Do you wear a helmet or recommend wearing one while skiing? - Page 4

Excellent point.  I'd like to see someone top that one!  What makes a hemet good?  
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by ecimmortal 

You are clearly more out of touch than you think. I don't know where you ski, but when I line up for first chair on a powder day 90 percent of the people around me are wearing helmets.

I just flipped though the last two issues of Powder magazine and considerably less than 90% of the people skiing or about to ski are wearing helmets.  Are they out of touch?  Looked like they were skiing some pretty gnarly stuff.  
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snowsport 

I didn't respond to the poll, because there's no answer that I agree with. I'd check off "No, because I choose not to" if it were there. 

Bringing up the question, how could we get 90 posts into any thread on epic with a poll without the comment....

"Flawed."

?

Could this be a sign of the demise of epic?

Quote:

Originally Posted by CTKook 

Uhh, no.  There are SOME ski bums/ bro brahs who wear helmets, including full faces (and a few film stars who come to mind who wear fullfaces most of the time), but the majority of bro brahs are much more into knit hats. 

 

What you are doing -- observing highly visible rocky lines, for the most part -- is similar to a tourist going to Bootleg Canyon a few times (a very rocky and steep MTB area), observing the shuttle van, and concluding that the majority of "core" mountain bikers are always in fullfaces, full DH armor and ride freeride-oriented downhill sleds.  Even at Bootleg Canyon, most aren't checking those three gear choice boxes, because most aren't riding those visible lines on any given day.

 

Strangely many ski bums make gear choices on a similar basis.

As opposed to you making your observations from CT? Or from your tourist trips out west?

If you show up at dawn, well before the tourists arrive around here, you'll see the big line skiers putting on their body armor, knit hats and transceivers. Every morning. then when they get to the top of the hill, they take off their knit hats and put on their helmets.

And if we're heading out, we check beacons, every morning. And if you aren't packing a helmet in your bag, you're going to take crap for it. So maybe 'the majority" of bro-brah skiers in CT wear knit hats, but that ain't the way it is up here.

And if you go up to Galbraith, and watch the bikers coming down, you will see 99.9% in helmets. Actually that might be an understatement, as I have YET to see one biker without a helmet.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob Lee 

 

Excellent point.  I'd like to see someone top that one!  What makes a hemet good?  
 

 

I just flipped though the last two issues of Powder magazine and considerably less than 90% of the people skiing or about to ski are wearing helmets.  Are they out of touch?  Looked like they were skiing some pretty gnarly stuff.  
 

Helmets have been generalized as bulky, heavy, hot etc. And some are. I have always thought the potential benefits outweighed some minor annoyances. I see none of those problems with the current crop of higher end helmets.

Quote:

Originally Posted by L&AirC 

Just because I feel its an annual tradition to join in and I want to help get the thread count to 150 by Monday:

 

Like PNI, my heads taken a clobbering.  I've recovered from them all (as far as I can tell ) but I'm sure my luck will eventually run out.

 

What color is your helmet?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Philpug 

I love blanket statements. While it is currently the sliders choice to wear or not wear a helmet, I do see that changing at some point, it is starting with CANADIANS and we will see it moving up the ladder.  

FIFY

Quote:

Originally Posted by ecimmortal 

Helmets have been generalized as bulky, heavy, hot etc. And some are. I have always thought the potential benefits outweighed some minor annoyances. I see none of those problems with the current crop of higher end helmets.

So the more you pay, the more assured you are of getting a good helmet?

And what about all those people in Powder that aren't wearing them?  You didn't say whether they were out of touch or what?  

I will not ski without a helmet BECAUSE I have had two accidents that I am sure would have either killed or mamed me if I had not been wearing one.  I am not stupid and would be if I had not been wearing a helmet. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by iWill 

 

As opposed to you making your observations from CT? Or from your tourist trips out west?

 

If you show up at dawn, well before the tourists arrive around here, you'll see the big line skiers putting on their body armor, knit hats and transceivers. Every morning. then when they get to the top of the hill, they take off their knit hats and put on their helmets.

 

And if we're heading out, we check beacons, every morning. And if you aren't packing a helmet in your bag, you're going to take crap for it. So maybe 'the majority" of bro-brah skiers in CT wear knit hats, but that ain't the way it is up here.

