The chairlift is the main concern for a skier with epilepsy. If you fall while skiing due to a seizure, it's one thing. People without epilepsy fall while skiing all the time. But falling off a chairlift due to a seizure is a different story.
My family and I designed a ski harness to keep me safe on the chairlift. It’s easy to do, and fairly inconspicuous. If you want to make your own, you’ll need: 1 locking carabiner, 1 “regular” carabiner, a harness designed for rock climbing, and a daisy chain designed for rock climbing. My daisy chain is 54 inches long with 13 loops in it. Something close to that should suffice.
- First, use sharp scissors to cut the leg loops off the harness.
- Then thread the harness through the belt loops of your ski pants, as if it were a regular belt. Some ski pants have stronger belt loops than others.
- Next, clip the locking carabiner to the front loop of the harness.
- Then clip one end of the daisy chain to that carabiner.
- Take your second carabiner, the one without the locking device, and clip it to the other end of the daisy chain.
- The last step is to put on your ski pants, and stuff the whole daisy chain, including the dangling carabiner, into one of your pant’s pockets.
Winter of 1996
Once on the chairlift, remove the daisy chain from your pocket. Sit all the way back, and toss it over the back of the chairlift.
Then reach behind you, and bring the daisy chain through the gap of the chair where the back meets the seat.
Next, connect the two carabiners. Every chair is different, so you may have to change the loop the carabiner is on. You want the daisy chain to have as little slack as possible, so that, in the case of a seizure, you’re firmly secured to the back of the chair.
You can practice on a chairlift when the mountain is closed. The first few times you use it on a moving chairlift, allow yourself plenty of time to take it off. You don’t want to be stuck when it’s time to get off the chair!
Then reach behind you, and bring the daisy chain through the gap of the chair where the back meets the seat.
Next, connect the two carabiners. Every chair is different, so you may have to change the loop the carabiner is on. You want the daisy chain to have as little slack as possible, so that, in the case of a seizure, you’re firmly secured to the back of the chair.
You can practice on a chairlift when the mountain is closed. The first few times you use it on a moving chairlift, allow yourself plenty of time to take it off. You don’t want to be stuck when it’s time to get off the chair!
