SunSurfer Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 (edited) Since I bought one of these I've really not stressed about it too much. http://bubbleball.us/ ;) Edited January 10, 2015 by SunSurfer 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lafcadio Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Idea: You know those orange/yellow vests that vision- or hearing- impaired skiers don to warn uphill skiers and riders? Would be nice to have some of those for us that say on the back something like " This rider makes wide turns", or "If you can read this, I have right of way". ;-) I love it!!! When I used to ride midweek nights at a super busy local hill that caters to school clubs, I realized I was given more room because my shell was the same color orange that the Mountain Rangers (aka Speed Police) wore. The Rangers at Wachusett also wear a red blinking cycling light, so I started wearing one of those too. Nobody ever came near me. It was golden! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dingbat Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 No one expects a snowboarder to turn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hachis Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Particularly full speed ahead skiers!... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 I keep a pretty big bubble... I am willing to wait several minutes for a gap if I need to. Even on weekends it's usually not necessary at Bachelor save for a few runs (Carnival, Kangaroo, Leeway, Olympian). The ugly orange Charlie Brown jacket seems to help, everyone averts their eyes from it. I used to get hit once a month in a black jacket and have never been hit (knocks on wood) in 3+ seasons in the ugly orange. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davekempmeister Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 (edited) I'm with Jim - carry some extra speed and worry less. If I slow, even a little, my head is again on a swivel and I most definitely am glancing back uphill, especially on heelside. Also, no music (as Tabatha pointed out) helps with this, I think. Edited January 12, 2015 by davekempmeister Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comapedrosa Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 (edited) Wow, usually I try to beat them in order to catch some open space in front of them. Today there was this instructor in front of me followed by a whole flock of ducklings with bent poles, who zig zagged pretty fast from one side of the run to the other - lost half my elevation by trying to synchronize my pass with her obnoxious turns without obstructing the trajectory of her ducklings... Edited January 12, 2015 by Comapedrosa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comapedrosa Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 Completely agree that music is dangerous nonsense! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philw Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 I'm fast and I'm silent, so relying on your ears to know that I'm coming would be dangerous. That said, I'm smart enough to look where I'm going. Personally I never stop on a run, partly to avoid danger and partly because it feels like an interruption. If I'm with people who stop, I try to get them to stop where they can't be hit. Then, I think it depends where you ride. Some examples: The other week in the Okanagan I was the fastest on the hill so I had little threat from behind, and there were no crowds so that wasn't an issue either. The speed cops were easy to slalom around. In a UK fridge the policing is poor and the most dangerous place is in the lift queue at the bottom where the straight lining kids could get you. Solution: only go out of season at the least peak time. In Whistler it can get to be a real zoo. The speed cops are good. If you're in a speed cop area it's ok, as you can slalom around everyone else (the cops can tell who can ride and who can't: you get more leeway if they can see you're on it). I quite like that, up to a point. When it gets really crazy I just ride somewhere else - usually it's easy to find places the herd is not using. So far I'm getting away with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcousticBoarder Posted January 15, 2015 Report Share Posted January 15, 2015 Idea: You know those orange/yellow vests that vision- or hearing- impaired skiers don to warn uphill skiers and riders? Would be nice to have some of those for us that say on the back something like " This rider makes wide turns", or "If you can read this, I have right of way". ;-) Anyone do something like this? Wearing like a safety vest or something? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strider Posted January 15, 2015 Report Share Posted January 15, 2015 Bubble varies on terrain and how many people are out. Here in the Midwest the runs are short and sometimes really crowded so by default my bubble is pretty small. This means you really have to be aware of what others are doing. I always try to time it for a "break" in the crowd, and once I start rarely does anyone catch up./ That said, we had a perfect reminder of why looking uphill is a great idea before making a huge arcing turn. One of our HS racers who was out practicing the other night made a huge arc at the bottom of the hill and got t-boned by a skier straightlining into the lift line and snapped the boarders femur. The skier was unhurt, but it could have been worse for both of them. As it is this kid was on the short list for State Champion this year and now his season is over. While technically the skiers fault, he had the same excuse that he wasn't expecting to see that kind of turn. Better to be riding defensively and looking around than to get taken out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted January 16, 2015 Report Share Posted January 16, 2015 One of our HS racers who was out practicing the other night made a huge arc at the bottom of the hill and got t-boned by a skier straightlining into the lift line and snapped the boarders femur. The skier was unhurt, but it could have been worse for both of them. Straightlining into the lift line, right past the slow sign at the bottom of the run? "sigh" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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