 

And if you go up to Galbraith, and watch the bikers coming down, you will see 99.9% in helmets. Actually that might be an understatement, as I have YET to see one biker without a helmet.
 

First off, I'm real impressed that you actually CHECK BEACONS, every morning.  You're gnarly enough that you do the bare minimum for using the gear responsibly?  That must make you some real "big line" helmet authority.

Second, I'm surprised that more of the users of this newsgroup haven't embraced geographic mobility, including the use of air travel.  I've split time between west and east for some time.  I'd never rag on the east coast, because if you look at skiers and riders you've got everyone from Danny Kass (NJ) to Bode Miller, to a lot of "big line" skiers who come from there...and the average conditions there might call for helmets more often than out west.  Some truly gnarly terrain parks are back there, you have pucker-up terrain out there every bit as steep as the steepest terrain out west (just only postage stamp-sized bits of it)...and helmet use well below 50% for most user groups.

As for Bob Lee's observations re:  Powder and well less than 90% of skiers in it wearing lids, while skiing pretty gnarly terrain, it's kinda funny when someone actually inserts the real world into these threads. 

I realize I should correct my prior post to the extent that I implied that simply checking beacons was a bare minimum for using beacons responsibly.  Obviously, safe and responsible use of avalanche terrain requires a lot more than making sure everyone's beeping, however impressive it may sound to actually check your beacons to make sure no one snuck a studfinder in there.

These threads always deteriorate into nitpicking, I tell you.  Just because someone doesn't give you his full checklist in a thread about helmet use and only says that including the helmet on it is part of it doesn't mean the checklist isn't longer. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by sibhusky 

These threads always deteriorate into nitpicking, I tell you.  Just because someone doesn't give you his full checklist in a thread about helmet use and only says that including the helmet on it is part of it doesn't mean the checklist isn't longer. 

 

Actually, I was poking a little fun at someone trying to sound authoritative on the grounds that he actually did beacon checks, and therefore had a particular voice to hear as regards helmets.  I don't care whether the helmet itself is on his checklist or not.

It's kinda like saying that you actually turn the engine off before pumping gas, and therefore should be deferred to when it comes to cars.  In the real world, turning the car off before pumping gas and checking beacons are menial chores, not credentials, even if it is true that they're chores that not everyone does.

These threads are like political discussions -- pointless.  The fact that I'm not a vegetable today is not going to convince some confirmed hat wearer to wear a helmet. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by CTKook 

 

Actually, I was poking a little fun at someone trying to sound authoritative on the grounds that he actually did beacon checks, and therefore had a particular voice to hear as regards helmets.  I don't care whether the helmet itself is on his checklist or not.

 

It's kinda like saying that you actually turn the engine off before pumping gas, and therefore should be deferred to when it comes to cars.  In the real world, turning the car off before pumping gas and checking beacons are menial chores, not credentials, even if it is true that they're chores that not everyone does.

I really like your passion on this topic - you currently own more than 10% of the posts in this thread.

Plus I learned that I should turn my engine off before pumping gas

Yeah, but he's still a poser from CT, albeit one who shreds the postage size gnar of CT.

Never ski without a helmet!  We are supposed to be that smart by now.  This is 2010!   Mine may have saved my life twice now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedToSki 

 

I really like your passion on this topic - you currently own more than 10% of the posts in this thread.

Plus I learned that I should turn my engine off before pumping gas

Pleased to be of service.  I am guilty of responding to glaringly out-there statements, for sure.  For instance, iWill's latest assertion that I'm a poser is a matter of opinion, and therefore something he's always entitled to.  But, since he seems to lack the reading comprehension skills to understand that I'm no longer in CT, and for that matter have never said that CT, as opposed to the east, has gnarly terrain, it's easy to run up another post trying to point this out.  (CT actually does have some reasonably gnarly skateparks now, but obviously that's different from skiing and riding.) 

Kinda funny that simply saying a helmet is gear with pluses and minuses is so controversial. 

How many people on here always where a harness when they ski?  They're cheaper than helmets, and lower profile for most parts of the day.  Ya never know when one might come in handy.  Trust me, I've checked to see if someone was beeping...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jacques 

Never ski without a helmet!  We are supposed to be that smart by now.  This is 2010!   Mine may have saved my life twice now.

