Do you know anyone who has been hurt snow tubing?

ADisneyQueen

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Mar 21, 2005
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My dd11 wants to have a birthday snow tubing party. I got hurt there going down the hill 2 years ago and hurt my back. I'm worried about someone getting hurt during the party and also my daughter does competition cheerleading in the winter and I don't want her to be out for the season due to an injury. I know you are laughing b/c cheer is probably more dangerous than snow tubing but she loves cheer so much!:lmao:
 
Without knowing where you live, or what time of year your kids b-day is... How can you be 100% sure there will actually be snow at the time of her birthday? ...Unless its an indoor place... We don't have anything like that around me, which is a good thing, because I wouldn't be into it at all. I hate birthday parties where I have to sign a waver because my kid may break her back. Doesn't make me feel safe.
 
My dd11 wants to have a birthday snow tubing party. I got hurt there going down the hill 2 years ago and hurt my back. I'm worried about someone getting hurt during the party and also my daughter does competition cheerleading in the winter and I don't want her to be out for the season due to an injury. I know you are laughing b/c cheer is probably more dangerous than snow tubing but she loves cheer so much!:lmao:

There is your answer.
 
I would leave it up to the parents to decide. They have to sign a release anyway.
 

I know an adult who slipped off and broke his tailbone (but he was in his 50s so maybe if he was younger the same incident wouldn't have cased that kind of injury).

Last summer my DD's boyfriend had a party where they were gone on a slip and slide on flat grass. One of the boys broke an ankle and had to go to the ER. I know not the same thing, but when gets get into rough activities they can get hurt...but most do not.
 
Tubing/sledding accidents are more common than skiing and snowboarding accidents according to the local ER.
 
My son's friend was in 7th grade when he was injured tubing. He was at bottom of hill, kinda bent over and starting to get up. An adult didn't see him and plowed into him. Caused severe spinal cord damage. Other problem was how long it look emergency personnel to get to him on the mountain where they were. Was in rehab for quite some time. Paralyzed at first, in a wheelchair. Slowly got feeling back in legs and used crutches. Last time we saw him, he still wore braces on his legs but could walk unassissted (2.5yrs later).

Accidents happen anywhere, anytime though.
 
yes, a friend of mine as an adult (in her mid 30's) when it happened. She broke her foot somehow. She was a very avid runner--ran many marathons including the "Goofy Challenge" at Disney and many others. She wasn't able to run for over a year after her snow tubing accident though. :(
 
well, we live in PA and her bday is this month. The place is already open and we have a lot of snow here! They make snow too.
I was just wondering if my injury was due to being older- I'm 42! I'm leaning towards not doing it. There is a liability waiver which is understandable but makes you second guess doing it.
 
I have not known anybody injured on a professionally run slope. I love tubing. We have a place near here that does skiing, snowboarding, and tubing. They have employees at the top who tell you when it is safe to go down, and they also have their own "mountain" emergency personnel. Since they make sure people are seated correctly and are spaced appropriately I have not seen any accidents.

Now, I did know somebody who died tubing, but it was not at a monitored place. Our college was built on a large hill and our field hockey field was in a giant bowl. It was a popular place to tube, but we weren't supposed to after dark. Nobody followed that rule and security looked the other way. A girl in my class was tubing with some friends. Their tube rotated and she ended up hitting her head on a goal post and died. Now, this was a freak accident. If you are going someplace that is monitored or does not have large obstacles, this will not be a problem.

I think it sounds like a fun party, as long as you use some common sense you will probably be okay.
 
A few years ago, a neighbor (she was about 10yo at the time) broke her leg. She was sitting on the tube going down the hill. One leg slipped to the side and her boot got caught on something. She had two fractures in her femur and was in a hip spika cast for several weeks.


Accidents can happen anywhere
 
A good friend of mine was seriously injured last year when she took her grandchildren tubing. She was at the bottom of the run and was hit by child coming down. She broke her collar bone and a number of ribs, also punctured a lung. She was in the hospital quite a long time, and recovery was months.

