Albert v. Ober Gatlinburg, Inc., 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100150

Posted: November 4, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Assumption of the Risk, Legal Case, Minors, Youth, Children, Release (pre-injury contract not to sue), Tennessee | Tags: Alpine, Bare Sport, beginner, daughter's, Downhill, Expert Witness, hazardous, Ice, lesson, matter of law, Minor, minor child, Mountain, moving party, non-moving, opined, parent, passenger, Resort, Ski, ski area, ski lesson, Ski Resort, skied, Skier, skiing, Slope, Snow, Sport, Summary judgment, teach, Terrain, Trail, use reasonable care, Warning | Leave a comment

For an Analysis of this case see Tennessee has a Ski Statute that must be construed narrowly or if you don’t understand skiing, ignored

Albert v. Ober Gatlinburg, Inc., 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100150

Jaren Albert, a minor bn/f Jarrod Albert, and Jarrod Albert, individually, Plaintiffs, v. Ober Gatlinburg, Inc., and Smoky Mountain Snow SPORT School, Inc., Defendants.

No. 3:02-CV-277

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE

2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 100150

January 25, 2006, Filed

SUBSEQUENT HISTORY: Motion granted by, Summary judgment denied by, Motion denied by Albert v. Ober Gatlinburg, Inc., 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17456 (E.D. Tenn., Apr. 6, 2006)

COUNSEL: [*1] For Jarrod Albert, Individually, Jarrod Albert, next friend, Jaren – Albert, Jaren. Albert, Plaintiffs: Gerald L Gulley, Jr, LEAD ATTORNEY, Gulley Oldham, PLLC, Knoxville, TN; W. Richard Baker, Jr, LEAD ATTORNEY, Law Office of W. Richard Baker, Jr, Knoxville, TN.

For Ober Gatlinburg Inc, Defendant: John T Buckingham, Richard W Krieg, LEAD ATTORNEYS, Lewis, King, Krieg & Waldrop, P.C. (Knox), Knoxville, TN; Paul R Leitner, LEAD ATTORNEY, Leitner Williams Dooley Napolitan, PLLC (Chattanooga), Chattanooga, TN; Tonya R Willis, LEAD ATTORNEY, Linda G. Welch & Associates, Knoxville, TN.

For Smoky Mountain Snow Sport School, Inc., Defendant: Michael J King, W Kyle Carpenter, LEAD ATTORNEYS, Robert L Vance, Woolf, McClane, Bright, Allen & Carpenter, PLLC, Knoxville, TN.

For State of Tennessee, Intervenor: Paul G Summers, LEAD ATTORNEY, Waller, Lansden, Dortch & Davis, PLLC (Nashville), Nashville, TN.

JUDGES: Thomas W. Phillips, United States District Judge.

OPINION BY: Thomas W. Phillips

OPINION

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

This is a civil action for personal injuries sustained by Jaren Albert while skiing at Ober Gatlinburg’s resort on December 27, 2001. Pending before the court are the following motions: (1) defendant Ober Gatlinburg’s [*2] motion for summary judgment [Doc. 55]; (2) defendant Smoky Mountain Snow Sport School’s motion for summary judgment [Doc. 58]; and (3) plaintiffs’ motion for oral argument on the pending motions for summary judgment [Doc. 74].

The parties have filed extensive briefs pertaining to the motions for summary judgment in which they have fully briefed all of the issues and submitted record evidence in support of the parties’ positions. The court has reviewed the briefs and evidence submitted, and does not feel that oral argument is necessary. Therefore, plaintiffs’ motion for oral argument [Doc. 74] is DENIED. For the reasons stated below, Ober Gatlinburg’s motion for summary judgment will be granted in part and denied in part; and Smoky Mountain’s motion for summary judgment will be granted in part and denied in part.

I. Background

On December 27, 2001, 15-year old Jaren Albert went to Ober Gatlinburg ski resort for the purpose of Alpine or downhill skiing. The previous day, Albert had received instructions in skiing from defendant Smoky Mountain Snow Sport School (Snow School). While skiing at the Ober Gatlinburg resort, Albert suffered injuries to her face and left eye as a result of a fall [*3] on the ski slope. Albert contends that her injuries resulted from defendants’ negligence in permitting skiing on a slope that was unreasonably icy and extra hazardous, and because she received inadequate instruction in skiing from the Snow School. Plaintiff Jarrod Albert has brought this action individually, and on behalf of his daughter Jaren Albert, against defendants alleging negligence which proximately caused personal injury to his daughter.

II. Standard of Review

Rule 56(c), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, provides that summary judgment will be granted by the court only when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The burden is on the moving party to conclusively show that no genuine issue of material fact exists. The court must view the facts and all inferences to be drawn therefrom in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co., v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S. Ct. 1348, 89 L. Ed. 2d 538 (1986); Morris to Crete Carrier Corp., 105 F.3d 279, 280-81 (6th Cir. 1987); White v. Turfway Park Racing Ass’n, Inc., 909 F.2d 941, 943 (6th Cir. 1990); 60 Ivy Street Corp. v. Alexander, 822 F.2d 1432, 1435 (6th Cir. 1987). [*4] Once the moving party presents evidence sufficient to support a motion under Rule 56, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the non-moving party is not entitled to a trial simply on the basis of allegations. The non-moving party is required to come forward with some significant probative evidence which makes it necessary to resolve the factual dispute at trial. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 106 S. Ct. 2548, 91 L. Ed. 2d 265 (1986); White, 909 F.2d at 943-44. The moving party is entitled to summary judgment if the non-moving party fails to make a sufficient showing on an essential element of its case with respect to which it has the burden of proof. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323; Collyer v. Darling, 98 F.3d 211, 220 (6th Cir. 1996).

III. Analysis

A. Ober Gatlinburg

Defendant Ober Gatlinburg moves for summary judgment pursuant to Rule 56, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. In support of the motion, Ober asserts that (1) Jaren Albert was guilty of negligence as a matter of law which bars recovery for her injuries; (2) Jaren’s claim is barred by the Tennessee Ski Area Safety and Liability Act (SASLA), T.C.A. § 68-114-101; and (3) Ober is not guilty of any negligence which proximately caused or contributed to Jaren’s accident and [*5] injuries. Ober has also moved for summary judgment as to the claims of Jarrod Albert, stating that (1) his claims are solely derivative of the claims of Jaren Albert and that failure of her claims precludes any recovery by Jarrod Albert; and (2) that Jarrod Albert signed a valid release agreement contractually preventing him from bringing a claim against the ski operator.

First, Ober Gatlinburg asserts that Jaren Albert’s negligence bars any recovery against the ski resort as a matter of law. In support of its assertion, Ober Gatlinburg states that Ms. Albert, an inexperienced, beginning skier with limited skiing experience, chose to ski on a slope that she knew was designated for “advanced” skiers. That act of negligence on her part was the sole cause of her fall and her injury. Therefore, her negligence bars recovery against Ober Gatlinburg on any of her claims as a matter of law.

Second, Ober Gatlinburg contends the Ski Area Safety & Liability Act (SASLA), T.C.A. § 68-114-101, governs downhill snow skiing and sets a liability standard different from normal tort liability. Specific duties, responsibilities, and defenses are statutorily created by the SASLA for the sport of downhill [*6] skiing. Ober Gatlinburg asserts that the SASLA precludes ski area liability based on risks inherent in the sport of Alpine or downhill skiing. The SASLA provides:

It is hereby recognized that Alpine or downhill skiing is a recreational sport and the use of passenger tramways associated therewith may be hazardous to skiers or passengers, regardless of all feasible safety measures which can be taken. Therefore, each skier and each passenger has the sole responsibility for knowing the range of such skier’s or passenger’s own ability to negotiate any alpine, ski trail or associated passenger tramway, and it is the duty of each skier and passenger to conduct such skier or passenger within the limits of such skier’s or passenger’s own ability, to maintain control of such skier’s or passenger’s speed and course at all times while skiing, to heed all posted warnings and to refrain from acting in a manner which may cause or contribute to the injury of such skier or passenger or others. Except as otherwise specifically provided in this chapter, each skier or passenger is deemed to have assumed the risk of and legal responsibility for any injury to such skier’s or passenger’s person or property [*7] arising out of such skier’s or passenger’s participation in Alpine or downhill skiing or the use of any passenger tramways associated therewith. The responsibility for collisions by any skier while actually skiing, with any person or object, shall be solely that of the skier or skiers involved in such collision and not that of the ski area operator.

T.C.A. § 68-114-103.

Ober Gatlinburg asserts Ms. Albert was an inexperienced skier, yet she skied on a slope which she knew was designated as “most difficult” and rated as a “black diamond” slope; and she ignored the posted signs warning her that the slope she was preparing to ski on was not suited to her ability. Despite that knowledge, Ms. Albert skied down Mogul Ridge and suffered a fall. Defendant states that Ms. Albert was not skiing within the limits of her ability and she apparently failed to maintain control of her speed and course, resulting in her fall and injury. Having failed to meet her responsibility under the SASLA of skiing within her ability and maintaining control of her skiing, she is barred by the SASLA from recovering from defendant for her injuries.

Further, defendant states that the SASLA provides that each skier is “deemed [*8] to have assumed the risk of and legal responsibility for any injury to such skier’s … person or property arising out of such skier’s . . . participation in Alpine or downhill skiing. T.C.A. § 68-114-103. Ms. Albert chose to participate in downhill skiing on the slopes at Ober Gatlinburg, so under the SASLA, she is deemed to have assumed the risk of and liability for the injuries she suffered on December 27, 2001.

In support of its motion, Ober Gatlinburg has submitted the affidavit of Thomas Diriwaechter. Mr. Diriwaechter is a certified ski instructor, and has been the Director of Skiing at Ober Gatlinburg since 1998. Mr. Diriwaechter’s affidavit states that he is familiar with the SASLA and its requirements. On the day at issue, Mr. Diriwaechter states that all open slopes at Ober Gatlinburg were appropriate for skiing. The open slopes included Mogul Ridge, Upper Bear Run, Castle Run, Cub Way and the Ski School area. More specifically, Dr. Diriwaechter states that the slope where Jaren Albert fell was appropriate for skiing at the time of her fall. He further states that all slopes at Ober Gatlinburg were properly classified pursuant to state law and U.S. industry standards on December [*9] 27, 2001. It is Mr. Diriwaechter’s opinion that at the time of Jaren Albert’s fall, she was an inexperienced skier attempting to ski on a slope that was beyond the limits of her ability which resulted in her falling and sustaining injuries. He also opines that Ober Gatlinburg did nothing in any way to cause or contribute to Ms. Albert’s fall and resulting injuries.

Plaintiffs have responded in opposition, asserting that Ober Gatlinburg failed to use reasonable care in deciding to open the ski resort on the day of the accident, failed to close some slopes or warn of ultra hazardous conditions on the slope on which this accident occurred, and failed to designate the slope on which the accident occurred as ultra hazardous, ice-covered, and/or “black diamond,” thus breaching its duty to operate in conformity with the SASLA. In support of their response, plaintiffs have submitted the affidavit of James Isham, an expert in the field of snow sports safety and professional ski instruction.

Mr. Isham opines that Jaren hit an icy/muddy section of the ski run which was unmarked, lost control, fell and was injured. Based upon the parties’ deposition testimony, Mr. Isham states that the surface conditions [*10] on the trails indicated considerable variation. The snow on Cub Way and lower Castle Run was soft, groomed, packed powder texture. The snow surface on Mogul Ridge was icy, with patchy cover and lumpy/chunky earlier in the day. As the day wore on and more skiers skied the upper slopes, the surface became more thinly covered and would be reasonably deemed to be in extra-hazardous condition. When slope conditions change from marginal to extra-hazardous in nature, Mr. Isham states it becomes the obligation and duty of the ski operator to post warnings at the top of each trail notifying skiers that the slopes have changed and that they demand extra caution and attention. Such warnings should have also been posted at the slope condition board at the base of the mountain to provide additional information to skiers. Mr. Isham concludes that Ober Gatlinburg failed to use reasonable care by failing to comply with the SASLA to warn Jaren Albert of the changing conditions on the slopes, which contributed to her fall and injuries.

Jaren and her father each testified that they received skiing instructions in the following areas: snow plow, and side to side. Jaren was able to negotiate the trails [*11] by making “S” turns side-to-side down the slope. When she wanted to stop, she attempted to do so by sitting down. After the lesson, Jaren skied ten runs on Cub Way (the easiest trail). The following day, Jaren testified she skied Cub Way for approximately one hour and then moved on to Bear Run, an advanced slope. She skied both Bear Run and Cub Way many times, and made several runs on Castle Run (an intermediate trial). Just prior to lunch, Jaren skied down Mogul Ridge (the most difficult trail). Following lunch, Jaren skied the slopes for approximately two hours. During this time, she skied Bear Run, Cub Way, and Mogul Ridge, falling one or two times. Jaren testified that she was able to ski Bear Run, an advanced slope, without difficulty. She also skied Mogul Ridge, an expert slope, within her ability. Jaren testified that she did not lose control while skiing, until her accident occurred on the upper portion of Castle Run approximately 30 yards below Mogul Ridge.

Trevor Duhon provided a written statement of his eyewitness account of Jaren’s fall. He indicated that she fell on upper Castle Run. “She was coming down, she slipped and started sliding on her butt, she tried to stop sideways, [*12] she started going head over heels for about 10 feet, then her ski came off, hit her in the head, and she was out.”

The SASLA was enacted by the Tennessee legislature to define the responsibility of skiers and ski area operators, including assigning the responsibility for the inherent dangers of skiing. 1978 Tenn. Pub. Acts, Chapter 701. While the provisions at issue in the present case concern the protections for operators against liability claims, the SASLA also contains a number of provisions concerning signage and other duties of ski area operators. The intent behind the liability provisions of the Act is to protect ski area operators from lawsuits for falls and collisions in circumstances that cannot be made risk free given the inherent dangerousness of skiing. Id. However, the Tennessee Court of Appeals has read the statute narrowly and held that it does not protect operators from their own negligence nor provide them with blanket immunity. Terry v. Ober Gatlinburg, 1998 Tenn. App. LEXIS 76, 1998 WL 54700 (Tenn.App. 1998) 1998 Tenn. LEXIS 426 (perm.app.denied July 13, 1998).

Plaintiffs state that Ober Gatlinburg owed a duty of reasonable care under the circumstances, in addition to their statutory duties, not to expose a skier [*13] to risks at the resort which were not an inherent risk of skiing. Plaintiff’s expert witness, Mr. Isham testified that the slope on which Jaren fell had become extra-hazardous and that Ober Gatlinburg failed to use reasonable care by failing to comply with the SASLA to warn skiers of the changing conditions on the slopes. On the other hand, Ober’s expert witness, Mr. Diriwaechter, testified that all open slopes at Ober Gatlinburg were appropriate for skiing. In particular, Mr. Diriwaechter testified that the slope where Jaren fell was appropriate for skiing at the time of her fall. Mr. Diriwaechter opined that Jaren’s fall and injuries resulted from her attempting to ski a slope that was beyond the limits of her ability. Jaren Albert testified that she was able to ski the slopes within her ability and had done so the previous day and for several hours prior to her accident. It is clear to the court that there exists questions of fact which preclude summary judgment. Whether Ober Gatlinburg failed to exercise reasonable care when it opened the ski resort to the public on December 27, 2001; whether the conditions encountered by Jaren Albert that day were an inherent risk of skiing; and [*14] whether Jaren Albert attempted to ski a slope beyond the limits of her ability, are all questions of fact to be resolved by the jury. Because there are disputed issues of material fact as to whether Jaren’s accident was the result of an inherent risk of skiing or the result of Ober Gatlinburg’s negligence, defendant’s motion for summary judgment will be denied.

B. Release Signed by Jarrod Albert

Finally, Ober Gatlinburg asserts that the claims of Jarrod Albert are barred by the release he signed on behalf of himself and his minor daughter, Jaren. The release at issue stated as follows:

I HAVE READ THE AGREEMENT (SECTION 1) ON THE BACK OF THIS FORM RELEASING THE RESORT AREA FROM LIABILITY. I VOLUNTARILY AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THAT AGREEMENT.

User’s signature: /s/ Jaren Albert Date: 12-27-01

If user is a minor, parent must read the following and sign below.

I understand and accept full responsibility for the use of this ski equipment to my minor child and hereby release, indemnify, and hold harmless the provider of this ski equipment and the area operator for any claims brought by my minor child as a result of any injuries or damages sustained while engaging in the activity of snow skiing.

Parent’s [*15] signature: /s/ Jarrod Albert Date: 12-27-01

Ober Gatlinburg argues that by signing the release, Jarrod Albert, individually, accepted the responsibility to release, indemnify and hold harmless the ski resort for claims brought by his minor child as a result of any injuries or damages she might sustain while engaged in the activity of snow skiing. Thus, defendant argues that Mr. Albert should be precluded from recovering for the damages he sustained in his individual capacity because of his daughter’s fall at the ski resort.

Plaintiffs respond that material fact questions exist as to whether Ober Gatlinburg misrepresented the conditions which existed on the slopes on the day Jaren was injured. Plaintiffs contend that Ober Gatlinburg made material misstatements of fact when it represented to the public that it had created a snow base of 30 to 45 inches, and that a jury could conclude that this material misrepresentation of fact constitutes fraud which would render the release void.

This court has previously found the release void as to Jaren Albert because it is well settled in Tennessee that a guardian may not waive the rights of an infant or an incompetent. However, the Tennessee courts [*16] have held that a parent signing a release like the one at issue here, is precluded from recovering for the loss of services and medical expenses resulting from the child’s injury. See Childress v. Madison County, 777 S.W.2d 1 (Tenn.App. 1989); Rogers v. Donelson-Hermitage Chamber of Commerce, 807 S.W.2d 242 (Tenn.App. 1991). This rule is subject to exception: Exculpatory clauses purporting to contract against liability for intentional conduct, recklessness or gross negligence are unenforceable. See Childress, 777 S.W.2d at 5; Adams v. Roark, 686 S.W.2d 73 (Tenn. 1985). Plaintiffs’ complaint has not alleged intentional, reckless or grossly negligent conduct, their claims are couched in terms of simple negligence. The release in this case is clear and unambiguous. Jarrod Albert acknowledged that Jaren would be participating in snow skiing at his own risk. He further agreed to indemnity defendants “for any claims brought by my minor child as a result of any injuries or damages sustained while engaging in the activity of snow skiing.” Therefore, the release is valid with respect to Jarrod Albert’s right to recover for loss of services and medical expenses for his child. Accordingly, summary [*17] judgment will be granted to Ober Gatlinburg on the claims of Jarrod Albert.

C. Smoky Mountain Snow Sport School

The Snow School asserts that it is entitled to summary judgment on plaintiffs’ claims because (1) the Snow School did not owe a duty to plaintiffs at the time of Jaren’s accident; and (2) the undisputed facts show that no acts or omissions of the Snow School caused plaintiffs’ alleged injuries.

In support of its motion, the Snow School submits the affidavit of Jim Cottrell. Mr. Cottrell has been the Ski School Director for the French-Swiss Ski College at Blowing Rock, North Carolina for the past 36 years. Mr. Cottrell stated that the responsibility of a ski school is to provide coaching or ski instruction to students for a designated period of time, beginning from the time the students meet at the ski school area until they are released at the end of the lesson. Instructors at ski schools have no control over or responsibility for choices that students make after a lesson is concluded. He further stated that the goal of a beginner lesson is to help students learn the basic skills needed to ski beginner terrain. A beginner lesson should include instruction in the following areas: [*18] equipment orientation, getting up, basic ski posture (position), walking on flat terrain, walking up slight inclines, sliding, wedging, turning around on an incline, direction change, turning on beginner terrain, use of a lift, and safety. In his opinion, the beginner lesson plan developed by the Snow School included those elements. He further stated that a beginner lesson is not designed to teach the most advanced skills needed to ski advanced terrain or all types of snow conditions. He opined that the Snow School had no responsibility to plaintiffs at the time of the accident because the Snow School’s responsibility ended when the lesson ended; the Snow School did not have a responsibility to teach plaintiffs how to ski on advanced slopes during their beginner lesson; and the Snow School did not have a responsibility to teach the plaintiffs how to ski on all snow conditions. The Snow School had a responsibility only to teach plaintiffs in the context of the conditions present at the time and place of the lesson.

The Snow School asserts it did not owe a duty to Jaren Albert at the time of her accident because its responsibility to her ended when plaintiffs’ ski lesson ended on December [*19] 26. Moreover, the Snow School did not have a responsibility to teach Jaren how to ski on the snow conditions present on the advanced slope where the accident occurred. The Snow School asserts it had no control over or responsibility for the choices that Jaren made after her lesson had concluded. Further, the Snow School did not have a duty to teach Jaren how to ski on advanced terrain during her beginner lesson. Finally, the Snow School asserts that no causal connection exists between the ski lesson taught by the school and Jaren’s accident. Beginner lessons are not designed to teach students the advanced skills needed to ski on advanced terrain; therefore, not even a “perfect” beginner lesson would have prevented Jaren’s accident which took place on advanced terrain.

In response, plaintiffs state that material factual issues exist as to whether the Snow School actually provided the ski lesson contracted for and whether such deficient ski lesson was a proximate cause of plaintiffs’ injuries. Jaren and Jarrod Albert testified that only a 5-10 minute lesson was provided and that the only elements covered included the snow plow and side-to-side.

Plaintiffs’ expert witness, James Isham reviewed [*20] the lesson plan outline provided by the Snow School and stated that if all the things outlined were taught, the lesson would take more than an hour for students to learn. The Alberts stated that the lesson took less than ten minutes. Mr. Isham states that there appears to have been no substantial information given to the Alberts regarding: (1) the conditions of the mountain; (2) where they could safely ski; (3) how to match each skiers’ ability with the slope of choice; (4) how to effectively execute a stop while skiing, and (5) the “Skiers Responsibility Code.” In his opinion, the lesson time and content were limited and failed to cover any safety issues, signage or slope difficulty information. Mr. Isham opined that the Snow School failed in its duties to give a complete lesson to the Alberts on the night of December 26. He testified that the lack of teaching the Skiers Responsibility Code, trail signage, and successful methods for stopping, all fell below minimum standards and were proximate contributing causes to plaintiffs’ injuries. Mr. Isham further opined that the Snow School failed to use reasonable care by not giving adequate information in the lesson.

The expert witnesses [*21] for the respective parties in this case disagree on whether the Snow School provided the Alberts with an adequate lesson in beginner skiing on December 26. Defendant’s expert witness, Mr. Cottrell, stated that the goal of a beginner lesson is to help students learn the basic skills needed to ski beginner terrain, and in his opinion, the Snow School’s lesson plan was adequate to meet that goal. In contrast, plaintiff’s expert witness, Mr. Isham, after reviewing the same lesson plan, stated that if all the things outlined were taught, the lesson would take more than an hour. The Alberts testified that the lesson lasted no more than 5-10 minutes, and that the only elements covered included the snow plow and side-to-side. Mr. Isham further testified that, in his opinion, an adequate beginner ski lesson should include information regarding the conditions on the mountain, where the Alberts could safely ski, how to match their ability with the slope of choice, how to effectively execute a stop while skiing, and the Skiers’ Responsibility Code.

There exists material issues of fact as to whether the Snow School did in fact give an adequate lesson to the Alberts on December 26. Because factual [*22] questions exist concerning the adequacy of the ski lesson taught by the Snow School and whether that lack of instruction was a proximate cause of Jaren’s fall and injuries, a jury must determine the facts in dispute, and summary judgment is not appropriate. Accordingly, Smoky Mountain Snow Sport School’s motion for summary judgment as to the claims of Jaren Albert will be denied.

The Snow School adopted Ober Gatlinburg’s motion for summary judgment as to the claims of Jarrod Albert. For the reasons stated above, the court finds that the release signed by Jarrod Albert waives his right to recover for the loss of services and medical expenses for his child. Accordingly, Smoky Mountain Snow Sport School’s motion for summary judgment as to the claims of Jarrod Albert will be granted.

Conclusion

For the reasons stated above, defendant Ober Gatlinburg’s motion for summary judgment [Doc. 55] is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART; the motion is DENIED as to the claims of Jaren Albert and GRANTED as to the claim of Jarrod Albert. Likewise, defendant Snow School’s motion for summary judgment [Doc. 58] is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART; the motion is DENIED as to the claims of Jaren Albert and [*23] GRANTED as to the claim of Jarrod Albert. Plaintiffs’ motion for oral argument [Doc. 74] is DENIED. The parties will prepare the case for trial.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

/s/ Thomas W. Phillips

United States District Judge

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Ohio Skier Safety Act

Posted: August 28, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Ohio | Tags: #OH, Alpine skiing, Chairlift, Ohio, Ski, Ski Resort, Skier, Skier Safety Act, Skimobile, Wire rope | Leave a comment

Ohio Skier Safety Act

Page’s Ohio Revised Code Annotated:

TITLE 41. LABOR AND INDUSTRY

CHAPTER 4169. SKI TRAMWAY BOARD

Go to the Ohio Code Archive Directory

ORC Ann. 4169.01 (2013)

§ 4169.01. Definitions

As used in this chapter:

(A) “Skier” means any person who is using the facilities of a ski area, including, but not limited to, the ski slopes and ski trails, for the purpose of skiing, which includes, without limitation, sliding or jumping on snow or ice on skis, a snowboard, sled, tube, snowbike, toboggan, or any other device.

(B) “Passenger” means any person who is being transported or conveyed by a passenger tramway.

(C) “Ski slopes” or “ski trails” means those sites that are reserved or maintained and are open for use, as designated by a ski area operator.

(D) “Ski area” means all the ski slopes, ski trails, and passenger tramways that are administered or operated as a single enterprise within this state.

(E) “Ski area operator” means a person or organization that is responsible for the operation of a ski area, including an agency of this state or of a political subdivision thereof.

(F) “Passenger tramway” means a device used to transport passengers uphill, whether on skis or other devices or without skis or other devices, or in cars on tracks or suspended in the air, by the use of steel cables, chains, or belts or by ropes, and that is usually supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans. “Passenger tramway” includes all of the following:

(1) Aerial passenger tramway, a device used to transport passengers in several open or enclosed cars attached to and suspended from a moving wire rope or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope, or similar devices;

(2) Skimobile, a device in which a passenger car running on steel or wooden tracks is attached to and pulled by a steel cable, or similar devices;

(3) Chair lift, a device on which passengers are carried on chairs suspended in the air and attached to a moving cable, chain, or link belt supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans, or similar devices. Chair lifts need not include foot-rests or passenger restraint devices.

(4) J bar, T bar, or platter pull, devices that pull skiers riding on skis or other devices by means of an attachment to a main overhead cable supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans, or similar devices;

(5) Rope tow, a device with one span and no intermediate towers that pulls skiers riding on skis or other devices as they grasp a rope manually, or similar devices;

(6) Wire rope tow, a device with one span and no intermediate towers by which skiers are pulled on skis or other devices while manually grasping a bar attached to a wire hauling cable.

(7) Conveyor, a flexible moving element, including a belt, that transports passengers on one path and returns underneath the uphill portion.

The operation of a passenger tramway shall not constitute the operation of a common carrier.

(G) “Competitor” means a skier actually engaged in competition, a special event, or training or practicing for competition or a special event in any portion of the area made available by the ski area operator.

(H) “Freestyler” means a skier utilizing freestyle terrain marked with signage approved by the national ski areas association.

(I) “Freestyle terrain” means, but is not limited to, terrain parks and terrain park features, such as jumps, rails, fun boxes, other constructed or natural features, half-pipes, quarter-pipes, and freestyle-bump terrain.

(J) “Tubing park” means a ski slope designated and maintained for the exclusive use of skiers utilizing tubes to slide to the bottom of the course and serviced by a dedicated passenger tramway.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775 (Eff 7-1-81); 146 v H 535. Eff 11-20-96; 151 v S 61, § 1, eff. 9-26-05.

NOTES:

Section Notes

EFFECT OF AMENDMENTS

151 v S 61, effective September 26, 2005, rewrote (A); in the introductory language of (F), inserted “or without skis or other devices” and made related changes, and added “all of the following” to the end; and added the first paragraph of (F)(7) and (G) through (J).

Related Statutes & Rules

Cross-References to Related Statutes

Standard renewal procedure defined, RC § 4745.01.

Tramway excepted from definition of amusement rides, RC § 1711.50.

OH Administrative Code

Department of commerce, ski tramway board —

Definitions in re new installations and modifications of existing passenger tramways. OAC 4101:14-1-03.

Case Notes

ANALYSIS Go to ReleaseRelease Go to SnowboarderSnowboarder

Return to Topic ListRELEASE.

The rental agreement and release of liability barred recovery for the ski lift injuries: Broome v. Ohio Ski Slopes, 108 Ohio App. 3d 86, 670 N.E.2d 262, 1995 Ohio App. LEXIS 5971 (1995).

Return to Topic ListSNOWBOARDER.

Trial court erred when it determined that, based on the language of the statute, R.C. 4169.08 was inapplicable to collisions between skiers because, by reading § 4169.08(C) in conjunction with R.C. 4169.09, it was evident that the legislature intended that skiers would be liable for injuries caused to others while skiing. Horvath v. Ish, 194 Ohio App. 3d 8, 954 N.E.2d 196, 2011 Ohio App. LEXIS 1907, 2011 Ohio 2239, (2011), affirmed by, remanded by 2012 Ohio 5333, 2012 Ohio LEXIS 2872 (Ohio Nov. 20, 2012).

§ 4169.02. Ski tramway board established

(A) For the purposes of regulating the construction, maintenance, mechanical operation, and inspection of passenger tramways that are associated with ski areas and of registering operators of passenger tramways in this state, there is hereby established in the division of industrial compliance in the department of commerce a ski tramway board to be appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the senate. The board shall consist of three members, one of whom shall be a public member who is an experienced skier and familiar with ski areas in this state, one of whom shall be a ski area operator actively engaged in the business of recreational skiing in this state, and one of whom shall be a professional engineer who is knowledgeable in the design or operation of passenger tramways.

Of the initial appointments, one member shall be appointed for a term of one year, one for a term of two years, and one for a term of three years. The member appointed to the term beginning on July 1, 1996, shall be appointed to a term ending on June 30, 1997; the member appointed to a term beginning on July 1, 1997, shall be appointed to a term ending on June 30, 1999; and the member appointed to a term beginning on July 1, 1998, shall be appointed to a term ending on June 30, 2001. Thereafter, each of the members shall be appointed for a term of six years. Each member shall hold office from the date of appointment until the end of the term for which the member was appointed. In the event of a vacancy, the governor, with the advice and consent of the senate, shall appoint a successor who shall hold office for the remainder of the term for which the successor’s predecessor was appointed. A member shall continue in office subsequent to the expiration date of the member’s term until the member’s successor takes office or until a period of sixty days has elapsed, whichever occurs first. The board shall elect a chairperson from its members.

