Helmets on the Slopes

The checklist for my annual ski excursion to Snowshoe, W.Va., always includes lip balm, sock liners, hot toddy fixin's and lots of clothing layers.

This year, I'm adding something new -- a helmet.

I began leaning that way last year while skiing down a ridiculously crowded slope, catching the wind of snowboarders who were passing so close I could hear Green Day blasting out of their earbuds. Natasha Richardson's death last March, from a seemingly harmless fall -- the kind of tumble I take, oh, every three minutes --sealed it for me.

Lots of other folks are feeling the same way.

In the 2008-09 ski season, 48 percent of all skiers and snowboarders were wearing a helmet when they were surveyed by the National Ski Areas Association. That's up from 25 percent in 2002-03.

The association also reported that ski-helmet sales have jumped 43 percent over the past two years

Troy Hawks, a spokesman for the association, said that Richardson's death, as well as the earlier deaths of Sonny Bono and Michael Kennedy, has fueled the surge in helmet use.

"The more folks you see wearing helmets on the slopes, you begin to think that you should be wearing one as well," Hawks said. "It's monkey see, monkey do."

Helmets have gotten more comfortable and snappier, too, said Doug Roberts, who owns Ski and Tennis Station.

"The first generation of helmets were heavy," he said. "Now, it's more like a bicycle helmet. They're lighter weight, and they're more comfortable. It has become a decent-looking accessory."

The helmets are warm and provide ventilation. Some come with built-in headphones so you can listen to music while skiing.

The shop sells helmets -- they start around $60 -- but does not rent them. They are available for rent at most resorts for about $10 a day.

Brad Moretz, a spokesman for Appalachian Ski Mountain near Boone, said that the resort added 300 helmets to its supply of rental equipment this year.

At Snowshoe Mountain Resort, helmets are mandatory for children taking ski lessons, instructors teaching those lessons and employees of the terrain park.

Various resorts have also made helmets mandatory for their ski patrol. For the first time, the Crescent Ski Council is requiring members of its race team to wear helmets in competition.

Ken Lumsden, who races with the council, began wearing a helmet 10 years ago after landing on his head in a race. His head was OK, but he tore some tissue near his ribs.

"I was very lucky that I damaged some rib connective tissue and not my head," he said.

About half of his fellow racers were wearing helmets when he decided to start using them. By last year, nearly everyone was.

These advanced skiers set an example, Roberts said.

"A lot of people think, ‘If I'm good, I don't need to wear one,'" he said. "As they see more experienced people wearing one, they think they need to wear one, too."

Dr. Alexander Powers sees skiers with head injuries every year. Powers is a pediatric neurosurgeon at Brenner Children's Hospital, which is part of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

The brain, he said, floats in what he called a bony box. When it knocks into something hard, say, a pole from the ski lift, another skier or tree branch, the brain smashes against the inside of the skull then bounces against the opposite side. The impact may cause a bruise or tear in the brain.

Concussions are the most common head injury but a blow to the head may also cause a skull fracture or epidural hematoma, which is what killed Richardson. In such cases, the force of a fall causes a blood clot to form between the lining of the brain and the skull. As the blood clot grows, pressure builds on the brain.

Powers said he thinks that the surge in helmet use is a good sign. He worked as a ski instructor in Vail, Colo., in 1996, before going to medical school.

"Back then, no one was wearing a helmet," he said. "I mainly taught kids between 6 and 13, and I didn't have a single student who wore a helmet."

Since then, he has started wearing a helmet, and he has noticed that others are as well. However, he said he was dismayed that helmet precaution has not carried over to sledding.

Powers recommends seeking medical attention if you hit your head and have a headache.

Everyone I talked to sees helmet use as a positive trend. However, they cautioned that headgear doesn't give you license to get all Evel Knievel down the slopes.

"At the end of the day, it's about skiing in control and responsibly," Hawks said.