A friend who was noodling around the AccuWeather site today found a blog post, “Why Have Midwestern Towns Banned a Beloved Winter Pastime?”
The piece, which seems like it might just sit in a slush pile on AccuWeather’s newsdesk and await recycling every snow season, discusses a few horrible sledding injury lawsuits that drained the coffers of Omaha, Nebraska and Sioux City, Iowa. Then it adds:
According to a study from The Center for Injury Research and Policy (CIRP) at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, more than 20,000 Americans younger than age 19 receive treatment for sledding-related injuries each year.
It goes on to offer tips from the National Safety Council:
To ensure safety, the group suggests that parents ensure all sledding equipment is in good condition, with no cracks or sharp edges.
The council also suggests selecting “spacious, gently sloping hills with a level run-off at the end so the sled can safely stop” and to inspect the slopes prior to check for gaps, fences or anything else that could obstruct the ride. It also warns against sledding near frozen bodies of water.
And:
[D]o not leave children under the age of 10 to sled unattended.
And buy sleds with brakes and steering mechanisms:
[T]hey’re very much worth the investment.”
Turning a sickly shade of green with pointy fingers and an evil grin, I must now rant about everything that is wrong about this article, this advice, this country, and (go big or go to Whoville) this world. What is Grinch-ifying me?
1 – That people can sue towns when their kids get hurt sledding. This forces the towns to simply ban it — not worth the financial risk. But is a town always to blame when someone gets hurt? The belief that there is a culprit (and potential pot of gold) behind every injury means every person and group has to adopt a CYA mentality and forbid a bunch of normal activities, for fear of litigation. (See
this article on a school that won’t let kids walk home without a chaperone.)
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2 – The “helpful” advice that makes it sound like parents should spend days hunting for the perfect hill that they then must minutely inspect, as if for landmines. Can’t kids even select their own hill?
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3 – Then the parents have to stick around for a decade until their kids are 10.
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4 – The idea that the parents also have to check the equipment for sharp edges, etc. This kind of advice is not just annoying. It is changing how we think of kids (always endangered!) and parents (always on high alert!) and stuff (always untrustworthy unless brand new!).
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5 – It feels as if “experts” are wracking their brains for yet another thing to warn parents about. But they forgot yellow snow?
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6 – The source of this advice. Nationwide is a hospital named for the insurance company that gifted it with $50 million. Now the hospital routinely churns out papers on the dangers of…everything. A true cynic might even wonder if they are busy labeling everything “hazardous” just so they might not have to pay out insurance claims, because, hey, the public was warned! Here is a partial list of studies conducted by Nationwide Hospital’s Dr. Gary Smith:
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“Microwave Oven-Related Injuries Treated in Hospital Emergency Departments in the United States, 1990-2010;” “Softball Injuries Treated in US Emergency Departments, 1994-2010;” “Volleyball-Related Injuries…” “Pediatric inflatable bouncer-related injuries…” “Sledding-related injuries among children…” “Safety Interventions and Liquid Laundry Detergent Packet Exposures…” “Stair-Related Injuries to Young Children… “ And possibly my favorite: “Children Treated in United States Emergency Departments for Door-Related Injuries, 1999-2008.”
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Scary to think that some kids might not only go sledding on an improperly sloping hill on a sled with a improperly sanded plank, but then come inside — passing through a DOOR!
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To sum up, the advice seems to be:
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YOUR KIDS ARE IN HORRIBLE DANGER IF YOU LET THEM DO THE FUN THING YOU USED TO DO.
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TAKE PRECAUTIONS. BUY INSURANCE. SAY YOUR PRAYERS.
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AND HAVE FUN!
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