fanatics

Two seasons ago, the 22-year-old South Lake Tahoe boarder landed on his knee at Northstar, tearing a ligament. He said he turned a 60-foot-long jump into 100 feet. Last season, he injured it on the same day in the backcountry, landing hard from a 15-foot-high jump.

“My body kept turning, but my board didn’t,” he said. He hasn’t slowed down since.

“I can’t get hooked up on a mental block,” he said.

For McCrum and others of the same mind set, Barton Memorial Hospital operates two ski medical clinics at Heavenly Mountain Resort between the aerial tram and California Base Lodge and at Sierra-at-Tahoe’s Main Lodge. The clinics are intended to treat minor injuries, alleviating unnecessary hospital care. They’re equipped with X-ray equipment as well as nurses and doctors, who most often splint injured extremities.

Orr said sometimes the only thing between a recovery from a fall and a serious injury is catching an edge just right.

“More helmets are great to see, but we usually get concerned when we see this kind of weather. Anything can happen,” said Orr, a U.S. Ski Team doctor heading to Turin, Italy, for the Olympic Games next month.

“And I think it’s surprising that dozens of kids are doing things out there now that seemed so far beyond what we thought was the extreme before,” he said.

National Ski Safety Week is Saturday through Jan. 20. Barton’s director of emergency services, Tony Willen, and other local medical practitioners who see hundreds of injuries every month have some advice for South Shore skiers and snowboarders.

First, be aware and consider the conditions.

“The way the snowpack is (now), the impact is much like falling on concrete,” Willen said.

So far this year she’s noticed a high rate of compression/fracture-type cases come through the South Lake Tahoe facility. Rain has pounded down the snowpack, creating a hard surface that brings a spike in knee, wrist, collar-bone, shoulder and head injuries to clinics.

The Heavenly-Barton clinic recorded 242 patients in December, its first month of operation. In December 2004, 298 were reported – but that caseload could be attributed to the longer ski season, Heavenly clinic charge nurse Cindy Burkart said. The average age of those injured was 21. Snowboarding and skiing injuries were split evenly.

Burkart said the reasons for accidents echo the ski areas’ code of conduct: “Don’t ski out of control,” “Don’t ski too fast,” “Yield to the downhill skier.” Every year, South Shore resorts remind guests to practice common courtesy. Notices are posted on everything from season pass agreements to bathroom walls. The ski industry beefed up the notices’ presence since a Colorado skier was convicted of manslaughter for a fatal collision with another a few years ago.

The staff of Dr. Nita Schwartz at Kirkwood Mountain Resort’s clinic reported 160 cases in its first month. Beyond helmets, Schwartz said she’d like to see more snowboarders wear wrist guards. She cited snowboarders’ blind spots and pattern of turns as the reason for a high incidence of collisions between skiers and boarders.

“At least more snowboarders are wearing helmets,” she said.

Schwartz also looks to the popularity of terrain parks and videos showing tricks as other reasons for injuries.

“I think it’s the culture and mindset of the age group that leads to these injuries,” she said.

“We see a significant number of injuries in the snowparks,” Barton’s Medical Director Lars Ensign said, adding that sometimes the tricksters injure themselves on the rails and boxes.

“I feel for these guys who come in here concert pianists and jewelry makers and hit their hands,” he said.

Ensign said general fitness and stretching helps, but all the conditioning in the world may not help if the conditions are ripe for a skier and boarder to come down hard.

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1. Conditions, inadequate gear spell danger for snow fanatics

The 20-year-old boarder – who wasn’t wearing a helmet – was near the bottom of a run called Southpaw when the collision occurred at 4:45 p.m.

“As we figure it, we had two snowboarders travelling quickly, on essentially a collision course. After they’d bumped, one lost control. His only real choice was (to head) in to the bushes,” said Snow Valley operations supervisor Jordan McDougall.

The victim fell on to a snow-making hydrant in the trees, said McDougall. The hill-side of the hydrant is padded, but the snowboarder somehow managed to smack his head on the non-padded side.

“I ran over to make sure he was all right. I seen blood and he was knocked out, so I ran (for help),” said a 13-year-old witness.

EMS Supt. Rod Homeniuk said the unconscious snowboarder needed airway assistance and it was too soon to know the extent of the head injuries.

Paramedics were called to Snow Valley again at 8:20 p.m. after a 12-year-old skier – wearing a helmet – wiped out on the hill. Speed may have been a factor in that crash, said McDougall.

The 12-year-old boy was taken to University hospital, said Homeniuk. “We’re looking at possible spinal injuries.”

McDougall reminded skiers to wear helmets and ski within their abilities.