Curiously, this post got me to thinking: Would it be fair to say that the less smart you are, the more you need a helmet?  If that's the case, well...

Quote:

Originally Posted by CTKook 
But, since he seems to lack the reading comprehension skills to understand that I'm no longer in CT, and for that matter have never said that CT, as opposed to the east, has gnarly terrain, it's easy to run up another post trying to point this out.  (CT actually does have some reasonably gnarly skateparks now, but obviously that's different from skiing and riding.) 

 

 

Actually, you said you "split time" between east and west. I should apologize for calling you a poser; I think the more correct term in that case would be "tourist".

PS, I've yet to see anything in the east that classifies as "gnarly".

(Have to get the east-west thing going. What good is a helmet thread without a good east coast skiers are the best/No they're not drift?)

CT has awesome gnar....my local hill used to be called Satan's Ridge....

Quote:

Originally Posted by iWill 

PS, I've yet to see anything in the east that classifies as "gnarly".

 

(Have to get the east-west thing going. What good is a helmet thread without a good east coast skiers are the best/No they're not drift?)

My honest advice would be for you to wonder why you don't think the east has gnarly terrain, i.e.develop a better background in the sport, before you try to define norms for the sport, equipment or otherwise. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by CTKook 

My honest advice would be for you to wonder why you don't think the east has gnarly terrain, i.e.develop a better background in the sport, before you try to define norms for the sport, equipment or otherwise. 

Are you making the assumption that I haven't skied the east?

Quote:

Originally Posted by iWill 

Are you making the assumption that I haven't skied the east?

If you've skied back east, and still haven't seen anything gnarly, I wouldn't be too proud of that fact.  It might have been too cold for you, too scary for you, too whatever -- just because terrain is there, it's perfectly legit not to ski it -- but the terrain is there. 

Again, develop a background in the sport and only then worry about what gear other people might need. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ghost 

Let me be the first to call flawed!

 

I wear a helmet, and I believe, as I always have, that it is provides only a marginal safety benefit (though small, I'll still take it), for a noticeable inconvenience cost.  It doesn't fold up and fit nicely into my boot bag like my touque does and is one more thing to bring along.

 

I only wear it to make my mother happy.  .

Quote:

Originally Posted by SkiMangoJazz 

Bringing up the question, how could we get 90 posts into any thread on epic with a poll without the comment....

 

 

"Flawed."

 

?

 

Could this be a sign of the demise of epic?

No; it's a sign that you missed the first page.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CTKook 

If you've skied back east, and still haven't seen anything gnarly, I wouldn't be too proud of that fact.  It might have been too cold for you, too scary for you, too whatever -- just because terrain is there, it's perfectly legit not to ski it -- but the terrain is there. 

 

Again, develop a background in the sport and only then worry about what gear other people might need. 

You're going to have to do better than than that. Say something about ice and technical skills, or tight trees. You're never going to pull it off on "scary terrain".
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by iWill 

 

You're going to have to do better than than that. Say something about ice and technical skills, or tight trees. You're never going to pull it off on "scary terrain".
 

This is a common internet phenomenon.  Interestingly, in the real world -- the one where helmet use is far less than it seems to be online -- most people seem to think that NH, Maine, NY and also VT all have terrain every bit as steep as what you'll find in say, the Tetons.  (Less of it, for sure.)  This has been addressed in many threads on here already.  There are undone problems in each of those states that are undone for a reason, though in a couple cases at least I think totally do-able by someone willing to deal with the commitment. 

For you, given some glaring things you've said I think you could get pretty puckered totally inbounds, but after that you could start with some sidecountry in VT, hike Tucks, and move on from there.  (Because it does get more committing.)

Then little things gear-wise might begin to make much more sense to you.

Post them up there, tourist boy. Let's see what scares you so much.

Quote:

Originally Posted by iWill 

Post them up there, tourist boy. Let's see what scares you so much.

Waste of my time.  I think we've established where you're coming from.

Quote:

Originally Posted by iWill 

Post them up there, tourist boy. Let's see what scares you so much.

Heh.  Tuckerman.  CTKook's right.  You=credless.