Have you ever wondered what it was like to volunteer to help save lives and prevent injuries… on your skis?
The Canadian ski patrol’s Saskatchewan division will be hosting Ski With The Patrol day at five Saskatchewan ski hills on March 12.
“We have the means to, if you were halfway up the hill, and you fall and hurt yourself and can’t ski, we’ve got rescue toboggans to pull you down with and ways to get you off the hill,” said John Humbert, vice president of patrol development with Canadian Ski Patrol. “As well as that, we do spend quite a bit of time doing accident prevention.”
Humbert said it’s a chance to pull back the curtain on what ski patrollers do in an average day.
“It’s two things, one is to explain to people what it is we do, if people are curious,” he said. “And the other thing is we’re all volunteers, and we’re always looking for more members and this is a chance for people to see what it is we do.”
He said they are first responders and have a nearly 60-hour first aid course.
“A lot of it is done online now, but it’s a very hands-on first aid course,” Humbert said. “We spend very little time with theory and most of our time is spent doing the practical things.”
Humbert said people will be able to see some of the equipment they use, outline the training requirements and explain how people can become a member of their organization.
Skiers must be at least intermediate level skiers or snowboarders, but they will provide CPR and first aid training in the fall. The locations around Saskatchewan and nearby ski hills are: Mission Ridge, Asessippi (Inglis, Man.), Duck Mountain, Mount Joy (Lloydminster, Alta.), Table Mountain, Wapiti Valley and White Butte.
Anyone interested can register at joinus.sask@skipatrol.ca or for more information, head to www.sask.skipatrol.ca.