The governor may remove any member of the board at any time for misfeasance, nonfeasance, or malfeasance in office after giving the member a copy of the charges against the member and an opportunity to be heard publicly in person or by counsel in the member’s defense. Any such act of removal by the governor is final. A statement of the findings of the governor, the reason for the governor’s action, and the answer, if any, of the member shall be filed by the governor with the secretary of state and shall be open to public inspection.

Members of the board shall be paid two hundred fifty dollars for each meeting that the member attends, except that no member shall be paid or receive more than seven hundred fifty dollars for attending meetings during any calendar year. Each member shall be reimbursed for the member’s actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of official board duties. The chairperson shall be paid two hundred fifty dollars annually in addition to any compensation the chairperson receives under this division for attending meetings and any other compensation the chairperson receives for serving on the board.

The division shall provide the board with such offices and such clerical, professional, and other assistance as may be reasonably necessary for the board to carry on its work. The division shall maintain accurate copies of the board’s rules as promulgated in accordance with division (B) of this section and shall keep all of the board’s records, including business records, and inspection reports as well as its own records and reports. The cost of administering the board and conducting inspections shall be included in the budget of the division based on revenues generated by the registration fees established under section 4169.03 of the Revised Code.

(B) In accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, the board shall adopt and may amend or rescind rules relating to public safety in the construction, maintenance, mechanical operation, and inspection of passenger tramways. The rules shall be in accordance with established standards in the business of ski area operation, if any, and shall not discriminate in their application to ski area operators.

No person shall violate the rules of the board.

(C) The authority of the board shall not extend to any matter relative to the operation of a ski area other than the construction, maintenance, mechanical operation, and inspection of passenger tramways.

(D) A majority of the board constitutes a quorum and may perform and exercise all the duties and powers devolving upon the board.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775 (Eff 7-1-81); 146 v S 162 (Eff 10-29-95); 146 v S 293 (Eff 9-26-96); 146 v H 535. Eff 11-20-96; 153 v H 1, § 101.01, eff. 10-16-09; 2012 HB 487, § 101.01, eff. Sept. 10, 2012.

NOTES:

Section Notes

Editor’s Notes

The effective date is set by § 812.10 of 153 v H 1.

The provisions of 815.10 of 153 v H 1 read as follows:

SECTION 815.10. The General Assembly, applying the principle stated in division (B) of section 1.52 of the Revised Code that amendments are to be harmonized if reasonably capable of simultaneous operation, finds that the following sections, presented in this act as composites of the sections as amended by the acts indicated, are the resulting versions of the sections in effect prior to the effective date of the sections as presented in this act:

* * *

Section 4169.02 of the Revised Code as amended by both Am. Sub. S.B. 293 and Sub. H.B. 535 of the 121st General Assembly.

* * *

The provisions of § 3 of HB 535 (146 v –) read as follows:

SECTION 3. The Ski Tramway Board is the successor to and a continuation of the Safety in Skiing Board.

EFFECT OF AMENDMENTS

The 2012 amendment substituted “division of industrial compliance” for “division of labor” in the first sentence of the first paragraph of (A).

153 v H 1, effective October 16, 2009, substituted “labor” for “industrial compliance” in the first sentence of the first paragraph of (A).

Related Statutes & Rules

Cross-References to Related Statutes

Penalty, RC § 4169.99.

Ohio Constitution

Appointments subject to advice and consent of Senate, Ohio Const. art III, § 21.

OH Administrative Code

Department of commerce, ski tramway board —

General provisions. OAC ch. 4101:14-1.

Introduction and scope of rules. OAC 4101:14-1-01 et seq.

Notice in the event of a serious accident. OAC 4101:14-1-09.

Notice of public hearings and public meetings. OAC 4101:14-1-08.

Comparative Legislation

SAFETY IN SKIING:

NY–NY CLS Labor § 865 et seq

§ 4169.03. Registration of passenger tramway operators

(A) Before a passenger tramway operator may operate any passenger tramway in the state, the operator shall apply to the ski tramway board, on forms prepared by it, for registration by the board. The application shall contain an inventory of the passenger tramways that the applicant intends to operate and other information as the board may reasonably require and shall be accompanied by the following annual fees:

(1) Each aerial passenger tramway, five hundred dollars;

(2) Each skimobile, two hundred dollars;

(3) Each chair lift, two hundred dollars;

(4) Each J bar, T bar, or platter pull, one hundred dollars;

(5) Each rope tow, fifty dollars;

(6) Each wire rope tow, seventy-five dollars;

(7) Each conveyor, one hundred dollars.

When an operator operates an aerial passenger tramway, a skimobile, or a chair lift during both a winter and summer season, the annual fee shall be one and one-half the above amount for the respective passenger tramway.

(B) Upon payment of the appropriate annual fees in accordance with division (A) of this section, the board shall issue a registration certificate to the operator. Each certificate shall remain in force until the thirtieth day of September next ensuing. The board shall renew an operator’s certificate in accordance with the standard renewal procedure in Chapter 4745. of the Revised Code upon payment of the appropriate annual fees.

(C) Money received from the registration fees and from the fines collected pursuant to section 4169.99 of the Revised Code shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the industrial compliance operating fund created in section 121.084 of the Revised Code.

(D) No person shall operate a passenger tramway in this state unless the person has been registered by the board.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775 (Eff 7-1-81); 139 v S 550 (Eff 11-26-82); 141 v H 201 (Eff 7-1-85); 146 v S 162 (Eff 10-29-95); 146 v H 535. Eff 11-20-96; 151 v S 61, § 1, eff. 9-26-05; 153 v H 1, § 101.01, eff. 10-16-09; 2012 HB 487, § 101.01, eff. Sept. 10, 2012.

NOTES:

Section Notes

Editor’s Notes

The effective date is set by § 812.10 of 153 v H 1.

EFFECT OF AMENDMENTS

The 2012 amendment substituted “industrial compliance” for “labor” in (C).

153 v H 1, effective October 16, 2009, substituted “labor” for “industrial compliance” in (C).

151 v S 61, effective September 26, 2005, in the introductory language of (A), deleted “such” preceding “other information”; and added (A)(7).

Related Statutes & Rules

Cross-References to Related Statutes

Industrial compliance operating fund, RC § 121.084.

Penalty, RC § 4169.99.

Ski tramway board established, RC § 4169.02.

Standard renewal procedure defined, RC § 4745.01.

OH Administrative Code

Fees; renewals. OAC 4101:14-1-06.

Registration and inspections. OAC 4101:14-1-05.

§ 4169.04. Inspections; report of violation

(A) The division of industrial compliance in the department of commerce shall make such inspection of the construction, maintenance, and mechanical operation of passenger tramways as the ski tramway board may reasonably require. The division may contract with other qualified engineers to make such inspection or may accept the inspection report by any qualified inspector of an insurance company authorized to insure passenger tramways in this state.

(B) If, as the result of an inspection, an employee of the division or other agent with whom the division has contracted finds that a violation of the board’s rules exists or a condition in passenger tramway construction, maintenance, or mechanical operation exists that endangers public safety, the employee or agent shall make an immediate report to the board for appropriate investigation and order.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775 (Eff 7-1-81); 145 v H 152 (Eff 7-1-93); 146 v S 162 (Eff 10-29-95); 146 v S 293 (Eff 9-26-96); 146 v H 535. Eff 11-20-96; 153 v H 1, § 101.01, eff. 10-16-09; 2012 HB 487, § 101.01, eff. Sept. 10, 2012.

NOTES:

Section Notes

Editor’s Notes

The effective date is set by § 812.10 of 153 v H 1.

The provisions of 815.10 of 153 v H 1 read as follows:

* * *

Section 4169.04 of the Revised Code as amended by both Am. Sub. S.B. 293 and Sub. H.B. 535 of the 121st General Assembly.

* * *

EFFECT OF AMENDMENTS

The 2012 amendment substituted “The division of industrial compliance” for “The division of labor” in the first sentence of (A).

153 v H 1, effective October 16, 2009, substituted “labor” for “industrial compliance” in the first sentence of (A).

OH Administrative Code

Acceptance tests. OAC 4101:14-1-04.

Registration and inspections. OAC 4101:14-1-05.

§ 4169.05. Written complaint alleging violation

Any person may make a written complaint to the ski tramway board setting forth an alleged violation of the board’s rules by a registered passenger tramway operator or a condition in passenger tramway construction, maintenance, or mechanical operation that allegedly endangers public safety. The board shall forward a copy of the complaint to the operator named in it and may accompany it with an order that requires the operator to answer the complaint in writing within a specified period of time. The board may investigate the complaint if it determines that there are reasonable grounds for such an investigation.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775 (Eff 7-1-81); 146 v H 535. Eff 11-20-96.

§ 4169.06. Emergency order; investigation and order; suspension of certificate

(A) When facts are presented to any member of the ski tramway board that indicate that immediate danger exists in the continued operation of a passenger tramway, any member of the board, after such verification of the facts as is practical under the circumstances and consistent with immediate public safety, may by an emergency written order require the operator of the tramway to cease using the tramway immediately for the transportation of passengers. Any person may serve notice on the operator or the operator’s agent who is in immediate control of the tramway by delivering a true and attested copy of the order, and the operator or the operator’s agent shall furnish proof of receipt of such notice by signing an affidavit on the back of the copy of the order. The emergency order shall be effective for a period not to exceed forty-eight hours from the time of notification.

(B) Immediately after the issuance of an emergency order pursuant to this section, the board shall investigate the facts of the case. If the board finds that a violation of any of its rules exists or that a condition in passenger tramway construction, maintenance, or mechanical operation exists that endangers public safety, it shall issue a written order setting forth its findings and the corrective action to be taken and fixing a reasonable time for compliance.

(C) After an investigation pursuant to division (B) of this section, if the board determines that danger to public safety exists in the continued operation of a passenger tramway, it shall so state in the order, describe in detail the basis for its findings, and in the order may require the operator not to operate the tramway until the operator has taken the corrective action ordered pursuant to this section. If the operator continues to use the tramway following receipt of such order, the board may request the court of common pleas having jurisdiction in the county where the tramway is located to issue an injunction forbidding operation of the tramway.

(D) An operator of a passenger tramway may request a hearing by the board on any order issued pursuant to this chapter and may appeal the results of such a hearing in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code. An operator may appeal an order suspending the operation of the operator’s tramway without first requesting a hearing.

(E) If an operator fails to comply with an order of the board issued pursuant to this chapter within the specified time, the board may suspend the registration certificate of the operator for such time as it considers necessary to gain compliance with its order.

No operator shall operate a passenger tramway while the operator’s registration certificate is under suspension by the board.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775 (Eff 7-1-81); 146 v H 535. Eff 11-20-96.

NOTES:

Related Statutes & Rules

Cross-References to Related Statutes

Penalty, RC § 4169.99.

Ohio Rules

Injunctions, CivR 65.

OH Administrative Code

Registration and inspections; fine for violation. OAC 4101:14-1-05.

§ 4169.07. Responsibilities of ski area operator and tramway passengers

(A) A ski area operator shall be responsible for any construction that the operator actually performs or has actually performed and for the maintenance and operation of any passenger tramway in the operator’s ski area.

(B) A passenger shall be responsible for: not embarking upon or disembarking from a passenger tramway except at an area that is designated for such purpose; not throwing or expelling any object from a passenger tramway; not performing any action that interferes with the running or operation of a passenger tramway; learning how to use a passenger tramway safely before the time that the passenger desires to embark upon it; not using such a tramway unless the passenger has the ability to use it safely without any on-the-spot instruction from the ski area operator; not engaging willfully or negligently in any type of conduct that contributes to or causes injury to another person; and not embarking upon a passenger tramway without the authority of the ski area operator.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775 (Eff 7-1-81); 146 v H 535. Eff 11-20-96.

NOTES:

Section Notes

Editor’s Notes

The effective date is set by section 4 of HB 775.

OH Administrative Code

Mechanical operation and maintenance. OAC 4101:14-1-05.

Case Notes

LIABILITY.

Where there was no evidence to establish whether a ramp was man-made or a natural incline, there were disputed facts from which reasonable minds could conclude that an injury occurred on a ramp which was a part of the passenger tramway constructed for the transport of passengers, and thus, that the owner had violated its responsibility pursuant to R.C. 4169.07(A) to maintain the passenger tramway in its ski area: Graham v. Ohio Ski Slopes, 1998 Ohio App. LEXIS 1283 (1998).

§ 4169.08. Risks assumed by skier; responsibilities of operator and skier

(A) (1) The general assembly recognizes that skiing as a recreational sport is hazardous to skiers regardless of all feasible safety measures that can be taken. It further recognizes that a skier expressly assumes the risk of and legal responsibility for injury, death, or loss to person or property that results from the inherent risks of skiing, which include, but are not limited to, injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by changing weather conditions; surface or subsurface snow or ice conditions; hard pack, powder, packed powder, wind pack, corn, crust, slush, cut-up snow, and machine-made snow; bare spots, rocks, trees, stumps, and other forms of forest growth or debris; lift towers or other forms of towers and their components, either above or below the snow surface; variations in steepness or terrain, whether natural or as the result of snowmaking, slope design, freestyle terrain, jumps, catwalks, or other terrain modifications; any other objects and structures, including, but not limited to, passenger tramways and related structures and equipment, competition equipment, utility poles, fences, posts, ski equipment, slalom poles, ropes, out-of-bounds barriers and their supports, signs, ski racks, walls, buildings, and sheds; and plainly marked or otherwise visible snowmaking and snow-grooming equipment, snowmobiles, snow cats, and over-snow vehicles.

(2) Provided that the ski area operator complies with division (B)(4) of this section, no liability shall attach to a ski area operator for injury, death, or loss to person or property suffered by any competitor or freestyler using a freestyle terrain, which injury, death, or loss to person or property is caused by course, venue, or area conditions that visual inspection should have revealed or by collision with a spectator, competition official, ski area personnel, or another competitor or freestyler.

(3) Provided the ski area operator complies with division (B)(5) of this section, no liability shall attach to a ski area operator for injury, death, or loss to person or property suffered by any skier using a tubing park, which injury, death, or loss to person or property is caused by course design or maintenance or conditions that visual inspection should have revealed or by collision with another skier.

(B) The legal responsibilities of a ski area operator to a skier with respect to any injury, death, or loss to person or property resulting in any way from an inherent risk of the sport shall not be those of the common law duty of premises owners to business invitees. A ski area operator shall have, however, the following responsibilities:

(1) To mark all trail maintenance vehicles and to furnish such vehicles with flashing or rotating lights that shall be in operation whenever the vehicles are working or are moving in the ski area;

(2) To mark with a visible sign or other warning implement the location of any hydrant or similar equipment that is used in snowmaking operations and located anywhere in the ski area;

(3) To mark, at the base of a slope or hill where skiers embark on a passenger tramway serving the slope or hill or at the top of a trail or slope, such slopes, trails, and hills with signs indicating their relative degree of difficulty. The signs must be the type that have been approved by the national ski areas association and are in current use by the industry;

(4) Prior to the use of any portion of a freestyle terrain area made available by the ski area operator, to allow each freestyler or competitor a reasonable opportunity to visually inspect the course, venue, or area of the freestyle terrain;

(5) To allow skiers using a tubing park visible access to the course.

(1) To know the range of the skier’s ability to negotiate any slope or trail or to use any passenger tramway that is associated with a slope or trail, to ski within the limits of the skier’s ability, to ski only on designated slopes and trails, to maintain control of speed and course at all times while skiing, to heed all posted warnings, and to not cross the track of a passenger tramway except at a designated area;

(2) To refrain from acting in a manner that may cause or contribute to the injury of another person, to refrain from causing collision with any person or object while skiing, and to not place any object in a ski area that may cause another skier or a passenger to fall;

(3) When involved in a skiing accident in which another person is involved who needs medical or other assistance, to obtain assistance for the person, to notify the proper authorities, and to not depart from the scene of the accident without leaving personal identification;

(4) If the skier is a competitor, freestyler, or user of freestyle terrain, to assume the risk of all course, venue, or area conditions, including, but not limited to, weather and snow conditions; obstacles; course or feature location, construction, or layout; freestyle terrain configuration and conditions; and other courses, layouts, or configurations of the area to be used;

(5) If the skier is utilizing a tubing park, to assume the risk of collision with others on the course.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775 (Eff 7-1-81); 146 v H 535. Eff 11-20-96; 151 v S 61, § 1, eff. 9-26-05.

NOTES:

Section Notes

EFFECT OF AMENDMENTS

151 v S 61, effective September 26, 2005, rewrote (A); in the introductory language of (B), deleted “Therefore” from the beginning, and inserted “or loss to person or property” and made related changes; and added (B)(4) and (5) and (C)(4) and (5).

OH Administrative Code

Notice in the event of serious accident. OAC 4101:14-1-09.

Case Notes

ANALYSIS Go to Collisions between skiersCollisions between skiers Go to Common law dutiesCommon law duties Go to Maintenance of rampMaintenance of ramp Go to Renting defective equipmentRenting defective equipment

Return to Topic ListCOLLISIONS BETWEEN SKIERS.

Trial court erred when it determined that, based on the language of the statute, R.C. 4169.08 was inapplicable to collisions between skiers because, by reading § 4169.08(C) in conjunction with R.C. 4169.09, it was evident that the legislature intended that skiers would be liable for injuries caused to others while skiing. Horvath v. Ish, 194 Ohio App. 3d 8, 954 N.E.2d 196, 2011 Ohio App. LEXIS 1907, 2011 Ohio 2239, (2011), affirmed by, remanded by 2012 Ohio 5333, 2012 Ohio LEXIS 2872 (Ohio Nov. 20, 2012).

Return to Topic ListCOMMON LAW DUTIES.

Former R.C. 4169.08 included fences and precluded claims based on common law principles of premises liability: Stone v. Alpine Valley Ski Area, 135 Ohio App. 3d 540, 734 N.E.2d 888, 1999 Ohio App. LEXIS 5926 (1999).

R.C. 4169.08 does not abrogate the common law duty of ski resort owners to their business invitees, skiers: Shaheen v. Boston Mills Ski Resort, 85 Ohio App. 3d 285, 619 N.E.2d 1037, 1992 Ohio App. LEXIS 6080 (1992).

Return to Topic ListMAINTENANCE OF RAMP.

Where a variation in terrain occurs on a ski ramp approximately two feet from the disembarkation point and the skier must encounter the trouble spot in order to successfully disembark, the maintenance of such ramp is part of the ski operator’s responsibility for the maintenance of his passenger tramway: Graham v. Ohio Ski Slopes, 1998 Ohio App. LEXIS 1283 (1998).

Return to Topic ListRENTING DEFECTIVE EQUIPMENT.

Renting defective equipment is not an inherent risk of skiing. Anticipatory release was valid to absolve defendant for negligence in renting ski equipment, but evidence was sufficient to support finding of willful and wanton misconduct: Otterbacher v. Brandywine Ski Center, Inc., 1990 Ohio App. LEXIS 4582 (9th Dist. 1990).

§ 4169.09. Liability of operator, tramway passenger, freestyler, competitor, or skier

A ski area operator, a tramway passenger, freestyler, competitor, or skier is liable for injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by the operator’s, passenger’s, freestyler’s, competitor’s, or skier’s failure to fulfill any of the responsibilities required by this chapter. A ski area operator, a tramway passenger, freestyler, competitor, or skier is not liable for injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by another’s failure to fulfill any of the responsibilities required of another by this chapter. A ski area operator, a tramway passenger, freestyler, competitor, or skier is not entitled to recover for injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by the operator’s, passenger’s, freestyler’s, competitor’s, or skier’s failure to fulfill any of the responsibilities required by this chapter.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775. Eff 7-1-81; 151 v S 61, § 1, eff. 9-26-05.

NOTES:

Section Notes

Editor’s Notes

The effective date is set by section 4 of HB 775.

EFFECT OF AMENDMENTS

151 v S 61, effective September 26, 2005, rewrote the section.

Case Notes

ANALYSIS Go to Liability of skiersLiability of skiers Go to Release of liabilityRelease of liability

Return to Topic ListLIABILITY OF SKIERS.

Trial court erred when it determined that, based on the language of the statute, R.C. 4169.08 was inapplicable to collisions between skiers because, by reading § 4169.08(C) in conjunction with R.C. 4169.09, it was evident that the legislature intended that skiers would be liable for injuries caused to others while skiing. Horvath v. Ish, 194 Ohio App. 3d 8, 954 N.E.2d 196, 2011 Ohio App. LEXIS 1907, 2011 Ohio 2239, (2011), affirmed by, remanded by 2012 Ohio 5333, 2012 Ohio LEXIS 2872 (Ohio Nov. 20, 2012).

Return to Topic ListRELEASE OF LIABILITY.

The rental agreement and release of liability barred recovery for the ski lift injuries: Broome v. Ohio Ski Slopes, 108 Ohio App. 3d 86, 670 N.E.2d 262, 1995 Ohio App. LEXIS 5971 (1995).

§ 4169.10. Operator’s liability to violators of theft statute

A ski area operator is not liable for any losses or damages suffered by a person who was in violation of section 2913.02 of the Revised Code at the time that the losses or damages occurred.

HISTORY:

138 v H 775. Eff 7-1-81.

NOTES:

Section Notes

Editor’s Notes

The effective date is set by section 4 of HB 775.

New Hampshire Skiers, Ski Area and Passenger Tramway Safety Act

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: New Hampshire, Ski Area, Skiing / Snow Boarding, State | Tags: New Hampshire, New Hampshire Ski Area Safety Act, ski area, Ski Resort, Ski Safety Act, Skier, Snowboarder | 2 Comments

New Hampshire Skiers, Ski Area and Passenger Tramway Safety Act

NEW HAMPSHIRE REVISED STATUTES ANNOTATED

TITLE XIX Public Recreation

CHAPTER 225-A Skiers, Ski Area and Passenger Tramway Safety

Go To New Hampshire Statutes Archive Directory

225-A:1 Declaration of Policy. 3

225-A:1-a Administratively Attached. 5

225-A:2 Definitions. 5

225-A:3 Passenger Tramway Safety Board. 8

225-A:3-a Passenger Tramway Safety Board. 8

225-A:4 Term of Office. 9

225-A:4-a Term of Office. 9

225-A:5 Removal. 9

225-A:5-a Removal. 9

225-A:6 Compensation. 10

225-A:6-a Compensation. 10

225-A:7 Records. 10

225-A:7-a Records. 10

225-A:8 Rulemaking. 11

225-A:9 Declaratory Judgment. 12

225-A:9-a Declaratory Judgment. 12

225-A:10 Inspections. 12

225-A:10-a Review of Plans and Specifications. 13

225-A:11 Operator to Pay Certain Costs. 13

225-A:12 Inspection Reports. 13

225-A:13 Complaints. 14

225-A:14 Registration Required. 14

225-A:15 Application for Registration. 15

225-A:16 Fees. 16

225-A:17 Registration. 16

225-A:18 Fees. 17

225-A:18-a Emergency Shut-Down. 17

225-A:19 Orders. 18

225-A:19-a Operation Forbidden. 19

225-A:20 Hearing. 20

225-A:21 Appeal. 20

225-A:23 Responsibilities of the Ski Area Operator. 21

225-A:24 Responsibilities of Skiers and Passengers. 24

225-A:25 Insurance; Limitations. 29

225-A:26 Penalty. 32

227:14 Reduced Rates. 33

225-A:1 Declaration of Policy.

The state of New Hampshire finds that the sports of skiing, snowboarding, snow tubing, and snowshoeing are practiced by a large number of citizens of the state of New Hampshire, and also that skiing, snowboarding, snow tubing, and snowshoeing attract to the state of New Hampshire large numbers of nonresidents significantly contributing to the economy of New Hampshire. Therefore, it shall be the policy of the state of New Hampshire to protect its citizens and visitors from unnecessary mechanical hazards in the operation of ski tows, lifts, nordic ski jumps and passenger tramways, to ensure that proper design and construction are used, that board accepted safety devices and sufficient personnel are provided for, and that periodic inspections and adjustments are made which are deemed essential to the safe operation of ski tows, ski lifts, nordic ski jumps and passenger tramways. The primary responsibility for operation, construction, maintenance and inspection rests with the operators of such passenger tramway devices. The state, through its passenger tramway safety board, as hereinafter provided, shall register all ski lift devices and nordic ski jumps, establish reasonable standards of design and operational practices, and make such independent inspections as may be necessary in carrying out this policy. Further, it shall be the policy of the state of New Hampshire to define the primary areas of responsibility of skiers and other users of alpine (downhill) and nordic (cross country and nordic ski jumps) areas, recognizing that the sport of skiing and other ski area activities involve risks and hazards which must be assumed as a matter of law by those engaging in such activities, regardless of all safety measures taken by the ski area operators.

225-A:1-a Administratively Attached.

The passenger tramway safety board shall be an administratively attached agency, under RSA 21-G:10, to the department of safety.

225-A:2 Definitions.

In this chapter:

“Board” means the passenger tramway safety board.

“Department” means the department of safety.

“Industry” means the activities of all those persons in the state who own or control the operation of ski areas.

“Nordic ski jump” means a facility constructed for the purpose of nordic ski jumping and built in accordance with appropriate standards and guidelines, and any facilities that are associated with the use or viewing of such a facility.

“Passenger” means any person, including skiers, while being transported or conveyed by a passenger tramway, or while waiting in the immediate vicinity for such transportation or conveyance, or while moving away from the disembarkation or unloading point of a passenger tramway to clear the way for the following passengers, or while in the act of boarding or embarking upon or disembarking from a passenger tramway.

“Passenger tramway” means a device used to transport passengers uphill on skis or other winter sports devices, or in cars on tracks or suspended in the air, by the use of steel cables, chains or belts or by ropes, and usually supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans. The term passenger tramway shall include the following:

Two-car aerial passenger tramway, a device used to transport passengers in 2 open or enclosed cars attached to, and suspended from, a moving wire rope, or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope, or similar devices.

Multi-car aerial passenger tramway, a device used to transport passengers in open or enclosed cars attached to, and suspended from, a moving wire rope, or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope, or similar devices.

“Conveyor” means a class of outdoor transportation wherein skiers or passengers are transported uphill on a flexible moving element such as a conveyor belt.

Chair lift, a type of transportation on which passengers are carried on chairs suspended in the air and attached to a moving cable, chain or link belt supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans, or similar devices.

J bar, T bar or platter pull, so-called, and similar types of devices are means of transportation which pull skiers riding on skis by means of an attachment to a main overhead cable supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans.

Rope tow, a type of transportation which pulls the skier riding on skis as the skier grasps the rope manually, or similar devices.

Wire rope tow means a type of transportation by which skiers are pulled on skis while manually gripping a handle attached to a wire hauling cable. The hauling cable is maintained at a constant height range between the loading and unloading points, and there is only one span with no intermediate towers.

“Ski area operator” means a person who owns or controls the operation of a ski area. The word “operator” shall include the state or any political subdivision. An operator of a passenger tramway shall be deemed not to be operating a common carrier. Ski area operator is included in the term “operator” as used in this chapter.

“Ski areas” means all passenger tramways and all designated alpine and nordic trails, slopes, freestyle terrain, tubing terrain, and nordic ski jumps under the control of the alpine and nordic ski area operator and any other areas under the operator’s control open to the public for winter sports recreation or competition.

“Skier” means a person utilizing the ski area under the control of a ski area operator for ski, snowboard, and snow tube recreation and competition.

“Tubing terrain” means areas designated for sliding on inflatable tubes or other similar devices down a prepared course or lanes at a ski area.

“Winter sports” means the use of skis, snowboards, snow tubes, snowshoes, and any device being utilized by a disabled or adaptive participant for winter recreation or competition.

225-A:3 Passenger Tramway Safety Board.

[Repealed 1987, 124:26, IV, eff. July 1, 1987.]

225-A:3-a Passenger Tramway Safety Board.

There shall be a passenger tramway safety board of 4 appointive members. The appointive members shall be appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the council, from persons representing the following interests: one member who operates a “surface lift” as described in RSA 225-A:2, I(e)-(g) only and one member from the cable and other passenger carrying devices industry, and in making such appointments consideration shall be given to recommendations made by members of the industry, so that both the devices which pull skiers riding on skis and the devices which transport passengers in cars or chairs shall have proper representation; one member to represent the public at large; and one member to represent insurance companies which engage in insuring passenger tramway operations, and in appointing such member consideration shall be given to recommendations made by such insurance companies. The authority of such board shall not extend to any other matter relative to the operation of a ski area.

225-A:4 Term of Office.

[Repealed 1987, 124:26, IV, eff. July 1, 1987.]

225-A:4-a Term of Office.

Of the first appointments under this section one member shall be appointed for a term of one year, one for a term of 2 years, one for a term of 3 years and one for a term of 4 years, and until their successors are appointed and qualified, and thereafter each of the appointed members shall be appointed for a term of 4 years and until his successor is appointed and qualified. Vacancies in the board shall be filled for the unexpired term.

225-A:5 Removal.

[Repealed 1987, 124:26, IV, eff. July 1, 1987.]

225-A:5-a Removal.

The appointive members of the board may only be removed from office as provided in RSA 4:1.

225-A:6 Compensation.

[Repealed 1987, 124:26, IV, eff. July 1, 1987.]

225-A:6-a Compensation.

The appointive members of the board shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for their reasonable expenses incurred in official duties.

225-A:7 Records.

[Repealed 1987, 124:26, IV, eff. July 1, 1987.]

225-A:7-a Records.

The department shall provide the board with such office and clerical assistance as may be necessary to carry on the work of the board, in accordance with RSA 225-A:1-a. The department shall also preserve the records, codes, inspection reports, and business records of the board.

225-A:8 Rulemaking.

The board with the approval of the commissioner of safety shall adopt, under RSA 541-A, rules after public hearing, relating to public safety in the construction, operation and maintenance of passenger tramways. The rules shall be in accordance with established standards, if any, and shall not be discriminatory in their application to operators of passenger tramways. The board shall also give notice of any public hearing under RSA 541-A for such rules by first class mail to each registered operator at least 14 days before the hearing.

225-A:9 Declaratory Judgment.

[Repealed 1987, 124:26, IV, eff. July 1, 1987.]

225-A:9-a Declaratory Judgment.

The validity or reasonableness of any rule adopted by the board may be judicially determined upon a petition to the superior court for declaratory judgment, brought within 30 days after the effective date of such rule. The court shall hear the petition and render a declaratory judgment only when it appears that the rule, or its threatened application, interferes with or impairs or threatens to interfere with or impair the legal rights and privileges of the petitioner. In rendering judgment the court shall give effect to any pertinent constitutional limitations upon the powers of the board, the limits of the authority and jurisdiction of the board as conferred under this chapter, and the procedural requirements of this chapter.

