Ski Hills Research Articles

Low frequency sound limits for live amplified outdoor music

The Rock Sports Complex (ROC) in Franklin, Wisconsin contains a number of outdoor recreational facilities, including a minor league baseball stadium, a drive-in movie theater, an outdoor concert venue, practice fields, and a ski hill. Residents adjacent to and up to one and a half miles from the ROC have reported disturbances from sound generated by the facility both inside and outside of their homes. A sound study was undertaken to understand these concerns and to make recommendations for thresholds to be used to balance the desire for facility events with the concerns of nearby residents and businesses. One focus of this effort was the quantification of low frequency (~63 Hz) music from the outdoor concert venue at surrounding residences. This paper discusses the low frequencies generated by the facility, as measured in the surrounding communities, and how they compare to noise ordinances for other US municipalities.

Midshaft humeral fracture – Operative or nonoperative treatment?

A 49yo male is involved in a fall while skiing. He was brought off the ski hill and was found to have suffered a closed fracture of the left midshaft humerus. Distal neurovascular exam was normal. He is otherwise unhurt (Figs. 1 and 2). PAST MEDICAL HISTORY: previous history of back surgery for a disc problem when he was 35yo. Has been told that he has high blood pressure but does nothing for this. He is Right hand dominant. SOCIAL HISTORY: married with one child and works as an equipment operator for a crane company; he is a social drinker and smokes 1pack per day for 30 years. Has a history of using some recreational drugs but none for 10 years.

Effectiveness of an injury prevention video on risky behaviours in youth snow sports: A randomized controlled trial.

Ski and snowboard-related injuries are common among Canadian youth. Analyzing the role of risky behaviours that contribute to injury risk is essential for gaining an understanding of injury prevention opportunities. The objective was to determine if rates of risky behaviour seen at the ski hill were lower for children and adolescents exposed to an educational injury prevention video. This single-blinded cluster randomized controlled trial included students (ages 7-16) from 18 Calgary schools who were enrolled in novice levelled school-sanctioned ski and snowboard programs. Consenting schools were randomly assigned to the intervention or control. The control group followed standard preparation including watching a general ski hill orientation video that was created by the ski hill. The intervention group viewed the intervention video focussed on injury prevention. The Risky Behaviour and Actions Assessment Tool was used by blinded research assistants to observe and record students' risky behaviours at an Alberta ski hill. In total, 407 observations estimated the rate of risky behaviour. The overall rate of risky behaviour was 23.31/100 person runs in the control group and 22.95/100 person runs in the intervention group. The most commonly observed risky behaviours in both groups were skiing too close to other skiers/snowboarders and near collision with an object/person. Both groups showed similar rates of risky behaviour and demonstrated the same most common type of behaviour. Practical applications: future work should focus on mitigating common risky behaviours.

Closed Reduction of Anterior Shoulder Dislocations Performed by Ski Patrollers in the Alpine Prehospital Environment: A Retrospective Review Demonstrating Efficacy in a Canadian Ski Resort.

Shoulder dislocations are common ski hill injuries. Rapid reduction is known to improve outcomes; however, advanced providers are not always available to provide care to these patients. In 2017, nonmedical ski patrollers at Sunshine Village ski resort in Alberta, Canada, were trained to perform anterior shoulder dislocation (ASD) reductions. Program success was determined by a chart review after the 2020 ski season. This study retrospectively reviewed data on patients who presented to Sunshine Village ski patrol with a suspected ASD and who met the study inclusion criteria from November 2017 through March 2020. Data were collected from ski patrol electronic patient care records regarding general demographics, reduction technique used, analgesia administration, and reduction success rates. Ninety-six cases were available for review after exclusions. Trained nonmedical ski patrollers successfully reduced 82 of these cases, resulting in an overall reduction success rate of 89%. Sixty-three (66%) of these patients had experienced first-time dislocations. Eighty-two (87%) patients were male, with a median age of 25 y. The most used technique was the Cunningham method (75%), and analgesia was administered to 70% of patients. This retrospective study documents the results of a quality assurance review of the treatment of ASD at Sunshine Village ski resort. With a success rate of 89%, the evidence supports the conclusion that nonmedical ski patrollers can successfully perform ASD reductions. We believe training ski patrollers to reduce ASD improved patient care in our austere environment by providing early definitive treatment with a high success rate.