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1. Three Injured On Local Ski Slopes

ROSEMONT, IL — (MARKET WIRE) — 12/15/2005 — For many, winter means snow, and with snow comes the variety of winter sports kids and adults of all ages enjoy. Whether on ice, hills, slopes or mountains, hours are spent participating in activities ranging from ice hockey and ice skating to sledding, snow boarding and snow skiing. According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), if the proper precautions are not taken to ensure warmth and safety, severe injuries can occur. While winter sports are a great form of exercise and fun, injuries from these activities garner a significant amount of attention at hospital emergency rooms, doctors’ offices and clinics. In 2004, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reported 51,524 injuries from ice hockey; 49,600 injuries from ice skating; 74,000 injuries from sledding, snow tubing and tobogganing; 35,483 injuries from snowmobiling; 143,990 injuries from snow boarding; and 144,379 injuries from snow skiing. Injuries can include sprains and strains, dislocations, fractures and even death. “Playing sports in the cold and snow can take a toll on the body,” explained Matthew S. Shapiro, MD, orthopaedic surgeon and secretary of AAOS’ Board of Councilors. “Keeping in proper physical condition and wearing the appropriate clothing and protective gear are key ways to minimize winter sports-related injuries.” The Academy recommends adults and children follow these simple tips to help prevent winter sports injuries:

• Never ski, sled, ice skate or snowboard alone.
• Keep in shape and condition muscles before partaking in winter activities. Cold muscles, tendons and ligaments are vulnerable to injury, so it is important to warm up thoroughly before playing.
• Know and abide by all rules of the sport in which you are participating.
• Wear appropriate protective gear, including goggles, helmets, gloves and padding.
• Check to make sure equipment is in good working order and used properly.
• For warmth and protection, wear several layers of light, loose and water- and wind-resistant clothing. Layering allows you to accommodate your body’s constantly changing temperature.
• Wear proper footwear that provides warmth and dryness, as well as ample ankle support.
• Take a lesson (or several) from a qualified instructor, especially in sports like skiing and snow boarding. Beginners should avoid jumping maneuvers.
• When falling, try to fall on your side or buttocks. Roll over naturally, turning your head in the direction of the roll.
• Pay attention to warnings about upcoming storms and severe drops in temperature to ensure safety.
• Become familiar with the whereabouts of fences, trees, rocks, open water and patches of ice.
• Stay on marked trails and avoid potential avalanche areas, such as steep hillsides with little vegetation.
• Avoid participating in sports when experiencing pain or exhaustion.
• Take rest breaks and replenish fluids during and after play.
• Be prepared for emergency situations and have a plan to reach medical personnel to treat injuries.

For additional injury prevention tips and information on winter sports and more, please visit the Academy’s public and patient education Web site, Your Orthopaedic Connection (www.orthoinfo.org), or call the Public Service line at 800-824-BONES. An orthopaedic surgeon is a physician with extensive training in the diagnosis and treatment of non-surgical as well as surgical treatment of the musculoskeletal system including bones, joints, ligaments, tendons, muscles and nerves.

With 28,000 members, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (www.aaos.org) or (www.orthoinfo.org), is a not-for-profit organization that provides education programs for orthopaedic surgeons, allied health professionals and the public. An advocate for improved patient care, the Academy is participating in the Bone and Joint Decade (www.usbjd.org), the global initiative in the years 2002-2011 to raise awareness of musculoskeletal health to stimulate research and improve people’s quality of life. President Bush has declared the years 2002-2011 National Bone and Joint Decade in support of these objectives. The Academy’s 73rd Annual Meeting is being held March 22-26, 2006 at McCormick Place in Chicago.

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1. Gear Up Properly for Safe Winter Sports

“They’re both continuing to make progress,” said Randy Richardson, head of the Derryfield School in Manchester, a private school for grades 6 through 12. “It was a pretty serious accident, so they’re not out of the woods yet. But we’ve slowly been receiving positive news.”

The two students, whose names have not been released because they are juveniles, were taken to Concord Hospital with head injuries after they crashed into each other at about 5 p.m. Tuesday, said Tom French, chief of the Henniker Rescue Squad.

“I think one of them pretty much overtook the other,” he said.

As members of the Derryfield ski team, they had been at Pats Peak along with other students to participate in race training. When the two finished racing they were free skiing near the bottom of Twister Slope, an expert-level ski trail. Witnesses said they were probably heading toward either the ski lodge or the chair lift, said Doug Peel, marketing director for Pats Peak.

“They just happened to turn into each other,” Peel said, who said they were both wearing helmets. “It was just a freak thing.”

