Beginner with no clue!

Sm4sh,
I don't know what the situation is in Bulgaria - in fact I don't know if they've even got a helicopter! I daresay there's not one in resort but maybe they get one from somewhere else, when it's necessary.

When we were ski-ing in Obergurgl the conditions were quite icy, and we'd just gone down a very icy steep bit on a bend (very carefully I may add - I side-slipped down it) but I think it was only supposed to be a blue run, and at the bottom of that section was a helicopter just loading a casualty in on a stretcher :shock:. I can tell you, we all skied even more carefully after seeing that!

I found this article about what happens/can happen in France:

http://pistehors.com/backcountry/wiki/Articles/Search-And-Rescue-Costs

It's a few years old, and they say that at the time it was written it cost 300 euros for a stretcher and up to 2000 euros for a helicopter. They also describe the shocking case where 2 British snowboarders died in an avalanche at Tignes and their insurers refused to pay the rescue fees of £9000 for the helicopter and £1200 for the dog handlers and the estates of the deceased were expected to pay. Apparently the insurers refused to pay because the snowboarders had ignored boundary ropes and warning signs.

As long as you make sure you do have ski insurance, you should be fine :D

Ally

I found this just now, about Bulgaria. According to this the rescue services don't have the use of a helicopter.

http://www.bulgariaski.com/mountainsafety.shtml

Ally

sm4sh wrote:god how much did you have to pay? lol i should b alright is im on the beginner part. not like i will have to go far to get to a hospital will i? lol

Sorry I'd had a few too many vodkas last night, I don't have any first hand experience of helicopters but I expect it would cost a great deal more than 200 euros and I'm not sure you'd be able to find a helicopter in a bulgarian ski resort.

lol nothen wrong with a few too many vodkas!! yeh i didnt mean a helicopter for 200 euro. would be good though :lol:
i brought the ski insurance with first choice. they knocked a tenner off and seen as i didnt know what insurance i needed i just said yes lol
so if someone fell and broke both legs and they had no money would they just get left there to die. abit harsh init! lol