The Skiing Department Blog

Our Book review section brings you unbiased views of Ski books that we think skiers would want to read:

Rucksack Guide - Ski Mountaineering and Snowshoeing (Paperback)

Please contact us at: Rob@themountaindepartment.com to submit your book, for review, on The Skiing Department blog.

Ski Mountaineering and Snowshoeing is the latest instalment from the ‘Rucksack Guide’s series by world renowned mountain guide, Alun Richardson. Other books in the series include Winter Mountaineering, Alpinism and Rock Climbing. These pocket sized guides are designed to be carried with you wherever you go.

This particular guide especially appeals to skiers who like to venture off piste. It specifically deals with the pastime of ski mountaineering and >> Continue reading

The debate regarding the question over ski helmets and skiing has been going on for many years. Recently, the news headlines have brought this subject to the public’s attention with the sad death of the actress Natasha Richardson.

There is debate and conflicting opinions regarding the effectiveness of helmets when skiing. Would Natasha Richardson still be alive if she was wearing a helmet? I cannot answer that question, but clearly a helmet can protect certain head collisions from causing more injury than if a helmet was not being worn.

The vast majority of skiers do not wear helmets and certainly throughout the history of skiing this has been the case. Downhill skiers have worn helmets for many years, although racers in other disciplines, such as slalom, giant slalom and freestyle have only >> Continue reading