A Wicked Case of the Mondays

Transworld Snowboarding recently reported that Vail Resorts, the owners of Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, A-Basin, and Heavenly shred hills, is making it mandatory for all employees to wear helmets while skiing or riding starting next season. Really? I mean c'mon... That's a little, um, brutal if you ask me. Don't get me wrong now, I'm all for safety on the mountain and protecting your melon while riding, I wear a helmet most all the time, but to make it mandatory of all employees is a little much.

A vast majority of the on hill employees are ski and ride school and are teaching little kids how to... ski and ride. And most of the time they're just eeking their way down the mountain, waiting for their pupils to follow. Occasionally I see an instructor riding with a private lesson where the kid can actually make turns, and maybe they'll take a couple laps through the mini park, but pretty much all the lessons are a bunch of beginners within a group. And a lot of the time the instructors don't even have both feet strapped in! So how much is a helmet really going to help them?

Like baby-sitting... I mean teaching a bunch of screaming little kids how to ride for $8 an hour isn't bad enough, now the instructors have to wear helmets to accompany their already lame uniform. This is something I guarantee they're NOT going to be stoked on. I know a couple instructors who complain about the job so much already, I can only imagine what they're saying now. It might not be so bad if it was a rad looking, skate inspired helmet or something, but I'd put all my money on it looking like this:

Haha! I can picture a mountain full of these babies covering the domes of many a disgruntled worker. I like the idea of a commitment to safety by Vail Resorts, but for the love of God, let the employees keep some of their dignity!

Thoughts on this anyone?

Read all about the new rule...