Safety Bars and Park Culture.

Johngreenacre

Johngreenacre

Member
In the wake of the recent and unfortunate death in PA caused by a fall from a lift, I think it would be really interesting to discuss the culture about riding the lift without the safety bar down. I am certainly an offender, but also have no problem with riding with the bar down. It feels like one of those things where you think everyone else wants it up so you leave it, while everyone else thinks the same.

Does anyone really like riding without the bar? Does your crew ride with or without? Why?
 
topic:Johngreenacre said:
In the wake of the recent and unfortunate death in PA caused by a fall from a lift, I think it would be really interesting to discuss the culture about riding the lift without the safety bar down. I am certainly an offender, but also have no problem with riding with the bar down. It feels like one of those things where you think everyone else wants it up so you leave it, while everyone else thinks the same.

Does anyone really like riding without the bar? Does your crew ride with or without? Why?
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There are no bars at buckhill but those lifts are like 200 feet long, but when I lived in CO and NY we never really put it down unless one of the snowboarder kids we rode with needed it to strap on the lift(saves everyone time), but honestly we didn't put it down because it made us feel like thugs or something maybe, and if you did you wouldn't say so because everyone else will think you're a pussy.
 
I can sort of get why people don’t wear helmets if you find it comfy and more stylish with a beanie. I still wear a helmet but if you don’t fancy it then fine.

but as someone from Europe where the bar always goes down or the lifties stop the lift and yell, why tf would you not put the bar down when you’re that high?? It’s comfy to rest your arms on and has 0 drawbacks. Somebody pls explain as I’ve never understood the mentality
 
For me it depends on the safety bar. The ones with footrests are tight but the ones without can be a little annoying, especially when they're made for tiny kids and I have to duck to get under it. The bar at the mtn I'm skiin at right now is super low and tiny I doubt it would even stop me from falling off. If the bar is well designed I'll use it 100% though
 
In High School, we used to call the bar the "PCB" or Pussy Canadian Bar because everyone in Canada was adamant about using it. Putting it down was a good way to get kicked out of the ski crew back in the day, it was like showing up to the BMX park with training wheels. I personally dont really care now that I am older, I do like the ones that have a trail map printed on the bar so I can check what runs I want to hit for the next lap.

Edit for all the downvotes- This was 15 years ago back when we were dumb kids and not in any way what I feel about this now, just a reflection on what we thought which is what the OP was asking for.

**This post was edited on Jan 4th 2019 at 4:31:00pm
 
13980946:SuspiciousFish said:
In High School, we used to call the bar the "PCB" or Pussy Canadian Bar because everyone in Canada was adamant about using it. Putting it down was a good way to get kicked out of the ski crew back in the day, it was like showing up to the BMX park with training wheels. I personally dont really care now that I am older, I do like the ones that have a trail map printed on the bar so I can check what runs I want to hit for the next lap.
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Triggered
 
just as comfy with or without, prefer without but when kids get on with us on that bar goes down - aint wanna be responsible for that nonsense. kids are clumsy af and will run into your legs in plain daylight, cant trust those nuggets with the bar up.
 
No one leaves the bar up to seem cool. It’s left up because it’s a laziness thing. I personally never put it down because of this reason.

If I’m riding up the lift and some one puts it down I don’t mind at all, but if you don’t say anything and smack me in the head with it then fuck you I won’t let you put it down.
 
13980979:DIRTYBUBBLE said:
No one leaves the bar up to seem cool. It’s left up because it’s a laziness thing. I personally never put it down because of this reason.

If I’m riding up the lift and some one puts it down I don’t mind at all, but if you don’t say anything and smack me in the head with it then fuck you I won’t let you put it down.
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this is facts
 
My home mountain (Snowy Range, WY) doesn't have bars on any of the lifts. Some of them get 40-50ft high at some points. I am really surprised accidents don't happen more often. Lots of new skiiers at Snowy, bars would be a nice addition. When I go to bigger resorts I just let the other folks on the chair decide, I am not the lap bar police but I also don't get bitchy if someone wants to use it.
 
13981022:DZook41 said:
My home mountain (Snowy Range, WY) doesn't have bars on any of the lifts. Some of them get 40-50ft high at some points. I am really surprised accidents don't happen more often. Lots of new skiiers at Snowy, bars would be a nice addition.
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Do you mind me asking how much a day pass is there?
 
