Collissions and stuff
On the weekend just gone I was involved in an incident where I guess neither person was entirely at fault, just one of those things I guess. There is a particular hit off the left side of a LBS at Buller that has been there in various guises since early August, sometimes it’s barely enough to get air and other times crew have shaped it up so it boots you about 6ft if you have the speed. Being a natural I’m running into it on my toe edge and usually just do a straight air with a grab. On Saturday it was pushing you up and out a fair bit, probably in the 4ft range, the landing is about 10ft onto the side of the run and it’s fairly obvious that it’s there. The biggest issue with it is that the transition to the lip is about 8ft in vertical rise so there is a period of time on the run in, maybe 10secs, where your line of sight drops below the lip before you can spot the landing as you leave the lip again.
I have been hitting this thing every time I go and have been failry careful about making sure there is no one in the landing zone before i go off and have not even come close to hitting anyone. Unfortunately that changed Saturday morning. I was riding with a mate and I had shown him the hit on the first run, just a slow run in with just enough pace to get to the top so we could suss it out, it wasn’t to bad so we figured next time around we would have a proper go at it. As we came around the next time I saw a few younger guys go off it one after the other in full view of everyone on the run. I veered off the side and wound back around with no one anywhere near the landing, that i could see. I get to the point of no return not thinking much of it, 10 secs later as I hit the lip I see this skier standing motionless right in the landing zone. I swear to christ she could not have lined herself up any better if she tried.
I remember thinking as soon as I saw it “ah fark this is gunne be bad”. I managed just enough lean up the hill as I took off that I wasn’t heading plumb for her but rather headed for the back of her skis. I had a split second debate with myself as to the possible benefits of vocally expressing the presence of impending doom but decided it might make the situation worse so I busied myself trying to minimise the impact and any subsequent damage. I kept leaning up the hill, resigned to the fact that I was gunna eat it pretty badly but trying to avoid her as best I could. I landed pretty much flush on the back of her skis with my torso leaning up the hill but my legs kinda straight as I didn’t want to cut anything/part of her with the heel edge. The only parts of our bodies that hit were my front leg that ran into her backside, as soon as that happened I hit the deck and as it happened so did she.
I made sure she was ok, seemed like she was mostly shocked more than anything, took her a little bit to gather her wits. Was incredibly lucky not to get taken out again as a my mate and then a whole heap of grommies came off the jump. Grabbed her stocks, got her upright and dusted her off, made sure she was ok and then headed off down the run. Got to thinking about, felt a tad guilty about it, would have scared the crap out of most people if they had just been taken out by 107kgs of 6’3” flying human they never saw coming but by the same token I’m always wondering about some of the stupid stuff ppl do not just in snow but in all facets of life. I’m almost 100% sure she couldn’t have failed to see the first kids go off and land in that area so why she would choose that as a spot to wait/rest I have no idea.
Seems a pretty common thing for people on the slopes to give almost zero thought to where they decide to stop, I’m not talking about falling over, you can hardly blame someone for that but sitting down to do their bindings up, waiting for others to catch up etc invariably happens in some of the tightest spots on the run making it difficult to get past for everyone and making it near impossible for a beginner to do anything but fall over and add to the carnage. I spose I learned a lesson in that you can’t take unseen landings for granted and it’s probably a good idea to have a spotter.
Seems a pretty common thing for people on the slopes to give almost zero thought to where they decide to stop,
I spose I learned a lesson in that you can’t take unseen landings for granted and it’s probably a good idea to have a spotter.
True and true.
Thanks for sharing, I have had similar experiences and It has made me slow down a little. the older I get the more cautious I become.
I appreciate your maturity and not just blasting her for something she likely diddnt know what she was doing wrong. I try, even thought at fault… (because the DOWNHILL rider / skier has the right of way) But, I try to use situations like that as learning opportunities for me and for them. Teach them what they could have done to prevent it… where they stopped etc. and I ask myself the same question… which you have done as well.
Yeah, picking where to stop is pretty vital. Sounds like it was better that you didn’t yell so you could choose how the impact occurred. Yelling could have resulting in her putting up a defensive ski pole to spear you with. 
I remember this one time I was on the chair and a saw these big time punters on skis going down the big park like it was an average run and snakes in out of no where to cut a guy off the landing of a down rail. The amazing thing is that he then starts yelling at the boarding for hitting him, after which a few swear words were thrown both ways. The boarder obviously got fed up and left, dropping some crazy cab, inverted, what not, 5-7-9 whatever trick off the next kicker. At which point all I wanted to do was JP yell “UUUUUUH SONNNNNN” at the guy but by then we were a bit far away.
Sounds like one of those freak accidents. A spotter is probably the way to go, considering it really is a blind jump.
Occassionally you see boarders hitting jumps without any care of whats ahead. Its an accident waiting to happen.
But I have to say I get sooo frustrated by people congregating right where I want to jump. The best example is on the cruiser run at Thredbo theres a small jump in between two of the runs, near the bottom of the hill, next to a snow gun. Not sure if anyone knows which one I’m talking about. After you hit it its near the beginner park area. But anyway, everyone stops there, right in front of the jump!! no joke, my mates and I keep on joking that there must be a sign saying ‘please stand right here’. You look up and down the run and theres no one, except right in front of the jump!
At the hill I ride at mostly, there are some areas that have drops where if you hit them fast you can get air time… That is the exact spot people like to stop and chat about the run, before ‘dropping in’ but that is the hot spot for takeoffs too. It takes a long time to learn waht people like about the mountain, andI think that snowboarders stretch what that has always been.
Traditionally skiers just went down the hill. now snowboarders demand that the sides and banks and even the rocks on the sides of trails are open to ride on… it stretches the imagination. So, really you dont know what someone wants to ride on and where they want to go. It may be the side of the lift shack at the bottom of the run… but there is a lift line of people standing there, so it is not likely that you can hit it.
I think patience on the hill is a needed thing. And you cant take every run like it is your last, there will always be another opportunity. if someone is parked in front of your favorite nugget you like to jib on every run down… just pass it up that time and know that it will be there next time. Have some patience.
After years of seeing people stop on the wrong place, I’ve almost given up telling them. I guess I’ve decided it’s a wast of time. When the situation allows I’ll hit the jump slowly and land right next to them. I’m amazed that they just smile and remain where they are, even if I say “that’s not a good place to stop”, most stair blankly.
I have so many stories similar to NBG, the most stupid was a girl crossing a boarderX track in a low point between rollers with her back uphill, I didn’t see her till airborne landed 1ft before her, enough space to put my board sideways and lay myself on the deck. I smashed the back of her bindings with my board and she back slammed into my chest, winding me, nothing but surprise for her. I’m guessing her and her boyfriend rode off in embarrassment before asking if I was alright even though I wasn’t breathing!
Speaking of collisions, i was at the park at buller last year during interschools and i saw someone kneeling down next to a down rail going to take a shot of his mate hitting it. He must’ve had a lot of trust in him because he wasnt that flash and basically, he got on the rail, slipped off and smashed into his mate.
Funny stufff