225-A:10 Inspections.

The department may make such inspection of the construction, operation and maintenance of passenger tramways as the board may reasonably require. The department may, at its own expense, employ other qualified engineers to make such inspections.

225-A:10-a Review of Plans and Specifications.

Prior to the construction of a new, or the alteration of an existing, passenger tramway, the operator or prospective operator shall submit plans and specifications to the department. The department may make recommendations relative to safety of the layout and equipment, but such recommendation shall not relieve the operator or prospective operator of his primary responsibility as set forth in RSA 225-A:1.

225-A:11 Operator to Pay Certain Costs.

[Repealed 1973, 52:5, eff. May 23, 1973.]

225-A:12 Inspection Reports.

If, as the result of an inspection, it is found that a violation of the board’s rules, regulations or code exists, or a condition in passenger tramway construction, operation or maintenance exists endangering the safety of the public, an immediate report shall be made to the board for appropriate investigation and order.

225-A:13 Complaints.

Any person may make written complaint to the board setting forth any thing or act claimed to be done or omitted to be done by any registered operator which is alleged to be in violation of any rule, regulation or code adopted by the board, or setting forth any condition in passenger tramway construction, operation or maintenance which is alleged to endanger the safety of the public. Thereupon the board shall cause a copy of said complaint to be forwarded to the registered operator complained of, which may be accompanied by an order requiring that the matters complained of be answered in writing within a time to be specified by the board. The board may investigate the matter complained of if it shall appear to the board that there are reasonable grounds therefor.

225-A:14 Registration Required.

No passenger tramway shall be operated in this state unless the operator thereof was registered by the board.

225-A:15 Application for Registration.

On or before November 1 of each year every operator of a passenger tramway shall apply to the board, on forms prepared by it, for registration hereunder. The application shall contain such information as the board may reasonably require.

225-A:16 Fees.

The application for registration shall be accompanied by the applicable annual fees to cover the costs of administering this chapter. The fees for registration shall be set by the board by rule adopted pursuant to RSA 541-A.

225-A:17 Registration.

The board, if satisfied with the facts stated in the application, shall issue a registration certificate to the operator. Each registration shall expire on October 31 next following the day of its issue.

225-A:18 Fees.

All fees collected by the board hereunder shall be credited to the special appropriation for the department to be expended for purposes of this chapter.

225-A:18-a Emergency Shut-Down.

When facts are presented to the board, or to any member thereof, tending to show that an unreasonable hazard exists in the continued operation of a tramway, the board or member, after such verification of said facts as is practical under the circumstances and consistent with the public safety, may, by an emergency order require the operator of said tramway forthwith to cease using the same for the transportation of passengers. Such emergency order shall be in writing and notice thereof may be served by any person upon the operator or his agent immediately in control of said tramway by a true and attested copy of such order, the return of such service to be shown by an affidavit on the back thereof. Such emergency order shall be effective for a period not to exceed 48 hours from the time of service. Immediately after the issuance of an emergency order hereunder, the board shall conduct an investigation into the facts of the case as contemplated in RSA 225-A:19, and shall take such action under said RSA 225-A:19 as may be appropriate.

225-A:19 Orders.

If, after investigation, the commissioner of safety or the board finds that a violation of any of the rules exists, or that there is a condition in passenger tramway construction, operation or maintenance endangering the safety of the public, either the commissioner of safety or the board shall forthwith issue a written order setting forth his or its findings, the corrective action to be taken, and fixing a reasonable time for compliance therewith. Such order shall be served upon the operator involved by registered mail, and shall become final, unless the operator shall apply to the board for a hearing in the manner hereinafter provided.

225-A:19-a Operation Forbidden.

If in any such case the commissioner of safety or the board is of the opinion that the public safety would be endangered by the use of the tramway for the transportation of passengers prior to the taking of some or all of such corrective action, he or it shall so state in said order, and shall require in said order that the tramway shall not be so used until specified corrective action shall have been taken. From and after receipt of the order by the operator said tramway shall not be used for the transportation of passengers without the approval of the commissioner of safety or the board. Application for a hearing before the board shall not have the effect of suspending said order. Operation of the tramway following receipt of such order may be enjoined by the superior court.

225-A:20 Hearing.

Any such operator, who is aggrieved by any such order, may, within 10 days after the service of such order upon him as hereinbefore provided, apply to the board for a review of such order. It shall be the duty of the board to hear the same at the earliest convenient day. At such hearing the operator shall have the right to be heard personally or by counsel, to cross-examine witnesses appearing against him, and to produce evidence in his own behalf. After such hearing, the board shall report its findings in writing to the commissioner of safety and make such order as the facts may require.

225-A:21 Appeal.

Any such operator, who is aggrieved by any such post-hearing order of the board, may, within 14 days after the entry thereof, appeal therefrom to the superior court. No such appeal shall suspend the operation of the order made by the board; provided that the superior court may suspend the order of the board pending the determination of such appeal whenever, in the opinion of the court, justice may require such suspension. The superior court shall hear such appeal at the earliest convenient day and shall make such decree as justice may require.

225-A:23 Responsibilities of the Ski Area Operator.

It shall be the responsibility of the operator to maintain the following signs and designations:

General Designations. The following color code is hereby established:

Green circle: On area’s easiest trails and slopes.

Black diamond: On area’s most difficult trails and slopes.

Blue square: On area’s trails and slopes that fall between the green circle and black diamond designation.

Yellow triangle with red exclamation point inside with a red band around the triangle: Extrahazardous.

Border around a black figure in the shape of a skier inside with a band running diagonally across the sign with the word “closed” beneath the emblem: Trail or slope closed.

Orange oval: On area’s designated freestyle terrain without respect to its degree of difficulty.

Base Area; Information to Skiers and Passengers. (a) A trail board shall be maintained at a prominent location listing the ski area’s network of ski trails, slopes, tubing terrain, and designated freestyle terrain in accordance with the aforementioned color code and containing a key to the code in accordance with the above designations; said trail board shall further designate which trails, slopes, and snow tube terrain are open or closed.

(b) The ski area operator shall warn skiers and passengers by use of the trail board, if applicable, that snow grooming or snow making operations are routinely in progress on the slopes and trails serviced by each tramway.

(c) A map shall be available at all ski areas to all skiers and passengers indicating the system of ski trails, slopes, tubing terrain, and designated freestyle terrain in accordance with the color code in paragraph I.

Ski Trails and Slopes; Information and Warning to Skiers and Other Persons. (a) The operator shall mark the beginning of each alpine and nordic ski trail or slope with the appropriate symbol for that particular trail’s or slope’s degree of difficulty in accordance with RSA 225-A:23, I.

(b) The beginning of each alpine ski trail or slope is defined as the highest point of the trail or slope. Lower trail junctions and intersections may be marked with a degree of difficulty symbol.

(c) The operator shall mark the beginning of, and designated access points to, each alpine trail or slope that is closed with a sign in accordance with RSA 225-A:23, I(e). For purposes of this subparagraph, “designated access points” means the beginning of a trail, slope, or any point where an open trail crosses or intersects the closed trail as shown on the ski area’s trail board and trail map.

(d) The operator shall mark the beginning of and designated access points to terrain with the appropriate symbol in accordance with RSA 225-A:23, I(f), which sign shall warn the skier that the use of the terrain is at the skier’s own risk. Further, a sign shall be placed at each lift depicting the symbols in RSA 225-A:23, I(a)-(f) describing the trail or slope that the skier may encounter by utilizing such lift.

Nordic Ski Jumps. The operator shall provide a sign in a prominent location at or near the nordic ski jump facility, which sign shall warn the ski jumper that the use of the nordic ski jump is entirely at the ski jumper’s own risk. Further, the ski area operator shall be responsible for the design, construction, and structural maintenance of all nordic ski jumps.

225-A:24 Responsibilities of Skiers and Passengers.

It is hereby recognized that, regardless of all safety measures which may be taken by the ski area operator, skiing, snowboarding, snow tubing, and snowshoeing as sports, and the use of passenger tramways associated therewith may be hazardous to the skiers or passengers. Therefore:

Each person who participates in the sport of skiing, snowboarding, snow tubing, and snowshoeing accepts as a matter of law, the dangers inherent in the sport, and to that extent may not maintain an action against the operator for any injuries which result from such inherent risks, dangers, or hazards. The categories of such risks, hazards, or dangers which the skier or passenger assumes as a matter of law include but are not limited to the following: variations in terrain, surface or subsurface snow or ice conditions; bare spots; rocks, trees, stumps and other forms of forest growth or debris; terrain, lift towers, and components thereof (all of the foregoing whether above or below snow surface); pole lines and plainly marked or visible snow making equipment; collisions with other skiers or other persons or with any of the categories included in this paragraph.

Each skier and passenger shall have the sole responsibility for knowing the range of his or her own ability to negotiate any slope, trail, terrain, or passenger tramway. Any passenger who boards such tramway shall be presumed to have sufficient knowledge, abilities, and physical dexterity to negotiate the lift, and no liability shall attach to any operator or attendant for failure to instruct persons on the use thereof.

Each skier or passenger shall conduct himself or herself, within the limits of his or her own ability, maintain control of his or her speed and course at all times both on the ground and in the air, while skiing, snowboarding, snow tubing, and snowshoeing heed all posted warnings, and refrain from acting in a manner which may cause or contribute to the injury of himself, herself, or others.

Each passenger shall be the sole judge of his ability to negotiate any uphill track, and no action shall be maintained against any operator by reason of the condition of said track unless the board, upon appropriate evidence furnished to it, makes a finding that the condition of the track, at the time and place of an accident, did not meet the board’s requirements, provided however, that the ski area operator shall have had notice, prior to the accident, of the board’s requirements the violation of which is claimed to be the basis for any action by the passenger.

No skier, passenger or other person shall:

Embark or disembark upon a passenger tramway except at designated areas.

Throw or drop any object while riding on a passenger tramway nor do any act or thing which shall interfere with the running of said tramway.

Engage in any type of conduct which will contribute to cause injury to any other person nor shall he willfully place any object in the uphill ski track which may cause another to fall, while riding in a passenger tramway.

Ski or otherwise use a slope or trail which has been designated “closed” by the operator without written permission of said operator or designee.

Remove, alter, deface or destroy any sign or notice placed in the ski area or on the trail board by the operator.

Cross the uphill track of a J bar, T bar, rope tow, wire rope, or similar device except at locations approved by the board.

Ski or otherwise access terrain outside open and designated ski trails and slopes or beyond ski area boundaries without written permission of said operator or designee.

225-A:25 Insurance; Limitations.

Unless an operator of a passenger tramway is in violation of this chapter or the rules of the board, which violation is causal of the injury complained of, no action shall lie against any operator by any passenger or his or her representative; this prohibition shall not, however, prevent the maintenance of an action against an operator for negligent operation, construction, or maintenance of the passenger tramway itself.

Except as limited by paragraph III, each operator of a passenger tramway shall maintain liability insurance with limits of not less than $300,000 per accident.

The requirements of paragraph II shall not apply to an operator of a passenger tramway which is not open to the general public and operated without charge to users. Nonprofit ski clubs, outing clubs, or other similar organizations, which are operators of rope or wire rope tows shall also be excepted from the requirements of paragraph II if the organization’s bylaws so provide, each member of the organization is provided with a copy of such bylaws, and use of the rope or wire rope tows operated by the organization is restricted to members of that organization. This paragraph shall not relieve the state or any political subdivision operating a rope or wire rope tow from the requirement of maintaining liability insurance in accordance with paragraph II.

No action shall be maintained against any operator for injuries to any skier or passenger unless the same is commenced within 2 years from the time of injury provided, however, that as a condition precedent thereof the operator shall be notified by certified return receipt mail within 90 days of said injury. The venue of any action against an operator shall be in the county where the ski area is located and not otherwise.

No ski area operator shall be held responsible for ensuring the safety of, or for damages including injury or death resulting to, skiers or other persons who utilize the facilities of a ski area to access terrain outside open and designated ski trails. Ski areas shall not be liable for damages, including injury or death, to persons who venture beyond such open and designated ski trails.

A ski area operator owes no duty to anyone who trespasses on the ski area property.

225-A:26 Penalty.

Any person convicted of operating a passenger tramway without having been registered by the board, or violating this chapter or rules of the board shall be guilty of a violation if a natural person, or guilty of a misdemeanor if any other person. Any operator who operates after his registration has been suspended by the board, shall be guilty of a violation for each day of illegal operation.

227:14 Reduced Rates.

All season passes, including those for different age groups or military service, established by the department for the specific use of the winter facilities at Cannon Mountain aerial tramway and ski area shall be made available to any resident of this state at a 25 percent discount. For the purposes of this section, “resident of this state” means a person whose domicile is in this state. To qualify for the discount, a resident shall provide proof of residency and purchase the pass prior to December 15 of the year in which the pass becomes effective. Proof of residency shall include a state issued driver’s license; a state issued I.D. card with a photograph or information including name, sex, date of birth, height, weight and color of eyes; a United States passport; an affidavit certifying residency from the municipal clerk of the purchasers’ town or city of residence; or, for a person less than 18 years of age, proof of a parent’s or guardian’s residency provided by the resident parent or guardian. The commissioner of the department of resources and economic development shall make quarterly reports on season passes issued under this section to the senate president, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the governor and council.

Nevada Skier Safety Act

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Nevada, Ski Area, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: Law, Nevada, Nevada Skier Safety Act, Recreation and Sports, Ski, ski area, Ski Area Safety Act, Ski Resort, Skier, Snow, Snowboard, Snowboarder | Leave a comment

Nevada Skier Safety Act

1.1 NEVADA REVISED STATUTES ANNOTATED

TITLE 40. Public Health And Safety.

CHAPTER 455A. Safety of Participants in Outdoor Sports.

Skiers and Snowboarders

GO TO NEVADA STATUTES ARCHIVE DIRECTORY

Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 455A.023 (2012)

Nevada Skier Safety Act 1

Table of Contents. 1

455A.010. Short title. 2

455A.020. Definitions. 2

455A.023. “Chair lift” defined. 3

455A.027. “Operator” defined. 3

455A.030. “Passenger” defined. 3

455A.035. “Patrol” defined. 3

455A.040. Transferred. 4

455A.050. Transferred. 4

455A.060. Transferred. 4

455A.070. “Skier” defined. 4

455A.075. “Skiing” defined. 4

455A.080. Transferred. 4

455A.083. “Snow recreation area” defined. 4

455A.085. “Snowboarder” defined. 5

455A.087. “Snowboarding” defined. 5

455A.090. “Surface lift” defined. 5

455A.100. Prohibited acts while on chair lift; skiing or snowboarding in area posted as closed prohibited. 5

455A.110. Duties of skiers and snowboarders. 6

455A.120. Prohibited acts. 7

455A.130. Signs at chair lifts: Requirements; inspection. 7

455A.140. Slopes, runs and trails: System of signs required; vehicles used by operator to be equipped with light. 8

455A.150. Illumination of signs at night. 8

455A.160. Skiers and snowboarders to notify operator or patrol of injury; limitation on liability of operator; duty of operator to minimize dangers. 9

455A.170. Prohibition against intoxication and use of controlled substances; duty to provide name and address to person injured in collision; penalty. 9

455A.180. Revocation of license or privilege to engage in skiing or snowboarding. 10

455A.190. County, city or unincorporated town may enact ordinance not in conflict with chapter. 10

455A.010. Short title.

NRS 455A.010 to 455A.190, inclusive, may be cited as the Skier and Snowboarder Safety Act.

455A.020. Definitions.

As used in NRS 455A.010 to 455A.190, inclusive, unless the context otherwise requires, the words and terms defined in NRS 455A.023 to 455A.090, inclusive, have the meanings ascribed to them in those sections.

455A.023. “Chair lift” defined.

“Chair lift” means a device, except for an elevator, that carries, pulls or pushes a person along a level or inclined path to, from or within a snow recreation area by means of a rope, cable or other flexible element that is driven by an essentially stationary source of power.

455A.027. “Operator” defined.

“Operator” means a person, or a governmental agency or political subdivision of this State, who controls or operates an area where persons engage in skiing or snowboarding.

455A.030. “Passenger” defined.

“Passenger” means a person who utilizes a chair lift for transportation.

455A.035. “Patrol” defined.

“Patrol” means agents or employees of an operator who patrol the snow recreation area.

455A.040. Transferred.

NOTES: Editor’s note. This section is now compiled as 455A.083.

455A.050. Transferred.

NOTES: Editor’s note. This section is now compiled as 455A.023.

455A.060. Transferred.

NOTES: Editor’s note. This section is now compiled as 455A.035.

455A.070. “Skier” defined.

“Skier” means a person who engages in skiing in a snow recreation area.

455A.075. “Skiing” defined.

“Skiing” means the act of using skis to move across snow-covered ground.

455A.080. Transferred.

NOTES: Editor’s note. This section is now compiled as 455A.027.

455A.083. “Snow recreation area” defined.

“Snow recreation area” means the slopes, trails, runs and other areas under the control of an operator that are intended to be used for skiing, snowboarding or for the observation of the sports.

455A.085. “Snowboarder” defined.

“Snowboarder” means a person who engages in snowboarding in a snow recreation area.

455A.087. “Snowboarding” defined.

“Snowboarding” means the act of using a snowboard to move across snow-covered ground.

455A.090. “Surface lift” defined.

“Surface lift” means a chair lift designed for skiers or snowboarders to remain in contact with the ground or snowy surface during transportation.

455A.100. Prohibited acts while on chair lift; skiing or snowboarding in area posted as closed prohibited.

A skier or snowboarder shall not:

1. Embark upon a chair lift:

(a) When the skier or snowboarder knows that he or she has insufficient knowledge or physical ability to use the chair lift safely; or

(b) That is posted as closed or not in operation;

2. Purposefully embark upon or disembark from a chair lift except at an area designated for such a purpose or at the direction and under the direct supervision of an authorized agent or employee of an operator;

3. Toss, throw or cast or intentionally drop, expel or eject an object from a chair lift;

4. Toss, throw or cast an object in the direction of a chair lift;

5. Fail or refuse to comply with:

(a) Reasonable instructions given to the skier or snowboarder by an authorized agent or employee of an operator regarding the use of a chair lift; or

(b) A sign posted pursuant to NRS 455A.130 or 455A.140;

6. Place any object in the uphill path of a surface lift;

7. Conduct himself or herself in a manner that interferes with the safe operation of a chair lift or with the safety of a passenger, skier or snowboarder; or

8. Engage in skiing or snowboarding in an area within the snow recreation area which is posted, as provided in NRS 207.200, as closed.

455A.110. Duties of skiers and snowboarders.

A skier or snowboarder shall, to the extent that the matter is within his or her control:

1. Locate and ascertain the meaning of signs in the vicinity of the skier or snowboarder posted pursuant to NRS 455A.130 and 455A.140;

2. Heed warnings and other information posted by an operator;

3. Remain a safe distance from vehicles, signs and equipment for grooming snow or for transportation;

4. Avoid skiers or snowboarders in motion when entering a slope, run or trail, and when commencing to engage in skiing or snowboarding from a stationary position;

5. Maintain a proper lookout and control of his or her speed to avoid downhill objects, skiers and snowboarders to the best of his or her ability; and

6. Conduct himself or herself in such a manner as to avoid injury to persons and property in a snow recreation area.

455A.120. Prohibited acts.

A skier or snowboarder shall not:

1. Use a ski or snowboard unless it is attached to the skier or snowboarder by a strap or equipped with a device capable of stopping the movement of the ski or snowboard when not attached to the skier or snowboarder;

2. Cross the uphill path of a surface lift except at locations designated by an operator; or

3. Willfully stop where the skier or snowboarder obstructs a slope, run or trail, or where he or she is not safely visible to uphill skiers or snowboarders.

455A.130. Signs at chair lifts: Requirements; inspection.

1. An operator shall prominently post and maintain signs in simple and concise language:

(a) By each chair lift, with information for the protection and instruction of passengers; and

(b) At or near the points where passengers are loaded on a chair lift, directing persons who are not familiar with the operation of the chair lift to ask an authorized agent or employee of the operator for assistance and instruction.

2. An operator shall prominently post and maintain signs with the following inscriptions at all chair lifts in the locations indicated:

(a) “Remove pole straps from wrists” at an area for loading skiers;

(b) “Safety gate” where applicable;

(d) “Keep ski tips or snowboard up” ahead of any point where a ski or snowboard can regain contact with the ground or snowy surface after a passenger departs from an area for loading skiers or snowboarders;

(e) “Prepare to unload” and “check for loose clothing and equipment” not less than 50 feet from an area for unloading skiers or snowboarders; and

(f) “Unload here” at an area for unloading skiers or snowboarders.

3. An operator shall inspect a snow recreation area for the presence and visibility of the signs required to be posted by this section each day before opening the snow recreation area for business.

455A.140. Slopes, runs and trails: System of signs required; vehicles used by operator to be equipped with light.

1. An operator shall post and maintain a system of signs:

(a) At the entrances to an established slope, run or trail to indicate:

(1) Whether any portion of the slope, run or trail is closed; and

(2) The relative degree of difficulty of the slope, run or trail;

(b) To indicate the boundary of the snow recreation area, except in heavily wooded areas or other terrain that cannot be skied or snowboarded readily; and

(c) To warn of each area within the boundary of the snow recreation area where there is a danger of avalanche by posting signs stating “Warning: Avalanche Danger Area.”

2. An operator shall equip vehicles it uses on or in the vicinity of a slope, run or trail with a light visible to skiers or snowboarders when the vehicle is in motion.

455A.150. Illumination of signs at night.

A sign required to be posted pursuant to NRS 455A.130; and 455A.140 must be adequately illuminated at night, if the snow recreation area is open to the public at night, and be readable and recognizable under ordinary conditions of visibility.

455A.160. Skiers and snowboarders to notify operator or patrol of injury; limitation on liability of operator; duty of operator to minimize dangers.

1. A skier or snowboarder who sustains a personal injury shall notify the operator or a member of the patrol of the injury as soon as reasonably possible after discovery of the injury.

2. An operator is not liable for the death or injury of a person or damages to property caused or sustained by a skier or snowboarder who knowingly enters an area which is not designated for skiing or snowboarding or which is outside the boundary of a snow recreation area.

3. An operator shall take reasonable steps to minimize dangers and conditions within the operator’s control.

455A.170. Prohibition against intoxication and use of controlled substances; duty to provide name and address to person injured in collision; penalty.

1. A skier or snowboarder shall not engage in skiing or snowboarding, or embark on a chair lift that is proceeding predominantly uphill, while intoxicated or under the influence of a controlled substance as defined in chapter 453 of NRS unless in accordance with a lawfully issued prescription.

2. A skier or snowboarder who is involved in a collision in which another person is injured shall provide his or her name and current address to the injured person, the operator or a member of the patrol:

(a) Before the skier or snowboarder leaves the vicinity of the collision; or

(b) As soon as reasonably possible after leaving the vicinity of the collision to secure aid for the injured person.

3. A person who violates a provision of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor.

455A.180. Revocation of license or privilege to engage in skiing or snowboarding.

An operator may revoke the license or privilege of a person to engage in skiing or snowboarding in a snow recreation area if the person violates any provision of NRS 455A.100, 455A.110, 455A.120 or 455A.170.

455A.190. County, city or unincorporated town may enact ordinance not in conflict with chapter.

The provisions of NRS 455A.010 to 455A.190, inclusive, do not prohibit a county, city or unincorporated town from enacting an ordinance, not in conflict with the provisions of NRS 455A.010 to 455A.190, inclusive, regulating skiers, snowboarders or operators.

Michigan Ski Safety Act

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Michigan, Ski Area, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: Michigan, Michigan Ski Safety Act, Ski, ski area, Ski lift, Ski Resort, Skier, Skier Safety Act, Snowboarder | Leave a comment

Michigan Ski Safety Act

MICHIGAN COMPILED LAWS SERVICE

CHAPTER 408 LABOR

SKI AREA SAFETY ACT OF 1962

Go to the Michigan Code Archive Directory

MCLS prec § 408.321 (2012)

MCL § 408.321

Table of Contents. 1

Preceding § 408.321. 2

§ 408.321. Ski area safety act of 1962; short title. 2

§ 408.322. Definitions. 3

§ 408.323. Ski area safety board; creation; composition; qualifications; ex officio members. 5

§ 408.324. Ski area safety board; appointment and terms of members; vacancies. 5

§ 408.326. Rules; proposed legislation establishing fee schedule. 6

§ 408.326a. Duties of ski area operator. 6

§ 408.327. Promulgation of rules. 8

§ 408.328. Commissioner of labor; administration of act. 8

§ 408.329. Ski lifts; permits requirement, inspection. 8

§ 408.330. Ski lifts; temporary permits. 9

§ 408.331. Ski lifts; permits, issuance, expiration. 9

§ 408.332. Ski lifts; erection, alteration, moving, plans and specifications; rope tows. 9

§ 408.333. Ski lifts; order to cease operation. 10

§ 408.334. Ski lifts; existing installations. 10

§ 408.335. Ski lifts; rules and regulations, modification for hardship, record. 10

§ 408.336. Ski lifts; fees. 10

§ 408.337. Chief inspector; inspection service. 11

§ 408.338. Revenue; disbursements. 11

§ 408.339. Notice of public hearing. 12

§ 408.340. Violations; penalties; rules. 12

§ 408.341. Skier conduct; prohibited conduct in ski area. 13

§ 408.342. Duties of skier in ski area; acceptance of dangers. 13

§ 408.343. Accidents causing injury; notice; identification; misdemeanor; penalty. 16

§ 408.344. Violation of act; liability. 17

Preceding § 408.321

An act to provide for the inspection, licensing, and regulation of ski areas and ski lifts; to provide for the safety of skiers, spectators, and the public using ski areas; to provide for certain presumptions relative to liability for an injury or damage sustained by skiers; to prescribe the duties of skiers and ski area operators; to create a ski area safety board; to provide for the disposition of revenues; to provide for liability for damages which result from a violation of this act; to provide civil fines for certain violations of this act; and to provide criminal penalties for certain violations of this act. (Amended by Pub Acts 1981, No. 86, imd eff July 2, 1981; 1995, No. 120, imd eff June 30, 1995.)

§ 408.321. Ski area safety act of 1962; short title.

Sec. 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the “ski area safety act of 1962”.

§ 408.322. Definitions.

Sec. 2. As used in this act:

(a) “Board” means the ski area safety board.

(b) “Commissioner” means the director of commerce or an authorized representative of the director.

(d) “Operator” means a person who owns or controls, or who has operational responsibility for, a ski area or ski lift. An operator includes this state or a political subdivision of this state.

(e) “Passenger” means a person, skier or nonskier, who boards, disembarks from, or is transported by a ski lift, regardless of whether the ski lift is being used during the skiing season or nonskiing season, and includes a person waiting for or moving away from the loading or unloading point of a ski lift.

(f) “Ski area” means an area used for skiing and served by 1 or more ski lifts.

(g) “Skier” means a person wearing skis or utilizing a device that attaches to at least 1 foot or the lower torso for the purpose of sliding on a slope. The device slides on the snow or other surface of a slope and is capable of being maneuvered and controlled by the person using the device. Skier includes a person not wearing skis or a skiing device while the person is in a ski area for the purpose of skiing.

(h) “Ski lift” means a device for transporting persons uphill on skis, or in cars on tracks, or suspended in the air by the use of cables, chains, belts, or ropes, and usually supported by trestles or towers with 1 or more spans. Ski lift includes a rope tow.

§ 408.323. Ski area safety board; creation; composition; qualifications; ex officio members.

Sec. 3. A ski area safety board consisting of 7 members is created within the office of the commissioner. The board consists of 3 ski area managers, 1 from the Upper Peninsula and 2 from the Lower Peninsula; 1 engineer with skiing experience; 1 member of the central United States ski association, a nonprofit corporation; 1 person with skiing experience from the Upper Peninsula representing the general public; and 1 with skiing experience from the Lower Peninsula representing the general public. The commissioner and an officer of the Michigan tourist council are ex officio members of the board without vote.

§ 408.324. Ski area safety board; appointment and terms of members; vacancies.

Sec. 4. Members of the board shall be appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate for terms of 4 years and until their successors are appointed and qualified. Vacancies in the board shall be filled for the unexpired term.

§ 408.325. Ski area safety board; conducting business at public meeting; notice; election of chairperson and other officers; quorum; meetings; compensation and expenses.

Sec. 5. (1) The business which the board may perform shall be conducted at a public meeting of the board held in compliance with Act No. 267 of the Public Acts of 1976, being sections 15.261 to 15.275 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. Public notice of the time, date, and place of the meeting shall be given in the manner required by Act No. 267 of the Public Acts of 1976. The board shall elect a chairperson and other officers it considers necessary to perform its duties between meetings. A majority of the 7 voting members shall constitute a quorum. The board shall meet not less than once yearly on the call of the chairperson or by written request of not less than 3 members.

(2) The per diem compensation of the members of the board, other than the commissioner, and the schedule for reimbursement of expenses shall be established annually by the legislature.

§ 408.326. Rules; proposed legislation establishing fee schedule.

Sec. 6. (1) The board shall promulgate rules for the safe construction, installation, repair, use, operation, maintenance, and inspection of all ski areas and ski lifts as the board finds necessary for protection of the general public while using ski areas and ski lifts. The rules shall be reasonable and based upon generally accepted engineering standards, formulas, and practices.

(2) The board, with the advice of the commissioner, shall propose legislation to establish the fee schedule for permits, inspections, and plan review activities. The fees shall reflect the actual costs and expenses of the department for issuing permits and conducting inspections and plan reviews.

§ 408.326a. Duties of ski area operator.

Sec. 6a. Each ski area operator shall, with respect to operation of a ski area, do all of the following:

(a) Equip each snow-grooming vehicle and any other authorized vehicle, except a snowmobile, with a flashing or rotating yellow light conspicuously located on the vehicle, and operate the flashing or rotating yellow light while the vehicle is moving on, or in the vicinity of, a ski run. A snowmobile operated in a ski area shall be operated with at least 1 operating white light located on the front of the snowmobile.

(b) Mark with a visible sign or other warning device the location of any hydrant or similar fixture or equipment used in snow-making operations located on a ski run, as prescribed by rules promulgated under section 20(3).

(c) Mark the top of or entrance to each ski run, slope, and trail to be used by skiers for the purpose of skiing, with an appropriate symbol indicating the relative degree of difficulty of the run, slope, or trail, using a symbols code prescribed by rules promulgated under section 20(3).

(d) Mark the top of or entrance to each ski run, slope, and trail which is closed to skiing, with an appropriate symbol indicating that the run, slope, or trail is closed, as prescribed by rules promulgated under section 20(3).

