Letter: Safety on the mountain starts with you

Are fast skiers the problem on our mountains? Most of us who ski well love the feeling of controlled speed, and Aspen Mountain is made for that — thus the World Cup, 24-hour race, etc. — and it is an expert mountain after all, and Aspen is full of expert skiers.

Having been hammered by an out-of-control tourist on Atomic race skis made me a bit apprehensive about skiing ever again, but there is something about skiing and skiing fast that cannot be replaced. Naturally, that does not mean blowing through Tortilla Flats or Silver Bell, scaring tourists and locals alike where common sense should prevail.

The ski patrol has a lot of duties, and most important, you want it available to get you down the mountain as quickly as possible when you’re injured. Yes, the ski patrol can help, but if it stood patrolling every run, you could be in for a long wait.

If you ski Aspen Mountain, you should be very comfortable on black terrain, which these days seems almost empty. Ajax has the best rugged, varied terrain anywhere, plus the snow is better, your skiing will improve, and roaming the mountain never becomes routine. The answer is up to us to patrol ourselves and just use common sense and realize that as in-control as you think you are, the person you scare does not see it that way. The last thing that anyone wants is to badly injure someone.

Sue Kern

Aspen