reweston Posted December 2, 2004 Report Share Posted December 2, 2004 Had my first trip up this year yesterday, went to AZ snowbowl. -5 degrees, clear and cunny, no wind, and the most perfectly groomed snow ever made for an amazing day of carving. Rode my brand new coiler AM 169, and had a blast! Unfortunately, near the end of the day, a group of snowboard instructors were trying to complete these full circle carves, one at a time, across a wide open groomer. You can only guess where this is going.....I was on the lift observing their efforts, when one of the guys takes off. 3 skiers where in his plain view when he started. He gets full speed, goes into his giant carve in an attempt to complete his circle-carve, and you could see the collision coming right when he started. I was going to yell something, but he had 3 instructors below him watching uphill, and 2 behind him. Were they spotting him? Wasn't somebody going to say anything? Nope. This guy clocks this little female skier going full speed, didn't even see her until the last 1/100 of a second. The noise made on impact was UGLY. Her leg looked broken, she started moaning & groaning, then going into siezures. It ended my day, I felt very bad for her. Anyway, be careful out there, those super long speed carves are fun, but sending someone else or yourself to hospital is not worth sacrificing a few seconds to observe your surroundings. The fact that these were instructors made the whole thing even worse...... Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeW Posted December 2, 2004 Report Share Posted December 2, 2004 -shudder- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strider Posted December 2, 2004 Report Share Posted December 2, 2004 If I ever caught one of my instructors being that irresponsible I'd fire them in a minute. Everybody and especially instructors should Know THe Code...specifically look uphill before you start or merge, and be aware of your surroundings. Its a sad story and it puts a black eye on instructors as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AlpentalRider Posted December 2, 2004 Report Share Posted December 2, 2004 Based on your description of the events it sounds like they were both at fault. If he reached full speed before starting his turn, then it could be stated that he fulfilled rule #4: "Whenever starting downhill or merging into a trail, look uphill and yield to others." Once he has merged on the trail rule #2 applies: "People ahead of you have the right of way. It is your responsibility to avoid them" It sounds like this was one of those situations where you could argue that both rules where violated. Although being an instructor he and his buddies should have taken better precautions to ensure that the situation didn't present itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baka Dasai Posted December 3, 2004 Report Share Posted December 3, 2004 Originally posted by AlpentalRider "People ahead of you have the right of way. It is your responsibility to avoid them" What happens when it is not obvious who is "ahead" of who? This is particularly relevant when people are travelling <i>up</i> the hill. But I recognise that if you're doing something as out-of-the-ordinary as a carved 360 you have to accept that any ambiguity in the rules isn't going to protect you from a collision, or be seen in your favour when blame is apportioned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hagen Posted December 3, 2004 Report Share Posted December 3, 2004 ...I have added an extra rule for myself: Don't expect people to follow (or even know) the rules and ride accordingly. I got too often into a situation where people just don't know how a carver will travel. Even skiers who you would think know what they are doing. ...almost got run over by someone in a speed suit on skis while carving - those guys quite often think they own the mountain and straight line the mountain to warm up for some race. It's a good idea to stay away from racing kids on race day... But also beginners can be quite dangerous. My only impact crash so far was with some woman who was standing in the middle of a somewhat narrow slope and decided to start going a second before I would have passed her... ...could see what was gonna happen but couldn't do anything about it. It also didn't help that she was standing downhill behind her friend which made it impossible to predict what she was up to... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baka Dasai Posted December 3, 2004 Report Share Posted December 3, 2004 Originally posted by Hagen My only impact crash so far was with some woman who was standing in the middle of a somewhat narrow slope and decided to start going a second before I would have passed her Yeah, I've had a number of close calls because of this. It's very rare that people check uphill before starting off. I've even been guilty of forgetting this myself a few times. It's like checking for cyclists before opening your car door after parking in the street. Even though I cycle more than I drive, I sometimes forget to do this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enzo Posted December 3, 2004 Report Share Posted December 3, 2004 That's an awful story. :( On a positive note, congrats on the new AM169. What were impressions of the board? How did it carve? How was it at speed?...etc, etc. I'm waiting on a new AM169 and I'm getting anxious for its arrival. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reweston Posted December 3, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2004 I was going to post a review of this board after I got back from Mt Bachelor (12.12-12.19) but what the heck. I have been boarding since 1988, riding plates since 1993. I rode everywhere, all the time, up until 2000, when I decided to get my #($% together and find a career.....so, now I'm a pharmacist who just had his first real day back on the hill in a long time. Saying that, my first impression of the board was: weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! I was able to instantly initiate fast, short turns with no problems, throwing all of my weight into each turn and whipping the board around until it would explode into the next turn. Not what I expected! It is more turny than my sims burner 162 or my mistral ecstacys' 159&167 (rest their souls). Ok, so that's great, but let's try and open it up and stretch those carves out.......that's where I believe my abilities need ironing out, and that's where this review will be continued after 7 days at Bachelor :D Roberto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tim Tuthill Posted December 3, 2004 Report Share Posted December 3, 2004 Roberto: Where are you in AZ?? I'm in Prescott. The Bowl is in sight out my window. I was there at the last days of the season last year. It looks like you will run out of options real fast if there isn't much snow?? Lots of rocks under the main lift. If its crowded, you can't even think about laying it out? Your thoughts?? Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reweston Posted December 4, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2004 Tim~ You can see snowbowl from prescott? Yes, it will be a tragically short season I'm sure. I'm planning on trips to: Bachelor as previously stated, SES, Big Bear 12/23-24, Telluride in March, Bachelor again in April, and as many local trips to the bowl and sunrise as possible. Just bought a like new 1977 Chevy Pathfinder Van 4x4 for the travels(it's got a-team style!). Up for some travels, tim? Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tim Tuthill Posted December 4, 2004 Report Share Posted December 4, 2004 Well kind-a. The peaks and the mount. I plan on being in Mammoth for most of the season. Will be at the whole SES. On my way to Mammoth on Tues for 4 to 6 days. All depends on the conditions. Let me know where you are. I'm retired, so every day after Jan 1, I'm on the hill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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