Keeping warm
There’s a lot of emphasis put on fashion when it comes to ski gear, but the most important thing of all is that it must keep you warm and dry.
If it doesn’t, the unpredictable nature of alpine weather could leave you vulnerable to hypothermia or worse. On a less life-threatening note, being cold and wet does not make for a fun skiing experience!
What clothing is best?
Don’t be fooled by a fine morning. Even if the weather doesn’t turn inclement, it could still be several degrees below zero. On other hand, while you’re zipping around the slopes, you could get quite warm – especially if there’s little wind chill.
The trick is to dress in layers with a mandatory waterproof outer layer. That way each layer of clothes will help trap warm air to keep your body temperature up when it’s cold, but if you get too warm you can easily strip off a layer. The waterproof outer layer is very important, because wet clothes will lower your body temperature dramatically in cold conditions.
An effective clothing kit for a day on the mountain should include:
- thermal top
- thermal leggings
- waterproof jacket and trousers
- warm socks (preferably thermal)
- waterproof gloves (knitted gloves will not do)
- warm hat or balaclava
- scarf
Wearing cotton isn’t a good idea. When you sweat, if you’re wearing cotton the sweat will cling to your body and make you cold. Put on light layers of merino or polypropylene, or any fabric that draws the sweat away from your skin. Your ski jacket might just be a light shell, but what it must be is waterproof.
Be sun smart
Because the sun is bright and the snow is white, glare on the mountain in winter can be stronger than on the beach in summer. So it’s essential to wear good-quality goggles or sunglasses to prevent snow blindness.
It’s also important to take a high SPF sunscreen with you to protect against skin-damaging UV rays. And reapply! It does wear off, particularly with exercise. Use it even on cloudy days because UV rays can cut through cloud cover.
Recognise hypothermia
Hypothermia is a rapid loss of body heat and is usually caused by poor insulation from wet or thin clothes and exposure to cold, wet, windy conditions.
While we tend to look for shivering to indicate that someone’s cold, shivering does not necessarily occur when someone is suffering from hypothermia. The signs to look for range from weariness, clumsiness, loss of judgement and a reluctance to carry on, to total collapse.
Hypothermia can be fatal, so if someone in your group starts showing the warning signs take action immediately – this is a medical emergency.
Call or send someone for help, find shelter for the victim and do all you can to prevent further heat loss and get the person warm. If possible give them warm, sweet drinks, but do not give alcohol, rub them or warm them rapidly.