(e) Maintain 1 or more trail boards at prominent locations in each ski area displaying that area’s network of ski runs, slopes, and trails and the relative degree of difficulty of each ski run, slope, and trail, using the symbols code required under subdivision (c) and containing a key to that code, and indicating which runs, slopes, and trails are open or closed to skiing.

(f) Place or cause to be placed, if snow-grooming or snow-making operations are being performed on a ski run, slope, or trail while the run, slope, or trail is open to the public, a conspicuous notice at or near the top of or entrance to the run, slope, or trail indicating that those operations are being performed.

(g) Post the duties of skiers and passengers as prescribed in sections 21 and 22 and the duties, obligations, and liabilities of operators as prescribed in this section in and around the ski area in conspicuous places open to the public.

(h) Maintain the stability and legibility of all required signs, symbols, and posted notices.

§ 408.327. Promulgation of rules.

Sec. 7. The rules shall be promulgated pursuant to Act No. 306 of the Public Acts of 1969, as amended, being sections 24.201 to 24.315 of the Michigan Compiled Laws.

§ 408.328. Commissioner of labor; administration of act.

Sec. 8. The commissioner, subject to the limitations herein contained and the rules and regulations of the board, shall administer and enforce the provisions of this act.

§ 408.329. Ski lifts; permits requirement, inspection.

Sec. 9. No person shall operate a ski lift without a permit issued by the commissioner. On or before October 1 of each year an operator shall apply for a permit to the commissioner on a form furnished by the commissioner and containing such information as the board may require. All ski lifts shall be inspected before they are originally put into operation for the public’s use and thereafter at least once every 12 months, unless permitted to operate on a temporary permit.

§ 408.330. Ski lifts; temporary permits.

Sec. 10. The commissioner may issue a temporary permit for 30 calendar days to an operator, who has previously been operating in this state on a regular or annual basis, to continue operation. An inspection of his ski lifts shall be made within 30 days from the issuance of the permit. A ski lift inspected and covered by a permit in the preceding year may operate on a temporary basis until further inspected.

§ 408.331. Ski lifts; permits, issuance, expiration.

Sec. 11. If upon inspection a ski lift is found to comply with the rules and regulations of the board, the commissioner shall issue a permit to operate. A permit shall expire on September 30 of the following year.

§ 408.332. Ski lifts; erection, alteration, moving, plans and specifications; rope tows.

Sec. 12. Before a new ski lift is erected, or before a presently existing ski lift is moved to a different location, or whenever any additions or alterations are made which change the structure, mechanism, classification or capacity of any ski lift, the operator shall file with the department detailed, duplicate plans and specifications of such work. The plans and specifications shall be prepared by a qualified tramway firm or by an engineer, licensed in this state as a professional engineer, in accordance with Act No. 240 of the Public Acts of 1937, as amended, being sections 338.551 to 338.576 of the Compiled Laws of 1948. Upon approval of plans and specifications, the department shall issue a permit for such work. All rope tows shall be excluded from this section.

§ 408.333. Ski lifts; order to cease operation.

Sec. 13. The commissioner or board may order, in writing, a temporary cessation of operation of a ski lift if it has been determined after inspection to be hazardous or unsafe. Operation shall not resume until such conditions are corrected to the satisfaction of the commissioner or board.

§ 408.334. Ski lifts; existing installations.

Sec. 14. This act shall not be construed to prevent the use of any existing installation, upon inspection found to be in a safe condition and to conform with the rules and regulations of the board.

§ 408.335. Ski lifts; rules and regulations, modification for hardship, record.

Sec. 15. If there are practical difficulties or unnecessary hardships for an operator to comply with the rules and regulations under this act, the commissioner, with the approval of the board, may modify the application of such rules or regulations to such a situation, if the spirit of the provisions shall be observed and the public safety is secured. Any operator may make a written request to the board stating his grounds and applying for such modification. Any authorization by the commissioner and the board shall be in writing and shall describe the conditions under which the modification is permitted. A record of all modifications shall be kept in the department and open to the public.

§ 408.336. Ski lifts; fees.

Sec. 16. (a) An application for a permit shall be accompanied by fees of:

$25.00 for an annual permit; or

$2.00 for each rope tow,

$5.00 for each T bar, J bar or platter pull,

$15.00 for each chair lift or skimobile, and

$30.00 for each aerial tramway,

if greater than the $25.00 annual permit fee.

(b) Inspection fees shall be as follows:

$8.00 for each rope tow,

$20.00 for each T bar, J bar or platter pull,

$60.00 for each chair lift or skimobile,

$120.00 for each aerial tramway, and

$50.00 for reinspections or special inspections at an operator’s request.

Any operator may employ any person, partnership or corporation, approved by the commissioner and board, to make the inspections. Inspections made by any person, partnership, or corporation, that may be employed by an operator, shall be on forms furnished or approved by the department. Inspection fees shall be waived when the annual permit application is accompanied by such an inspection report.

(c) Fees for review and approval of plans prior to construction shall be $200.00 for a chair lift, T bar, J bar, platter pull or tramway.

Fees for review and approval of plans for modification and alteration of an existing lift shall be $50.00.

(d) Fees shall be paid to the department, which shall give receipts therefor.

§ 408.337. Chief inspector; inspection service.

Sec. 17. The department, with the advice and consent of the board, shall employ or retain a person qualified in engineering and training who shall be designated chief inspector. The chief inspector and such additional inspectors and other employees as may be necessary to properly administer this act may be hired on a temporary basis or borrowed from other state departments, or the department may contract with persons, partnerships or corporations for such inspection services on an independent basis.

§ 408.338. Revenue; disbursements.

Sec. 18. All fees for permits or inspections, or any other income received under this act, shall be paid into the general fund. All salaries and other moneys expended under this act shall be paid by the state treasurer from a fund appropriated by the legislature.

§ 408.339. Notice of public hearing.

Sec. 19. (1) In addition to the notice prescribed in section 5(1) notice of a public hearing held under this act shall be published not less than once and not less than 10 days before the hearing, in newspapers of general circulation prescribed by the commissioner.

§ 408.340. Violations; penalties; rules.

Sec. 20. (1) Except for sections 21 to 24, and except as provided in subsection (2), a person who violates this act, or a rule or order promulgated or issued pursuant to this act, or a person who interferes with, impedes, or obstructs the commissioner, an authorized representative of the commissioner, or a board member in the performance of duties prescribed by this act, is guilty of a misdemeanor. Each day a violation or other act continues shall be considered a separate offense.

(2) A member of the board who intentionally violates section 5(1) shall be subject to the penalties prescribed in Act No. 267 of the Public Acts of 1976, as amended.

(3) Not more than 270 days after the effective date of this subsection, the board shall, pursuant to section 7, promulgate rules consistent with this act to implement this act, except for subsection (2) and sections 21, 22, 23, and 24, not to exceed $50.00 for each violation.

§ 408.341. Skier conduct; prohibited conduct in ski area.

Sec. 21. (1) A skier shall conduct himself or herself within the limits of his or her individual ability and shall not act or ski in a manner that may contribute to his or her injury or to the injury of any other person. A skier shall be the sole judge of his or her ability to negotiate a track, trail, or slope.

(2) While in a ski area, a skier or passenger shall not do any of the following:

(a) Board a ski lift which has been designated as closed.

(b) Wilfully board or embark upon, or disembark from, a ski lift, except at an area designated for those purposes.

(d) Do any act which interferes with the running or operation of a ski lift, such as, but not limited to: swinging or bouncing on an aerial lift, attempting to contact supporting towers, machinery, guides, or guards while riding on a ski lift; or skiing out of the designated ski track on a surface lift or tow.

(e) Use a ski lift, unless the skier or passenger has the ability to use the lift safely without instruction on use of the lift by a ski area owner, manager, operator, or employee, or unless the skier or passenger requests and receives instruction before entering the boarding area of the ski lift.

(f) Use a ski lift or ski without properly engaging and using ski restraining devices, brakes, or restraining straps.

§ 408.342. Duties of skier in ski area; acceptance of dangers.

Sec. 22. (1) While in a ski area, each skier shall do all of the following:

(a) Maintain reasonable control of his or her speed and course at all times.

(b) Stay clear of snow-grooming vehicles and equipment in the ski area.

(d) Ski only in ski areas which are marked as open for skiing on the trail board described in section 6a(e).

(2) Each person who participates in the sport of skiing accepts the dangers that inhere in that sport insofar as the dangers are obvious and necessary. Those dangers include, but are not limited to, injuries which can result from variations in terrain; surface or subsurface snow or ice conditions; bare spots; rocks, trees, and other forms of natural growth or debris; collisions with ski lift towers and their components, with other skiers, or with properly marked or plainly visible snow-making or snow-grooming equipment.

§ 408.343. Accidents causing injury; notice; identification; misdemeanor; penalty.

Sec. 23. (1) A skier involved in an accident causing an injury to another person shall to the extent that he or she is reasonably able to do so immediately notify the ski patrol or the operator, or law enforcement or emergency personnel, and shall clearly identify himself or herself. A skier who wilfully fails to give identification after involvement in a skiing accident with another person, or a skier who is reasonably able to do so who fails to notify the proper authorities or to obtain assistance when the skier knows that another person involved in the accident is in need of medical or other assistance, is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment for not more than 30 days, or a fine of not more than $100.00, or both.

(2) A skier involved in an accident causing an injury to himself or herself, but not to another person, shall immediately notify the ski patrol or the operator, or law enforcement or emergency personnel, if the accident created a known hazardous condition in the area where the accident occurred.

§ 408.344. Violation of act; liability.

Sec. 24. A skier or passenger who violates this act, or an operator who violates this act shall be liable for that portion of the loss or damage resulting from that violation.

Idaho Ski Safety Act

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Idaho, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: Alpine skiing, Idaho, Idaho Ski Safety Act, Outdoors, Recreation, Ski, ski area, Ski Resort, Ski Safety Act, Skier, Snowboarder | Leave a comment

Idaho Ski Safety Act

IDAHO CODE

CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

TITLE 6. ACTIONS IN PARTICULAR CASES

CHAPTER 11. RESPONSIBILITIES AND LIABILITIES OF SKIERS AND SKI AREA OPERATORS

Go to the Idaho Code Archive Directory

Idaho Code § 6-1101 (2012)

§ 6-1101. Legislative purpose

The legislature finds that the sport of skiing is practiced by a large number of citizens of this state and also attracts a large number of nonresidents, significantly contributing to the economy of Idaho. Since it is recognized that there are inherent risks in the sport of skiing which should be understood by each skier and which are essentially impossible to eliminate by the ski area operation, it is the purpose of this chapter to define those areas of responsibility and affirmative acts for which ski area operators shall be liable for loss, damage or injury, and to define those risks which the skier expressly assumes and for which there can be no recovery.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1101, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES:

ANALYSIS

When the legislature stated the legislative purpose of this chapter, it included the statement that “the sport of skiing is practiced by a large number of citizens of this state and also attracts a large number of nonresidents, significantly contributing to the economy of Idaho,” and since this was a legitimate legislative goal and satisfies the rational basis test, this chapter does not violate the equal protection clause of the constitution. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

In enacting this chapter, the legislature intended to limit rather than expand the liability of ski area operators. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

The government of Idaho clearly has a legitimate interest in promoting the sport of skiing, because the sport “significantly contribut[es] to the economy of Idaho.” This chapter bears a rational relationship to this interest because it clarifies the allocation of risks and responsibilities between ski area operators and skiers. Collins v. Schweitzer, Inc., 21 F.3d 1491 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 513 U.S. 962, 115 S. Ct. 422, 130 L. Ed. 2d 337 (1994).

This chapter immunizes ski area operators only from liability arising from risks inherent in the sport of skiing. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

CITED IN: Kirkland ex rel. Kirkland v. Blain County Med. Ctr., 134 Idaho 464, 4 P.3d 1115 (2000).

§ 6-1102. Definitions

The following words and phrases when used in this chapter shall have, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the meanings given to them in this section.

(1) “Aerial passenger tramway” means any device operated by a ski area operator used to transport passengers, by single or double reversible tramway; chair lift or gondola lift; T-bar lift, J-bar lift, platter lift or similar device; or a fiber rope tow, which is subject to regulations adopted by the proper authority.

(2) “Passenger” means any person who is lawfully using an aerial passenger tramway, or is waiting to embark or has recently disembarked from an aerial passenger tramway and is in its immediate vicinity.

(3) “Ski area” means the property owned or leased and under the control of the ski area operator within the state of Idaho.

(4) “Ski area operator” means any person, partnership, corporation or other commercial entity and their agents, officers, employees or representatives, who has operational responsibility for any ski area or aerial passenger tramway.

(5) “Skiing area” means all designated slopes and trails but excludes any aerial passenger tramway.

(6) “Skier” means any person present at a skiing area under the control of a ski area operator for the purpose of engaging in the sport of skiing by utilizing the ski slopes and trails and does not include the use of an aerial passenger tramway.

(7) “Ski slopes and trails” mean those areas designated by the ski area operator to be used by skiers for the purpose of participating in the sport of skiing.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1102, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES:

§ 6-1103. Duties of ski area operators with respect to ski areas

Every ski area operator shall have the following duties with respect to their operation of a skiing area:

(1) To mark all trail maintenance vehicles and to furnish such vehicles with flashing or rotating lights which shall be in operation whenever the vehicles are working or are in movement in the skiing area;

(2) To mark with a visible sign or other warning implement the location of any hydrant or similar equipment used in snowmaking operations and located on ski slopes and trails;

(3) To mark conspicuously the top or entrance to each slope or trail or area, with an appropriate symbol for its relative degree of difficulty; and those slopes, trails, or areas which are closed, shall be so marked at the top or entrance;

(4) To maintain one or more trail boards at prominent locations at each ski area displaying that area’s network of ski trails and slopes with each trail and slope rated thereon as to it [its] relative degree of difficulty;

(5) To designate by trail board or otherwise which trails or slopes are open or closed;

(6) To place, or cause to be placed, whenever snowgrooming or snowmaking operations are being undertaken upon any trail or slope while such trail or slope is open to the public, a conspicuous notice to that effect at or near the top of such trail or slope;

(7) To post notice of the requirements of this chapter concerning the use of ski retention devices. This obligation shall be the sole requirement imposed upon the ski area operator regarding the requirement for or use of ski retention devices;

(8) To provide a ski patrol with qualifications meeting the standards of the national ski patrol system;

(9) To post a sign at the bottom of all aerial passenger tramways which advises the passengers to seek advice if not familiar with riding the aerial passenger tramway; and

(10) Not to intentionally or negligently cause injury to any person; provided, that except for the duties of the operator set forth in subsections (1) through (9) of this section and in section 6-1104, Idaho Code, the operator shall have no duty to eliminate, alter, control or lessen the risks inherent in the sport of skiing, which risks include but are not limited to those described in section 6-1106, Idaho Code; and, that no activities undertaken by the operator in an attempt to eliminate, alter, control or lessen such risks shall be deemed to impose on the operator any duty to accomplish such activities to any standard of care.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1103, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES: COMPILER’S NOTES. The national ski patrol provides training and education programs for emergency rescuers serving the outdoor recreation community. See http://www.nsp.org.

The bracketed word “its” in subsection (4) was inserted by the compiler.

When a skier ignores the ski area’s instructions to ski only on designated trails and embarks on an enterprise too difficult for someone of his ability, the ski area is not liable for his mishaps. Long v. Bogus Basin Recreational Ass’n, 125 Idaho 230, 869 P.2d 230 (1994).

Under this chapter, a ski area operator is not liable for the improper placement of a sign erected to eliminate, alter, control or lessen the inherent risks in skiing or for the improper design, construction or padding of a signpost that supported the sign. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

In personal injury action by skier injured when she tripped over a rope intended to guide people away from the exit ramp of a chair lift, summary judgment was properly granted to ski resort, as the rope was intended to eliminate, alter, control, or lessen the inherent risk of skiing. The accident was not caused by the construction, operation, maintenance or repair of the chairlift. Withers v. Bogus Basin Rec. Ass’n, 144 Idaho 78, 156 P.3d 579 (2007).

Setting up a NASTAR race course is a normal part of running a ski area, and thus, anything a ski area does to eliminate or lessen the inherent risks of skiing in connection with setting up the race course or protecting skiers from hazardous obstacles cannot be the basis of liability for negligence. Collins v. Schweitzer, Inc., 774 F. Supp. 1253 (D. Idaho 1991), aff’d, 21 F.3d 1491 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 513 U.S. 962, 115 S. Ct. 422, 130 L. Ed. 2d 337 (1994).

Under § 6-1106, anyone who strikes a ski lift tower while skiing is considered to have expressly assumed the risk and legal responsibility for any injury which results, and in addition, under subsection (10) of this section, anything a ski area operator does to eliminate, alter, control or lessen the risks associated with lift towers — such as placing a fence around a tower or padding it — could not result in the operator being held liable for negligence. Collins v. Schweitzer, Inc., 774 F. Supp. 1253 (D. Idaho 1991), aff’d, 21 F.3d 1491 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 513 U.S. 962, 115 S. Ct. 422, 130 L. Ed. 2d 337 (1994).

Ski area operator owed amateur race skier no duty to reduce the risk of his striking and injuring himself on a lift tower. Collins v. Schweitzer, Inc., 21 F.3d 1491 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 513 U.S. 962, 115 S. Ct. 422, 130 L. Ed. 2d 337 (1994).

If a ski area operator has no duty to accomplish any activity undertaken in an attempt to eliminate, alter, control or lessen the inherent risks of skiing and if the duties described in this section and § 6-1104 are the only duties an operator has with regard to the inherent risks of skiing, then it necessarily follows that any activity of an operator to fulfill those duties may not be held to be negligence, since the operator had no duty to accomplish the activity to any standard of care. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

A ski area operator’s duty not to negligently cause injury refers to the failure to follow (1) any of the duties set forth in this section and § 6-1104 or (2) any duty that does not relate to eliminating, altering, controlling or lessening the inherent risks of skiing. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

While one of the duties imposed on ski area operators by this section is to mark conspicuously the top or entrance to each slope or trail or area, with an appropriate symbol for its relative degree of difficulty, even assuming that a ski area operator may not have properly located a sign or properly designed, constructed or padded the signpost, this chapter excludes any liability of ski area operator to the plaintiffs as a result of these activities; while subdivision (3) of this section did require ski area operator to mark the entrance to each of its slopes, trails or areas, subsection (10) of this section negates any duty to accomplish this marking to any standard of care. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

The duties described in this section and § 6-1104 are the only duties a ski area operator has with respect to the inherent risks of skiing and even anything an operator does to fulfill those duties cannot be held to be negligence because the operator had no duty to accomplish the activity to any standard of care, and in addition, anything else a ski area operator does to attempt to lessen the inherent risks of skiing cannot result in liability for negligence for that action. Collins v. Schweitzer, Inc., 774 F. Supp. 1253 (D. Idaho 1991), aff’d, 21 F.3d 1491 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 513 U.S. 962, 115 S. Ct. 422, 130 L. Ed. 2d 337 (1994).

In conducting training sessions, the defendant foundation did not have the responsibility to fulfill the duties under this section; the mere fact that the defendant foundation set up the course within the ski area did not make them a “ski operator.” By setting up the course the defendant foundation was not engaged in any duties or activities of a “ski area operator.” By making use of the ski area for training, defendant foundation did not exercise “operational responsibility” for the ski area, and the court correctly denied defendant’s summary judgment on that basis. Davis v. Sun Valley Ski Educ. Found., Inc., 130 Idaho 400, 941 P.2d 1301 (1997).

A ski area operator does not have the duty to provide a ski patrol that will determine the identity of a skier who was involved in a ski accident with another skier. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

An injury to the body caused by falling while skiing in an unmarked, ungroomed area is an inherent risk of skiing and a ski resort had no duty to take some kind of affirmative steps to have prevented skier from being injured. Long v. Bogus Basin Recreational Ass’n, 125 Idaho 230, 869 P.2d 230 (1994).

§ 6-1104. Duties of ski area operators with respect to aerial passenger tramways

Every ski area operator shall have the duty to construct, operate, maintain and repair any aerial passenger tramway in accordance with the American national standards safety requirements for aerial passenger tramways.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1104, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES: COMPILER’S NOTES. The American national standards institute’s current publication covering tramway safety is ANSI B77.1-2006, “Passenger Ropeway & Aerial Tramways, Aerial Lifts, Surface Lifts, Tows and Conveyors — Safety Requirement.”

ANALYSIS

If a ski area operator has no duty to accomplish any activity undertaken in an attempt to eliminate, alter, control or lessen the inherent risks of skiing and if the duties described in § 6-1103 and this section are the only duties an operator has with regard to the inherent risks of skiing, then it necessarily follows that any activity of an operator to fulfill those duties may not be held to be negligence, since the operator had no duty to accomplish the activity to any standard of care. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

A ski area operator’s duty not to negligently cause injury refers to the failure to follow (1) any of the duties set forth in § 6-1103 and this section or (2) any duty that does not relate to eliminating, altering, controlling or lessening the inherent risks of skiing. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

The duties described in § 6-1103 and this section are the only duties a ski area operator has with respect to the inherent risks of skiing and even anything an operator does to fulfill those duties cannot be held to be negligence because the operator had no duty to accomplish the activity to any standard of care; in addition, anything else a ski area operator does to attempt to lessen the inherent risks of skiing cannot result in liability for negligence for that action. Collins v. Schweitzer, Inc., 774 F. Supp. 1253 (D. Idaho 1991), aff’d, 21 F.3d 1491 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 513 U.S. 962, 115 S. Ct. 422, 130 L. Ed. 2d 337 (1994).

§ 6-1104. Duties of ski area operators with respect to aerial passenger tramways

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1104, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

If a ski area operator has no duty to accomplish any activity undertaken in an attempt to eliminate, alter, control or lessen the inherent risks of skiing and if the duties described in § 6-1103 and this section are the only duties an operator has with regard to the inherent risks of skiing, then it necessarily follows that any activity of an operator to fulfill those duties may not be held to be negligence, since the operator had no duty to accomplish the activity to any standard of care. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

§ 6-1105. Duties of passengers

Every passenger shall have the duty not to:

(1) Board or embark upon or disembark from an aerial passenger tramway except at an area designated for such purpose;

(2) Drop, throw or expel any object from an aerial passenger tramway;

(3) Do any act which shall interfere with the running or operation of an aerial passenger tramway;

(4) Use any aerial passenger tramway if the passenger does not have the ability to use it safely without instruction until the passenger has requested and received sufficient instruction to permit safe usage;

(5) Embark on an aerial passenger tramway without the authority of the ski area operator;

(6) Use any aerial passenger tramway without engaging such safety or restraining devices as may be provided.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1105, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES:

§ 6-1106. Duties of skiers

It is recognized that skiing as a recreational sport is hazardous to skiers, regardless of all feasible safety measures which can be taken.

Each skier expressly assumes the risk of and legal responsibility for any injury to person or property which results from participation in the sport of skiing including any injury caused by the following, all whether above or below snow surface: variations in terrain; surface or subsurface snow or ice conditions; bare spots, rocks, trees, other forms of forest growth or debris, lift towers and components thereof; utility poles, and snowmaking and snowgrooming equipment which is plainly visible or plainly marked in accordance with the provisions of section 6-1103, Idaho Code. Therefore, each skier shall have the sole individual responsibility for knowing the range of his own ability to negotiate any slope or trail, and it shall be the duty of each skier to ski within the limits of the skier’s own ability, to maintain reasonable control of speed and course at all times while skiing, to heed all posted warnings, to ski only on a skiing area designated by the ski area operator and to refrain from acting in a manner which may cause or contribute to the injury of anyone. The responsibility for collisions by any skier while actually skiing, with any person, shall be solely that of the individual or individuals involved in such collision and not that of the ski area operator.

No person shall place any object in the skiing area or on the uphill track of any aerial passenger tramway which may cause a passenger or skier to fall; cross the track of any T-bar lift, J-bar lift, platter lift or similar device, or a fiber rope tow, except at a designated location; or depart when involved in a skiing accident, from the scene of the accident without leaving personal identification, including name and address, before notifying the proper authorities or obtaining assistance when that person knows that any other person involved in the accident is in need of medical or other assistance.

No skier shall fail to wear retention straps or other devices to help prevent runaway skis.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1106, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES:

§ 6-1107. Liability of ski area operators

Any ski area operator shall be liable for loss or damages caused by its failure to follow the duties set forth in sections 6-1103 and 6-1104, Idaho Code, where the violation of duty is causally related to the loss or damage suffered. The ski area operators shall not be liable to any passenger or skier acting in violation of their duties as set forth in sections 6-1105 and 6-1106, Idaho Code, where the violation of duty is causally related to the loss or damage suffered; nor shall a ski area operator be liable for any injury or damage to a person who is not legally entitled to be in the ski area; or for any loss or damages caused by any object dropped, thrown or expelled by a passenger from an aerial passenger tramway.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1107, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES:

This chapter immunizes ski area operators only from liability arising from risks inherent in the sport of skiing. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

In enacting this chapter, the legislature intended to limit rather than expand the liability of ski area operators. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

If a ski area operator has no duty to accomplish any activity undertaken in an attempt to eliminate, alter, control or lessen the inherent risks of skiing and if the duties described in §§ 6-1103 and 6-1104 are the only duties an operator has with regard to the inherent risks of skiing, then it necessarily follows that any activity of an operator to fulfill those duties may not be held to be negligence, since the operator had no duty to accomplish the activity to any standard of care. Northcutt v. Sun Valley Co., 117 Idaho 351, 787 P.2d 1159 (1990).

§ 6-1108. Liability of passengers

Any passenger shall be liable for loss or damages resulting from violations of the duties set forth in section 6-1105, Idaho Code, and shall not be able to recover from the ski area operator for any losses or damages where the violation of duty is causally related to the loss or damage suffered.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1108, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES:

§ 6-1109. Liability of skiers

Any skier shall be liable for loss or damages resulting from violations of the duties set forth in section 6-1106, Idaho Code, and shall not be able to recover from the ski area operator for any losses or damages where the violation of duty is causally related to the loss or damage suffered.

HISTORY: I.C., § 6-1109, as added by 1979, ch. 270, § 1, p. 701.

NOTES:

A.L.R.

Skier’s liability for injuries to or death of another person. 75 A.L.R.5th 583.

Massachusetts Ski Safety Act

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Massachusetts, Ski Area, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: Alpine skiing, Massachusetts, Massachusetts Ski Safety Act, ski area, Ski Resort, Ski Safety Act, Skier, skiing, Snowboarder, winter sports | 1 Comment

Massachusetts Ski Safety Act

ANNOTATED LAWS OF MASSACHUSETTS

PART I ADMINISTRATION OF THE GOVERNMENT

TITLE XX PUBLIC SAFETY AND GOOD ORDER

Chapter 143 Inspection and Regulation of, and Licenses for, Buildings, Elevators and Cinematographs

GO TO MASSACHUSETTS CODE ARCHIVE DIRECTORY

ALM GL ch. 143, § 71I (2012)

§ 71I. Recreational Tramways — Definitions.

As used in sections seventy-one H to seventy-one S, inclusive, the following words shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the following meanings:

“Recreational tramway”, a device used to transport passengers uphill on skis, or in cars on tracks or suspended in the air, by the use of steel cables, chains or belts or by ropes, and usually supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans. The term recreational tramway shall include the following:

(1) Two-car aerial passenger tramway, a device used to transport passengers in two open or enclosed cars attached to, and suspended from, a moving wire rope, or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope, or similar devices.

(2) Multi-car aerial passenger tramway, a device used to transport passengers in several open or enclosed cars attached to, and suspended from, a moving wire rope, or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope, or similar devices.

(3) Skimobile, a device in which a passenger car running on steel or wooden tracks is attached to and pulled by a steel cable, or similar devices.

(4) Chair lift, a type of transportation on which passengers are carried on chairs suspended in the air and attached to a moving cable, chain or link belt supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans, or similar devices.

(5) J bar, T bar or platter pull, so-called, and similar types of devices, means of transportation which pull skiers riding on skis by means of an attachment to a main overhead cable supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans.

(6) Rope tow, a type of transportation which pulls the skiers riding on skis as the skiers grasp the rope manually, or similar devices.

“Operator”, a person, including the commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof, who owns or controls the operation of a recreational tramway.

“Board”, the recreational tramway board.

“Skier”, any person utilizing the ski area under control of a ski area operator for the purpose of skiing, whether or not that person is a passenger on a recreational tramway, including riders during a non-skiing season.

“Ski area”, all of the slopes and trails under the control of the ski area operator, including cross-country ski areas, slopes and trails, and any recreational tramway in operation on any such slopes or trails administered or operated as a single enterprise but shall not include base lodges, motor vehicle parking lots and other portions of ski areas used by skiers when not actually engaged in the sport of skiing.

“Ski area operator”, the owner or operator of a ski area, including an agency of the commonwealth or a political subdivision thereof, or the employees, agents, officers or delegated representatives of such owner or operator, including the owner or operator of a cross-country ski area, slope or trail, and of any recreational tramway in operation on any such slope or trail administered or operated as a single enterprise.

“Ski slope or trail”, an area designed by the person or organization having operational responsibility for the ski area as herein defined, including a cross-country ski area, for use by the public in furtherance of the sport of skiing, meaning such designation as is set forth on a trail map or as otherwise designated by a sign indicating to the skiing public the intent that the area be used by skiers for purpose of participating in the sport.

HISTORY: 1968, 565, § 1; 1978, 455, §§ 1, 2; 1996, 58, § 28; 1996, 151, § 528.

NOTES: Editorial Note

The 1978 amendment, in the first sentence, extended the applicability of definitions through § 71S, and added the definitions of “Skier,” “Ski area,” “Ski area operator,” and “Ski slope or trail.”

The first 1996 amendment, (ch 58), effective July 1, 1996, repealed this section.

The second 1996 amendment, (ch 151), effective July 1, 1996, repealed the provisions of Acts 1996, Ch. 58, § 28, that repealed this section, thereby restoring this section.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Recreational tramway board; adopting administrative regulations. 526 CMR 2.01 et seq.

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing. 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Law Reviews

Centner, Equestrian Immunity and Sport Responsibility Statutes: Altering Obligations and Placing Them on Participants. 13 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 37 (2006).

CASE NOTES

Language of ALM GL c 143, § 71I limits the definition of skier to any person utilizing a ski area for the purpose of skiing, and shows that the Massachusetts Ski Safety Act (Act), ALM GL c 143, §§ 71N, 71O, was not intended to include a non-skiing sport like snow tubing; the Act did not relieve a ski operator from a claim for injuries from a snow tubing accident, and the ski operator’s summary judgment motion was denied. Burden v. Amesbury Sports Park, Inc. (2003, Super Ct) 16 Mass L Rep 744, 2003 Mass Super LEXIS 276.

Snowboarders falls within the definition of skiers. Rich v. Tamarack Ski Corp. (2008) 24 Mass L Rep 448, 2008 Mass. Super. LEXIS 324.

