Annual Ski California Safety Day To Focus On Chairlift Safety

On Saturday, January 25, resorts in California and Nevada will recognize the seventh annual Ski California Safety Day with engaging activities and content focused on skier and snowboarder safety tips that align with the NSAA’s Your Responsibility Code. With this year’s theme focused on chairlift safety, Ski California will also release a new video on Safety Day focused on what to do if a skier or snowboarder isn’t seated properly when loading a lift. It will be available in the award-winning Ski California Mountain Safety Guide and on Ski California’s YouTube Channel.

“Our member resorts are focused on safety every day of the season and in every facet of their operations,” said John Rice, Ski California president. “Ski California Safety Day gives us an opportunity to amplify industry-wide and member resort safety related efforts and initiatives by hosting activities and experiences that help educate our guests about the shared responsibilities of skiing and riding safely.”

In addition to hosting on-site activations on Ski California Safety Day, resorts will continue to leverage the Mountain Safety Guide throughout the season. Created as a tool to educate skiers and riders about staying safe and making good decisions on the slopes, the Mountain Safety Guide offers information relevant to winter sports enthusiasts of all experience and ability levels. Skiers and riders are encouraged to review the guide and take the quiz at the end for a chance to win a 2025-26 Ski California Gold Pass (value $4,000), plus prize packages that include Glade helmets, goggles, and other accessories.

Ski California will also make a new video produced by the nonprofit High Fives Foundation as part of their B.A.S.I.C.S. series focused on Deep Snow Safety part of its safety education efforts. The video, sponsored by Ski California and the National Ski Areas Association expands on the concept of Deep Snow Safety featured in Ski California’s own award-winning video on the topic released last season.

Here’s what some Ski California member resorts are doing to support Safety Day this year:

• Bear Valley Mountain Resort: Resort guests will have opportunities to meet the Bear Valley Mountain Resort ski patrol team and learn about avalanche safety equipment, pick up stickers and enter a raffle for a chance to win safety giveaways! To encourage chairlift safety, prizes will be taped to safety bars throughout the day, and a practice chair will allow families and beginners to practice loading and unloading. Patrollers who witness skiers and riders demonstrating safe behavior will offer rewards throughout the day, and those who participate in the Safety Passport program or interactive quiz will have opportunities to win prizes. Bear Valley will also offer a 10% discount on helmets at their on-mountain retail store all day on Jan. 25.
• Big Bear Mountain Resort: To engage with and educate resort guests, Big Bear Mountain Resort will host a safety booth featuring SPF lip balm and face sticks and rules for the day’s Safety Challenge. Those who complete the challenge will receive a small prize and a ticket for the raffle that will happen during Apres with Ski Patrol between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. Resort partners including Sun Bum, Smith, Athletic Brewing and Kate’s Real Food will also be onsite to talk about how their brands promote safety. During the Apres event, patrollers will give a short talk about Your Responsibility Code and what ski patrol does to mitigate risks, and the importance of adhering to safety signage and closures. A live performance by Eric Roebuck will follow the raffle!
• Boreal Mountain Resort: A Safety Day Poker Run will encourage resort guests to ski or ride their way through five designated checkpoints to collect poker cards while learning essential safety tips. At the end, participants will compete for awesome prizes with their poker hand including three Burton snowboards, helmets, stickers and more!
• China Peak: Guests who lower the safety bar on chairlifts may receive a “bar down surprise” with complimentary food and beverage vouchers and stickers attached to the bar. China Peak will also educate guests about safety topics via its social media channels and will offer 10% off helmets in its sports shop on Ski California Safety Day (Jan. 25 only).
• Diamond Peak: Meet Kari, Diamond Peak’s Patrol Director and Fred the Patrol Dog between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. on the snow behind the Base Lodge to learn more about what they do to keep skiers and riders safe, and be on the lookout for the Prize Patrol throughout the day! Resort guests will also have opportunities to recite points from the Skier Responsibility Code or take the Mountain Safety Guide Quiz to earn prizes. Diamond Peak’s ski patrollers and friends will be passing out prizes to people who are being safe on the slopes throughout the day with special prizes for those caught keeping the lift restraint bar down until the green "raise bar" circle. Those who get a selfie with them may be featured in the resort’s stories and entered to win extra prizes. Advanced skiers and snowboarders are invited to shadow patrollers during the end of the day sweep of the mountain. Meet outside the patrol shack (a.k.a “Eagle's Nest”) at the top of Crystal Ridge at 3:50 p.m.
• Dodge Ridge: In the week leading up to Safety Day, look for the resort’s daily ski safety tips on their social media channels. On Saturday, tune in to the Mountain Safety Guide on all resort TVs, sign the “safety pledge” to be entered into a raffle for prizes like a free lift ticket, ski lessons, and merchandise. Kids can color ski safety-themed pictures at the safety coloring station, and a 15% discount on helmets will be offered at the sports shop on Safety Day.
• Heavenly Mountain Resort: The resort’s Lift Experience team will reward safe practices with candy bars for correctly using the safety bar in the “Bars for Bars Down” program.
• Kirkwood: Safety Day celebrations will include interactive activities and opportunities to learn about mountain safety. Guests can visit the Kirkwood Rescue Avalanche Dog (KRAD) tent in the Village to support the KRAD program, take photos with the dogs at the Chairlift Photo Booth, and participate in a scavenger hunt with the Ski Teams. The Tune Shop will offer free and discounted tune-up tickets for those who complete a short safety quiz, while the Lift Experience team will reward safe practices with candy bars for correctly using the safety bar in the “Bars for Bars Down” program. Guests can also use QR codes throughout the mountain to access the Ski California Mountain Safety Guide Quiz for a chance to win a 2025-26 Ski California Gold Pass!
• Mammoth Mountain: Safety messaging will be written with ink under busy lifts and in prominent on-hill locations with messages such as “Stop on the Side,” “Know the Zone,” and “People Below you Have the Right of Way.” A safety-themed Mammoth beanie drop will reward guests with a free beanie if they can recite one of the four safety messages the resort has been pushing out over the past month. In addition, Mammoth will use its social media and in-resort digital message boards to share safety-themed content.
• Mt. Baldy: The resort will share a video of its General Manager discussing the Mountain Safety Guide, Ski California Safety Day and the shared responsibility of safety on the slopes through its social media channels. In addition, patrollers and lift operators will engage with guests as lift safety ambassadors to encourage them to review the Mountain Safety Guide to earn food and beverage rewards in The Notch.
• Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe: To educate skiers and riders about on-mountain safety, Mt. Rose Ski Tahoe will host stations around the mountain and in the base area that guests will be encouraged to visit to learn more about topics such as chairlift and terrain park safety. Guests who visit all stations and complete their Bingo cards will be entered into a raffle for the chance to win prizes!
• Mt. Shasta Ski Park: Throughout the week leading up to Ski California Safety Day, Mt. Shasta Ski Park will promote skier and rider safety by sharing the Ski California Mountain Safety Guide and short videos featuring the resort’s professional Ski Patrol focused on chairlift safety and other safety topics. At safety booths set up around the mountain, resort staff will also engage guests to participate in safety quizzes for the opportunity to win raffle prizes that include swag, lift tickets, lesson packages and food vouchers. In addition, local EMS providers and the hospital Emergency Department will be onsite to share with resort guests how they work with the ski area to take care of skiers and riders when their support is needed.
• Northstar California Resort: Safety Day will bring excitement and education to the mountain with activities like a Snowcat and Snowgun show-and-tell and ParkSmart tours led by the Terrain Parks Crew. Guests can meet the Northstar Avalanche Rescue (NAR) Dogs, grab tips on equipment maintenance from gear experts, and visit the Safety Day table to enter raffles, use the hydration station, and snag safety stickers. Captain Safety will roam the resort sharing mountain safety tips and raffle tickets, while guests participating in the “Bars for Bars Down” program will receive a Nature Valley bar for using the chairlift safety bar properly. QR codes across the mountain will link to safety videos and the Ski California Mountain Safety Guide Quiz. Those who complete the quiz will be entered for a chance to win a 2025-26 Ski California Gold Pass!
• Palisades Tahoe: Fun, educational opportunities for guests to participate in and sharpen up their safety skills at both mountains on Saturday, Jan. 25 include Ski Patrol live demonstrations with their avalanche dogs, mini-avalanche awareness clinics with Alpenglow Expeditions, and free educational deep snow immersion clinics. On Sunday, Jan. 26 from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at both mountains, get insider tips on how to be safe on the hill and improve your turns when you take a complimentary run with a professional instructor.
• Sierra-at-Tahoe: Resort guests are invited to participate in a meet and greet with Sierra’s Avy Dogs at the top of Grandview from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. that will include a snow safety talk with Ski Patrol while patrollers demonstrate the Avy dogs’ skills. In addition, throughout the day the U.S. Forest Service and El Dorado Search and Rescue will be in the Plaza, and discounts will be offered on helmets in the resort’s retail store.
• Sugar Bowl Resort: To highlight safety in the all-new Sugar Bowl Parks, the resort will share a Terrain Park Safety video with tips about approaching and riding the features.
• Tahoe Donner Downhill Ski Area: In advance of Safety Day, a two-page feature in the January 2025 issue of Tahoe Donner News encouraged residents to learn Your Responsibility Code and take the Mountain Safety Guide quiz to test their knowledge. On Safety Day, the ski area will also promote the Mountain Safety Guide through its social media channels and encourage people to take the quiz to win prizes.

Ski California (aka California Ski Industry Association) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit trade association representing 36 ski resorts in California and Nevada. The organization develops and maintains strong relationships with government officials, tourism groups, media, and ski industry leaders to advocate for industry-related initiatives and perspectives that affect mountain communities and businesses. Ski California also provides industry education and researches, analyzes, and pursues safety while preserving the integrity of mountain sports and the natural environment in which they are enjoyed by millions each year.