Yesterday 12 Feb, we witnessed a serious accident at Snowshoe. Amazing it occurred in the intersection of two green trails. Apparently a young female adult struck a tree on the split between Skidway leading to both Powder Monkey and Powder Ridge lifts. The ski patrollers were there in force administering CPR. And they were doing so for at least 20 minutes, as the snow nearby was covered by blood.

Talking to some other of the guests, one of whom was an MD who was present, as well as two patrollers this morning, they were unable to save her life.

I wonder if Snowshoe will eventually verify the story. Still, it is a sad occurrence. Yesterday it was beyond packed at the slopes at Snowshoe, with close to an hour wait at Ballhooter. And with strong wind conditions, the Western Territory high-speed quad was closed down, leading to more crowding at the remaining lifts.

Will the resort ever bring back its volunteer customer service and safety patrol base that the previous CEO, now fortunately exiled out West, did his best to gut?.....

The tragic story has been confirmed:

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/ohio...rt-1080514.html

Hate to hear that - prayers go out to the family.

SS was really really croweded Saturday. I usually work the moutain to try to avoid the long lift lines and I got caught at Ballhooter for a 40 min wait. Way to long, way too many people and lot of hot-dogging folks on the trails. Did not see anyone trying to get folks to slow down. Hope things change.

Today (Sunday) we skied Western Territory for about 4 hours. With the wonderful conditions and great weather, came a packed crowd. Not one patroller in sight. And the safety patrol is all but non existent. Tons of poachers, hot-doggers, and unsafe people. For the life of me, I can't understand the seemingly indolent attitude of the resort's senior management when it comes to safety. There was at least one other serious injury in the resort (broken back). In some areas it seemed like a free-for-all.

There are tons of people who would give of their own time to volunteer for what should be a model community. But many of them became completely discontent at what seemed as benign ignorance two years ago so they quit. And the obnoxious attitude came straight from the top. With that track record, it is no wonder to see sad happenings such as what just occurred.

Very sad news, putting more patrollers out there is always a good idea.Though it won't do much to reduce accidents, it does help with dealing with them.

I hate to see these things happen. After reading this, I stepped up my father to family safety discussion last night.

Condolences to the family and friends. This is too sad. Skiing greens should not lead to fatalities.

I wonder if someone hit her, knocking her into the tree, or if a near collision scared her. Blue & green slopes in the mid A on crowded days are among the scariest places in skiing.

Two skiers airlifted out of the Canaan Valley this weekend also. One a teenage male who hit a tree at Timberline and bruised his spleen. Another was knocked unconscious somehow at CVR. Apparently both are doing well in the hospital.

The article seems to imply she and her friends went off the trail voluntarily.

Big question - was she wearing a helmet?

Here's another article, more recent... From Ohio.com Feb 14th http://www.ohio.com/news/116143409.html

SUMMIT COUNTY
Skiing death

SUMMIT COUNTY: The daughter of Summit County Judges Linda and Thomas Teodosio died in a skiing accident Saturday after she hit a tree and suffered head trauma, said Laura Parquette, a spokeswoman for Snowshoe Mountain Resort in West Virginia.

Andrea Rose Teodosio, 22, was skiing with a group of friends when she went off the marked terrain and crashed into a tree. She was treated by the ski patrol and then transported to Pocahontas Memorial Hospital in Buckeye, W.Va., Parquette said.

Teodosio worked as a research and strategy/development assistant for Hitchcock Fleming & Associates in Akron.

Tom Teodosio, her father, is a Summit County Common Pleas judge, while Linda, her mother, is the county's juvenile court judge.

I've seen it happen, warned about it happening, and did my damnest to prevent it fraom happening, but when you're young you think it's never going to happen to you. It's not always the novice who end up in a bag. It's the experienced skier too.
Sad, it really gives the sport a black eye.

Ummm...no.

You ski at your own risk, though SS seems riskier then anywhere else, having little/no Courtesy or Safety Patrol and few Patrollers. The irony is: what is SS's ulterior motive, as the "volunteers" work for free, but were still banished ?!?!? I "used" to be one and (unfortunately) still own there, but don't go any more as I felt it's become too dangerous...but that's just my call.
P.S. - my realtor wouldn't even take my listing saying SS property is simply unsalable, glutted with foreclosures and short sales! Praying that with new mgmt and/or owner things at SS may turn around in a few years.

x2

So does anyone have advice on what to say to kids to keep them attuned to slope safety? I have had this discussion several times with my kids, point out the most dangerous intersections, have them wear helmets (and even a back protector) but would be very interested in any additional ideas for what really resonates with kids. We're a ski-obsessed family and but want to make sure we remain a *safe* ski-obsessed family.

The best forum to discuss ski ettiquette and the responsibility code is at home. That's the number one factor in safe skiing. Perhaps because of the sporadic nature of skiers in this area, but compared to New England and out West, where skiing is a part of the culture, MidA skiers are the rudest and least conscionable skiers I've seen in my 40+ years of skiing. I'd be amazed if 1% of MidA skiers were aware that a skier ahead of them has the right of way, or that stopping in the middle of the trail is a no-no. And this isn't just anecdotal.

In New England and out West, as well as Europe, courts have been taking a much harder look at skiers and boarders skiing out of control. Several years ago, Colorado courts found a young man guilty of murder in the death of a skier. As a matter of fact, under Colorado's Ski Safety Act, which is considered the standard across the nation, breach of skier responsibility code constitutes negligence and either skiers (or parents) are responsible for both criminal and tort liability. Skiers are responsible for knowing their parameters and rights of way. Vermont's law is similar.

This past weekend, I witnessed from the lift, a male skier taking an obvious beginner, female skier down a somewhat challenging mogul run. She kept falling very badly and I could not resist yelling from the chair, "Lady you do not belong on this slope and your boy friend is an idiot for taking you onto this slope". I think the guy hurled an obsenity at me. I see this all the time; men insisting that someone ski on a slope that they do not have the ski skills to ski on. I see fathers taking kids down slopes that they should not be on. Perhaps it is the testosterone that infects our brains and compels us to insist that unskilled skiers ski on slopes that they should not be skiing on. We all need to stretch our skills to improve,but we must use common sense to keep these people safe,