BOWLES' BLOG:

Wanted: Safer sport. Airbags the solution?

By Gordie Bowles, S-Media

I’ve mentioned airbags a few times to friends or colleagues when the ever-present topic of safety comes up, which unfortunately is often these days, as the Canadian alpine team continues to take brutal body blows when racer after racer goes down with an ACL tear or broken leg (or both, in Manny-OP’s case).

Or worse yet, when a head injury is sustained and everyone ― doctors included ― scratches their heads to determine the severity, cause and treatment.

When I mention airbags, usually scrunched faces and tilted eyebrows look back at me, hinting at my insanity. But I am convinced that something has to change when it comes to the safety of ski racing and protection of skiers.

Most of you have seen the nasty falls from Austrians Hans Grugger and Mario Scheiber, as well as the gruesome details of Grugger’s induced coma and potentially life-altering consequences after his fall at the Hahnenkamm in Kitzbühel, Austria, last week. In the 2009 season, more than 40 percent of all alpine World Cup skiers sustained some kind of injury, and half of those were sidelined for at least eight days. Brutal!

So what is being done in terms of safety research and prevention? Fortunately, and somewhat surprisingly, the heavy hitters and decision-makers appear to be all over this. At the request of the Austrian ski federation and FIS (that’s pretty much the extent of the heavy hitters), the University of Salzburg has launched a massive study into the dangers involved in ski racing. The study will involve athletes, coaches, suppliers and others and will look at “the shape of jumps, the optimization of protection equipment and the possibilities of reducing speed and the dangers associated with it,” the Austrian federation commented in a statement late last week.

Canadian team leader Erik Guay reached out to his Facebook friends Saturday with this question: “What can we do to make downhill safer without taking away from the excitement of the sport?”

Well put, Erik. His question is the ultimate challenge for ski racing to overcome this serious problem of injuries while retaining its ability to draw millions worldwide.

The responses to Erik’s question were equally insightful, which tells me that this is at the front of everyone’s mind these days.

The problem, as I see it, is that technology in snowsports has been moving at warp speed over the past 10 years, but the safety standards have not. They’ve improved for sure ― just watch some old footage from the Crazy Canuck era ... hay bales ?! ― but they haven’t matched the mach pace of equipment technology.

Back to the airbag idea.

To me, it is utterly insane that our skiers are using helmets that are flimsy and styrofoam-based. Tell me if I’m wrong ― and our media company has not yet done any independent research ourselves, so again, this is an opinion ― but helmets are crap. The industry has zeroed in on style more than safety. One of Guay’s blog responses (from a current WC racer who is sidelined with a concussion), commented that we should be using full-face helmets, like in football or motocross. Yes, they’re likely too heavy at the current state, but can’t the brains of ski technology create something light ... and safe?

FIS, in a surprisingly uber-progressive move, is also in discussions with a European company that specializes in head-to-toe safety and “intelligent protection systems,” similar to what is being used in motorcycling. They are in the data-collection phase, using crash-test dummies equipped with data-recording equipment to test the algorithms that activate an airbag so that it works only when needed.

It is unlikely that airbags would have helped Manny O-P or Ryan Semple when they both suffered knee tears in Chamonix, France, over the weekend. As CBC commentator Todd Brooker mentioned after Manny’s crash, it was likely “pilot error” when he entered that turn slightly on his inside ski and back, making him more susceptible to injury. It should be noted that he was near the leaders when he crashed and was likely headed to his 10th-career podium finish.

But what went through Manny’s mind when in midair?

“With all the concussions that have been going on, as soon as I took off backwards I was thinking, ‘Aw man, here it goes, I'm going to wake up somewhere and not remember anything,’ ” he said afterward. “I don't think there's any real rhyme or reason why these accidents are happening. It's not like all of a sudden injuries are happening in downhill, they've been happening since the beginning of time with downhill."

Yes, Manny, true. But it’s getting worse and it’s time we did something about it. FIS, keep your foot on the gas pedal and get this figured out!

Comments? E-mail editor@s-media.ca. S-Magazine