Because snowboarders were included within the definition of “skiers” found in ALM GL c 143, § 71I, under ALM GL c 143, § 71O, a ski area operator and an instructor were not liable to a snowboarder who was injured when she ran into the instructor who was standing at the side of a ski hill. Rich v. Tamarack Ski Corp. (2008) 24 Mass L Rep 448, 2008 Mass. Super. LEXIS 324.

Because a racing skier’s collision with a lift tower stanchion was off the race course and off the trail–as defined in ALM GL c 143, § 71I– ALM GL c 143, § 71O, placed the duty to avoid collisions on the skier alone. Brush v. Jiminy Peak Mt. Resort, Inc. (2009) 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52204.

§ 71J. Recreational Tramways — Board to Adopt Rules and Regulations for Construction, Maintenance; Licensing of Inspectors.

After a hearing, the board shall adopt, and may from time to time amend or revoke, rules and regulations for the construction, operation and maintenance of recreational tramways and for the inspection, licensing and certification of inspectors thereof. The board shall in like manner adopt, and from time to time amend or revoke, rules and regulations for a system of signs to be used by a ski area operator in order to promote the safety of skiers. Such system shall incorporate standards in general use in the skiing industry to evaluate the difficulty of slopes and trails and to adequately alert skiers to the known danger of any slope or trail or the ski area. The attorney general shall assist the board in framing such rules and regulations.

HISTORY: 1968, 565, § 1; 1978, 455, § 3; 1996, 58, § 28; 1996, 151, § 528.

NOTES: Editorial Note

The 1978 amendment, added the second and third sentences, relative to sign systems.

The first 1996 amendment, (ch 58), effective July 1, 1996, repealed this section.

The second 1996 amendment, (ch 151), effective July 1, 1996, repealed the provisions of Acts 1996, Ch. 58, § 28, that repealed this section, thereby restoring this section.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Recreational tramway board. 526 CMR 1.01 through 3.04; , 4.00 (1.1-1.8), 5.00 (2.1-2.6), 6.00 (3.1-3.6), 7.00 (4.1, 4.2), 8.01, 8.02.

Law Review References

Centner, Equestrian Immunity and Sport Responsibility Statutes: Altering Obligations and Placing Them on Participants. 13 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 37 (2006).

§ 71K. Recreational Tramways — to Be Licensed.

No recreational tramway shall be operated unless a license for such operation has been issued by the board. Such license shall be issued for a term of not longer than one year, upon application therefor on a form furnished by the board, and upon a determination by the board that the recreational tramway conforms to the rules and regulations of the board. In making such determination the board may rely upon the report of an inspector certified by it in accordance with its rules and regulations.

HISTORY: 1968, 565, § 1; 1996, 58, § 28; 1996, 151, § 528.

NOTES: Editorial Note

The first 1996 amendment, (ch 58), effective July 1, 1996, repealed this section.

The second 1996 amendment, (ch 151), effective July 1, 1996, repealed the provisions of Acts 1996, Ch. 58, § 28, that repealed this section, thereby restoring this section.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Recreational tramway board; adopting administrative regulations. 526 CMR 2.01 et seq.

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing. 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Jurisprudence

51 Am Jur 2d, Licenses and Permits §§ 10, 11, 64-68, 74, 76.

Law Review References

Centner, Equestrian Immunity and Sport Responsibility Statutes: Altering Obligations and Placing Them on Participants. 13 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 37 (2006).

§ 71M. Recreational Tramways — Appeals to Superior Court from Orders of Board.

Any operator who is aggrieved by any order of the board may appeal therefrom to the superior court. No such appeal shall suspend the operation of the order made by the board; provided that the superior court may suspend the order of the board pending the determination of such appeal whenever, in the opinion of the court, justice may require such suspension. The superior court shall hear such appeal at the earliest convenient day and shall enter such decree as justice may require.

HISTORY: 1968, 565, § 1; 1996, 58, § 28; 1996, 151, § 528.

NOTES: Editorial Note

The first 1996 amendment, (ch 58), effective July 1, 1996, repealed this section.

The second 1996 amendment, (ch 151), effective July 1, 1996, repealed the provisions of Acts 1996, Ch. 58, § 28, that repealed this section, thereby restoring this section.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Recreational tramway board; adopting administrative regulations. 526 CMR 2.01 et seq.

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing. 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Jurisprudence

18C Am Jur Pl & Pr Forms (Rev), Occupations, Trades, and Professions, Forms 20, 21.

Law Review References

Centner, Equestrian Immunity and Sport Responsibility Statutes: Altering Obligations and Placing Them on Participants. 13 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 37 (2006).

§ 71N. Recreational Tramways — Posting of Signs and Notices by Ski Area Operator.

A ski area operator shall:

(1) whenever maintenance or snow-making equipment is being employed on any ski slope or trail open to the public, conspicuously place or cause to be placed, notice at or near the top of any ski slope or trail being maintained that such equipment is being so employed, and shall conspicuously indicate the location of any such equipment in a manner to afford skiers reasonable notice of the proximity of such equipment;

(2) mark and identify all trail maintenance and emergency vehicles, including snowmobiles, and furnish such vehicles with flashing or rotating lights, which shall be operated during the time that said vehicles are in operation within the ski area;

(3) with respect to the emergency use of vehicles within the ski area, including but not limited to uses for purposes of removing injured or stranded skiers, or performing emergency maintenance or repair work to slopes, trails or tramway equipment, not be required to post such signs as is required by clause (1), but shall be required to maintain such lighting equipment required by clause (2);

(4) mark the location of any hydrants used in snow-making operations and located within or upon a slope or trail;

(5) conspicuously place within the ski area, in such form, size and location as the board may require, and on the back of any lift ticket issued notice, in plain language, of the statute of limitations and notice period established in section seventy-one P; and

(6) maintain a sign system on all buildings, recreational tramways, ski trails and slopes in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the board and shall be responsible for the maintenance and operation of ski areas under its control in a reasonably safe condition or manner; provided, however, that ski area operators shall not be liable for damages to persons or property, while skiing, which arise out of the risks inherent in the sport of skiing.

HISTORY: 1978, 455, § 4; 1996, 58, § 28; 1996, 151, § 528.

NOTES: Editorial Note

Acts 1978, Ch. 455, § 4, replaced former §§ 71N and 71O with sections 71N through 71S; the former provisions of §§ 71N and 71O are now contained in §§ 71R and 71S, respectively. Section 5 of the inserting act provides as follows:

Section 5. The provisions of clause (5) of section seventy-one N of chapter one hundred and forty-three of the General Laws, inserted by section three of this act, relative to the printing on lift tickets of a notice of the statute of limitations, shall not apply to a ski area operator who has a supply of such tickets already printed for the nineteen hundred and seventy-eight and nineteen hundred and seventy-nine skiing season, insofar as he may exhaust such supply. Such ski area operator shall, however, comply with said notice requirements beginning with the nineteen hundred and seventy-nine and nineteen hundred and eighty skiing season.

The first 1996 amendment, (ch 58), effective July 1, 1996, repealed this section.

The second 1996 amendment, (ch 151), effective July 1, 1996, repealed the provisions of Acts 1996, Ch. 58, § 28, that repealed this section, thereby restoring this section.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Recreational tramway board; adopting administrative regulations. 526 CMR 2.01 et seq.

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing. 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Jurisprudence

57A Am Jur 2d, Negligence § 32.

15 Am Jur Trials 147, Skiing Accident Litigation.

20 Am Jur Proof of Facts 2d 1, Liability for Skiing Accident.

Law Reviews

Centner, Equestrian Immunity and Sport Responsibility Statutes: Altering Obligations and Placing Them on Participants. 13 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 37 (2006).

CASE NOTES

One year limitation period in GL c 143 § 71P is not applicable only to action for violation of duty prescribed by GL c 143 § 71N but applies to all personal injury actions brought by skiers against ski area operator arising out of skiing injuries. Atkins v. Jiminy Peak, Inc. (1987) 401 Mass 81, 514 NE2d 850, 1987 Mass LEXIS 1497.

ALM GL c 143 § 71O does not exempt ski area operator from liability for injuries caused by its agent. Tilley v. Brodie Mountain Ski Area, Inc. (1992) 412 Mass 1009, 591 NE2d 202, 1992 Mass LEXIS 273.

Summary judgment in favor of ski area operator was appropriate where plaintiff was skier, who slipped while approaching ski lift, since ALM GL c 143 § 71N specifically excludes liability for injury to skier arising out of risks inherent in sport of skiing, and a skier accepts, as a matter of law, risk that he or she might be injured in manner that falls within statutorily specified risks as well as risks contemplated by statutory scheme. Fetzner v. Jiminy Peak, The Mountain Resort (1995) 1995 Mass App Div 55, 1995 Mass App Div LEXIS 30.

Ski area operator was not liable for injuries sustained by skier who, after skiing over clumps of ice on trail, lost control and skied off trail edge into woods, since injuries arose out of risks inherent in skiing, and skier failed to control speed and direction. Spinale v. Pam F., Inc. (1995) 1995 Mass App Div 140, 1995 Mass App Div LEXIS 66.

Massachusetts Ski Safety Act (Act), ALM GL c 143, §§ 71N, 71O, was not intended to include a non-skiing sport like snow tubing; the Act did not relieve a ski operator from a claim for injuries from a snow tubing accident, and the ski operator’s summary judgment motion was denied. Burden v. Amesbury Sports Park, Inc. (2003, Super Ct) 16 Mass L Rep 744, 2003 Mass Super LEXIS 276.

Although a ski area operator had a general duty to operate the ski areas under its control in a reasonably safe manner, pursuant to ALM GL c 143, § 71N(6), because a racing skier’s collision with a lift tower stanchion was off the race course and off the trail, ALM GL c 143, § 71O, placed the duty to avoid collisions on the skier alone. Brush v. Jiminy Peak Mt. Resort, Inc. (2009) 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52204.

In a negligence action brought by an inexperienced skier who was seriously injured when she struck a snow gun while skiing on a low intermediate trail, even though the ski area operator’s trail markings did not violate the Massachusetts Ski Safety Act, ALM GL c 143, § 71N, or contribute to the accident and even though the skier had an obligation under ALM GL c 143, § 71O to avoid collisions with an object so long as the object was not improperly marked, the ski area operator was not entitled to summary judgment on all the negligence claims because there were factual disputes remaining as to whether the snow gun was adequately marked and padded. Peresypa v. Jiminy Peak Mt. Resort, Inc. (2009) 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 84417.

Reasonable jury could find that ski area operator breached its general duty under ALM GL c 143 § 71N(6), even though statute provides exception protecting operators from “damages…which arise out of risks inherent in sport of skiing,” where examples of inherent risks enumerated by statute include “variations in terrain, surface or subsurface snow, ice conditions or bare spots,” because presence of snow gun in middle of ski trail does not appear to fall into category of inherent risk. Eipp v. Jiminy Peak, Inc. (2001) 154 F Supp 2d 110, 2001 US Dist LEXIS 11229.

§ 71O. Recreational Tramways — Conduct, Responsibilities, and Duties of Skiers.

No skier shall embark or disembark upon a recreational tramway except at a designated location and during designated hours of operation, throw or expel any object from any recreational tramway while riding thereon, act in any manner while riding on a recreational tramway that may interfere with its proper or safe operation, engage in any type of conduct which may injure any person, or place any object in the uphill ski track which may cause another to fall while traveling uphill on a ski lift, or cross the uphill track of a recreational tramway except at designated locations. A skier shall maintain control of his speed and course at all times, and shall stay clear of any snow-grooming equipment, any vehicle, towers, poles, or other equipment.

A skier who boards a recreational tramway shall be presumed to have sufficient abilities to use the same, and shall follow any written or oral instruction given regarding its use and no skier shall embark on a recreational tramway without authority of the operator. A skier skiing down hill shall have the duty to avoid any collision with any other skier, person or object on the hill below him, and, except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the responsibility for collisions by any skier with any other skier or person shall be solely that of the skier or person involved and not that of the operator, and the responsibility for the collision with any obstruction, man-made or otherwise, shall be solely that of the skier and not that of the operator, provided that such obstruction is properly marked pursuant to the regulations promulgated by the board. No skier shall ski on any ski slope or trail or portion thereof which has been designated closed, nor ski on other than an identified trail, slope or ski area. Any person skiing on other than an open slope or trail within the ski area shall be responsible for any injuries resulting from his action. A skier shall be presumed to know the range of his own ability to ski on any slope, trail or area. A skier shall be presumed to know of the existence of certain unavoidable risks inherent in the sport of skiing, which shall include, but not be limited to, variations in terrain, surface or subsurface snow, ice conditions or bare spots, and shall assume the risk of injury or loss caused by such inherent risks. A skier shall, prior to his entrance onto the slope or trail, other than one designated for cross-country skiing, or embarking on any recreational tramway, have attached on his skis, a strap or other device for the purpose of restraining or preventing a runaway ski. A ski area operator who finds a person in violation of this section, may issue an oral warning to that individual. A person who fails to heed the warning issued by such ski area operator shall forfeit his recreational tramway ticket and recreational tramway use privileges and may be refused issuance of another such ticket to the recreational tramway.

HISTORY: 1978, 455, § 4; 1987, 287.

NOTES: Editorial Note

Acts 1978, Ch. 455, § 4, replaced former §§ 71N and 71Owith §§ 71N through 71S; the former provisions of §§ 71N and 71Oare now contained in §§ 71R and 71S, respectively.

The 1987 amendment, added the fifth and sixth sentences of the second paragraph, relating to the areas of knowledge presumed to be possessed by skiers.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Recreational tramway board; adopting administrative regulations, 526 CMR 2.01 et seq.

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing, 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Jurisprudence

57A Am Jur 2d, Negligence §§ 258 et seq., 272 et seq.

15 Am Jur Trials 147, Skiing Accident Litigation.

Law Reviews

Dahlstrom, From Recreational Skiing to Criminally Negligent Homicide: A Comparison of United States’ Ski Laws in the Wake of People v. Hall.30 NE J on Crim & Civ Con 209 (Summer, 2004)

Centner, Equestrian Immunity and Sport Responsibility Statutes: Altering Obligations and Placing Them on Participants. 13 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 37 (2006).

CASE NOTES

ALM GL c 71O, insulating ski area operator from liability for collisions between skiers, did not apply where plaintiff/skier was struck from behind by ski patrol member. Tilley v. Brodie Mountain Ski Area, Inc. (1992) 412 Mass 1009, 591 NE2d 202, 1992 Mass LEXIS 273.

In applying ALM GL c 143, § 71O, while it may be unreasonable to presume that a child learning to ski knows the range of his own ability to ski on any slope, trail or area, a similar presumption cannot be applied to collegiate competitive skiers. Brush v. Jiminy Peak Mt. Resort, Inc. (2009) 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52204.

§ 71P. Recreational Tramways — Actions Against Ski Area Operators.

For the purpose of sections seventy-one I to seventy-one R, inclusive, in any action brought against a ski area operator based on negligence, it shall be evidence of due care where the conduct of an operator has conformed with the provisions of this chapter or rules or regulations of the board made pursuant to section seventy-one J.

No action shall be maintained against a ski area operator for injury to a skier unless as a condition precedent thereof the person so injured shall, within ninety days of the incident, give to such ski area operator notice, by registered mail, of the name and address of the person injured, the time, place and cause of the injury. Failure to give the foregoing notice shall bar recovery, unless the court finds under the circumstances of the particular case that such ski area operator had actual knowledge of said injury or had reasonable opportunity to learn of said injury within said ninety-day period, or was otherwise not substantially prejudiced by reason of not having been given actual written notice of said injury within said period. In a case where lack of written notice, actual knowledge, or a reasonable opportunity to obtain knowledge of any injury within said ninety-day period is alleged by such ski area operator, the burden of proving substantial prejudice shall be on the operator.

An action to recover for such injury shall be brought within one year of the date of such injury.

HISTORY: 1978, 455, § 4.

NOTES: Cross References

Limitation of actions, generally, ALM GL c 260 § 1 et seq.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing, 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Jurisprudence

57A Am Jur 2d, Negligence § 9.

58 Am Jur 2d, Notice §§ 1-4, 27.

15 Am Jur Trials 177, Skiing Accident Litigation.

20 Am Jur Proof of Facts 2d 1, Liability for Skiing Accident.

46 Am Jur Proof of Facts 3d 1, Liability of Skier for Collision with Another Skier.

Law Review References

Centner, Equestrian Immunity and Sport Responsibility Statutes: Altering Obligations and Placing Them on Participants. 13 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 37 (2006).

CASE NOTES

Word “injury” as used in section does not include death. Grass v. Catamount Dev. Corp. (1983) 390 Mass 551, 457 NE2d 627, 1983 Mass LEXIS 1783.

Legislature did not intend to give ski industry same degree of protection from wrongful death claims as from claims of personal injury. Grass v. Catamount Dev. Corp. (1983) 390 Mass 551, 457 NE2d 627, 1983 Mass LEXIS 1783.

Statute of limitations for action for wrongful death arising out of injury to skier and brought against operator of ski area is GL c 229 § 2, the wrongful death statute, not GL c 143 § 71P. Grass v. Catamount Dev. Corp. (1983) 390 Mass 551, 457 NE2d 627, 1983 Mass LEXIS 1783.

Action by injured skier against ski area operator is governed by one-year limitations of action provision of GL c 143 § 71P, where plaintiff’s theories of recovery were negligence and breach of warranty as well as breach of contract, in renting defective ski equipment. Atkins v. Jiminy Peak, Inc. (1987) 401 Mass 81, 514 NE2d 850, 1987 Mass LEXIS 1497.

One-year limitation period in GL c 143 § 71P is not applicable only to action for violation of duty prescribed by GL c 143 § 71N but applies to all personal injury actions brought by skiers against ski area operator arising out of skiing injuries. Atkins v. Jiminy Peak, Inc. (1987) 401 Mass 81, 514 NE2d 850, 1987 Mass LEXIS 1497.

Legislature concluded that short period for commencement of action against ski area operator was in public interest, because of threat to economic stability of owners and operators of ski areas from personal injury claims. Atkins v. Jiminy Peak, Inc. (1987) 401 Mass 81, 514 NE2d 850, 1987 Mass LEXIS 1497.

One-year limitation period applies to actions brought against ski area operators seeking compensation for injuries sustained while skiing. Atkins v. Jiminy Peak, Inc. (1987) 401 Mass 81, 514 NE2d 850, 1987 Mass LEXIS 1497.

Personal injury action against ski area operators is barred by ALM GL c 143 § 71P, where Massachusetts resident on March 1, 1991 sued New Hampshire ski resort corporation in Massachusetts federal district court for injury suffered at resort on March 2, 1989, because Massachusetts conflict rules call for application of one-year Massachusetts limitations period for actions against ski area operators, instead of New Hampshire’s 2-year statute of limitations. Tidgewell v. Loon Mountain Recreation Corp. (1993, DC Mass) 820 F Supp 630, 1993 US Dist LEXIS 6457.

§ 71Q. Recreational Tramways — Leaving Scene of Skiing Accident.

Any person who is knowingly involved in a skiing accident and who departs from the scene of such accident without leaving personal identification or otherwise clearly identifying himself and obtaining assistance knowing that any other person involved in the accident is in need of medical or other assistance shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars.

HISTORY: 1978, 455, § 4.

NOTES: Cross References

Fine and or imprisonment for leaving scene of accident involving automobiles, ALM GL c 90 § 24.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing, 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Law Review References

Centner, Equestrian Immunity and Sport Responsibility Statutes: Altering Obligations and Placing Them on Participants. 13 Vill. Sports & Ent. L.J. 37 (2006).

§ 71R. Recreational Tramways — Penalties for Violations of §§ 71K and 71N or of Regulations Promulgated Under § 71J.

Whoever violates any provision of section 71K, 71N, or any rule or regulation made under the provisions of section 71J, shall be punished by a fine of not more than two hundred dollars; provided, however, that any person who operates a recreational tramway, after the license therefor has been suspended or revoked, shall be punished by a fine of one hundred dollars for each day of such operation.

HISTORY: 1968, 565, § 1; 1978, 455, § 4.

NOTES: Editorial Note

This section incorporates the provisions of former § 71N, 25 renumbered and amended by the 1978 act, to include the reference to violations of new § 71N and to increase the fine from $100 to $200 for violations other than operating on a suspended or revoked license, for which the daily fine was increased from $50 to $100.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing, 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Law Review References

§ 71S. Recreational Tramways — Applicability of Other Chapters; Jurisdiction of Public Utilities Department.

Recreational tramways shall not be subject to the provisions of chapters one hundred and fifty-nine, one hundred and sixty, one hundred and sixty-one, and one hundred and sixty-two, and shall not be subject to the jurisdiction or control of the department of telecommunications and energy.

HISTORY: 1968, 565, § 1; 1978, 455, § 4; 1997, 164, § 114.

NOTES: Editorial Note

This section contains the provisions of former § 71O, as renumbered by the 1978 act without amendment, except for 2 minor corrective changes.

The 1997 amendment, effective Nov 25, 1997, substituted “telecommunications and energy” for “public utilities”. Section 1 of the amending act provides as follows:

Section 1. It is hereby found and declared that:

(a) electricity service is essential to the health and well-being of all residents of the commonwealth, to public safety, and to orderly and sustainable economic development;

(b) affordable electric service should he available to all consumers on reasonable terms and conditions;

(c) ratepayers and the commonwealth will be best served by moving from (i) the regulatory framework extant on July 1, 1997, in which retail electricity service is provided principally by public utility corporations obligated to provide ultimate consumers in exclusive service territories with reliable electric service at regulated rates, to (ii) a framework under which competitive producers will supply electric power and customers will gain the right to choose their electric power supplier;

(d) the existing regulatory system results in among the highest, residential and commercial electricity rates paid by customers throughout the United States;

(e) such extraordinary high electricity rates have created significant adverse effects on consumers and on the ability of businesses located in the commonwealth to compete in regional, national, and international markets;

(f) the introduction of competition in the electric generation market will encourage innovation, efficiency, and improved service from all market participants, and will enable reductions in the cost of regulatory oversight;

(g) competitive markets in generation should (i) provide electricity suppliers with the incentive to operate efficiently, (ii) open markets for new and improved technologies, (iii) provide electricity buyers and sellers with appropriate price signals, and (iv) improve public confidence in the electric utility industry;

(h) since reliable electric service is of utmost importance to the safety, health, and welfare of the commonwealth’s citizens and economy, electric industry restructuring should enhance the reliability of the interconnected regional transmission systems, and provide strong coordination and enforceable protocols for all users of the power grid;

(i) it is vital that sufficient supplies of electric generation will be available to maintain the reliable service to the citizens and businesses of the commonwealth; and that.

(j) the commonwealth should ensure that universal service are energy conservation policies, activities, and services are appropriately funded and available throughout the commonwealth, and should guard against the exercise of vertical market power and the accumulation of horizontal market power;

(k) long-term rate reductions can be achieved most effectively by increasing competition and enabling broad consumer choice in generation service, thereby allowing market forces to play the principal role in determining the suppliers of generation for all customers;

(l) the primary elements of a more competitive electricity market will be customer choice, preservation and augmentation of consumer protections, full and fair competition in generation, and enhanced environmental protection goals;

(m) the interests of consumers can best be served by an expedient and orderly transition from regulation to competition in the generation sector consisting of the unbundling of prices and services and the functional separation of generation services from transmission and distribution services;

(n) the restructuring of the existing electricity system should not undermine the policy of the commonwealth that electricity bills for low income residents should remain as affordable as possible;

(o) the commonwealth should enter into a compact with the other New England states and New York State, that provides incentives for the public and investor owned electricity utilities located in such states to sell energy to retail customers in Massachusetts which adheres to enforceable standards and protocols and protects the reliability of interconnected regional transmission and distribution systems;

(p) since reliable electricity service depends on conscientious inspection and maintenance of transmission and distribution systems, to continue and enhance the reliability of the delivery of electricity, the regional network and the commonwealth, the department of telecommunications and energy should set stringent and comprehensive inspection, maintenance, repair, replacement, and system service standards;

(q) the transition to expanded customer choice and competitive markets may produce hardships for employees whose working lives were dedicated to their employment;

(r) it is preferable that possible reductions in the workforce directly caused by electricity restructuring be accomplished through collective bargaining negotiations and offers of voluntary severance, retraining, early retirement, outplacement, and related benefits;

(s) the transition to a competitive generation market should be orderly and be completed as expeditiously as possible, should protect electric system reliability, and should provide electricity corporation investors with a reasonable opportunity to recover prudently incurred costs associated with generation-related assets and obligations, within a reasonable and fair deregulation framework consistent with the provisions of this act;

(t) the recovery of such prudently incurred costs shall occur only after such electric companies take all practicable measures to mitigate stranded investments during the transition to a competitive market;

(u) such charges associated with the transition should be collected over a specific period of time on a non-bypassable basis and in a manner that does not result in an increase in rates to customers of electricity corporations;

(v) financial mechanisms should be available that allow electricity corporations to securitize that portion of their transition costs which cannot be divested in the marketplace and which concurrently minimize transition charges to consumers;

(w) the initial benefit of this transition to a competitive market shall result in consumer electricity rate reductions of at least 10 per cent beginning on March 1, 1998, as part of an aggregate rate reduction totaling at least 15 per cent upon the subsequent approval of divestiture and securitization; and.

(x) the general court seeks, through the enactment of this legislation, to establish the parameters upon which a restructuring of the electricity industry shall be based and which reflects the public policy decisions for the commonwealth designed to balance the needs of all participants in the existing and future systems;

Therefore, it is found that it is in the public interest of the commonwealth to promote the property and general welfare of its citizens, a public purpose for which public money may be expended, by restructuring the electricity industry in the commonwealth to foster competition and promote reduced electricity rates through the enactment of the following statutory changes.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations

Ski safety signs for downhill and cross-country skiing, 526 CMR 8.01 et seq.

Law Review References

Georgia Ski Safety Act

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Georgia, Ski Area, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: Alpine skiing, Georgia, Georgia Ski Safety Act, Recreation, Ski, Ski Resort, Skier, Skier Safety Act, Snowboarder | Leave a comment

Georgia Ski Safety Act

OFFICIAL CODE OF GEORGIA ANNOTATED

TITLE 43. PROFESSIONS AND BUSINESSES

CHAPTER 43A. SNOW SKIING SAFETY

GO TO GEORGIA STATUTES ARCHIVE DIRECTORY

O.C.G.A. § 43-43A-1 (2012)

§ 43-43A-1. Definitions

As used in this chapter, the term:

(1) “Base area lift” means a passenger tramway to gain access to some other part of the ski area.

(2) “Competitor” means a skier engaging in competition or preparing for competition on a slope or trail designated by the ski area or used by the skier for the purpose of competition or training for competition.

(3) “Conditions of ordinary visibility” means all periods of daylight, and, when visibility is not restricted by weather or other atmospheric conditions, nighttime.

(4) “Inherent dangers and risks of skiing” means categories of danger or risks of skiing, or conditions of the sport of skiing that cause or can cause any injury, death, or property damage, including:

(A) Changing weather conditions;

(B) Surface and subsurface snow or ice conditions as they may exist or change from time to time, including variable conditions such as hard packed powder, packed powder, wind-blown snow, wind-packed snow, corn snow, crust slush, snow modified by skier use, or cut up snow; surface or subsurface snow or ice conditions as they exist or may change as the result of weather changes or skier use; snow created by or resulting from snow making or snow grooming operations; or collisions or falls resulting from such conditions;

(C) Surface or subsurface conditions other than those specified in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, including dirt, grass, rocks, trees, stumps, other forms of forest or vegetative growth, stream beds, or other natural objects or debris; or collisions or falls resulting from such conditions;

(D) Collisions with: lift towers; components of lift towers; signs, posts, fences, mazes, or other enclosure devices; hydrants, pipes, or any other portions of snow making or snow delivery systems; snow grooming equipment or other over-snow vehicles marked or lighted as required by this chapter; or collisions with or falls resulting from any such structures or any other manmade structures or their components;

(E) Variations in surface, contour, or steepness of terrain, including, but not limited to, moguls, ski jumps, roads, depressions, water bars, and cat walks; other terrain changes or modifications which occur naturally or result from slope design or construction, snow making, snow grooming, maintenance operations, or skier use; or collisions with or falls resulting from such variations; and

(F) Collisions with other skiers unless such collisions are caused by the failure on the part of other skiers to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(5) “Passenger” means a person who is lawfully being transported by a passenger tramway.

(6) “Passenger tramway” means any mechanical device used to transport passengers uphill, but such term does not include over-snow vehicles.

(7) “Ski area” means all snow ski slopes or trails and other places under the control of a ski area operator at a defined business location within this state.

(8) “Ski area operator” means an individual, partnership, corporation, or other commercial entity who owns, manages, or otherwise directs or has operational responsibility for any ski area.

(9) “Ski slopes or trails” means those areas open to the skiing public and designated by the ski area operator to be used by a skier. The designation may be generally set forth on trail maps and further designated by signage posted to indicate to the skiing public the intent that the areas be used by the skier for the purpose of skiing. Nothing in this paragraph implies that ski slopes or trails may not be restricted for use at the discretion of the ski area operator.

(10) “Skier” means any person who uses any part of a ski area for the purpose of skiing, snowboard skiing, or sliding or moving on any device other than a motorized device or any person except a passenger who uses any of the facilities of the ski area, including the ski slopes and trails.

(11) “Surface lift” means any passenger tramway that allows the skier’s sliding equipment to stay in contact with the skier and the snow during all of the uphill transportation.

§ 43-43A-2. Use of passenger tramway; passenger rules

(a) No passenger shall use a passenger tramway if the passenger does not have sufficient knowledge, ability, or physical dexterity to negotiate or use the facility safely unless and until the passenger has asked for and received information sufficient to enable the passenger to use the equipment safely. A passenger is required to follow any written, verbal, or other instructions that are given by ski area personnel regarding the use of the passenger tramway.

(b) No passenger shall:

(1) Attempt to enter, use, exit, or leave a passenger tramway except at a location designated by ski area signage for that purpose, except that, in the event of a stoppage of the passenger tramway, a passenger may exit under the supervision and direction of the operator or its representatives, or, in the event of an emergency, a passenger may exit in order to prevent an injury to the passenger or others;

(2) Throw, drop, or release any object from a passenger tramway except as directed by the operator or its representatives;

(3) Act in any manner that may interfere with the proper or safe operation of the passenger tramway or cause any risk, harm, or injury to any person;

(4) Place in an uphill track of any surface lift any object that may cause damage to property or injury to any person;

(5) Use or attempt to use any passenger tramway marked as closed; or

(6) Disobey any instructions posted in accordance with this chapter or any verbal or other instructions of the ski area operator or its lawful designee regarding the use of passenger tramways.