13980897:XxAc1DtR1PxX said:
I never ride with the bar down, but if I'm with people who chuck it down that's no biggie.
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Fuck riding ruapehu without the bar down. All the aggressive e-stops, plus the death ice and rocks below every lift..I catch those chairs every day all season and I still bar down.
 
Maybe im just older and more mature... but i judge skiers based on their skiing... not the bar being up or down. Id slap the top sheet off someone if they had a negative opinion about someone putting down the bar. With that said - our crew rides with it up, if things get dicey or you need to adjust gear then we swing it down. But wed never judge someone if they want to put it down... cause thats first grade s**t. Worry about yourself.
 
most of my friends are intermediate and like it down so im used to it. i don't mind being able to slouch forward and foot rests are great if you are out of shape.
 
Even if falling didn't exist I would use it. Foot rests and being able to lean forward onto the bar are awesome.
 
Sometimes I put it down, sometimes I don't but it's not a bad thing. I don't mind putting it down. It's nice to lean on sometimes. Usually more likely to use the ones with footrests.

I don't care either way, but people who don't put it down because they think it's cooler are lolz. I've heard kids in lessons begging to keep it up before. Like look how cool we are.

Regardless, just don't fall of the damn lift.
 
I find the culture of the mountain has something to do with it too. I went to winter park a few seasons ago and almost every single chair, somebody was asking to put the bar down. I just got back from skiing the cottonwoods in Utah, and not once did somebody put the bar down. I love the bar because they are comfy, but I didn't want to feel like that guy who has to be a party pooper for the rest of the locals.
 
I have never fallen off a chair sitting at the table during dinner. Being on a lift and higher off the ground doesn't make it more likely that I'm going to randomly eat it off of the chair unless I am either fucking around or there are extreme weather conditions. Just don't suck at sitting on chairs and there shouldn't be a problem
 
I put it down because my boots fit like a dream when I'm skiing and my weight is loaded on my feet, but after a while they start to hurt when they're just hanging there. Footrest is much more comfortable
 
Personally I hate chairlifts. I always get attacks of vertigo and get wicked adrenaline rushes from them if the bar is up. Keeping the bar down helps not getting falling premonitions at the highest spots.

Plus I always hunch over the bar to rest my core.
 
My balls are really big and heavy so I just keep an extra low centre of gravity but I can see why your vaginas prevent you from feeling safe way up there
 
13981143:Quaff said:
I have never fallen off a chair sitting at the table during dinner. Being on a lift and higher off the ground doesn't make it more likely that I'm going to randomly eat it off of the chair unless I am either fucking around or there are extreme weather conditions. Just don't suck at sitting on chairs and there shouldn't be a problem
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I wish there was a requirement to explain downvotes. It's not my fault you can't sit on a chair you dumb shits.
 
I agree with whoever just mentioned laziness. That's how it is for me, I just don't care enough to put it down. It's also annoying how you have to duck your head in, and everyone has to scoot to the right spot to make sure your ski pants dont get caught underneath the little peg. It just causes a lot of problems.

The truth is though, ski chairs are slanted backwards so that gravity is literally pulling you into you seat. If you have every intent to stay on the chair, you will stay on the chair. It's not like riding a mechanical bull or anything.

I'm not sure what the exact scenario was for the first kid in PA that fell, but for the more recent one, didn't they just jump off on purpose? That's the thing that leads me to believe the lack of a bar isn't an issue. For little kids, that's a whole other story, but for this, there's not much you can do to keep people from making unsafe choices other than to chain them to the chair with a padlock.
 
13981313:J_S said:
I agree with whoever just mentioned laziness. That's how it is for me, I just don't care enough to put it down. It's also annoying how you have to duck your head in, and everyone has to scoot to the right spot to make sure your ski pants dont get caught underneath the little peg. It just causes a lot of problems.

The truth is though, ski chairs are slanted backwards so that gravity is literally pulling you into you seat. If you have every intent to stay on the chair, you will stay on the chair. It's not like riding a mechanical bull or anything.

I'm not sure what the exact scenario was for the first kid in PA that fell, but for the more recent one, didn't they just jump off on purpose? That's the thing that leads me to believe the lack of a bar isn't an issue. For little kids, that's a whole other story, but for this, there's not much you can do to keep people from making unsafe choices other than to chain them to the chair with a padlock.
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Word.