French, who responded to the accident with the rescue squad, said their injuries appeared serious but that he suspects they are not life-threatening. The student he spoke to was conscious and seemed calm, he said.

The students were taken first to Concord Hospital, then one was airlifted to the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, French said.

Richardson did not confirm whether one of the students was still at Dartmouth-Hitchcock.

“We’re always within the national (safety) average,” said McGuire. “We re-enforce the (skiers’) code every chance we get.”

The council — composed of 12 members representing different groups involved in activities on Wachusett Mountain and the municipalities in the area — addressed the issue of skier safety following the death of 18-year-old Rebecca Doane on Jan. 7 on one of the mountain’s trails.

Michael McDonald, the council’s Westminster representative, said he is concerned about the number of people on the trails and wants skiers to be required to wear helmets, according to a message from Dick Vaillette, the alternative Westminster representative. McDonald was out of town on business and could not attend the meeting, said Vaillette.

“We definitely encourage the use of helmets,” said McGuire. “In (the Jan. 7) accident a helmet would have made no difference.”

Student skiers get warnings

McGuire said student skiers are warned of the safety precautions before they are let off their buses and ski patrols are monitoring skiers’ speeds on a routine basis since the accident.

McGuire said there was also a serious head injury at the mountain in December. The victim is recovering although still hospitalized, he said.

McGuire said the ski attracts 350,000 customers each year.

In other business:

Council member Dwayne Ericson from Department of Conservation and Recreation announced a trail grant for $10,250 including matching funds will be award from the department to the state reservation for work on Pine Hill Trail. The money comes from federal fuel excise taxes.

McGuire announced that $20,000 will be given to the Department of Conservation and Recreation from sales of wood that was cut from the clearing of new trails.

NewsChannel5 reported the fun, however, is coming at a cost.

There have been broken bones to kidney injuries in snow-related accidents.

WEWS reported what started out as simple fun quickly turned dangerous for Amanda Kurz’s daughter.

“She hurt her back. We had to take her to the hospital,” Kurz said.

Whether it’s sledding, skiing or snowboarding, there have been more trips to the emergency room, WEWS reported.

“Just over the last 24 hours, we’ve had sledding injuries, broken wrists, (broken) femur, injuries to spleen, kidneys,” said Dr. Walter Chwals of Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital.

Some of the injuries are caused after kids go down hills headfirst and people being knocked off their feet.

“We had a child today who fractured her leg when she struck by another child,” Chwals said.

Doctors said accidents are preventable if helmets are worn.

The research led by Dr. Richard Simons, director of trauma services at Vancouver Hospital, is based on hospital admissions to the two trauma centres — Lions Gate and Vancouver General — stemming from winter sports injuries.

A total of 1,171 patients with winter sports injuries were admitted to the two hospitals over a four-year period.

Skiing and snowboarding accounted for 86 per cent, or 1,007, of the cases, while hockey, sledding and skating combined for the remaining 14 per cent of injuries.

Although a full copy of Simons’ study is not available because publication in a medical journal is pending, an abstract of the research shows the rate of injury — expressed per 100,000 skier/snowboarder visits to four local mountains — was 5.4 for skiers and 10.9 for boarders.

The figures emerge from a total of 14 million skier and snowboarding visits between 1997 and 2000 at Grouse, Cypress, Seymour and Whistler/Blackcomb.

While there were no deaths of skiers at the study areas, there were two involving snowboarders.

The rate of extremity or limb injuries in boarders was 3.5 compared to 2.8 in skiers. The head injury rate in boarders was 0.73 compared to 0.55 in skiers. Spine injuries, like fractures in the vertebrae, were also more common in boarders with a rate of 1.12 compared to 0.49 in skiers.

Spinal cord injuries, involving temporary or permanent paralysis, were once again more common in boarders with a rate of .25, compared to skiers with a rate of .07.

Not surprisingly, young males, who are known to take more risks in most recreational or adventurous pursuits, were most likely to be injured.

Simons said snowboarding is not necessarily inherently more dangerous than skiing, but the fact that boarders tend to be young and male is what seemingly increases the risk.

Meanwhile, separate B.C. research led by Dr. Andrew Macnab at B.C. Children’s Hospital shows that helmets cut by half the risk of head injury in children 13 and younger who ski or board.

That fits with statements by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission that 53 per cent of skiing and snowboarding head injuries among children and 44 per cent of injuries to adults could be prevented or reduced in severity if helmets are used.

Macnab’s research, published in a journal called Injury Prevention, was based on 70 children evaluated at the Whistler medical clinic with face, head or neck injuries during the 1998/99 season. Seventy per cent of the 56 children who ended up needing medical treatment were not wearing a helmet, while 30 per cent were.