§ 43-43A-3. Sign system; inspection; explanation of signs and symbols; warning signs; degree of difficulty signs

(a) Each ski area operator shall maintain a sign system with information for the instruction of passengers and skiers. Signs must be in English and visible in conditions of ordinary visibility and, where applicable, lighted for nighttime passengers. Without limitation, the signs shall be posted:

(1) At or near the loading point of each passenger tramway, regardless of the type, advising all persons that if they are not familiar with the operation of the device, they must ask the operator of the device for assistance and instructions and that they must understand such instructions before they attempt to use the passenger tramway; and

(2) At or near the boarding area of each lift, setting forth the warning regarding inherent dangers and risks and duties as provided in this chapter.

(b) The ski area operator, before opening a passenger tramway to the public each day, shall inspect the passenger tramway for the presence and visibility of all required signs.

(c) The ski area operator shall post a sign visible to skiers who are proceeding to the uphill loading point of each base area lift which shall depict and explain the following signs and symbols that a skier may encounter at the ski area:

(1) A green circle and the word “easier” designating the ski area’s least difficult trails and slopes;

(2) A blue square and the words “more difficult” designating the ski area’s trails and slopes that have a degree of difficulty that lies between the least difficult and most difficult trails and slopes;

(3) A black diamond and the words “most difficult” designating the ski area’s most difficult trails and slopes;

(4) Two black diamonds and the words “most difficult” designating a slope or trail which meets the description of “most difficult” but which is particularly challenging; and

(5) Crossed poles or other images clearly indicating that a trail or slope is closed and may not be used by skiers.

(d) If applicable, a warning sign shall be placed at or near the loading point of a passenger tramway indicating that it provides access to only “most difficult” or “more difficult” slopes or trails.

(e) The ski area operator shall place a sign at or near the beginning of each trail or slope indicating the relative degree of difficulty of that particular trail or slope.

§ 43-43A-4. Warning notice

(a) The ski area operator shall post and maintain signs that contain the following warning notice:

“WARNING: Under Georgia law, every skier accepts the risk of any injury or death and damage to property resulting from any of the inherent dangers or risks of skiing. The inherent dangers or risks of skiing, or conditions of the sport of skiing that cause or can cause injury, death, or property damage, include:

(1) Changing weather conditions;

(2) Surface and subsurface snow or ice conditions as they may exist or change from time to time, including variable conditions such as hard packed powder, packed powder, wind-blown snow, wind-packed snow, corn snow, crust slush, snow modified by skier use, or cut up snow; surface or subsurface snow or ice conditions as they exist or may change as the result of weather changes or skier use; snow created by or resulting from snow making or snow grooming operations; or collisions or falls resulting from such conditions;

(3) Surface or subsurface conditions other than those specified in paragraph (2), including dirt, grass, rocks, trees, stumps, other forms of forest or vegetative growth, stream beds, or other natural objects or debris; or collisions or falls resulting from such conditions;

(4) Collisions with: lift towers; components of lift towers; signs, posts, fences, mazes, or other enclosure devices; hydrants, pipes, or any other portions of snow making or snow delivery systems; snow grooming equipment or other over-snow vehicles marked or lighted as required by this chapter; or collisions with or falls resulting from any such structures or any other manmade structures or their components;

(5) Variations in surface, contour, or steepness of terrain, including, but not limited to, moguls, ski jumps, roads, depressions, water bars, and cat walks; other terrain changes or modifications which occur naturally or result from slope design or construction, snow making, snow grooming, maintenance operations, or skier use; or collisions with or falls resulting from such variations; and

(6) Collisions with other skiers.”

(b) A warning sign as described in subsection (a) of this Code section shall be placed:

(1) At the ski area in the location where lift tickets or ski school lessons are sold;

(2) In the vicinity of the uphill loading point of each base area lift; and

(3) At such other places as the ski area operator may select.

(c) Each sign required by subsection (a) of this Code section shall be no smaller than 3 feet by 3 feet and shall be white or yellow with black and red letters as specified in this subsection. The word “WARNING” shall appear on the sign in red letters. The warning notice specified in subsection (a) of this Code section shall appear on the sign in black letters with each letter being a minimum of one inch in height.

(d) Every passenger tramway ticket sold may contain the warning notice specified in subsection (a) of this Code section.

§ 43-43A-6. Revocation of skiing privileges

Each ski area operator, upon finding a person skiing in violation of any posted regulations governing skiing conduct, may revoke that person’s skiing privileges. This Code section shall not in any way be construed to create an affirmative duty on the part of the ski area operator to protect skiers from their own or other skiers’ careless or reckless behavior, including any skier’s violation of any duties set forth in this chapter.

§ 43-43A-7. Duties and responsibilities of each skier; assumption of risk

Any other provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding:

(1) Each individual skier has the responsibility for knowing the range of his or her own ability to negotiate any ski slope or trail or any portion thereof and must ski within the limits of his or her ability. Each skier expressly accepts and assumes the risk of any injury or death or damage to property resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing, as set forth in this chapter; provided, however, that injuries sustained in a collision with another skier are not an inherent risk of the sport for purposes of this Code section;

(2) Each skier has the duty to maintain control of his or her speed and course at all times and to maintain a proper lookout so as to be able to avoid other skiers and objects, natural or manmade. The skier shall have the primary duty to avoid colliding with any persons or objects below him or her on the trail;

(3) No skier shall ski on a ski slope or trail that has been posted as closed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter;

(4) Each skier shall stay clear of all snow grooming or snow making equipment, vehicles, lift towers, signs, and any other equipment at the ski area;

(5) Each skier shall obey all posted information, warnings, and requirements and shall refrain from acting in any manner that might cause or contribute to the injury of the skier or any other person. Each skier shall be charged with having seen and understood all information posted as required or permitted in this chapter. Each skier shall locate and ascertain the meaning of all signs posted in accordance with this chapter;

(6) Each sliding device used by a skier shall be equipped with a strap or other device designed to help reduce the risk of any runaway equipment should it become unattached from the skier;

(7) No skier shall cross the uphill track of any surface lift device except at locations designated by the operator, nor shall any person place any object in the uphill track of such a device;

(8) Before beginning to ski from a stationary position, or before entering a ski slope or trail, the skier shall have the duty of yielding to moving skiers already using the slope or trail;

(9) No skier shall stop where he or she obstructs a trail or is not visible from higher on the slope or trail; and

(10) No skier shall board or use or attempt to board or use any passenger tramway of any type or use any ski slope or trail while that skier’s ability to do so is impaired by alcohol, drugs, or any controlled substance.

Connecticut Ski Safety Act

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Connecticut, Ski Area | Tags: Connecticut, Connecticut Ski Safety Act, ski area, Ski lift, Ski Resort, Ski Safety Act, Skier, skiing, Snowboarder | Leave a comment

Connecticut Skier Safety Act

Sec. 29-201. (Formerly Sec. 19-418a). Definitions. 1
Sec. 29-202. (Formerly Sec. 19-418b). Requirements for passenger tramways in use. 3
Sec. 29-203. (Formerly Sec. 19-418c). Regulations, standards. 4
Sec. 29-204. (Formerly Sec. 19-418d). Plans and specifications, submission, fee. Approval. Final inspection. 4
Sec. 29-205. (Formerly Sec. 19-418e). Registration of each passenger tramway required. 5
Sec. 29-206. (Formerly Sec. 19-418f). Operating certificate, inspections, fees. 5
Sec. 29-207. (Formerly Sec. 19-418g). Order to discontinue operation. Permission for resumption. 6
Sec. 29-208. (Formerly Sec. 19-418h). Complaints. 6
Sec. 29-209. (Formerly Sec. 19-418i). Judicial review of commissioner’s decisions. 7
Sec. 29-210. (Formerly Sec. 19-418j). Penalties. 7
Sec. 29-211. (Formerly Sec. 19-418k). Duties of operator of passenger tramway or ski area. 8
Sec. 29-212. (Formerly Sec. 19-418l). Assumption of risk of injury caused by hazards inherent in the sport of skiing. 10
Sec. 29-213. (Formerly Sec. 19-418m). Prohibited conduct by skiers. 18
Sec. 29-214. (Formerly Sec. 19-418n). Special defense to civil action against operator by skier. (Repealed) 19
Secs. 29-215 to 29-220. [Reserved] 19

Title 29 Public Safety and State Police
Chapter 538a Passenger Tramways
Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-201 (2014)

Sec. 29-201. (Formerly Sec. 19-418a). Definitions.
As used in this chapter, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(1) “Passenger tramway” means a device used to transport passengers in cars on tracks or suspended in the air, or uphill on skis, by the use of steel cables, chains or belts or by ropes, and usually supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans, but shall not include any such device not available for public use and not subject to a fee for use of same. The term “passenger tramway” includes the following: (A) Two-car aerial passenger tramways, which are devices used to transport passengers in two open or enclosed cars attached to, and suspended from, a moving wire rope, or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope, or similar devices; (B) multicar aerial passenger tramways, which are devices used to transport passengers in several open or enclosed cars attached to, and suspended from, a moving wire rope, or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope, or similar devices; (C) skimobiles, which are devices in which a passenger car running on steel or wooden tracks is attached to and pulled by a steel cable, or similar devices; (D) chair lifts, which are devices which carry passengers on chairs suspended in the air and attached to a moving cable, chain or link belt supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans, or similar devices; (E) J bars, T bars, platter pulls and similar types of devices, which are means of transportation that pull skiers riding on skis by means of an attachment to a main overhead cable supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans; and (F) rope tows, which are devices that pull the skiers riding on skis as the skier grasps the rope manually, or similar devices.
(2) “Operator” means a person who owns or controls the operation of a passenger tramway or ski area. An operator of a passenger tramway shall be deemed not to be operating a common carrier.
(3) “Department” means the Department of Administrative Services.
(4) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Administrative Services.
(5) “Skier” includes the following: (A) A person utilizing the ski area under control of the operator for the purpose of skiing, whether or not he or she is utilizing a passenger tramway; and (B) a person utilizing the passenger tramway whether or not such person is a skier, including riders on a passenger tramway operating during the nonskiing season.
(6) “Restraint device” means a restraining bar on a passenger tramway, as defined in subparagraph (D) of subdivision (1) of this section, that does not yield to forward pressure by a skier.

Sec. 19-418c transferred to Sec. 29-203 in 1983.
Sec. 29-204. (Formerly Sec. 19-418d). Plans and specifications, submission, fee. Approval. Final inspection.
No new passenger tramway shall be erected or installed and no passenger tramway shall be relocated or altered until detailed plans and specifications of the proposed construction or other work have been submitted in duplicate to the department for approval. A fee of two hundred dollars payable to the Department of Administrative Services shall accompany each such proposal. Notice that such plans are approved or disapproved shall be given within a reasonable time, and final inspection of the passenger tramway, when installed, relocated or altered, shall be made before final approval for operating is given by the department.

Sec. 29-206. (Formerly Sec. 19-418f). Operating certificate, inspections, fees.
The department shall enforce the regulations adopted pursuant to section 29-203, and shall inspect the construction, operation and maintenance of passenger tramways to determine whether such regulations have been complied with by the operators. Each passenger tramway shall be thoroughly inspected by a qualified inspector approved by the department at least once every twelve months. More frequent inspections of any passenger tramway may be made if the condition thereof indicates that additional inspections are necessary or desirable. As soon as the department inspects and approves any passenger tramway as being fit for operation, it shall issue to the operator, upon receipt of a fee of two hundred dollars, a certificate of operation with such conditions and limitations as the commissioner shall prescribe. Such certificate shall be valid for twelve months and shall be renewed yearly, if the department approves the passenger tramway, upon payment of a renewal fee of one hundred dollars. No passenger tramway may be operated without such operating certificate.

Sec. 29-207. (Formerly Sec. 19-418g). Order to discontinue operation. Permission for resumption.
If any passenger tramway is found to be, in the judgment of the department, dangerous to public safety or is being operated without the operating certificate required in section 29-204 or is being operated in violation of any regulation adopted under this chapter, the department may require the operator of such passenger tramway to discontinue its operation forthwith. When a passenger tramway has been placed out of service pursuant to this section, the operator of such tramway shall not again operate such tramway until repairs have been made, an operating certificate has been obtained, or the violation is discontinued and permission given by the commissioner or his authorized agent to resume operation of such tramway.

Sec. 29-208. (Formerly Sec. 19-418h). Complaints.
Any person may make a written complaint to the commissioner setting forth any alleged violation of this chapter or of any regulation promulgated under the authority of this chapter, or setting forth any condition in a passenger tramway which is alleged to endanger the safety of the public.

Sec. 29-209. (Formerly Sec. 19-418i). Judicial review of commissioner’s decisions.
Any person aggrieved by any decision or order of the commissioner or department under the provisions of this chapter may appeal therefrom in accordance with the provisions of section 4-183, except venue for such appeal shall be in the judicial district wherein such passenger tramway is situated.

Sec. 29-210. (Formerly Sec. 19-418j). Penalties.
Any person who violates any of the provisions of this chapter or any of the regulations adopted hereunder shall, for the first offense, be fined not less than twenty-five dollars or more than one hundred dollars, and for each subsequent offense, shall be guilty of a class C misdemeanor.

Sec. 29-211. (Formerly Sec. 19-418k). Duties of operator of passenger tramway or ski area.
In the operation of a passenger tramway or ski area, each operator shall have the obligation to perform certain duties including, but not limited to: (1) Conspicuously marking all trail maintenance vehicles and furnishing the vehicles with flashing or rotating lights which shall be operated whenever the vehicles are working or moving within the skiing area; (2) conspicuously marking the entrance to each trail or slope with a symbol, adopted or approved by the National Ski Areas Association, which identifies the relative degree of difficulty of such trail or slope or warns that such trail or slope is closed; (3) ensuring that any lift tower that is located on a trail or slope is padded or otherwise protected; (4) maintaining one or more trail boards, at prominent locations within the ski area, displaying such area’s network of ski trails and slopes, designating each trail or slope in the same manner as provided in subdivision (2) of this section and notifying each skier that the wearing of ski retention straps or other devices used to prevent runaway skis is required by section 29-213, as amended by this act; (5) in the event maintenance personnel or equipment are being employed on any trail or slope during the hours at which such trail or slope is open to the public, conspicuously posting notice thereof at the entrance to such trail or slope; (6) conspicuously marking trail or slope intersections; (7) ensuring that passenger tramways, as defined in subparagraph (D) of subdivision (1) of section 29-201, as amended by this act, are equipped with restraint devices; (8) at the entrance of a passenger tramway, as defined in subparagraph (D) of subdivision (1) of section 29-201, as amended by this act, conspicuously posting instructions regarding the proper use of a restraint device on such passenger tramway and notice that the use of a restraint device on such passenger tramway is required by section 29-213, as amended by this act; and (9) ensuring that any hydrant, snow-making equipment and pipes that are located within the borders of a designated slope, trail or area that is approved and open for skiing by the operator and regularly groomed as part of the operator’s normal maintenance activities are padded or marked by portable fencing or a similar device.

Sec. 29-212. (Formerly Sec. 19-418l). Assumption of risk of injury caused by hazards inherent in the sport of skiing.
(a) For the purposes of this section:
(1) “Skier” includes any person who is using a ski area for the purpose of skiing or who is on the skiable terrain of a ski area as a spectator or otherwise, but does not include (A) any person using a snow tube provided by a ski area operator, and (B) any person who is a spectator while in a designated spectator area during any event;
(2) “Skiing” means sliding downhill or jumping on snow or ice using skis, a snowboard, snow blades, a snowbike, a sit-ski or any other device that is controllable by its edges on snow or ice or is for the purpose of utilizing any skiable terrain, but does not include snow tubing operations provided by a ski area operator; and
(3) “Ski area operator” means a person who owns or controls the operation of a ski area and such person’s agents and employees.
(b) Each skier shall assume the risk of and legal responsibility for any injury to his or her person or property caused by the hazards inherent in the sport of skiing. Such hazards include, but are not limited to: (1) Variations in the terrain of the trail or slope which is marked in accordance with subdivision (2) of section 29-211, as amended by this act, or variations in surface or subsurface snow or ice conditions, except that no skier assumes the risk of variations which are caused by the ski area operator unless such variations are caused by snow making, snow grooming or rescue operations; (2) bare spots which do not require the closing of the trail or slope; (3) conspicuously placed or, if not so placed, conspicuously marked lift towers; (4) trees or other objects not within the confines of the trail or slope; (5) loading, unloading or otherwise using a passenger tramway without prior knowledge of proper loading and unloading procedures or without reading instructions concerning loading and unloading posted at the base of such passenger tramway or without asking for such instructions; and (6) collisions with any other person by any skier while skiing, except that collisions with on-duty employees of the ski area operator who are skiing and are within the scope of their employment at the time of the collision shall not be a hazard inherent in the sport of skiing.
(c) The provisions of this section shall not apply in any case in which it is determined that a claimant’s injury was not caused by a hazard inherent in the sport of skiing.

Sec. 29-213. (Formerly Sec. 19-418m). Prohibited conduct by skiers.
No skier shall: (1) Intentionally drop, throw or expel any object from a passenger tramway; (2) do any act which shall interfere with the running or operation of a passenger tramway; (3) use a passenger tramway without the permission of the operator; (4) place any object in the skiing area or on the uphill track of a passenger tramway which may cause a skier to fall; (5) cross the track of a J bar lift, T bar lift, platter pull or similar device or a rope tow, except at a designated location; (6) depart from the scene of a skiing accident when involved in the accident without leaving personal identification, including name and address, or before notifying the proper authorities and obtaining assistance when such skier knows that any other skier involved in the accident is in need of medical or other assistance; (7) fail to wear retention straps or other devices used to prevent runaway skis; or (8) fail to close the restraint device except when embarking and disembarking the passenger tramway, as defined in subparagraph (D) of subdivision (1) of section 29-201, as amended by this act.

Sec. 29-214. (Formerly Sec. 19-418n). Special defense to civil action against operator by skier. (Repealed)
Section 29-214 is repealed, effective October 1, 2005.

Arizona Ski Safety Statutes

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Arizona, Ski Area, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: Arizona, Outdoors, Recreation, Resorts, ski area, Skier, Skier Safety Act, skiing, Snowboarder | Leave a comment

Arizona Ski Safety Statutes

ARIZONA REVISED STATUTES

TITLE 5. Amusements and Sports

Chapter 7. Skiing

Article 1. General Provisions

Go to the Arizona Code Archive Directory

A.R.S. § 5-701 (2012)

§ 5-701. Definitions

In this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. “Base area lift” means a passenger tramway that skiers ordinarily use without first using another passenger tramway.

2. “Chair lift” means a type of transportation on which passengers are carried on chairs suspended in the air and attached to a moving cable, chain or link belt supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans.

3. “Competitor” means a skier actually engaged in competition or in practice for competition with the permission of a ski area operator on any slope or trail or portion of any slope or trail designated for competition by the ski area operator.

4. “Conditions of ordinary visibility” means daylight and, if applicable, nighttime in nonprecipitating weather.

5. “Inherent dangers and risks of skiing” means those dangers or conditions that are an integral part of the sport of skiing, excluding acts of ordinary or gross negligence, or reckless or intentional conduct on the part of the ski area operator. Inherent dangers and risks of skiing include:

(a) Changing weather conditions.

(b) Existing and changing snow surface conditions, such as ice, hard pack, powder, packed powder, wind pack, corn, crust, slush, cut-up and machine-made snow.

(c) Surface or subsurface conditions, whether marked or unmarked, such as bare spots, forest growth, rocks, stumps, streambeds, trees or other natural objects.

(d) Impacts with lift towers, signs, posts, fences or other enclosures, hydrants, water pipes or other man-made structures and their components, whether marked or unmarked.

(e) Variations in steepness or terrain, including roads, catwalks and other terrain modifications, whether natural or as a result of slope design, snowmaking or grooming operations.

(f) Collisions with other skiers.

(g) The failure of skiers to ski within their own abilities.

6. “Passenger tramway” means a device used to transport passengers uphill on skis or in cars on tracks or suspended in the air by the use of steel cables, chains, belts or ropes, usually supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans.

7. “Rope tow” means a mode of transportation that pulls a skier riding on skis as the skier grasps the rope with the skier’s hands.

8. “Ski area” means all ski slopes and trails or other places within the boundary of a ski area operator’s property, administered as a single enterprise in this state.

9. “Ski area operator” means any corporation, company, partnership, firm, association or other commercial entity, including a natural person, and its employees, agents, members, successors in interest, affiliates and assigns that have responsibility for the operations of a ski area.

10. “Ski Slopes and Trails” means those areas designated by a ski area operator for use by skiers for any of the purposes listed in paragraph 11.

11. “Skier” means a person using a ski area for the purpose of skiing or sliding downhill on snow or ice on skis, a toboggan, sled, tube, skibob or snowboard or any other device, using any of the facilities of a ski area, including ski slopes and trails, or observing any activities in a ski area as a sightseer or visitor.

12. “Surface lift” means a mode of transportation that pulls skiers riding on skis by means of attachment to an overhead cable supported by trestles or towers. Surface lift includes a J-bar, a T-bar, a platter pull and any similar device.

History: Last year in which legislation affected this section: 1997

§ 5-702. Posting passenger information signs

A. A ski area operator shall maintain a sign system with concise, simple and pertinent information for the protection and instruction of people on a passenger tramway.

B. A ski area operator shall prominently display signs that are readable in conditions of ordinary visibility and, if applicable, that are adequately lighted for nighttime passengers, as follows:

1. At or near the loading point of each passenger tramway, rope tow and surface lift advising that any person not familiar with the operation of the tramway, rope tow or surface lift should ask ski area personnel for assistance and instruction.

2. In a conspicuous place at the loading area of each two-car or multicar passenger tramway that states the maximum capacity in pounds of the car and the maximum number of persons allowed in the car.

3. In the interior of each car in a two-car or multicar passenger tramway that states the maximum capacity in pounds of the car and the maximum number of persons allowed in the car and that gives instructions for procedures in the case of emergencies.

4. At all chair lifts stating the following:

(a) “Check for loose clothing and equipment”, which shall be posted ahead of the “prepare to unload” sign described in subdivision (c) of this paragraph.

(b) “Keep ski tips up” or “keep tips up”, which shall be posted ahead of any point where skis may come in contact with a platform or the snow surface while a skier is seated in the chair lift.

(d) “Remove pole straps from wrists”, which shall be posted where applicable.

(e) “Stop gate”, which shall be posted where applicable.

(f) “Unload here”, which shall be posted at the point designated for unloading.

5. At all rope tows and surface lifts stating the following:

(a) “Check for loose clothing and equipment”, which shall be posted ahead of the “prepare to unload” sign described in subdivision (b) of this paragraph.

(b) “Prepare to unload”, which shall be posted at least fifty feet ahead of each unloading area.

(d) “Safety gate”, “stay in tracks” or “stop gate”, which shall be posted where applicable.

(e) “Unload here”, which shall be posted at the point designated for unloading or where applicable.

C. At the operator’s discretion a ski area operator may post additional signs not required by subsection B.

D. Before opening a passenger tramway to the public each day, a ski area operator shall inspect the tramway for the presence of the signs required by subsection B or that are posted pursuant to subsection C.

E. The extent of the responsibility of a ski area operator under this section is to post and maintain the signs required by subsection B and to maintain any signs posted pursuant to subsection C. It is a rebuttable presumption that all passengers and skiers saw and understood the signs if evidence exists that the signs required by subsection B or that are posted pursuant to subsection C were posted and the signs were maintained.

History: Last year in which legislation affected this section: 1997

§ 5-703. Posting ski information signs

A. A ski area operator shall maintain a sign and marking system with concise, simple and pertinent information for the protection and instruction of skiers. The signs required by this section shall be readable in conditions of ordinary visibility and, if applicable, that are adequately lighted for nighttime skiers.

B. A ski area operator shall place a sign that depicts and explains signs and symbols that skiers may encounter in the ski area in a position where all skiers who are proceeding to the uphill loading point of each base area lift will see the sign. The sign shall depict and explain at least the following signs and symbols:

1. A green circle and the word “easier”, which designates the least difficult ski slopes and trails of the ski area.

2. A blue square and the words “more difficult”, which designates the ski slopes and trails of the ski area that have a degree of difficulty between the least difficult and most difficult slopes and trails.

3. A black diamond and the words “most difficult”, which designates the most difficult ski slopes and trails of the ski area.

4. A figure in the shape of a skier with a band running diagonally from corner to corner of the sign with the word “closed” printed beneath the emblem.

C. If applicable, a ski area operator shall place a sign at or near the loading point of a passenger tramway that states one of the following:

1. If the tramway transports passengers only to the more difficult or most difficult ski slopes and trails in the ski area, the sign shall state: “WARNING: This lift services ‘more difficult’ (blue square emblem) and ‘most difficult’ (black diamond emblem) slopes and trails only.”.

2. If the tramway transports passengers only to the most difficult ski slopes and trails in the ski area, the sign shall state: “WARNING: This lift services ‘most difficult’ (black diamond emblem) slopes and trails only.”.

D. If a ski area operator closes a ski slope or trail or a portion of a ski slope or trail to the public, the operator shall place a sign notifying skiers that the slope or trail or portion of the slope or trail is closed at each identified entrance to the slope or trail or closed portion of the slope or trail. In lieu of placing a sign at each identified entrance, the ski area operator may close off the entrance with rope or fences.

E. A ski area operator shall place a sign at or near the beginning of each ski slope or trail that contains the appropriate symbol of the relative degree of difficulty of that slope or trail as set forth in subsection B. The requirements of this subsection do not apply to a ski slope or trail that is designated “easier” if a skier may substantially view the slope or trail in its entirety before beginning to ski the slope or trail.

F. A ski area operator shall mark the ski area boundaries that are designated on the trail map.

G. A ski area operator shall mark all ski lift tickets and season passes that the operator sells or makes available to skiers with the following in clearly readable print:

WARNING: Under Arizona law, a skier accepts the risk of any injury to person or property resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing, including changing weather conditions, existing and changing snow surface conditions, surface or subsurface conditions, whether marked or unmarked, collisions with natural or man-made objects, whether marked or unmarked and the failure of skiers to ski within their own abilities.

H. A ski area operator shall post and maintain signs where ski lift tickets and ski school lessons are sold and in a location that is clearly visible to skiers who are proceeding to the uphill loading point of each base area lift that state the following in clearly readable print:

WARNING—IMPORTANT: Under Arizona law, a skier accepts the risk of any injury to person or property resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing. Some of these risks are listed on your lift ticket or season pass. Please review your ticket or pass and ask the ski area personnel for more information.

History: Last year in which legislation affected this section: 1997

§ 5-704. Additional duties of ski area operators

A. If maintenance equipment is being used to maintain or groom any ski slope or trail that a ski area operator has not designated as closed pursuant to section 5-703, subsection D, the ski area operator shall place a conspicuous notice at or near the beginning of the slope or trail and at any entrance points to the slope or trail that notifies skiers about the presence of the equipment.

B. All snowmobiles operated on the ski slopes or trails of a ski area shall be equipped with at least the following:

1. One lighted head lamp.

2. One lighted red tail lamp.

3. A red or orange flag that is at least forty square inches in size and that is mounted at least five feet above the bottom of the tracks.

C. A ski area operator has no duties to any skier who skis beyond the designated boundaries of the ski area.

History: Last year in which legislation affected this section: 1997

§ 5-705. Duties of skiers in any action against the ski area operator

In any civil action brought by a skier against a ski area operator, the duties of a skier shall be as follows:

1. At all times a skier has the sole responsibility to know the range of the skier’s own ability to negotiate a ski slope or trail and to ski within the limits of that ability. A skier expressly accepts the total risk of and all legal responsibility for injury to person or property resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing.

2. Before using a chair lift, passenger tramway, rope tow or surface lift, a skier shall have the knowledge and ability to safely load, ride and unload from the device.

3. A skier shall maintain control of the skier’s speed and course at all times when skiing and shall maintain a proper lookout to enable the skier to avoid collisions with other skiers and with natural and man-made objects, whether marked or unmarked.

4. A skier shall avoid snow maintenance and grooming equipment, vehicles, lift towers, signs and other equipment located on ski slopes and trails.

5. A skier shall heed all posted information, signs and other warnings and shall refrain from acting in a manner that may cause or contribute to the injury of the skier or other persons or property. A skier is presumed to have seen and understood all signs and notices posted pursuant to sections 5-702, 5-703 and 5-704. Under conditions of decreased visibility, the duty rests on the skier to locate and ascertain the meaning of all the signs and notices.

6. A skier shall only use skis, snowboards and other equipment that have been equipped with a functional strap or other device designed to reduce the risk of runaway equipment.

7. A skier shall not ski on a ski slope or trail or a portion of a ski slope or trail that a ski area operator has designated as closed pursuant to section 5-703, subsection D.

8. A skier shall not begin to ski from a stationary position or enter a ski slope or trail from the side unless the skier is able to avoid colliding with moving skiers already on the ski slope or trail.

9. A skier shall not cross the uphill track or place any object in the uphill track of a rope tow or surface lift except at locations that have been designated for crossing by a ski area operator.

10. A skier shall not move uphill on any passenger tramway or use any ski slope or trail while the skier’s ability to do so is impaired by the consumption of alcohol or by the use of any narcotic or other drug.

11. A skier involved in a collision with another skier that results in an injury shall not leave the vicinity of the collision before giving the skier’s name and current address to an employee of the ski area operator or a member of a paid or voluntary ski patrol. This paragraph does not prohibit a skier from leaving the scene of a collision to secure first aid for a person who is injured in the collision. If a skier leaves the scene of a collision to secure first aid, the skier shall leave the skier’s name and current address as required by this paragraph after securing the first aid.

12. A skier shall not knowingly enter the public or private lands of an adjoining ski area if the owner of that land has closed that land to skiers and the landowner or the ski area operator has designated the adjoining land as closed.

History: Last year in which legislation affected this section: 1997

§ 5-706. Release of liability

In any action brought by a skier against a ski area operator, if the ski area operator proves that the skier signed a valid release, the ski area operator’s liability shall be determined by the terms of the release.

History: Last year in which legislation affected this section: 1997

§ 5-707. Competition

A. Before the beginning of any competition, a ski area operator shall allow any competitor a reasonable visual inspection of the course or area where the competition is to be held.

B. A competitor accepts the risk of all course conditions, including weather and snow conditions, course construction or layout and obstacles that a visual inspection immediately before the run could have revealed.

C. In any action brought by a competitor against any ski area operator, if the ski area operator proves that the participant in the competition signed a valid release, the ski area operator’s liability shall be determined by the terms of the release.