They definitely are better and safer than if they didn't exist, but they aren't even close to perfect. It's still possible to get hurt with them. I believe that 90 percent of what they actually do is just comfort the passengers, whether it's peace of mind or just a way to rest your feet. If someone wanted to mess around on the chair and risk falling, the safety bar won't do anything to protect them. Unless it's super windy or a sketchy lift, I feel safe enough without it, so my laziness takes over and I go without.
 
The bars at my local mountain barely fit in front anyone because they’re designed to fit closer around the waist than normal. I ride with it up because it’s a pain to lean in weird ways to make it fit in front of you as well as I get claustrophobic with it down. That being said if anyone wants to put it down I’m fine with it, just personally I don’t like putting it down.
 
13980923:Julius_Steezer said:
I can sort of get why people don’t wear helmets if you find it comfy and more stylish with a beanie. I still wear a helmet but if you don’t fancy it then fine.

but as someone from Europe where the bar always goes down or the lifties stop the lift and yell, why tf would you not put the bar down when you’re that high?? It’s comfy to rest your arms on and has 0 drawbacks. Somebody pls explain as I’ve never understood the mentality
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I just prefer to not have it down, its more comfortable that way for me. I'm not an idiot, i'm not just going to fall off the lift. Do you just randomly fall out of chairs when you go to lunch?
 
13981351:CLQ said:
I just prefer to not have it down, its more comfortable that way for me. I'm not an idiot, i'm not just going to fall off the lift. Do you just randomly fall out of chairs when you go to lunch?
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No but then again I don’t eat lunch 10m in the air with possible high winds and solid snow below me
 
Industry standard is to call them comfort bars not safety bars because statistically speaking they don't cause a decrease in lift accidents. Calling them safety bars also creates the illusion that having the bar down means you won't fall and gives a false sense of security. A drastic e stop on a lift can cause people to fall off if they're seated improperly, regardless of whether or not the bar is down.
 
13981415:TubeBro said:
When I was growing up in Colorado, there no bars on any lift. I must be old AF.
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Same, pretty much any lift that isn't high speed doesn't have the bar. It seems most incidents you hear about are on lifts with the bar, not those without.
 
13981408:Daph said:
A drastic e stop on a lift can cause people to fall off if they're seated improperly, regardless of whether or not the bar is down.
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But having the bar down absolutely will decrease your chances of falling if there's an emergency stop for the 99% of people who know how to sit properly.
 
13981426:VinnieF said:
But having the bar down absolutely will decrease your chances of falling if there's an emergency stop for the 99% of people who know how to sit properly.
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The way lifts are designed, both with the seat and stopping profile, if you're seated properly you shouldn't fall out
 
13981357:Julius_Steezer said:
No but then again I don’t eat lunch 10m in the air with possible high winds and solid snow below me
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Where are you skiing that you are scared of wind knocking you out of your seat? There has literally been 1 time where I put down the bar due to the wind.
 
I honestly can’t imagine being so lazy that you’re not willing to pull a bar down. To me, it’s no inconvenience and makes it a bit safer esp if some accident happens. Is there really any valid reason to not put it down?
 
I don't mind the bar, but I can't stand it when as soon as my butt hits the seat the bar comes flying down and dents my helmet. Its almost always a jerry wiith a gang of youngins. Just wait a few seconds then say you're putting the bar down.
 
If I don't know you, the bar is coming down. Mostly because I don't mind having that conversation as I have it all day long while I'm working so I'm used to it. Most beginners I encounter seem to prefer it down but they're to afraid of looking like a jerry.

Also.. seizures.. no joke. At least a few a year. Actually had one where I work yesterday and from what I've heard through the grape vine, his friends saved his life. No idea if the bar was down or not but.. yeah. Happens more than you think.
 
13981486:TheVictator said:
I honestly can’t imagine being so lazy that you’re not willing to pull a bar down. To me, it’s no inconvenience and makes it a bit safer esp if some accident happens. Is there really any valid reason to not put it down?
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Cause I don't feel like it.
 
The worst is the bars that have supports that go down to the seat, usually on quads. Jerries love slamming them down right on you.
 
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