You see them everywhere. On the slopes at Hidden Valley Highlands Ski Area, their red jackets are unmistakable. At local sporting events and festivals, their red tent is equally visible. Always, they are ready to spring into action in a medical emergency or mishap.
They’ve been there to help you; now the Canadian Ski Patrol Muskoka Zone needs you. With declining membership over the past few years, they are reaching out to find community-minded people looking for a rewarding way to give back. And you don’t have to be a skier.
“We do so many events in the summer now that we are (out there) 12 months of the year,” says Jodie Marc Lalonde, President of the Canadian Ski Patrol Muskoka Zone. Ski patrollers are the first responders at the ski hill, providing first aid to skiers and snowboarders who take a tumble. While some patrollers need to be able to get to accidents high on the hill, others can be stationed at the chalet to provide care there or nearby.
The ski patrol also provides medical assistance at sporting events and festivals like Ironman Muskoka, Band on the Run, the Algonquin Outfitters Muskoka River X, local triathlons, and the recent ONtour outdoor concert, tending to competitors’ injuries and assessing their ability to continue, or treating festival-goers’ ailments. “You don’t need to be able to ski to help,” says Lalonde.
Those events also function as fundraisers – the fees paid by event organizers help to purchase equipment so that the volunteer patrollers can continue to do the good things they do. “That’s where we make our money to sustain ourselves.”
The ski patrol’s major fundraiser – the annual Ski Swap and Sale on the Thanksgiving long weekend at Hidden Valley Highlands Ski Area – isn’t far off, either.
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- The Canadian Ski Patrol Muskoka Zone provide medical assistance at local events…
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- …sometimes even by bike!
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- Patrollers’ red jackets are an instantly recognizable sight
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- Toboggans are used to get injured skiers off the slopes
So what does it take to be a ski patroller? A willingness to help is number one. Patrollers also receive some of the most comprehensive first aid and CPR training around.
In Muskoka, that training and testing is delivered over four weekends beginning in late September. Existing patrollers recertify every year. The skills you can use anywhere.
“The benefit of those transferable skills is huge,” says Lalonde. “It has helped me personally. I have done things with my own family that, if I hadn’t been a ski patroller, I don’t know what the outcome would have been.” He notes, too, that the training and experience is ideal for students heading into a healthcare career. Those between 16 and 18 years of age just need a recommendation letter and parental permission. The volunteer hours can be used for high school credit.
The training does come with a cost, but the organization provides a basic uniform – patrollers just provide their own ski pants and helmet – and those who ski or snowboard receive a lift pass for the season.
Being a volunteer ski patroller is also a good way for emergency services professionals – nurses, doctors, paramedics, police officers and firefighters – to extend their training into the community. An adapted training course is available for those already in the field.
“We are looking for a few good people,” says Lalonde. If you are one of them, contact Jodie Marc Lalonde at [email protected] or visit skipatrolmuskoka.ca for more information.
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