My Comments on Ski Helmets

First and foremost, despite any points made below, I am a passionate believer in, and advocate of, helmets and feel that all skiers and boarders are better off with then without one. Not to mention that, for me at least, they are much more comfortable then hats.

That said, it's important to understand both the level of protection and the limits in order to decide for yourself. I look at this both in terms of a minor head trauma and a severe one. Minor could include a wide range of head bangs--everything from the chairlift bar hitting you in the head, clipping a tree branch on your way by, a medium to slow fall resulting in hitting your head on firm snow, or even a face plant, etc. For any/all of these types of situations helmets do great job of protecting you from the potential of a mild concussion, laceration, or painful "bump".

The other category is the case of severe head traumas which can have life altering or even fatal implications. In terms of the science it is correct that studies to date are inconclusive on a helmet's ability to save your life if the impact is severe enough, and you run full speed and head first into another skier, a tree, rock, lift pole, etc. On the other hand, however, these same studies do show that for significant impacts that are not fatal, helmets provide a 65% to 75% reduction in serious brain injuries.

Another point is that ski helmets are generally only effective for impacts at speeds between 15 & 20 mph, while intermediate skiers typically travel 25 to 35 mph or faster. This point missed the fact that speed is not the only factor that comes into play regarding the helmet's effectiveness. Other factors include what you impact (shape, hardness, give), how your head strikes it (direct, partial direct or glancing), and where on your head/helmet the impact is can all be just as important. Thus, it's important to understand that not all head injuries are a result of speed related incidents.

Another consideration that is important is that for some skiers wearing a helmet provides a greater sense of security, and this can result in them taking more risks. My own experience with this is it is true--at least for me. I have found that I tend to ski faster and more aggressively in the trees in part because I have less concern over hitting a branch in the head/face. For some, this would be the downside of helmet wearing.

So, there you have some of the facts with a few of my opinions mixed in. In summary, I want to leave you with three thoughts that ultimately make it a "no brainer" to me:

    1. If I break a leg or tear my ACL it will hurt but it will heal; on the other hand, most brain damage is permanent and more often than not is life changing.

    2. When it comes to the added risk I try to mitigate this by asking myself if I would be doing the same thing without a helmet.

    3. And my helmet has saved me considerable pain/discomfort and worse over the years. Most recently on our trip to Telluride I fell head first into a rock and I have no doubt that my helmet saved me from at minimum lacerations and a severe concussion and quite possibly much worse.

I ski pretty fast by most standards, and despite it's limitations, I view a helmet much like I think of seat belts, it doesn't save every life but it can significantly reduce the likelihood of severe brain injury.

I hope this was helpful to some, or even one, of you and motivates you to get a helmet, even if it's only to be more comfortable!

Ski happy and be safe,
Mark