The evaluation of a risky behavior tool in novice pediatric skiers and snowboarders

Skiing and snowboarding are risky sports, and the risk is often highest among youth. This study assesses the reliability of a Risky Behaviour and Actions Assessment Tool (RBAAT) in young, novice skiers and snowboarders. RBAAT was developed based on literature, communication with experts, and the Alpine Responsibility Code. Video footage was collected for 90-minute periods in the beginner area of the ski hill. A snowboard coach created and rated 100 video clips containing risky or non-risky behaviors. A ski patroller and a former ski instructor independently rated each video using the RBAAT and came to a final decision with the snowboard coach. Two RAs then used the RBAAT to assess behaviors among novice youth skiing and snowboarding at the ski hill. Percent agreement and kappa coefficients (95% CI) were calculated comparing the RA video ratings to the consensus and for the RA on-hill ratings. Comparing RA ratings with the consensus for any risky behavior in the video, there was 91.00% agreement (kappa: 0.79; 95% CI: 0.66-0.92). There was 91.63% agreement for any risky behavior seen on the hill between RAs (kappa: 0.78; 95% CI: 0.68-0.87). The RBAAT was reproducible for assessing risky ski and snowboard behaviors among beginner children.

Understanding youths\u2019 attitudes and practices regarding listening to music, video recording and terrain park use while skiing and snowboarding

BackgroundSkiing and snowboarding are popular activities among Canadian youth and these sports have evolved to include certain risk behaviours such as listening to music, using terrain parks, and video recording yourself or others. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of these risk behaviours and identify factors that are associated with the risk behaviours.MethodsUsing focus group methodology, a questionnaire was developed to capture aspects of the Theory of Planned Behaviour. A cross-sectional study was conducted where the questionnaire was administered to youth aged 13–18 during two winter seasons at two ski hills in Manitoba, Canada.ResultsThe sample was comprised of 735 youth (mean age 14.9; 82.1% male, 83.6% snowboarding). The most common behavior was using the TP (83.1%), followed by listening to music that day (36.9%), and video recording that day (34.5%). Youth had significantly higher odds of listening to music that day if they planned to next time (OR 19.13; 95% CI: 10.62, 34.44), were skiing or snowboarding alone (OR 2.33; 95% CI: 1.10, 4.95), or thought listening to music makes skiing or snowboarding more exciting or fun or makes them feel more confident (OR 2.30; 95% CI: 1.31, 4.05). They were less likely to if they believed that music made it more difficult to hear or talk to others (OR: 0.35; 95% CI: 0.18, 0.65). Youth had significantly higher odds of using the terrain park if they believed that terrain parks were cool, challenging, or fun (OR: 5.84; 95% CI: 2.85, 11.96) or if their siblings used terrain parks (OR: 4.94; OR: 2.84, 9.85). Those who believed that terrain parks were too busy or crowded (OR: 0.31; 95% CI: 0.16, 0.62) were less likely to use them. Youth had significantly higher odds of video recording that day if they reported that they plan to video record next time (OR: 8.09, 95% CI: 4.67, 14.01) or if they were skiing or snowboarding with friends (OR: 3.65, 95% CI: 1.45, 9.18). Youth had significantly higher odds of video recording that day if they agreed that recording makes them try harder and improved their tricks (OR: 3.34, 95% CI: 1.38, 8.08) compared to those who neither agreed nor disagreed. Youth were less likely to record themselves that day if their friends did not do so (OR: 0.36; 95% CI: 0.16, 0.80).ConclusionCommon predictors of engaging in risk behaviours suggest that injury prevention programs may not have to be specific to each behaviour. Some strategies for injury prevention are suggested.

Railway-Associated Attractants as Potential Contaminants for Wildlife.

Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) appear to be attracted to natural and anthropogenic forage along railways, which may increase collision vulnerability, but also potentially causes exposure to contaminants associated with railway infrastructure. We assessed contaminant exposure for a vulnerable population of grizzly bears in the Canadian Rocky Mountains by determining if (1) dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) growing adjacent to a railway and grain spilled from hopper cars contain heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and mycotoxins and (2) metal concentrations from hair samples of individual bears correlates with use of the railway or other anthropogenic features. We used principle components analysis to represent 10 heavy metals and 16 PAHs and then compared their concentrations in railway-associated sources of grain and dandelions to reference samples that we purchased (grain) or sampled from nearby sites (dandelions). We also measured metal concentrations in the hair of bears that were captured and fitted with GPS collars. We found significantly higher concentrations in railway-associated samples of dandelion and grain for both metals (particularly lead, iron, and chromium), and the sum of 16 PAHs. Several metals and PAHs in railway-associated samples exceeded regulatory standards for soil or animal feed. Mycotoxins were detectable in grain samples, but occurred well below permissible standards. Metal concentrations in bear hair were not predicted by railway use, but higher metal concentrations occurred in male bears and two individuals that used ski hills during fall. As mitigation to reduce wildlife exposure to contaminants, particularly in protected areas, we encourage removal of railway grain deposits, regular maintenance of railway infrastructure, such as lubricating stations, and investigation of contaminants associated with other human infrastructures, such as ski hills.

