As the 2025-2026 winter season ramps up and the snow starts to blanket our Wasatch range, a tsunami of travelers from all of the globe will come to Utah hoping to taste some of the greatest snow on earth.
Unfortunately with this influx of participants in Utah’s favorite pastime, there also comes an influx of injuries. While we have seen an overall decrease in ski-related injuries in the past two decades, we are still seeing an average of 80,000 ski-related injuries in the United States annually. Despite the progress we have made in injury prevention, skiing is dangerous.
No one likes to think about the consequences of a misstep on the ski slopes. We prefer the Disneyland narrative that skiing is family fun, a great way to show off your skills and an opportunity to flash your wallets. Unfortunately, when you ski, you are risking a lot more than just a sunburn and a hangover.
In my short tenure as a ski patrol, my entire perspective on skiing changed. In just three short seasons, I saw season-ending, career-ending and life-ending injuries.
The dirty little secret of the ski industry is that skiing can kill people. Skiing kills roughly 0.5 to 1 fatality per million skier days, research shows. While they may seem like a pretty nominal number, when Utah sees 6 to 7 million skier visits per year, this equates to anywhere from three to seven deaths per ski season.
So, how do you stay out of the emergency room, off the operating table and out of the graveyard? As a student doctor, former ski patrol and “retired” semi-professional skier, here’s what I recommend:
Leave the drinking for the après.
I know that makes me sound like a killjoy. I know you don’t want to hear it. I honestly hate to say it. But here’s the thing: Alcohol makes you make choices you wouldn’t normally make. I have seen multiple people drink too much, ski too fast and end up dead. I assure you that a PBR tastes just as good at the bottom of the mountain as it does at the top.
Wear a helmet.
Speaking of things that make me sound like your mother: Wear your freaking helmet. And when I say wear your helmet, I mean like on your head — like buckled and on your head. I don’t care if it messes with your hairdo. I don’t care if you have a really cool hat that you want to show your friends. You know what looks a lot stupider than a helmet? A craniotomy. Plus, a helmet keeps your ears warm.
Know the code.
Remember that inescapable skier code that used to be pasted on every napkin, bathroom stall and lift tower? Know it. Follow it. Teach it to your kids.
- Always stay in control. You must be able to stop or avoid people or objects.
- People ahead or downhill of you have the right-of-way. You must avoid them.
- Stop only where you are visible from above, and do not restrict traffic.
- Look uphill, and avoid others before starting downhill or entering a trail.
- You must prevent runaway equipment.
- Read and obey all signs, warnings and hazard markings.
- Keep off closed trails and out of closed areas.
- You must know how and be able to load, ride and unload lifts safely. If you need assistance, ask the lift attendant.
- Do not use lifts or terrain when impaired by alcohol or drugs.
- If you are involved in a collision or incident, share your contact information with each other and a ski area employee.
The bottom line is, skiing is dangerous. Whether it is a blown-out knee or an ICU stay, it is important to understand the risks that you take on when click into your bindings.
Skiing is incredible, it is fun, it is fast, it is about as close to flying as a human can get without ever coming off the ground. The key with flying, however, is not to get too close to the sun.
Sarah Atwill Petelinsek worked in ski patrol for three years before she began studying to be a physician at the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at the University of Utah.
Sarah Atwill Petelinsek worked in ski patrol for three years before she began studying to be a physician at the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at the University of Utah. In addition to her medical education, Petelinsek is a behavioral economics and decision science researcher at the University of Utah Population Health Science Department, where she studies the intersection of backcountry skiing and healthcare decision making.
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