Winter Park – The worst part of patrolling ski slopes? It’s not stringing miles of rope, not the cold, not even navigating steep slopes with a laden sled.
“Dealing with poachers is such a hassle. Everyone’s got a smart mouth. Everyone’s got a reason for being in a closed area,” said Jim Hersman, who has patrolled Winter Park’s slopes since 1971. “We like getting things open as soon as possible to eliminate that hassle.”
Hersman estimates this year is one of his quietest when it comes to chasing down rope-ducking scofflaws. He credits the sharpened teeth in the venerable Colorado Skier Safety Act, which lawmakers last year revised to increase the fine for resort violations from $300 to $1,000.
Signs are up at many resorts warning skiers that boundary and closure violations can cost up to $1,000. The signs put the onus on the skier to know what’s open and what’s not. Just because there’s not a rope doesn’t mean it’s open, is the message.
“It is your responsibility to know; just because you cut into the woods is not an excuse,” said Geoff Anders, Winter Park’s patrol director. “People are pretty ignorant of the rules and … we are just trying to give people a heads-up. They don’t pay much attention to the $300 because that’s usually cut in half, but they definitely pay attention to $1,000.”
The increased maximum fine, proposed last year by state Rep. Gary Lindstrom, D-Breckenridge, stemmed from steady annual increases in volunteer-staffed searches for missing skiers who left resort boundaries. An ancillary benefit may be corralling skiers who envision a $1,000 hit along with face shots when pondering poaching powder in a closed area inside the boundaries.
“So far this season, we’ve seen less closure violators,” said Hagen Lyle, Copper’s patrol manager. “Our efforts to educate the public on the repercussions of closure and boundary violations have made an impact. … It’s a slow process educating folks, but it seems to be making a difference.”
Summit County’s four ski areas called sheriff’s deputies nine times in November to contact boundary violators, said Paula Horr, spokeswoman for the Summit County Sheriff’s Department. Horr said it’s too early to tell if the new fines are having an impact.
The first violators to be charged under the revised law – four teens nabbed ducking ropes in early November at Keystone and Arapahoe Basin – face a district judge in early January. When word spreads on their fines, then the real impact of the increased fines could be more readily visible, Horr said.
Kevin Ahearn, director of ski patrol at Breckenridge, said the bounty of early snow this year has helped deter rope duckers, because more runs are open.
“The decent snow is as big as anything that keeps violators in check a little bit,” Ahearn said.
Staff writer Jason Blevins can be reached at 303-954-1374 or jblevins@denverpost.com.