The Village Lake Louise Controversy: Ski Resort Planning, Civil Activism, and the Environmental Politics of Banff National Park, 1964–1979

A new ski resort village plan proposed for Lake Louise in Banff National Park triggered intense opposition at public hearings in 1972. Local proponents, backed by Imperial Oil, had entered into agreements to expand services at Lake Louise, which led to federal public consultations. We investigate Parks Canada’s early public consultation process and how it was institutionalized in federal policy making from 1964 to 1979. Public debate was significant and influenced political decisions in the Village Lake Louise controversy. The National and Provincial Parks Association of Canada, Bow Valley Naturalists, Environmental Law Association, mountain clubs, academics, and others advocated for protection as conservation lobbyists and the Government of Alberta also objected to the proposal, leading Minister Jean Chrétien to halt the plan. It was a win for citizens, environmentalists, and ecological integrity as Village Lake Louise debates became Canada’s town hall. Past environmental protection is relevant to civil society and public space in a moment of new approvals for massive ski hill industry expansions in national parks. Precedents in civil society and governance can inform understanding of public consultation and a new environmental politics.

Achieving all-age helmet use compliance for snow sports: strategic use of education, legislation and enforcement

BackgroundNova Scotia is the first jurisdiction in the world to mandate ski and snowboard helmet use for all ages at ski hills in the province. This study represents a longitudinal...

Helmets for Skiing and Snowboarding: Who is Using them and Why: Fenerty L, Thibault-Halman G, Bruce BS, et al. J Trauma Acute Care Surg 2013;74:895–900.

Brain and spinal cord injuries resulting from ski- and snowboard-related collisions are prevalent. The use of helmets to prevent debilitating injuries is also increasing, but not universal in areas where helmets are not mandatory. Such is the case in several areas of Canada, where helmet use is not mandatory but rather, discretionary. The current study sought to document skiers' and snowboarders' use of helmets and to isolate factors associated with helmet use and non-use at three ski hills in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Helmets for skiing and snowboarding

In Canada, winter sports injuries are responsible for significant health care burden, with estimates of $400 million in direct and indirect annual health care costs. For ski-related injuries, helmets have been shown to provide significant protection. Current common practice in Canada, including the Province of Nova Scotia, is to leave the decision of whether to wear a helmet to the individual. The purposes of this study were to document skiers' and snowboarders' use of helmets and to isolate factors associated with helmet use and nonuse. A mixed methods approach was used to collect data during a 2-month period at the province's three ski hills. Naturalistic observations documented helmet use and falls, whereas interviews identified factors influencing helmet use or nonuse. Helmets were used by most skiers (74%) and snowboarders (72%); the use varied significantly between ski hills, ranging from 69% to 79%. Females were more likely to wear helmets compare with males (80% vs. 70%). The highest rates of use were found among 4-year-old to 12-year-old children, with helmet use declining as age increases. Qualitative data revealed that helmet users were most influenced by the protective benefits of helmets (77%), personal choice (46%), family (44%), and rules (44%), while non-helmet users cited personal choice (29%), comfort (26%), rules (14%), and cost (11%) as reasons for nonuse. More than 25% of skiers and snowboarders remain at increased risk of a serious brain injury by not wearing a helmet. Changes in regulations may be required to ensure widespread use of helmets on ski hills. Prognostic study, level II.

Ski hill injuries and ghost charts: Socio-technical issues in achieving e-Health interoperability across jurisdictions

This paper looks at the challenges associated with consolidating and leveraging patient information recorded at various points in a distributed, multi-jurisdictional health care system. We draw on insights from two ethnographic case studies to illuminate varied issues related to interoperability of information management systems. Our first case study is an investigation of duplicate medical charts which exist in several ambulatory care clinics located on the same campus at an acute care hospital. The second case study is an ongoing exploratory project intended to develop an understanding of information collection, storage and handover procedures in the pre-hospital care chain, a health care domain that includes varied actors and organizations with different information needs. Whereas findings from our case studies show that achievement of interoperability will be difficult, our analysis suggests ways to begin to overcome these challenges.