Both of my kids snowboard, 1 of them works at a snowboarding camp in OR and neither of them have had any injuries at all. I guess it is just a matter of luck.
 
When I was a senior in high school (just a couple of years ago ;) ) I got a serious concussion snow tubing. This was not at a facility, just out on a hill with friends. We had been down the hill several times, and the decided to go down all together holding hands. I'm told my tube hit a ramp/ bump in the snow and the tube and I both went airborne, but didn't come back down together. I landed face first. I had some serious scrapes - one half of my face was stabbed over for a couple of weeks - I spent a few hours in theER getting checked out and I missed a week of school because of the concussion, dizziness and headaches. I was lucky not to have any permanent injuries. If I still lived somewhere that sledding was possible, I think I would let my kids go if it was somewhere professionally managed....
 
I have not known anybody injured on a professionally run slope. I love tubing. We have a place near here that does skiing, snowboarding, and tubing. They have employees at the top who tell you when it is safe to go down, and they also have their own "mountain" emergency personnel. Since they make sure people are seated correctly and are spaced appropriately I have not seen any accidents.

Now, I did know somebody who died tubing, but it was not at a monitored place. Our college was built on a large hill and our field hockey field was in a giant bowl. It was a popular place to tube, but we weren't supposed to after dark. Nobody followed that rule and security looked the other way. A girl in my class was tubing with some friends. Their tube rotated and she ended up hitting her head on a goal post and died. Now, this was a freak accident. If you are going someplace that is monitored or does not have large obstacles, this will not be a problem.

I think it sounds like a fun party, as long as you use some common sense you will probably be okay.

Hidden Valley maybe?

I live right near it and have never gone, I am a chicken....:duck:

OP, I would do a trial run first with just your dd, family, etc...
 
I've gone a few times, and my kids have gone with us and with church a few times. We've never been hurt. My DS did fall out of the tube once, but he was not hurt.

Of course, the next day- I was SORE- but that is because I am old and out of shape!
 
Hidden Valley maybe?

I live right near it and have never gone, I am a chicken....:duck:

OP, I would do a trial run first with just your dd, family, etc...

I worked there one Winter while in college - free lift passes for employees woohoo!!
 
I'm 36 and still bear the reminders of a terrible sledding accident I had as a child. My sister sent me down the hill on my stomach, head first where I collided with another sledder...with my face. Cracked his sled clean down the middle...WITH MY FACE. I spent hours in the ER. Nerve damage and permanent scarring to the muscle (I can feel a dent in my left cheekbone to this day). When it gets cold or I cry, the left side of my face lights up like a beacon.
 
Yes. Me, twice, my daughter, and my minister.

First time, I was going down and caught up to my daughter. We cracked heads. She just got a black eye. I split my eyebrow. Blood dripping all over the snow. I ended up with a black eye too. I could see that I was getting closer and closer to her, but couldn't stop the tube in time.

Second time, I went down, with our minister beside me, at a youth club function. It was a different place, and a short run, with padded cushions at the end. Both of us slammed very hard into the cushions. I ended up getting x-rays a few days later, and so did he. Neither of us broke anything, but were both very very sore for days.

I also ski, very frequently. Have had season passes many times over the 20 or so years I've been skiing. I once twisted my knee skiing, when I hit an ice patch. Last winter, I skied at Stowe, and fell on an unfamiliar slope, and pulled a muscle in my shoulder. Other than that, no ski injuries.

Snow tubing is much more dangerous than skiing. You're almost totally out of control, and usually going very fast.
 
Just read more of the thread. The head-cracking incident? Was at Hidden Valley. That's where I worked too!! I also got the free season pass when I worked there! We all learned to ski that winter there!! OMG!!

The other incident was at Laurel Mountain. It's closed now, alas.
 














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