HISTORY: Last year in which legislation affected this section: 1997

Alaska Ski Safety Statute

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Alaska, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: Alaska, ski area, Skier, Skier Safety Act, skiing, Snow, Snowboarder | 4 Comments

Alaska Ski Safety Statute

TITLE 5. AMUSEMENTS AND SPORTS

CHAPTER 45. SKI LIABILITY, SAFETY, AND RESPONSIBILITY

Go to the Alaska Code Archive Directory

Alaska Stat. § 05.45.010 (2013)

Sec. 05.45.010. Limitation on actions arising from skiing

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person may not bring an action against a ski area operator for an injury resulting from an inherent danger and risk of skiing.

History: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

Notes Applicable To Entire Title

Revisor’s Notes.—The provisions of this title were redrafted in 1985 to remove personal pronouns pursuant to § 4, ch. 58, SLA 1982, and in 1981, 1985, 1989, 1994, and 2004 to make other minor word changes.

Notes Applicable To Entire Chapter

Cross References.—For safety, inspection and regulation of recreational devices, see AS 05.20; for legislative findings and purpose in connection with the enactment of this chapter, see § 1, ch. 63, SLA 1994 in the Temporary and Special Acts.

Sec. 05.45.020. Effect of violations

(a) A ski area operator or other person who violates a requirement of this chapter, a provision of a plan of operation prepared under AS 05.45.040, or a regulation adopted by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development under AS 05.20.070 is negligent and civilly liable to the extent the violation causes injury to a person or damage to property.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of AS 09.17.080,

(1) the limitation of liability described under AS 05.45.010 is a complete defense in an action against a ski area operator for an injury if an inherent danger or risk of skiing is determined to be a contributory factor in the resulting injury, unless the ski area operator has violated a requirement of this chapter, a provision of a plan of operation prepared under AS 05.45.040, or a regulation adopted by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development under AS 05.20.070;

(2) a violation of the passenger duties imposed under AS 05.45.030 or skier duties imposed under AS 05.45.100 is a complete defense in an action against a ski area operator if the violation is determined to be a contributory factor in the resulting injury, unless the ski area operator has violated a requirement of this chapter, a provision of a plan of operation prepared under AS 05.45.040, or a regulation adopted by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development under AS 05.20.070.

(c) If the ski area operator is determined to have violated a requirement of this chapter, a provision of a plan of operation prepared under AS 05.45.040, or a regulation adopted by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development under AS 05.20.070, the provisions of AS 09.17.080 apply in an action against a ski area operator for an injury resulting from the violation.

History: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

Notes: Revisor’s Notes.—In 1999, “Department of Labor” was changed to “Department of Labor and Workforce Development” in each subsection in accordance with § 90, ch. 58, SLA 1999.

User Note: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.030. Duties of passengers

(a) A passenger may not board a tramway if the passenger does not have

(1) sufficient physical dexterity or ability and knowledge to negotiate or use the facility safely; or

(2) the assistance of a person authorized by the ski area operator to assist a skier.

(b) A passenger may not

(1) embark upon or disembark from a tramway except at a designated area unless reasonably necessary to prevent injury to the passenger or others; this paragraph does not apply if the tramway stops and the operator assists the passengers to disembark from the tramway;

(2) intentionally throw or expel an object from a tramway while riding on the tramway, except as permitted by the operator;

(3) act while riding on a tramway in a manner that may interfere with proper or safe operation of the tramway;

(4) engage in conduct that may contribute to or cause injury to a person;

(5) intentionally place in an uphill track of a J-bar, T-bar, platter pull, rope tow, or another surface lift an object that could cause another skier to fall;

(6) embark upon a tramway marked as closed;

(7) disobey instructions posted in accordance with this chapter or oral instructions by the ski area operator regarding the proper or safe use of a tramway unless the oral instructions are contrary to this chapter or contrary to posted instructions.

History: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

User Note: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.040. Required plan and patrol by ski area operators

(a) A ski area operator shall prepare a plan of operation for each ski season and shall implement the plan throughout the ski season. A plan of operation must include written provisions for ski patrol, avalanche control, avalanche rescue, grooming procedures, tramway evacuation, hazard marking, missing person procedures, and first aid. Before the operation of the ski area for that season, the plan shall be reviewed and approved by the commissioner of natural resources except that if an agency of the United States manages the land on which the ski area operates, the plan shall be reviewed and approved by that agency. The commissioner of natural resources may require a ski area operator to pay a fee not to exceed the department’s cost of reviewing the plan, and may adopt regulations to implement this subsection.

(b) A ski area operator shall provide a ski patrol whose members meet or exceed the training standards of the National Ski Patrol System, Inc. This subsection does not apply to a ski area if the operator transports skiers using only a single tramway consisting of a rope tow, the rope tow does not transport skiers more than 500 vertical feet, and the ski area is operated by a nonprofit corporation or a municipality. In this subsection, “nonprofit corporation” means a corporation that qualifies for exemption from taxation under 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) or (4) (Internal Revenue Code).

(c) Notwithstanding any other law, the state and the commissioner of natural resources are not civilly liable for damages resulting from an act or omission in reviewing, approving, or disapproving a plan of operation under (a) of this section.

History: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

User Note: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.050. Required signs for tramways; duties of operators

(a) A ski area operator who operates a tramway shall maintain a sign system with concise, simple, and pertinent information for the protection and instruction of passengers. Signs shall be prominently placed on each tramway, readable in conditions of ordinary visibility, and where applicable adequately lighted for nighttime passengers. Signs shall be posted

(1) at or near the loading point of each tramway, regardless of the type, advising that a person not familiar with the operation of the device must ask the operator of the device for assistance and instruction;

(2) in the interior of each two-car and multicar tramway showing

(A) the maximum capacity in pounds of the car and the maximum number of passengers allowed;

(B) instructions for procedures in emergencies;

(3) in a conspicuous place at each loading area of two-car and multicar tramways stating the maximum capacity in pounds of the car and the maximum number of passengers allowed;

(4) at all chair lifts stating the following:

(A) “Prepare to Unload,” which shall be located not less than 50 feet ahead of the unloading area;

(B) “Keep Ski Tips Up,” which shall be located ahead of any point where the skis may come in contact with a platform or the snow surface;

(D) “Stop Gate,” which shall be located where applicable;

(E) “Remove Pole Straps from Wrists,” which shall be located prominently at each loading area;

(F) “Check for Loose Clothing and Equipment,” which shall be located before the “Prepare to Unload” sign;

(5) at all J-bars, T-bars, platter pulls, rope tows, and any other surface lift, stating the following:

(A) “Remove Pole Straps from Wrists,” which shall be placed at or near the loading area;

(B) “Stay in Tracks,” “Unload Here,” and “Safety Gate,” which shall be located where applicable;

(6) near the boarding area of all J-bars, T-bars, platter pulls, rope tows, and any other surface lift, advising passengers to check to be certain that clothing, scarves, and hair will not become entangled with the lift;

(7) at or near the boarding area of all lifts, stating the skier’s duty set out in AS 05.45.100(c)(2).

(b) Signs not specified by (a) of this section may be posted at the discretion of the ski area operator.

(c) A ski area operator, before opening the tramway to the public each day, shall inspect the tramway for the presence and visibility of the signs required by (a) of this section.

(d) A ski area operator shall post and maintain signs that are required by (a) of this section in a manner that they may be viewed during conditions of ordinary visibility.

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)JHMoss

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.060. Required signs for trails and slopes; duties of operators

(a) A ski area operator shall maintain a sign and marking system as required in this section in addition to that required by AS 05.45.050. All signs required by this section shall be maintained so as to be readable and recognizable under conditions of ordinary visibility.

(b) A ski area operator shall post a sign recognizable to skiers proceeding to the uphill loading point of each base area lift that depicts and explains signs and symbols that the skier may encounter at the ski area. The sign must include the following:

(1) the least difficult trails and slopes, designated by a green circle and the word “easier”;

(2) the most difficult trails and slopes, designated by a black diamond and the words “most difficult”; trails intended for expert skiers may be marked with a double black diamond and the words “expert only”;

(3) the trails and slopes that have a degree of difficulty that falls between the green circle and the black diamond designation, designated by a blue square and the words “more difficult”;

(4) danger areas designated by a red exclamation point inside a yellow triangle with a red band around the triangle and the word “danger” printed beneath the emblem;

(5) closed trails or slopes designated by a sign with a circle or octagon around a figure in the shape of a skier with a band running diagonally across the sign from the upper right-hand side to the lower left-hand side and with the word “closed” printed beneath the emblem.

WARNING: This lift services (most difficult) or (most difficult and more difficult) or (more difficult) slopes only.

(d) If a particular trail or slope or portion of a trail or slope is closed to the public by a ski area operator, the operator shall place a sign notifying the public of that fact at each identified entrance of each portion of the trail or slope involved. A slope without an entrance defined by terrain or forest growth may be closed with a line of signs in a manner readily visible to skiers under conditions of ordinary visibility. This subsection does not apply if the trail or slope is closed with ropes or fences.

(e) A ski area operator shall

(1) place a sign at or near the beginning of each trail or slope, which must contain the appropriate symbol of the relative degree of difficulty of that particular trail or slope as described in (b) of this section; this paragraph does not apply to a slope or trail designated “easier” that to a skier is substantially visible in its entirety under conditions of ordinary visibility before beginning to ski the slope or trail;

(2) mark the ski area boundaries in a fashion readily visible to skiers under conditions of ordinary visibility;

(3) mark that portion of the boundary with signs as required by (b)(5) of this section if the owner of land adjoining a ski area closes all or part of the land and notifies the ski area operator of the closure;

(4) mark hydrants, water pipes, and all other man-made structures on slopes and trails that are not readily visible to skiers under conditions of ordinary visibility from a distance of at least 100 feet and adequately and appropriately cover man-made structures that create obstructions with a shock absorbent material that will lessen injuries; any type of marker is sufficient, including wooden poles, flags, or signs, if the marker is visible from a distance of 100 feet and if the marker itself does not constitute a serious hazard to skiers; in this paragraph, “man-made structures” does not include variations in steepness or terrain, whether natural or as a result of slope design, snow making, grooming operations, roads and catwalks, or other terrain modifications;

(5) mark exposed forest growth, rocks, stumps, streambeds, trees, or other natural objects that are located on a slope or trail that is regularly used by skiers or that is regularly packed and prepared by a ski area operator using a snow vehicle and attached implements and that are not readily visible to skiers under conditions of ordinary visibility from a distance of at least 100 feet;

(6) mark roads, catwalks, cliffs, or other terrain modifications that are not readily visible to skiers under conditions of ordinary visibility from a distance of at least 100 feet;

(7) post and maintain signs that contain the warning notice specified in (g) of this section; the notice shall be placed in a clearly visible location at the ski area where lift tickets and ski school lessons are sold and in a position to be recognizable as a sign to skiers proceeding to the uphill loading point of each base area lift; the signs may not be smaller than three feet by three feet and must be white with black and red letters as specified in this paragraph; the word “WARNING” must appear on the sign in red letters; the warning notice specified in this paragraph must appear on the sign in black letters with each letter to be a minimum of one inch in height.

(f) A ski lift ticket sold or made available for sale to skiers by a ski area operator must contain in clearly readable print the warning notice specified in (g) of this section.

(g) The signs described in (e)(7) of this section and the lift tickets described in (f) of this section must contain the following warning notice:

WARNING

Under Alaska law, the risk of an injury to person or property resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing rests with the skier. Inherent dangers and risks of skiing include changing weather conditions; existing and changing snow conditions; bare spots, rocks, stumps and trees; collisions with natural objects, man-made objects, or other skiers; variations in terrain; and the failure of skiers to ski within their own abilities.

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.070. Other duties of ski area operators

(a) A ski area operator shall equip a motorized snow-grooming vehicle with a light visible at any time the vehicle is moving on or in the vicinity of a ski slope or trail.

(b) When maintenance equipment is being employed to maintain or groom a ski slope or trail while the ski slope or trail is open to the public, the ski area operator shall place a conspicuous notice regarding the maintenance or grooming at or near the top of that ski slope or trail.

(1) one lighted head lamp;

(2) one lighted red tail lamp;

(3) a brake system maintained in operable condition; and

(4) a fluorescent flag at least 40 square inches mounted at least six feet above the bottom of the tracks.

(d) A ski area operator shall make available at reasonable fees, instruction and education regarding the inherent danger and risk of skiing and the duties imposed on skiers under this chapter. Notice of the availability of the instruction and education required under this subsection shall be placed in a clearly visible location at the ski area where lift tickets and ski school lessons are sold, in a position to be recognizable as a sign to skiers proceeding to the uphill loading point of each base area lift, and printed on equipment rental agreements.

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.080. Skiers outside marked boundaries

A ski area operator does not have a duty arising out of the operator’s status as a ski area operator to a skier skiing beyond the area boundaries if the boundaries are marked as required by AS 05.45.060(e)(2).

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.090. Reckless skiers; revocation of skiing privileges

(a) A ski area operator shall develop and maintain a written policy covering situations involving reckless skiers, including a definition of reckless skiing, procedures for approaching and warning skiers regarding reckless conduct, and procedures for taking action against reckless skiers, including revocation of ski privileges. A ski area operator shall designate ski patrol personnel responsible for implementing the ski area operator’s policy regarding reckless skiers.

(b) A ski area operator, upon finding a person skiing in a careless and reckless manner, may revoke that person’s skiing privileges. This section may not be construed to create an affirmative duty on the part of the ski area operator to protect skiers from their own or from another skier’s carelessness or recklessness.

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.100. Duties and responsibilities of skiers

(a) A skier is responsible for knowing the range of the skier’s own ability to negotiate a ski slope or trail and to ski within the limits of the skier’s ability. A skier is responsible for an injury to a person or property resulting from an inherent danger and risk of skiing, except that a skier is not precluded under this chapter from suing another skier for an injury to person or property resulting from the other skier’s acts or omissions. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the risk of a skier’s collision with another skier is not an inherent danger or risk of skiing in an action by one skier against another.

(b) A skier has the duty to maintain control of the skier’s speed and course at all times when skiing and to maintain a proper lookout so as to be able to avoid other skiers and objects. However, a person skiing downhill has the primary duty to avoid collision with a person or object below the skier.

(1) ski on a ski slope or trail that has been posted as “closed” under AS 05.45.060(b)(5) and (d);

(2) use a ski unless the ski is equipped with a strap or other device capable of stopping the ski should the ski become unattached from the skier;

(3) cross the uphill track of a J-bar, T-bar, platter pull, or rope tow except at locations designated by the operator, or place an object in an uphill track;

(4) move uphill on a tramway or use a ski slope or trail while the skier’s ability is impaired by the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance as defined in AS 11.71.900 or other drug;

(5) knowingly enter upon public or private land from an adjoining ski area when the land has been closed by an owner and is posted by the owner or by the ski area operator under AS 05.45.060(e)(3).

(d) A skier shall stay clear of snow grooming equipment, vehicles, lift towers, signs, and other equipment on the ski slopes and trails.

(e) A skier has the duty to heed all posted information and other warnings and to refrain from acting in a manner that may cause or contribute to the injury of the skier or others. Evidence that the signs required by AS 05.45.050 and 05.45.060 were present, visible, and readable at the beginning of a given day creates a presumption that all skiers using the ski area on that day have seen and understood the signs.

(f) Before beginning to ski from a stationary position or before entering a ski slope or trail from the side, a skier has the duty to avoid moving skiers already on the ski slope or trail.

(g) Except for the purpose of securing aid for a person injured in the collision, a skier involved in a collision with another skier or person that results in an injury may not leave the vicinity of the collision before giving the skier’s name and current address to the other person involved in the collision and to an employee of the ski area operator or a member of the voluntary ski patrol. A person who leaves the scene of a collision to obtain aid shall give the person’s name and current address as required by this subsection after obtaining aid.

(h) A person who violates a provision of (c) or (g) of this section is guilty of a violation as defined in AS 11.81.900. The commissioner of natural resources, a person designated by the ski area operator who is authorized by the commissioner, or an employee of the Department of Natural Resources authorized by the commissioner may issue a citation in accordance with the provisions of AS 41.21.960 to a person who violates (c) or (g) of this section within a ski area.

(i) The supreme court shall establish by rule or order a schedule of bail amounts that may be forfeited without a court appearance for a violation of (c) or (g) of this section.

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994; am §§ 1, 2 ch 64 SLA 2004)

NOTES: EFFECT OF AMENDMENTS.—The 2004 amendment, effective September 14, 2004, deleted “over which the state has jurisdiction” at the end of subsection (h), and added subsection (i).

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.110. Competition; immunity for ski area operator

(a) The ski area operator shall, before the beginning of a ski competition, allow an athlete who will ski in the competition a reasonable visual inspection of the course or area where the competition is to be held.

(b) An athlete skiing in competition assumes the risk of all course or area conditions, including weather and snow conditions, course construction or layout, and obstacles that a visual inspection would have revealed. A ski area operator is not liable for injury to an athlete who skis in competition and who is injured as a result of a risk described in this subsection.

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.120. Use of liability releases

(a) A ski area operator may not require a skier to sign an agreement releasing the ski area operator from liability in exchange for the right to ride a ski area tramway and ski in the ski area. A release that violates this subsection is void and may not be enforced.

(b) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, a ski area operator may

(1) require a special event coach, participant, helper, spectator, or rental customer to sign an agreement releasing the ski area operator from liability in exchange for the right to coach, participate, assist in, or observe the special event; or

(2) use a release agreement required by a third party as a condition of operating a rental program or special event at the ski area.

(c) In this section, “special event” means an event, pass, race, program, rental program, or service that offers competition or other benefits in addition to a ticket representing the right to ride a ski area tramway and ski on the ski slopes or trails, whether or not additional consideration is paid.

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Sec. 05.45.200. Definitions

In this chapter,

(1) “base area lift” means a tramway that skiers ordinarily use without first using some other tramway;

(2) “conditions of ordinary visibility” means daylight or, where applicable, nighttime, in nonprecipitating weather;

(3) “inherent danger and risk of skiing” means a danger or condition that is an integral part of the sport of skiing, including changing weather conditions; snow conditions as they exist or may change, including ice, hard pack, powder, packed powder, wind pack, corn, crust, slush, cut-up snow, and machine-made snow; surface or subsurface conditions including bare spots, forest growth, rocks, stumps, streams, streambeds, and trees, or other natural objects, and collisions with natural objects; impact with lift towers, signs, posts, fences or enclosures, hydrants, water pipes, other man-made structures, and their components; variations in steepness or terrain, whether natural or as a result of slope design, snowmaking or grooming operations, including roads and catwalks or other terrain modifications; collision with other skiers; and the failure of skiers to ski within their own abilities; the term “inherent danger and risk of skiing” does not include the negligence of a ski area operator under AS 05.45.020, or acts or omissions of a ski area operator involving the use or operation of ski lifts;

(4) “injury” means property damage, personal injury, or death;

(5) “passenger” means a person who is lawfully using a tramway;

(6) “ski area” means all downhill ski slopes or trails and other places under the control of a downhill ski area operator; “ski area” does not include a cross-country ski trail;

(7) “ski area operator” means a person having operational responsibility for a downhill ski area, and includes an agency of the state or a political subdivision of the state;

(8) “skier” means an individual using a downhill ski area for the purpose of

(A) skiing;

(B) sliding downhill on snow or ice on skis, a toboggan, a sled, a tube, a ski-bob, a snowboard, or another skiing or sliding device; or

(9) “ski slopes or trails” means those areas designated by a ski area operator to be used by a skier;

(10) “tramway” means a device that is a passenger tramway, aerial or surface lift, ski lift, or rope tow regulated under AS 05.20.

HISTORY: (§ 2 ch 63 SLA 1994)

USER NOTE: For more generally applicable notes, see notes under the first section of this article, chapter or title.

Colorado Ski Safety Act

Posted: July 22, 2013 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Colorado | Tags: Alpine skiing, Colorado, Outdoors, Recreation, Ski, ski area, Ski Resort, Ski Safety Act, Skier, Snowboarder, Sports | Leave a comment

ARTICLE 44
SKI SAFETY AND LIABILITY

33-44-101. Short title. 1

33-44-102. Legislative declaration. 1

33-44-103. Definitions. 1

33-44-104. Negligence – civil actions. 3

33-44-105. Duties of passengers. 3

33-44-106. Duties of operators – signs. 4

33-44-107. Duties of ski area operators – signs and notices required for skiers’ information. 5

33-44-108. Ski area operators – additional duties. 7

33-44-109. Duties of skiers – penalties. 8

33-44-110. Competition and freestyle terrain. 9

33-44-111. Statute of limitation. 9

33-44-112. Limitation on actions for injury resulting from inherent dangers and risks of skiing. 10

33-44-113. Limitation of liability. 10

33-44-114. Inconsistent law or statute. 10

33-44-101. Short title.

This article shall be known and may be cited as the “Ski Safety Act of 1979”.

33-44-102. Legislative declaration.

The general assembly hereby finds and declares that it is in the interest of the state of Colorado to establish reasonable safety standards for the operation of ski areas and for the skiers using them. Realizing the dangers that inhere in the sport of skiing, regardless of any and all reasonable safety measures which can be employed, the purpose of this article is to supplement the passenger tramway safety provisions of part 7 of article 5 of title 25, C.R.S.; to further define the legal responsibilities of ski area operators and their agents and employees; to define the responsibilities of skiers using such ski areas; and to define the rights and liabilities existing between the skier and the ski area operator and between skiers.

33-44-103. Definitions.

As used in this article, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) “Base area lift” means any passenger tramway which skiers ordinarily use without first using some other passenger tramway.

(2) “Competitor” means a skier actually engaged in competition, a special event, or training or practicing for competition or a special event on any portion of the area made available by the ski area operator.

(3) “Conditions of ordinary visibility” means daylight and, where applicable, nighttime in nonprecipitating weather.

(3.1) “Extreme terrain” means any place within the ski area boundary that contains cliffs with a minimum twenty-foot rise over a fifteen-foot run, and slopes with a minimum fifty-degree average pitch over a one-hundred-foot run.

(3.3) “Freestyle terrain” includes, but is not limited to, terrain parks and terrain park features such as jumps, rails, fun boxes, and all other constructed and natural features, half-pipes, quarter-pipes, and freestyle-bump terrain.

(3.5) “Inherent dangers and risks of skiing” means those dangers or conditions that are part of the sport of skiing, including changing weather conditions; snow conditions as they exist or may change, such as ice, hard pack, powder, packed powder, wind pack, corn, crust, slush, cut-up snow, and machine-made snow; surface or subsurface conditions such as bare spots, forest growth, rocks, stumps, streambeds, cliffs, extreme terrain, and trees, or other natural objects, and collisions with such natural objects; impact with lift towers, signs, posts, fences or enclosures, hydrants, water pipes, or other man-made structures and their components; variations in steepness or terrain, whether natural or as a result of slope design, snowmaking or grooming operations, including but not limited to roads, freestyle terrain, jumps, and catwalks or other terrain modifications; collisions with other skiers; and the failure of skiers to ski within their own abilities. The term “inherent dangers and risks of skiing” does not include the negligence of a ski area operator as set forth in section 33-44-104 (2). Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the liability of the ski area operator for injury caused by the use or operation of ski lifts.

(4) “Passenger” means any person who is lawfully using any passenger tramway.

(5) “Passenger tramway” means a device as defined in section 25-5-702 (4), C.R.S.

(6) “Ski area” means all ski slopes or trails and all other places within the ski area boundary, marked in accordance with section 33-44-107 (6), under the control of a ski area operator and administered as a single enterprise within this state.

(7) “Ski area operator” means an “area operator” as defined in section 25-5-702 (1), C.R.S., and any person, partnership, corporation, or other commercial entity having operational responsibility for any ski areas, including an agency of this state or a political subdivision thereof.

(8) “Skier” means any person using a ski area for the purpose of skiing, which includes, without limitation, sliding downhill or jumping on snow or ice on skis, a toboggan, a sled, a tube, a snowbike, a snowboard, or any other device; or for the purpose of using any of the facilities of the ski area, including but not limited to ski slopes and trails.

(9) “Ski slopes or trails” means all ski slopes or trails and adjoining skiable terrain, including all their edges and features, and those areas designated by the ski area operator to be used by skiers for any of the purposes enumerated in subsection (8) of this section. Such designation shall be set forth on trail maps, if provided, and designated by signs indicating to the skiing public the intent that such areas be used by skiers for the purpose of skiing. Nothing in this subsection (9) or in subsection (8) of this section, however, shall imply that ski slopes or trails may not be restricted for use by persons using skis only or for use by persons using any other device described in subsection (8) of this section.

33-44-104. Negligence – civil actions.

(1) A violation of any requirement of this article shall, to the extent such violation causes injury to any person or damage to property, constitute negligence on the part of the person violating such requirement.

(2) A violation by a ski area operator of any requirement of this article or any rule or regulation promulgated by the passenger tramway safety board pursuant to section 25-5-704 (1) (a), C.R.S., shall, to the extent such violation causes injury to any person or damage to property, constitute negligence on the part of such operator.

(3) All rules adopted or amended by the passenger tramway safety board on or after July 1, 1979, shall be subject to sections 24-4-103 (8) (c) and (8) (d) and 24-34-104 (9) (b) (II), C.R.S.

33-44-105. Duties of passengers.

(1) No passenger shall board a passenger tramway if he does not have sufficient physical dexterity, ability, and knowledge to negotiate or use such facility safely or until such passenger has asked for and received information sufficient to enable him to use the equipment safely. A passenger is required to follow any written or verbal instructions that are given to him regarding the use of the passenger tramway.

(2) No passenger shall:

(a) Embark upon or disembark from a passenger tramway except at a designated area except in the event of a stoppage of the passenger tramway (and then only under the supervision of the operator) or unless reasonably necessary in the event of an emergency to prevent injury to the passenger or others;

(b) Throw or expel any object from any passenger tramway while riding on such device, except as permitted by the operator;

(c) Act, while riding on a passenger tramway, in any manner that may interfere with proper or safe operation of such passenger tramway;

(d) Engage in any type of conduct that may contribute to or cause injury to any person;

(e) Place in an uphill track of a J-bar, T-bar, platter pull, rope tow, or any other surface lift any object that could cause another skier to fall;

(f) Embark upon a passenger tramway marked as closed;

(g) Disobey any instructions posted in accordance with this article or any verbal instructions by the ski area operator regarding the proper or safe use of a passenger tramway unless such verbal instructions are contrary to this article or the rules promulgated under it, or contrary to posted instructions.

33-44-106. Duties of operators – signs.

(1) Each ski area operator shall maintain a sign system with concise, simple, and pertinent information for the protection and instruction of passengers. Signs shall be prominently placed on each passenger tramway readable in conditions of ordinary visibility and, where applicable, adequately lighted for nighttime passengers. Signs shall be posted as follows:

(a) At or near the loading point of each passenger tramway, regardless of the type, advising that any person not familiar with the operation of the device shall ask the operator of the device for assistance and instruction;

(b) At the interior of each two-car and multicar passenger tramway, showing:

(I) The maximum capacity in pounds of the car and the maximum number of passengers allowed;

(II) Instructions for procedures in emergencies;

(c) In a conspicuous place at each loading area of two-car and multicar passenger tramways, stating the maximum capacity in pounds of the car and the maximum number of passengers allowed;

(d) At all chair lifts, stating the following:

(I) “Prepare to Unload”, which shall be located not less than fifty feet ahead of the unloading area;

(II) “Keep Ski Tips Up”, which shall be located ahead of any point where the skis may come in contact with a platform or the snow surface;

(III) “Unload Here”, which shall be located at the point designated for unloading;

(IV) “Safety Gate”, which shall be located where applicable;

(V) “Remove Pole Straps from Wrists”, which shall be located prominently at each loading area;

(VI) “Check for Loose Clothing and Equipment”, which shall be located before the “Prepare to Unload” sign;

(e) At all J-bars, T-bars, platter pulls, rope tows, and any other surface lift, stating the following:

(I) “Remove Pole Straps from Wrists”, which shall be placed at or near the loading area;

(II) “Stay in Tracks”, “Unload Here”, and “Safety Gate”, which shall be located where applicable;

(III) “Prepare to Unload”, which shall be located not less than fifty feet ahead of each unloading area;

(f) Near the boarding area of all J-bars, T-bars, platter pulls, rope tows, and any other surface lift, advising passengers to check to be certain that clothing, scarves, and hair will not become entangled with the lift;

(g) At or near the boarding area of all lifts, regarding the requirements of section 33-44-109 (6).

(2) Other signs not specified by subsection (1) of this section may be posted at the discretion of the ski area operator.

(3) The ski area operator, before opening the passenger tramway to the public each day, shall inspect such passenger tramway for the presence and visibility of the signs required by subsection (1) of this section.

(4) The extent of the responsibility of the ski area operator under this section shall be to post and maintain such signs as are required by subsection (1) of this section in such condition that they may be viewed during conditions of ordinary visibility. Evidence that signs required by subsection (1) of this section were present, visible, and readable where required at the beginning of the passenger tramway operation on any given day raises a presumption that all passengers using said devices have seen and understood said signs.

33-44-107. Duties of ski area operators – signs and notices required for skiers’ information.

(1) Each ski area operator shall maintain a sign and marking system as set forth in this section in addition to that required by section 33-44-106. All signs required by this section shall be maintained so as to be readable and recognizable under conditions of ordinary visibility.

(2) A sign shall be placed in such a position as to be recognizable as a sign to skiers proceeding to the uphill loading point of each base area lift depicting and explaining signs and symbols which the skier may encounter at the ski area as follows:

(a) The ski area’s least difficult trails and slopes, designated by a green circle and the word “easiest”;

(b) The ski area’s most difficult trails and slopes, designated by a black diamond and the words “most difficult”;

(c) The ski area’s trails and slopes which have a degree of difficulty that falls between the green circle and the black diamond designation, designated by a blue square and the words “more difficult”;

(d) The ski area’s extreme terrain shall be signed at the commonly used access designated with two black diamonds containing the letters “E” in one and “X” in the other in white and the words “extreme terrain”. The ski area’s specified freestyle terrain areas shall be designated with an orange oval.

(e) Closed trails or slopes, designated by an octagonal-shaped sign with a red border around a white interior containing a black figure in the shape of a skier with a black band running diagonally across the sign from the upper right-hand side to the lower left-hand side and with the word “Closed” printed beneath the emblem.

(3) If applicable, a sign shall be placed at or near the loading point of each passenger tramway, as follows:

“WARNING: This lift services (most difficult) or (most difficult and more difficult) or (more difficult) slopes only.”

(4) If a particular trail or slope or portion of a trail or slope is closed to the public by a ski area operator, such operator shall place a sign notifying the public of that fact at each identified entrance of each portion of the trail or slope involved. Alternatively, such a trail or slope or portion thereof may be closed with ropes or fences.