No boundaries: exurbia and the study of contemporary urban dispersion

The dream of a house in the country, at the seashore, or near a ski hill, is one shared by many in North American society. But the environmental and social impacts of the realization of this dream by an increasing number of people has created crises and conflict for many communities. The concept of exurbia has traditionally been used to describe settlement patterns simultaneously dispersed from the city yet also connected to urban networks. This paper reviews scholarship across disciplines including geography, ecology, sociology, and political ecology. Exurbia is here proposed to be strengthened as a powerful conceptual approach to capture and discuss the complex processes producing this phenomenon. Previous scholarship has produced excellent but largely disconnected work on the periurban zone around cities, exurban settlement processes, tensions between exurbanites and other rural residents, environmental impacts and habitat fragmentation. Future work on exurbia holds a great deal of promise to think about cultural values supporting the processes that produce these landscapes, working across scales from local to global using interdisciplinary and multi-method study.

The New Brave New World: Geography, GIS, and the Emergence of Ubiquitous Mapping and Data

office at the University of California, Santa Barbara.(1) We spoke of the debates that were raging in geography about the role of GIS with an emphasis on identifying productive ways of engaging GIScientists with their critics from human geography. Among the issues that emerged were individual privacy, epistemology, infrastructural changes wrought by localized data collection, and Big Science. Ten years later I interviewed Professor Goodchild again. Since then,Web 2.0 and the ubiquity of data and mapping have radically altered the intellectual landscape of GIS. In this new interview we discuss the possible eclipse of GIS by free, web-based technologies that include Google Earth, mash-ups, and data scraping. Not surprisingly, issues such as individual privacy and critical GIS remain relevant, but they are joined by a host of previously unimaginable phenomena that bear scrutiny by geographers. Web 2.0 is the host for the emerging technologies that have so altered our environment in GIScience. Web 2.0 broadly refers to a new generation of Internet services and technology. `The participatory web' as opposed to the `web as static information source' is frequently attached to descriptions of Web 2.0; user-created content and collaboration are its hallmarks. The concept that the average Internet user can create content is considered an essential element of Web 2.0 (Hendler and Golbeck, 2008). Web 2.0 promises to democratize the Internet to a degree not seen (Barsky and Purdon, 2006). Recognizable applications include wikis, blogs, mashups, and, more recently volunteered geographic information and citizen sensors (see also Elwood, 2008). Overall, the target of Web 2.0 is a richer more complete Web experience available to all Internet users. The implications for geographers are, however, extensive. Neogeography is one term that has emerged to describe a set of Web 2.0 techniques and tools that fall outside the realm of traditional, proprietary GIS such as ArcGIS (Turner, 2006). Neogeography is bringing traditional cartographic and GIS skills to the masses. It is democratizing a once exclusive domain (Boulos et al, 2006), but in the process removes authority and certainty (unwarranted in some cases) associated with GIS maps. GIS and geography have to adjust to this dynamic technical and social landscape. Mapping has evolved rapidly from paper, to GIS, to web-based mapping. Each transformation is associated with profound social impacts. We face scenarios, previously unimaginable, of human beings as sensors gathering constant information with their cell phones and reporting back information to central, web-based data-collating sites. These data could be as innocuous as snow quality on ski hills or animal deaths on the highway with GPS locations. Or they could include The new Brave NewWorld: geography, GIS, and the emergence of ubiquitous mapping and data

Risk Factors Associated with Serious Ski Patrol-reported Injuries Sustained by Skiers and Snowboarders in Snow-parks and on Other Slopes

Over the past years, the rate of injuries sustained at the alpine ski hills in Québec significantly increased. This raises concern over a possible increase in risk of severe injuries associated with snow-park use. The main objective of this study was to examine the severity of injuries sustained by skiers and snowboarders in snow-parks compared with other slopes from 2001 to 2005. A case-control study design was used. Subjects were injured skiers and snowboarders who reported to the ski patrol with an injury. Two sets of severely injured cases were defined based on the type of injury and ambulance evacuation. Injured controls were those who did not sustain severe injuries. 50,593 injury report forms were analyzed. A logistic regression analysis was performed to relate the severity of injury to the type of slope used when the injury occurred. All analyses were controlling for age, sex, skill level, helmet use, season, and type of activity. There was evidence to suggest that, for skiers (adjusted OR = 1.36; 95% CI: 1.21-1.53) and snowboarders (adjusted OR = 1.14, 95% CI: 1.05-1.23), participation in a snow-park increased the risk of being evacuated by ambulance. Severe injuries in skiers were also more likely to occur in snow-parks, but snowboarders had similar risk of severe injury in snow-parks and on other slopes. These results provide evidence that the type of activities performed in snow-parks may increase the risk of sustaining a severe injury compared with participation on other slopes.

