So fed up of stories like this every single year. Stupid bloody Skiing.

[ExcessiveNumberOfNinjas]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14427223/British-schoolboy-14-killed-skiing-accident-northern-Italy.html

This poor lad, only 14 years old, crashes headlong into a tree at speed and dies of chest injuries right in front of his parents.

What's so fucking great about skiing? Every year without fail there are stories like this and I'm sick of them. I know someone who became permanently disabled and slightly brain damaged after a skiing accident in his 20s.

As parents we don't encourage our kids to get into cars and drive them at speed round a race track with very little training every half term in February do we? We don't stick them on the backs of race horses and slap their arses and watch them go over hurdles. We don't encourage them to dive off high cliffs into the sea below and hope that they manage to miss the rocks as they land. So why do we continually let them hurl down mountainsides at god knows how many miles an hour, hoping that they manage not to collide with a tree or hit their heads on a rock?

I don't get it. I never will. However 'fun' it might be it can't possibly be worth the stupid level of risk.

I am a medical translator currently working on reports for insurance companies - almost exclusively skiing accidents. The details are harrowing. One was a 10 year old girl with catastrophic injuries.

Yeah I've never really understood why you'd want to go skiing, my daughter has been badgering me to let her go on the school ski trip, it's mostly a no because of the ridiculous cost but I also really worry about the safety of it.

God, that's awful.

Statistically you are really, really unlikely to die while skiing. Depending on the data you look at it’s in the realm of 1 death per 1 million skiier days.

And parents absolutely let their kids get in cars (they don’t need to be going round a race track to be potentially lethal), ride horses (ditto - no need to be racing to have a serious accident), swim in open water… As parents we all want our kids to have fulfilling and enjoyable lives. That necessarily involves risk.

Every year a child came home with an injury on our school trip, some were pretty serious. It put me off for life tbh!

I know. Every day I know I can submit the report and shut down the computer but behind each one if a person with a family whose lives have changed in a split second.
I have been once and was terrified. Would never go now.

There was a thread this week about a MNetter whose husband was in a coma due to a skiing accident. Fortunately they were insured and he's now out of the coma, but he still has to be airlifted by air ambulance to the UK and then to a specialist hospital. He may be fine, but may be brain damaged. Imagine dealing with that, having your holiday ruined, not able to get back home or to work, and arrange everything in a foreign language. I don't think it's worth it.

Awful but there's loads of things that are dangerous like horse riding. I've done both and love them, awful when someone gets hurt or worse though.

It's the way people wang on as if it's so bloody marvellous that gets me. It's dangerous and irresponsible and even if statistically you might not have a high chance of dying, I think you have a pretty high chance of getting hurt. I realise life is to be lived and it's not completely risk free. I just don't understand why so many people would actively choose to let their whole family do something that is so high risk. When it goes wrong it's not just a broken arm or ankle, it's brain damage.

I would be interested to know the statistics around skiing (when you are generally in resort for a week, on foot when not on skis) versus the chances of being in a car accident if you stay at home and go out in the car every day to the cinema, shops etc. This story is horrific but it's surely very very rare?

I agree. I was actually having this discussion with my husband earlier. He went skiing a few weeks ago and had 2 pretty bad falls resulting in severe knee and shoulder pain. Thankfully nothing serious but he'll be in pain and his life will be affected for several months. He was lucky. But last year a friend's husband had life saving surgery for a bleed on the brain following a head injury while skiing. Terrifying for my friend. All for a bit of fun in the snow! Controversial opinion but I'm firmly of the belief that partaking in activities with a high risk of injury is selfish.

My brother split his spleen skiing and had some other really bad injuries. I think it a yuppy sport. I don’t know any children in my social circle who have gone skiing. I’m even suprised my brother went tbh.

Serious accidents can happen in many sports. Horseriding, water sports, rugby, cycling, rock climbing, diving…. Maybe we should all stay at home in our little boxes and never do anything.

Well I wouldn't be doing any of those sports either to be honest 😂

Maybe everyone who does extreme sports should be made to have proper insurance at all times so that our NHS isn’t picking up the costs if people want to go ahead and do these dangerous sports .
I know people go abroad and take out insurance but what about people who do the sports in the uk ?

I am Scandinavian and we are taught to ski very young and it’s always been a part of life. I live in the UK now and find it so weird that British people love to ski, it’s not part of their landscape like in Scandinavian countries of parts of France or indeed elsewhere so it’s odd to me, it seems a sort of aspirational thing to do for British people I guess

As with everything, it depends how you do it. I’ve gone many many times and have never had anything worse than a bruised butt. I know my limits, take my time, stop when I’m getting tired. I’m vigilant around me and will take precautions if I see someone further up the slope who looks like they’re not in control. My kids have been taught the same and have never had an injury. We all always wear helmets. I never used to, but now it feels very strange not to - a bit like not having a seatbelt on in the car.

My husband did once do his knee in - he was showing off with his mates, ski-ing too fast. Completely his fault for being a knob.

I absolutely love it (can’t afford to go anymore and miss it badly). I love the alpine fresh air, the sun on your face, the sparkling snow. It’s not for everyone and I agree, there are risks. But there are risks with all sports - I came closer to dying in the sea in Devon than I ever had on a mountain.

Over half of all accidental deaths happen at home. It just doesn't make the news when Bob slips getting out of the tub. Skiing at least keeps you in great shape and being up on the mountains in the fresh air is glorious.

Obesity is far more of a drain on the NHS than sports injuries in the UK. It’s inactivity rather than rare sporting injuries that’s more of an issue.

God, that's awful. What a horrible way to die. Poor family.

I have to admit I'm very surprised that people take their young children skiing being well aware of the risks. It has always looked extremely dangerous to me. When I was in secondary school my whole year group went on a ski trip, apart from me, my parents wouldn't let me go. I was aghast at being the only one left out. Until of my friends came back from the trip with a broken leg. I don't think I'll ever allow my kids to go.

I don't understand why there is a ski slope in close proximity to trees either but perhaps I am being stupid.

Good idea. And people who drink alcohol, smoke, eat too much sugar and fat or drive a car, take a plane/train should do the same. Dont want to be a burden on the nhs.

What do you do? Are you in good health and fitness?

Isn’t it because if you only ski once a year, you are unlikely to be a very good skier? I grew up in a country where we went skiing after school and every weekend. I don’t know anyone who have been injured or crashed into a tree.

In my 20s, I use to go on horse trekking holidays, 25 miles a day, some of it galloping across the Yorkshire Moors. I loved it; and was lucky as I came to no harm. Some sports do carry the risk of serious injury.

Oh dear! I was hoping we can go skiing next year with dc but this mumsnet thread is putting me off. I've never realised there's a high risk of serious injury and I know many people who ski each year.

I grew up in a colder country where some children would ski to school. I was bad at skating and never tried skiing but to me it's not an extreme sport...

Is it possible that people who haven't grown in a place where it snows often are a bit too brave as they'd only do it once every few years/ only for a week?