From park riders and tree skiers, to backcountry seekers of the steeps and deeps, from first timers to the styling snow bunnies and the modern day professional, helmets can come with all the bling and gadget hook-ups you desire. Technology has given helmets a whole new look and meaning… they have better ventilation, come with cell phone and I-pod compatibility, they’re lighter and more comfortable, are stylish and streamline in design, come in a variety of colors… the list goes on.

The sport of skiing has always had an element of danger attached to it with over 135,000 accidents reported each year. Of these injuries some 3,400 incidents are serious head injuries, and around 800 of these accidents have irreversible consequences. So needless to say a good helmet is a good investment.

While a helmet is never going to give you a 100% efficiency at high speed impact, you can increase their performance by following a few simple rules. For starters it’s best to buy a helmet new because you can rarely trust that a used helmet has not been compromised by a previous crash. Make sure it fits the exact circumference of your head and that the back of the helmet does not touch the back of your neck when standing in a neutral position. Also make sure you can hear. If you ride with music I always recommend having one ear unobstructed which leaves you more safe on the hill to both yourself and others.

While you are 10 times more likely to become a fatality statistic bicycling than skiing and 100 times more likely in water sports, the increasing trend of wearing helmets when on the slopes of a ski resort is encouraging. There has been less than one death for every million ski-lift tickets sold in the last decade in the United States, but accidents do happen so take your own safety seriously, know the skier responsibility code and wear a helmet.

The best skiers on the mountain are doing it… so why don’t you?

Ski safe & cheers!