It pays off to wear a ski helmet in Europe – I got this e-mail from a parent in New York who had been on East Coast ski resort:
“Yesterday I was witnessing how a large group of middle school kids left their helmets in their charter bus. Among teens it is extremely un-cool to wear a helmet, even if it is an important safety gear and the parents demand their offspring to wear one.
Many European Ski Resorts sell discounted lift tickets for kids and teens wearing helmets. It is also usual that small children skiing with their parent get free lift tickets when wearing helmets. Ski school teachers are wearing helmets in order to show a good example.
I think American resorts should adopt this European practice and show that they are concerned about the safety of children. As a parent I would so much rather select such a caring resort, and I know for sure that so would many other parents.”
I think incentives for mountain safety are a great idea, and I wish the resorts in the US would have something similar. If you know any ways your local ski resort is encouraging children to wearing ski helmets, let me know!
