One for the instructors...

Hoop wrote:

Re: the second point. I'm sure you're not suggesting that people having lessons never fall and hurt themselves? Obviously, lessons enable you to learn faster, in turn reducing the likelihood of a nasty fall as time progresses, but the reality is that anyone can have a fall and hurt themselves, whether in a lesson or not. Even experienced skiers have nasty accidents all the time. My friend's father was the president (or something like that) of Norfolk Ski Club and had a horrendous injury recently from a seemingly inocuous piece of skiing.

Was somebody on here not asking for advice the other day as their wife had had a fall on her first lesson and broken her wrist?

If you or your friends lose control,hit another skier and injure them on French ski slopes, it is likely that a Gendarme will be called and statements taken. 3 years ago I was invited to press charges for assault after a woman crashed into me on a French ski slope.

bandit wrote:
If you or your friends lose control,hit another skier and injure them on French ski slopes, it is likely that a Gendarme will be called and statements taken. 3 years ago I was invited to press charges for assault after a woman crashed into me on a French ski slope.

That seems nuts. It's an inherently dangerous sport, and that could quite feasibly happen to anyone purely accidentally.

Hoop,

Not an instructor's view, but a practical approach for you as you seem to be feeling some responsibility for your mates. Assuming that they take some lessons, all you can do is try to keep everyone's expectations real and try to curb any excess bravado. You will be able to advise on where these friends should not go, helping them not to get into too much trouble. If anything, help them focus on building skills on easier terrain. If they want some competition, then make it about how many turns can you do on a run, not how fast can you go. Shift the focus of group runs to the turns and practice stopping in different conditions. Point out the rescue sleds when you see them and make sure they know that most accidents come from being out of control. Ostracise anyone that bombs a run. Above all, know that you are only offering advice on where and what to do and not giving instruction. Be careful not to fudge the line or assume the mantle of official leader.

I agree with all the previous advice, but when you ask an instructors opinion, you will get a professional answer.

Trencher

Is this thread not getting a bit daft :!: Can we get some perspective.

Before you know it we'll be accusing Hoop of attempted manslaughter/gbh/assault with an offensive skier.

Give the guy a break.

If his mates are inconsiderate/stupid enough to not have lessons ( even experienced skiers have lessons) then that's their problem.

Yes, potentially they could hurt someone else, but to be honest they're far more likely to have a darned good time, and maybe crash into each other :!:

Graham

hymac580 wrote:Is this thread not getting a bit daft :!: Can we get some perspective.

Before you know it we'll be accusing Hoop of attempted manslaughter/gbh/assault with an offensive skier.

Give the guy a break.

If his mates are inconsiderate/stupid enough to not have lessons ( even experienced skiers have lessons) then that's their problem.

Yes, potentially they could hurt someone else, but to be honest they're far more likely to have a darned good time, and maybe crash into each other :!:

Graham

Sure, I endured 16 weeks with a broken collarbone to consider my perspective on out of control skiers. 3 years on and my r/s Acromion joint is still displaced as a result of the injury.

Lets all hope that they have adequate insurance.

hymac580 wrote:Is this thread not getting a bit daft :!: Can we get some perspective.

Before you know it we'll be accusing Hoop of attempted manslaughter/gbh/assault with an offensive skier.

Give the guy a break.

If his mates are inconsiderate/stupid enough to not have lessons ( even experienced skiers have lessons) then that's their problem.

Yes, potentially they could hurt someone else, but to be honest they're far more likely to have a darned good time, and maybe crash into each other :!:

Graham

But that's exactly how the law does actually work both that an individual can be held liable and that someone who's supervising other people with or without relevant qualifications can be held liable. There's a particular danger that an experienced skier with inexperienced skiers can be judged to have some liability. It's a danger I'm aware of and I'm actually insured for it.

In hindsight, I probably asked the wrong question in creating this thread.

If I'd thought more carefully I might have asked the question that Trencher has unwittingly answered. I don't really want to teach them to ski, and if that's the impression I gave then sorry to all that took it that way. All I want to do is make sure they all have a good time. They have no intention of trying to be experts by the end of the week. They just want to have a laugh, and learn a bit while they're at it.

None of us will be attempting and extreme terrain, and there will certainly be no sense of competition. My friends just aren't like that. The closest they will get is pushing themselves to learn and progress

Hoop wrote:If I'd thought more carefully I might have asked the question that Trencher has unwittingly answered.

Not so much with the unwittingly :lol:

Trencher