Understanding Participation Constraints of Potential Skiers

This paper reports on the challenges facing organizations in identifying the non-skier market, converting non-skiers to skiers and overcoming the constraints that keep non-skiers off the ski hills. The authors present the outcome of field research undertaken between September and December 2003. A convenience sample of 1,365 of Greece's non-skiers was used. Data were statistically analysed using categorical regression, cluster analysis, frequencies, percentages and means in an effort to identify the effect of the basic classification/independent variables of non-skiers' socio-economic status on their perception of ‘participation constraints’. The findings from this research are described and discussed, and the authors highlight their relevance to marketing practitioners and policy makers in the formulation of appropriate marketing strategies to attract and satisfy these non-skier segments.

Addressing participation constraint: a case study of potential skiers

Canada's ski industry has been facing flattening market demand and declining revenues and profitability since the early 1990s. While the future is difficult to predict, it is clear that for the ski industry to continue to flourish, it will be necessary for it to develop new markets and establish a range of product development strategies in order to attract new people into the sport. Here a fundamental requirement will be to tap the potential of the non-skier market. This paper reports on the challenge-facing organisations like the Canadian Ski Council in identifying the non-skier market, converting non-skiers to skiers; and overcoming the constraints associated with skiing's media image, instructional requirements, cost and time commitments — all identified as the major barriers keeping non-skiers off the ski hills. It is argued that many non-skiers have never tried skiing because they are either unaware of the sports’ benefits or that they have emotional or perceptual biases that inhibit the desire to participate. While specific marketing strategies are required to lay their concerns to rest, it is clear that a more thorough understanding of the market profile of non-skiers, what might encourage them to participate and what approaches would most effectively communicate the right message about skiing is needed.

Representative noise levels of snow making, slope grooming, and other ski area equipment

In the process of producing the environmental noise assessment for a major expansion of the Mt. Wachusett (MA) ski area, noise data for ski area equipment were collected. Modern ski areas are highly mechanized. Snow making equipment includes large air compressors and snow guns or other air/water dispersal devices. Slopes and trails are groomed by special tractors towing various rollers, plows, scrapers, etc. to provide well‐packed mogul‐free surfaces. Much of the snow making and grooming activities take place at night. By day snowmobiles are used to transport the ski patrol to serious accidents and mechanics to repair stalled lifts. Construction of new ski trails requires additional, typically loud equipment such as chain saws, log skidders, wood chippers, bulldozers, etc. In the rural environment of ski areas these activities can exceed ambient noise at considerable distances. Furthermore, the trend to overnight accommodations for skiers directly on ski hills requires consideration of such equipment noise.

Fluid settlement profiler: error analysis for installation at Blackstrap, Saskatchewan

The accuracy of settlement measurement at the base of a man-made ski hill, using a fluid settlement profiler, has been analysed. Owing to the great length of the installation, changes in ambient temperature and barometric pressure contributed most to overall error. Other factors, such as probe positioning, level reference to benchmark, and transducer system reproducibility also affected accuracy. At the centre of the settlement profile the possible error was found to be 11.2 mm or 0.87% of the observed settlement.

The application of pressuremeter test results in deformation analyses

The overconsolidated soils and soft rocks which form a large proportion of foundation materials in Western Canada typically have a substantial component of their total deformation of an immediate (time independent) nature. This makes them particularly suitable for application of pressuremeter testing when deformation characteristics are sought for settlement or heave analysis.The presented study is a continuation of work on pressuremeter testing carried out at the University of Alberta systematically since 1971 with a view to developing a pragmatic approach to a complex problem of foundation deformation analysis.Described in detail are pressuremeter testings on three sites in Western Canada where documented case histories of deformation behavior were available. The first case history analysed was a settlement of Mount Blackstrap near Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, which is a man-made ski hill founded on very deep till strata. The second case was the settlement of concrete silos in Calgary, Alberta, founded on a layer of dense, coarse gravel. The third study was concerned with an analysis of a load test on a bored pile embedded in Cretaceous bedrock at the Calgary Airport.At all three sites the pressuremeter derived moduli were used in back-analysis of foundation behavior and the results were compared with previously recorded field data. An agreement between the back-analysis and field data in some cases and discrepancies in others indicate the limitations of this approach to pressuremeter testing in these types of foundation materials. The results are discussed and conclusions are drawn on the basis of these as well as the previously studied case histories.