Artificial slope as risky as the real thing

Putting a snowy ski slope into Auckland's back yard has brought to the city an increase in the kinds of injuries common at mountain resorts.

The closest hospital to the Silverdale indoor ski and snowboarding centre has noticed a sharp increase in orthopaedic injuries since the Snowplanet opened in March.

"There are wrist and ankle injuries and the occasional more serious thing," said North Shore Hospital's clinical director of orthopaedic surgery, John Cullen.

Injuries ranged from "things that don't come to hospital, to the occasional back injury".

"One of our registrars is having a look at the numbers."

Snowplanet managing director Eduard Ebbinge would not disclose the centre's injury rate, but said it was "consistent with what you could normally expect. Snow sports in our environment is not materially different from any other snow sports environment in New Zealand".

"It's a slope designed for the beginner and intermediate mark, for people to get into snow sports and have a good time.

"We've got an extensive programme to promote safe use of our environment."

Snowplanet offers customers free use of helmets and, with help from the Accident Compensation Corporation, provides free wrist guards to snowboarders.

Mike Smith, the marketing manager of Ruapehu Alpine Lifts, which owns the Turoa and Whakapapa skifields, said their combined injury rate was 3 to 4 per 1000 visitors, which translated to 30-44 injured people on a busy weekend day.

They ranged from a sprained thumb to serious injuries.

ACC says wearing wrist guards is particularly important for learner snowboarders, who sustain the greatest number of wrist injuries on the slopes.

Snowboarding is riskier than ski-ing, industry figures indicate, although more people ski than board - 60 per cent as opposed to 40 per cent at Ruapehu.

ACC accepted 695 new claims for moderate to severe snow sport injuries in the last financial year, at a cost of $3.8 million.

The injured all required at least a week off work and the largest group of them, 194, suffered knee injuries. Injured hands and wrists accounted for 70 of the claims.

For moderate to severe injuries, snow sport claimants cost ACC on average $5506 last year, compared with $3665 for rugby claimants.

Paying the bills

$5506 average cost to ACC from snow sport claimants with moderate to severe injuries last year.
$3665 average cost for rugby claimants.