(5) The ski area operator shall place a sign at or near the beginning of each trail or slope, which sign shall contain the appropriate symbol of the relative degree of difficulty of that particular trail or slope as set forth by subsection (2) of this section. This requirement shall not apply to a slope or trail designated “easiest” which to a skier is substantially visible in its entirety under conditions of ordinary visibility prior to his beginning to ski the same.

(6) The ski area operator shall mark its ski area boundaries in a fashion readily visible to skiers under conditions of ordinary visibility. Where the owner of land adjoining a ski area closes all or part of his land and so advises the ski area operator, such portions of the boundary shall be signed as required by paragraph (e) of subsection (2) of this section. This requirement shall not apply in heavily wooded areas or other nonskiable terrain.

(7) The ski area operator shall mark hydrants, water pipes, and all other man-made structures on slopes and trails which are not readily visible to skiers under conditions of ordinary visibility from a distance of at least one hundred feet and shall adequately and appropriately cover such obstructions with a shock-absorbent material that will lessen injuries. Any type of marker shall be sufficient, including but not limited to wooden poles, flags, or signs, if the marker is visible from a distance of one hundred feet and if the marker itself does not constitute a serious hazard to skiers. Variations in steepness or terrain, whether natural or as a result of slope design or snowmaking or grooming operations, including but not limited to roads and catwalks or other terrain modifications, are not man-made structures, as that term is used in this article.

(8) (a) Each ski area operator shall post and maintain signs which contain the warning notice specified in paragraph (c) of this subsection (8). Such signs shall be placed in a clearly visible location at the ski area where the lift tickets and ski school lessons are sold and in such a position to be recognizable as a sign to skiers proceeding to the uphill loading point of each base area lift. Each sign shall be no smaller than three feet by three feet. Each sign shall be white with black and red letters as specified in this paragraph (a). The words “WARNING” shall appear on the sign in red letters. The warning notice specified in paragraph (c) of this subsection (8) shall appear on the sign in black letters, with each letter to be a minimum of one inch in height.

(b) Every ski lift ticket sold or made available for sale to skiers by any ski area operator shall contain in clearly readable print the warning notice specified in paragraph (c) of this subsection (8).

(c) The signs described in paragraph (a) of this subsection (8) and the lift tickets described in paragraph (b) of this subsection (8) shall contain the following warning notice:

WARNING

Under Colorado law, a skier assumes the risk of any injury to person or property resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing and may not recover from any ski area operator for any injury resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing, including: Changing weather conditions; existing and changing snow conditions; bare spots; rocks; stumps; trees; collisions with natural objects, man-made objects, or other skiers; variations in terrain; and the failure of skiers to ski within their own abilities.

33-44-108. Ski area operators – additional duties.

(1) Any motorized snow-grooming vehicle shall be equipped with a light visible at any time the vehicle is moving on or in the vicinity of a ski slope or trail.

(2) Whenever maintenance equipment is being employed to maintain or groom any ski slope or trail while such ski slope or trail is open to the public, the ski area operator shall place or cause to be placed a conspicuous notice to that effect at or near the top of that ski slope or trail. This requirement shall not apply to maintenance equipment transiting to or from a grooming project.

(3) All snowmobiles operated on the ski slopes or trails of a ski area shall be equipped with at least the following: One lighted headlamp, one lighted red tail lamp, a brake system maintained in operable condition, and a fluorescent flag at least forty square inches mounted at least six feet above the bottom of the tracks.

(4) The ski area operator shall have no duty arising out of its status as a ski area operator to any skier skiing beyond the area boundaries marked as required by section 33-44-107 (6).

(5) The ski area operator, upon finding a person skiing in a careless and reckless manner, may revoke that person’s skiing privileges. This subsection (5) shall not be construed to create an affirmative duty on the part of the ski area operator to protect skiers from their own or from another skier’s carelessness or recklessness.

33-44-109. Duties of skiers – penalties.

(1) Each skier solely has the responsibility for knowing the range of his own ability to negotiate any ski slope or trail and to ski within the limits of such ability. Each skier expressly accepts and assumes the risk of and all legal responsibility for any injury to person or property resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing; except that a skier is not precluded under this article from suing another skier for any injury to person or property resulting from such other skier’s acts or omissions. Notwithstanding any provision of law or statute to the contrary, the risk of a skier/skier collision is neither an inherent risk nor a risk assumed by a skier in an action by one skier against another.

(2) Each skier has the duty to maintain control of his speed and course at all times when skiing and to maintain a proper lookout so as to be able to avoid other skiers and objects. However, the primary duty shall be on the person skiing downhill to avoid collision with any person or objects below him.

(3) No skier shall ski on a ski slope or trail that has been posted as “Closed” pursuant to section 33-44-107 (2) (e) and (4).

(4) Each skier shall stay clear of snow-grooming equipment, all vehicles, lift towers, signs, and any other equipment on the ski slopes and trails.

(5) Each skier has the duty to heed all posted information and other warnings and to refrain from acting in a manner which may cause or contribute to the injury of the skier or others. Each skier shall be presumed to have seen and understood all information posted in accordance with this article near base area lifts, on the passenger tramways, and on such ski slopes or trails as he is skiing. Under conditions of decreased visibility, the duty is on the skier to locate and ascertain the meaning of all signs posted in accordance with sections 33-44-106 and 33-44-107.

(6) Each ski or snowboard used by a skier while skiing shall be equipped with a strap or other device capable of stopping the ski or snowboard should the ski or snowboard become unattached from the skier. This requirement shall not apply to cross country skis.

(7) No skier shall cross the uphill track of a J-bar, T-bar, platter pull, or rope tow except at locations designated by the operator; nor shall a skier place any object in such an uphill track.

(8) Before beginning to ski from a stationary position or before entering a ski slope or trail from the side, the skier shall have the duty of avoiding moving skiers already on the ski slope or trail.

(9) No person shall move uphill on any passenger tramway or use any ski slope or trail while such person’s ability to do so is impaired by the consumption of alcohol or by the use of any controlled substance, as defined in section 12-22-303 (7), C.R.S., or other drug or while such person is under the influence of alcohol or any controlled substance, as defined in section 12-22-303 (7), C.R.S., or other drug.

(10) No skier involved in a collision with another skier or person in which an injury results shall leave the vicinity of the collision before giving his or her name and current address to an employee of the ski area operator or a member of the ski patrol, except for the purpose of securing aid for a person injured in the collision; in which event the person so leaving the scene of the collision shall give his or her name and current address as required by this subsection (10) after securing such aid.

(11) No person shall knowingly enter upon public or private lands from an adjoining ski area when such land has been closed by its owner and so posted by the owner or by the ski area operator pursuant to section 33-44-107 (6).

(12) Any person who violates any of the provisions of subsection (3), (9), (10), or (11) of this section is guilty of a class 2 petty offense and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not more than three hundred dollars.

33-44-110. Competition and freestyle terrain.

(1) The ski area operator shall, prior to use of any portion of the area made available by the ski area operator, allow each competitor an opportunity to reasonably visually inspect the course, venue, or area.

(2) The competitor shall be held to assume the risk of all course, venue, or area conditions, including, but not limited to, weather and snow conditions; obstacles; course or feature location, construction, or layout; freestyle terrain configuration and conditions; and other courses, layouts, or configurations of the area to be used. No liability shall attach to a ski area operator for injury or death to any competitor caused by course, venue, or area conditions that a visual inspection should have revealed or by collisions with other competitors.

33-44-111. Statute of limitation.

All actions against any ski area operator or its employees brought to recover damages for injury to person or property caused by the maintenance, supervision, or operation of a passenger tramway or a ski area shall be brought within two years after the claim for relief arises and not thereafter.

33-44-112. Limitation on actions for injury resulting from inherent dangers and risks of skiing.

Notwithstanding any judicial decision or any other law or statute to the contrary, including but not limited to sections 13-21-111 and 13-21-111.7, C.R.S., no skier may make any claim against or recover from any ski area operator for injury resulting from any of the inherent dangers and risks of skiing.

33-44-113. Limitation of liability.

The total amount of damages which may be recovered from a ski area operator by a skier who uses a ski area for the purpose of skiing or for the purpose of sliding downhill on snow or ice on skis, a toboggan, a sled, a tube, a ski-bob, a snowboard, or any other device and who is injured, excluding those associated with an injury occurring to a passenger while riding on a passenger tramway, shall not exceed one million dollars, present value, including any derivative claim by any other claimant, which shall not exceed two hundred fifty thousand dollars, present value, and including any claim attributable to noneconomic loss or injury, as defined in sections 13-21-102.5 (2), C.R.S., whether past damages, future damages, or a combination of both, which shall not exceed two hundred fifty thousand dollars. If, upon good cause shown, the court determines that the present value of the amount of lost past earnings and the present value of lost future earnings, or the present value of past medical and other health care costs and the present value of the amount of future medical and other health care costs, or both, when added to the present value of other past damages and the present value of other future damages, would exceed such limitation and that the application of such limitation would be unfair, the court may award damages in excess of the limitation equal to the present value of additional future damages, but only for the loss of such excess future earnings, or such excess future medical and other health care costs, or both. For purposes of this section, “present value” has the same meaning as that set forth in section 13-64-202 (7), C.R.S., and “past damages” has the same meaning as that set forth in section 13-64-202 (6), C.R.S. The existence of the limitations and exceptions thereto provided in this section shall not be disclosed to a jury.

33-44-114. Inconsistent law or statute.

Insofar as any provision of law or statute is inconsistent with the provisions of this article, this article controls.

Heavenly (Vail) being sued for off duty employee hitting a skier

Posted: July 3, 2012 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Skier v. Skier | Tags: Brazil, Employment, Heavenly Mountain Resort, Heavenly Ski Area, Skier, Snowboarder, Vail, Vail Resorts | 1 Comment

Lawsuit claims heavenly is liable for not teaching the employee how to board?

What appears to be a beginner skier was hit by a snowboarder at Heavenly Ski Resort. Heavenly is owned by Vail Resorts. The article refers to

both resorts interchangeably. The snowboarder was an off duty Heavenly employee. The employee was working as a temporary seasonal employee and from Brazil.

The lawsuit claims that Heavenly is liable because:

…Heavenly solicits foreign employees, offers free season ski passes for use when they’re off duty, discounted merchandise, food and beverage, and low-cost housing that the company is responsible for their presence on the slopes.

Sullivan argues that the resort doesn’t provide adequate training to the employees on skiing and boarding skills and the need to follow the resort’s responsibility code.

I think that is a stretch. I think that claim has been stretched to Brazil and back. If Vail is liable for not teaching an employee how to ski, McDonald’s is in big trouble for not teaching its employees how to i.

See Gardnerville couple suing ski resort in accident or Second skier sues Vail Resorts claiming a Heavenly employee injured him while snowboarding out of control.

What do you think? Leave a comment.

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Neustadter v. Mountain Creek Resort, Inc., 2008 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 1584

Posted: October 16, 2011 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Assumption of the Risk, Legal Case, New Jersey, Ski Area, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: additionally, Assumption of risk, case-in-chief, correctly, essential element, expert testimony, failed to present, fence post, fencing, Hazard, hazardous, inflexible, involuntary dismissal, legitimate inferences, man-made, photographs, pole, practicable, reasonable time, reconstructed, Ski, ski area, Ski Resort, Skier, skiing, Slope, Snow, Snowboarders, sufficient evidence, Trail | Leave a comment

Neustadter v. Mountain Creek Resort, Inc., 2008 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 1584
Mark Neustadter and Katherine Neustadter, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. Mountain Creek Resort, Inc., Defendant-Respondent.
DOCKET NO. A-5671-05T5
Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division
2008 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 1584
September 11, 2007, Argued
February 15, 2008, Decided

NOTICE: NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION.
PLEASE CONSULT NEW JERSEY RULE 1:36-3 FOR CITATION OF UNPUBLISHED OPINIONS.
SUBSEQUENT HISTORY: Certification denied by Neustadter v. Mountain Creek Resort, 195 N.J. 521, 950 A.2d 907, 2008 N.J. LEXIS 721 (2008)
PRIOR HISTORY: [*1]
On appeal from the Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, Sussex County, L-670-03.
CORE TERMS: pole, man-made, hazard, ski, skier, trail, sufficient evidence, involuntary dismissal, expert testimony, failed to present, fence post, fencing, slope, ski resort, assumption of risk, photographs, correctly, hazardous, skiing, snow, reconstructed, snowboarders, ski area, reasonable time, legitimate inferences, essential element, case-in-chief, additionally, practicable, inflexible
COUNSEL: John R. Lanza argued the cause for the appellants (Lanza & Lanza, LLP, attorneys; John R. Lanza, of counsel; Mr. Lanza and Kenneth W. Thomas, on the brief).
Samuel J. McNulty argued the cause for the respondent (Hueston McNulty, attorneys; Mr. McNulty, of counsel and on the brief).
JUDGES: Before Judges Skillman, Yannotti and LeWinn.
OPINION
PER CURIAM
Plaintiffs, husband and wife, appeal from the trial court’s grant of an involuntary dismissal at the end of their case seeking damages for injuries allegedly sustained by plaintiff-husband, Mark Neustadter (hereinafter “plaintiff”), in an accident on defendant’s premises, a ski resort.
On January 7, 2002, plaintiff, an acknowledged snowboarding expert, was injured while snowboarding at defendant’s resort when he collided with a post supporting orange netting on the slope. The gravamen of his negligence claim was that the post was so deeply embedded in snow, and of such an inflexible material, that it was immovable and took the full force of his body, resulting in a shattered knee.
At the conclusion of plaintiff’s case, the trial judge determined that plaintiff had not presented [*2] sufficient evidence to allow the jury reasonably to find liability on defendant’s part. The judge also concluded that plaintiff had failed to adduce any evidence to show the injury in question was caused by the collision with the identified fence post. Accordingly, the judge dismissed the complaint.
Plaintiff raises the following points on appeal:
POINT I: THE TRIAL COURT ERRED IN GRANTING DEFENDANTS’ [SIC] MOTION FOR AN INVOLUNTARY DISMISSAL PURSUANT TO R. 4:37-2(b)
A. AS TO THE MEDICAL EXPERT, DR. WEISS
B. AS TO THE LIABILITY EXPERT, MR. HANST
1. THE PHOTOGRAPHS
2. THE ALLEGED NET OPINION
POINT II: THE TRIAL COURT IMPROPERLY LIMITED THE EXPERT TESTIMONY OF DR. WEISS AND MR. HANST
POINT III: THE TRIAL COURT ERRED BY PERMITTING DEFENDANT TO CROSS-EXAMINE PLAINTIFF’S EXPERT WITH A DOCUMENT IT FAILED TO PRODUCE IN DISCOVERY
POINT IV: THE TRIAL COURT IMPROPERLY EXCLUDED THE INTRODUCTION OF PLAINTIFF’S MEDICAL BILLS INTO EVIDENCE
POINT V: THE TRIAL COURT SHOULD NOT HAVE PERMITTED DEFENDANT TO NAME A MEDICAL EXPERT AFTER THE CONCLUSION OF THE ARBITRATION
Having thoroughly reviewed the trial record, we are convinced the judge properly limited the testimony of plaintiff’s liability expert and correctly [*3] concluded that plaintiff had not presented sufficient evidence to allow the jury reasonably to find liability on defendant’s part. This conclusion makes it unnecessary to reach the other issues raised on appeal.
In his complaint, plaintiff claimed defendant “negligently, carelessly, and/or recklessly designed, constructed, supervised, operated and/or maintained the premises so as to create and/or allow a dangerous and hazardous condition to exist.” He set forth the “particulars” of defendant’s negligence as follows:
a) Defendant knew, or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known, that the unprotected pole was dangerous, and Defendant failed to warn Plaintiff of that condition;
b) Defendant failed to cover the pole with a material in order to protect Plaintiff from being injured should Plaintiff come into contact with the pole;
c) Defendant knew, or should have known, that the pole, if left open and exposed was likely to be dangerous to ski[ers] and snowboarders, and with such knowledge Defendant failed to cover the pole or use any other means to keep it safe for its business invitees;
d) Defendant failed to cover the pole with a protective covering for the protection of skiers [*4] and snowboarders; and
e) Defendant permitted the pole to be left unprotected and defective and dangerous knowing that the pole would necessarily pose a risk of harm to Plaintiff and other business invitees, skiers, and snowboarders.
Plaintiff proffered John H. Hanst as his liability expert. Hanst rendered a report on May 21, 2005. Other than his review of documents, Hanst’s opinions were based solely upon his one and only site visit to the ski resort on March 24, 2005, more than three years after plaintiff’s accident.
During that site visit Hanst “reconstructed” the accident with plaintiff and described the reconstruction in his report as follows: “We walked up the trail to the area where the incident occurred. The area was modestly changed. . . . A few of the fence posts have been covered with padding although the majority of them were not padded.” (Emphasis added). Hanst included photographs of the reconstructed accident scene in his report.
Defendant challenged Hanst’s report and testimony in an in limine motion. Defendant contended that Hanst described “conditions that were not those described by the Plaintiff. . . . H[is report] talk[ed] about a condition that did not exist and [wa]s [*5] not relevant or material to the case that w[ould] be before th[e] Court.”
In ruling on that motion, the trial judge found that Hanst’s report described conditions that were not in existence “on the date of [plaintiff’s] . . . accident. . . . They were at a [much later] time . . . when the conditions on the slope were not the same. Nobody can say they were the same.” (Emphasis added).
The judge limited Hanst’s testimony to “what conditions should exist on a ski slope and how the conditions on the day in question deviated, based upon the testimony of Mr. Neustadter.” The judge also ruled Hanst’s photographs of the reconstructed accident scene inadmissible because they “specifically show poles that are different from those that are described by Mr. Neustadter as existing in the area where he was injured on the day in question.” In the course of his ruling, the judge noted that Hanst’s report did not address plaintiff’s claim that “the poles had been in the snow too long and ice had formed around them and possibly they didn’t flex the way they should.”
At trial, plaintiff testified that he swerved to avoid a cluster of skiers ahead of him. This caused him to collide with a PVC pole, one to [*6] two inches in diameter, that was supporting orange mesh fencing erected to distinguish the expert trail from the novice trail.
At the conclusion of Hanst’s voir dire, the judge limited his qualification as an expert to the area of alpine skiing, and excluded him from giving expert testimony on the subject of “mountain management” since he had no experience in that field. The sum total of Hanst’s liability testimony was that a rigid pole was a “man-made hazard,” and the ski operator had an obligation to reduce or eliminate that hazard.
After plaintiff had completed presentation of his case-in-chief, defendant moved for involuntary dismissal of the complaint pursuant to Rule 4:37-2(b). The judge granted the motion finding that plaintiff failed to present sufficient evidence to establish liability under the Ski Statute, N.J.S.A. 5:13-1 to -11. The judge additionally found that plaintiff failed to present sufficient evidence to show that any negligence on the part of defendant was a proximate cause of his injury. On June 23, 2006, the judge entered an order memorializing his findings. This appeal followed.
Plaintiff argues that the judge erred by granting defendant’s motion for involuntary [*7] dismissal of their complaint. He maintains that defendant had a duty under the Ski Statute to remove any “obvious man-made hazard” from the premises. Plaintiff contends that he presented evidence showing that he struck a man-made fence pole. He contends further that, because his evidence showed that the post was rigid, thereby constituting a “hazard,” the jury should have been permitted to determine whether defendant failed to discharge its duty to remove the pole. We disagree.
Rule 4:37-2(b) provides that, upon completion of a plaintiff’s case-in-chief,
the defendant . . . may move for dismissal of the action or of any claim on the ground that upon the facts and upon the law the plaintiff has shown no right to relief. . . . [S]uch motion shall be denied if the evidence, together with the legitimate inferences therefrom, could sustain a judgment in plaintiff’s favor.
In other words, dismissal is appropriate where the court determines that no rational jury could conclude from the evidence that an essential element of plaintiff’s case is present. “The trial court is not concerned with the worth, nature or extent . . . of the evidence, but only with its existence, viewed most favorably to [*8] the party opposing the motion.” Dolson v. Anastasia, 55 N.J. 2, 5-6, 258 A.2d 706 (1969). Where, as here, plaintiff failed to adduce expert testimony on the essential element of liability, such failure will warrant dismissal of his personal injury action.
The Ski Statute clearly defines the respective liabilities of skiers and ski operators, and sets forth the duties of both and the assumption of risk borne by skiers. N.J.S.A. 5:13-1 to -5. The statute states that a skier’s assumption of risk under N.J.S.A. 5:13-5 bars recovery for injuries sustained due to “the inherent risks of skiing . . . created by weather conditions, conditions of snow, trails, slopes, other skiers, and all other inherent conditions.” N.J.S.A. 5:13-6 states that a skier’s assumption of risk:
shall be a complete bar of suit and shall serve as a complete defense to a suit against an operator by a skier for injuries resulting from the assumed risks, . . . unless an operator has violated his duties or responsibilities under this act, in which case the provisions of [comparative negligence] shall apply.
The Ski Statute imposes upon the ski operator a duty to “[r]emove as soon as practicable obvious, man-made hazards.” N.J.S.A. 5:13-3(a)(3). [*9] However, the statute expressly exempts a ski operator from liability for its failure to remove man-made hazards such as fencing or poles which are necessary for the normal operation of a ski resort, as follows:
No operator shall be responsible to any skier or other person because of its failure to [remove obvious man-made hazards] if such failure was caused by . . . the location of man-made facilities and equipment necessary for the ordinary operation of the ski area, such as . . . fencing of any type, racing poles, or any other object or piece of equipment utilized in connection with the maintenance of trails . . . used in connection with skiing.
[N.J.S.A. 5:13-3(b)(3) (emphasis added).]
In addition, a ski operator shall not be held liable for failure to remove obvious, man-made hazards unless the operator “has knowledge of the failure to [remove man-made hazards]” or “should have reasonably known of such condition and having such knowledge has had a reasonable time in which to correct [the] condition.” N.J.S.A. 5:13-3(d).
Plaintiff failed to present any evidence to support his allegations that the fence post was an obvious, man-made hazard; or that defendant had actual or constructive [*10] knowledge of an obvious, man-made hazard relating to plaintiff’s injuries; or that defendant failed to remove such a hazard within a reasonable time. Therefore, the trial judge correctly found that plaintiff failed to present sufficient evidence from which a jury could reasonably find that defendant failed to meet its duty under N.J.S.A. 5:13-3(a)(3) to “[r]emove as soon as practicable obvious, man-made hazards.” As the trial judge recognized, liability may not be imposed under the Ski Statute if a ski operator’s failure to comply with N.J.S.A. 5:13-3(a)(3) was caused by the “location of man-made facilities” that are “necessary for the ordinary operation of the ski area[.]”
In his decision on the record, the judge aptly observed that there was nothing inappropriate about the placement of the fence posts delineating the expert trail and the novice trail; and it was plaintiff’s burden to show, through expert testimony, that something had happened to the poles after their installation which rendered them hazardous and not “necessary for the ordinary operation” of the facility. The judge properly determined that plaintiff had not met his burden in this regard. Moreover, the judge rightly [*11] found that plaintiff had not presented any evidence to show that defendant was aware, or reasonably should have been aware, that the poles had become hazardous for a reasonable period of time in which to address that condition. Therefore, the judge correctly determined that the evidence presented by plaintiff, and the “legitimate inferences” that could be drawn from that evidence, were insufficient to “sustain a judgment in plaintiff’s favor.” R. 4:37-2(b).
Plaintiff additionally argues that the judge erred by limiting Hanst’s testimony at trial. Again, we disagree. A trial judge has the discretion to determine whether an expert is competent to testify. Carey v. Lovett, 132 N.J. 44, 64, 622 A.2d 1279 (1993). As we stated previously, the judge barred Hanst from testifying concerning the fencing on defendant’s premises because Hanst’s opinions were not based on the conditions that existed at the time plaintiff was injured. At trial, the judge also precluded Hanst from testifying that defendant should have had special “break away poles” and refused to permit Hanst to speculate as to whether weather conditions that might have existed at the time of the accident caused the PVC poles to become inflexible. [*12] None of those issues had been addressed in Hanst’s report. We are convinced that the judge did not abuse his discretion by limiting Hanst’s testimony.
Affirmed.

Whitman et al., v. Zeidman, 16 A.D.3d 197; 791 N.Y.S.2d 54; 2005 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 2505

Posted: October 10, 2011 | Author: Recreation Law | Filed under: Assumption of the Risk, Legal Case, New York, Skier v. Skier, Skiing / Snow Boarding | Tags: arranging, assumption of the risk, bunny, canceled, causal, Downhill, essons, failed to raise, instructing, interrupted, issue of fact, Negligence, novices, reasonable care, Reckless, risk of injury, risk-enhancing, ski area, Skier, skiing, Slope, snowboarding, sponsored, Sport, Summary judgment, supervising, trip | Leave a comment

Whitman et al., v. Zeidman, 16 A.D.3d 197; 791 N.Y.S.2d 54; 2005 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 2505
Harrison Whitman et al., Appellants, v. Michael Zeidman, an Infant, by Sarit Zeidman, His Parent and Legal Guardian, et al., Respondents.
5616
SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT
16 A.D.3d 197; 791 N.Y.S.2d 54; 2005 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 2505
March 15, 2005, Decided
March 15, 2005, Entered
CORE TERMS: lessons, snowboarding, risk of injury, summary judgment, failed to raise, issue of fact, reasonable care, risk-enhancing, supervising, instructing, interrupted, sponsored, arranging, downhill, reckless, canceled, skiing, novices, causal, skier, bunny, slope, sport, trip

COUNSEL: Law Offices of Renee Simon Lesser, P.C., New York (W. Matthew Sakkas of counsel), for appellants.
Acito, Klein & Candiloros, New York (Francesca A. Sabbatino of counsel), for Zeidman respondents.
Carol R. Finocchio, New York (Mary Ellen O’Brien of counsel), for National Council of Young Israel, respondent.
JUDGES: Concur–Buckley, P.J., Andrias, Friedman, Gonzalez, Sweeny, JJ.
OPINION
[*197] [**55] Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Shirley Werner Kornreich, J.), entered January 9, 2004, which granted defendants’ motion and cross motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint, unanimously affirmed, without costs.
Plaintiff Harrison Whitman was injured in a collision with defendant Michael Zeidman while snowboarding. By “engaging in a sport or recreational activity, a participant consents to those commonly appreciated risks which are inherent in and arise out of the nature of the sport generally and flow from such participation” ( [***2] Morgan v State of New York, 90 NY2d 471, 484, 685 NE2d 202, 662 NYS.2d 421 [1997]). The risk of injury caused by another skier is inherent in downhill skiing (General Obligations Law § 18-101). Defendant submitted proof that he did not engage in instances of reckless, intentional or other risk-enhancing conduct not inherent in snowboarding that might have caused the accident, and plaintiff failed to raise an issue of fact (see Kaufman v Hunter Mtn. Ski Bowl, 240 AD2d 371, 657 NYS2d 773 [1997], lv denied 91 NY2d 805, 668 NYS2d 560, 691 NE2d 632 [1998]).
Although defendant National Council of Young Israel sponsored the trip, it exercised reasonable care in supervising the participants by arranging for lessons to be provided, and once the lessons were canceled, instructing those who were novices to stay on the “bunny” slope (see generally Fintzi v New Jersey YMHA-YWHA Camps, 97 NY2d 669, 765 NE2d 288, 739 NYS2d 85 [2001]). Furthermore, the actions of the participants interrupted the causal link between National Council’s alleged negligence and plaintiff’s injury (see [***3] Boltax v Joy Day Camp, 67 NY2d 617, 490 NE2d 527, 499 NYS2d 660 [1986]). Concur–Buckley, P.J., Andrias, Friedman, Gonzalez and Sweeny, JJ.

It's not what I write, It's what you Learn

For an Analysis of this case see Tennessee has a Ski Statute that must be construed narrowly or if you don’t understand skiing, ignored

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§ 4169.01. Definitions

§ 4169.02. Ski tramway board established

§ 4169.03. Registration of passenger tramway operators

§ 4169.04. Inspections; report of violation

§ 4169.05. Written complaint alleging violation

§ 4169.06. Emergency order; investigation and order; suspension of certificate

§ 4169.07. Responsibilities of ski area operator and tramway passengers

§ 4169.08. Risks assumed by skier; responsibilities of operator and skier

§ 4169.09. Liability of operator, tramway passenger, freestyler, competitor, or skier

§ 4169.10. Operator’s liability to violators of theft statute

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225-A:1 Declaration of Policy.

225-A:1-a Administratively Attached.

225-A:2 Definitions.

225-A:3 Passenger Tramway Safety Board.

225-A:3-a Passenger Tramway Safety Board.

225-A:4 Term of Office.

225-A:4-a Term of Office.

225-A:5 Removal.

225-A:5-a Removal.

225-A:6 Compensation.

225-A:6-a Compensation.

225-A:7 Records.

225-A:7-a Records.

225-A:8 Rulemaking.

225-A:9 Declaratory Judgment.

225-A:9-a Declaratory Judgment.

225-A:10 Inspections.

225-A:10-a Review of Plans and Specifications.

225-A:11 Operator to Pay Certain Costs.

225-A:12 Inspection Reports.

225-A:13 Complaints.

225-A:14 Registration Required.

225-A:15 Application for Registration.

225-A:16 Fees.

225-A:17 Registration.

225-A:18 Fees.

225-A:18-a Emergency Shut-Down.

225-A:19 Orders.

225-A:19-a Operation Forbidden.

225-A:20 Hearing.

225-A:21 Appeal.

225-A:23 Responsibilities of the Ski Area Operator.

225-A:24 Responsibilities of Skiers and Passengers.

225-A:25 Insurance; Limitations.

225-A:26 Penalty.

227:14 Reduced Rates.

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Nevada Skier Safety Act

1.1 NEVADA REVISED STATUTES ANNOTATED

Table of Contents

455A.010. Short title.

455A.020. Definitions.

455A.023. “Chair lift” defined.

455A.027. “Operator” defined.

455A.030. “Passenger” defined.

455A.035. “Patrol” defined.

455A.040. Transferred.

455A.050. Transferred.

455A.060. Transferred.

455A.070. “Skier” defined.

455A.075. “Skiing” defined.

455A.080. Transferred.

455A.083. “Snow recreation area” defined.

455A.085. “Snowboarder” defined.

455A.087. “Snowboarding” defined.

455A.090. “Surface lift” defined.

455A.100. Prohibited acts while on chair lift; skiing or snowboarding in area posted as closed prohibited.

455A.110. Duties of skiers and snowboarders.

455A.120. Prohibited acts.

455A.130. Signs at chair lifts: Requirements; inspection.

455A.140. Slopes, runs and trails: System of signs required; vehicles used by operator to be equipped with light.

1. An operator shall post and maintain a system of signs:

2. An operator shall equip vehicles it uses on or in the vicinity of a slope, run or trail with a light visible to skiers or snowboarders when the vehicle is in motion.