As a result of the findings by Macnab and Simons, an agency called the B.C. Injury Prevention Centre has begun targeting safety in the industry.

In one of its programs, it has garnered agreements from Whistler/Blackcomb and Sun Peaks in Kamloops for a free helmet loan program to boost the popularity of helmets. Similar arrangements are being sought at other B.C. mountains, but not many operators are eager to offer free helmets when they can generate revenue by charging rental fees, says Mary Ellen Lower, director of the BCIPC.

Simons said aggressive boarding in terrain parks with jumps has led to a higher incidence of severe spine and spinal cord injuries (60 over the study period compared to 44 amongst skiers.)

“They [mountain operators and boarders] call them terrain parks; we [doctors] call them trauma parks,” Simons said, qualifying his comments by lauding Whistler/Blackcomb’s recent efforts to boost safety in such areas by making helmets in the terrain park mandatory, requiring a special ticket to get in and insisting on certain skill levels to get entry.

The action follows a tragic legal case last year in which a 20-year old Richmond man was awarded nearly $3 million after he broke his neck while on a school ski trip in January 2000.

Travis Murao, 17 at the time of the accident, broke his neck on a 4.5-metre jump in Blackcomb’s terrain part, an area where boarders go if they want to do jumps and tricks.

Blackcomb was apportioned 70 per cent of the blame for the accident, which has left Murao in a wheelchair, and the Richmond school board and Murao were each assessed at 15 per cent for fault.

Simons said that with the rising popularity of extreme sports like snowboard jumping in terrain parks and mountain biking down Whistler/Blackcomb in the summer, certain safety messages have to be ramped up.

“We are seeing an increasing passion for extreme sports and there’s nothing wrong with that as long as you get trained, wear protective gear and are aware of limitations in the environment.

“The message we’re trying to get out is that we’re not trying to stop people from doing exciting things, but before you do it, get training gear and be aware of limitations and then have fun. Take smart risks, not stupid risks. Thankfully, there are a lot of cool helmets out there now. They’re shiny, they fit the grunge look, and so there’s no reason to shun them.”

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1. Special Report: Promoting Ski Helmet Use

Getting the basics before they start the Sky Tavern Junior Ski Program in two weeks, about 300 child skiers and boarders new to the program turned out at McKinley Park for a “dry land safety clinic.”

“You’re supposed to learn this the first week we go up there but we learned it today,” said Rogers, a Sparks Middle School student. “You don’t want to break your wrist or head when you fall.”

Amari Harley, 9, said she learned some valuable safety tips, including what to do when someone gets injured. She now looks forward to her first trip downhill.

“I think it’ll be fun,” said Harley, a student at Rita Cannan Elementary School in Reno.

Brian Phillips, Sky Tavern assistant ski school director, said children taking part in the event who were able to balance themselves, familiarize themselves with the equipment and learn the rules for responsible skiing, will be able to start skiing at their first of eight classes.

During the eight consecutive weekends of the program, students are rated on a 1 to 9 scale, depending on experience and progression.

“They got through level one today,” Phillips said.

Clinic attendees also were fitted for helmets, which prevent or reduce the severity of head injuries to children under age 15 by 53 percent, according to data cited by the Regional Emergency Medical Services Authority from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

“Most doctors that I’ve talked to, in the most critical stage, I said, ‘So what would it be like without the helmet?’,” Claudia Currie told The Daily News from the hospital ward last night.

“And they said, ‘We wouldn’t be here right now talking.’”

Claudia Currie is a helmet lobbyist, and helped get a number of “ski moms” to wear them. She’s now seen the importance of doing so firsthand, she said.

“He’s been a top provincial alpine racer for eight years, and has skied for 14,” Claudia Currie said of her son, a first-year arts student at Saint Mary’s University.

“That’s why I stress that if he wears a helmet, maybe all the beginners should, too.”

The family is “cautiously optimistic” he’ll emerge from his accident OK, she said.

Her son is responsive, but still unconscious, she said. He remains in intensive care.

“We’re hoping to see if he can breathe on his own tomorrow. And if that’s the case, we’ll try to get him to wake up.

“With brain injuries, you never know. It’s the fear of the unknown, (and) it’s pretty stressful.”

Claudia Currie said Chris, who has a twin brother, Kyle, is normally very chatty. The drugs he has been given are causing amnesia, so it’s possible he’ll forget what happened to him.

The Curries, who live in Dartmouth, built a cottage at Wentworth when the twins were little, and they’ve been in racing programs ever since.

Until last weekend, the family has had only minor accidents on the slopes, she said.