# Why don’t skiers have to wear leashes?



## tanscrazydaisy (Mar 11, 2013)

Their skis have brakes on it to catch into the snow (not necessarily ice) to keep them from sliding down The mountain.

Snowboards have not such Mechanism. It's been a long time since I have gotten yelled it for not having a leash

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## WigMar (Mar 17, 2019)

I've never used a leash, ever. You've got two leashes on a snowboard- they're called bindings. I haven't heard of both bindings failing at the same time. Leashes are a throwback to the early days when bindings didn't fully attach the board to your feet. You just don't see snowboards flying down the mountain on their own like you see skis do. 

Did you get in trouble for not using a leash somewhere? What's the story behind that?


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## zc1 (Feb 20, 2017)

WigMar said:


> You just don't see snowboards flying down the mountain on their own like you see skis do.


I've only seen it in the beginner zone. People get tired or frustrated and decide to walk down, unstrap everything, forget that the board isn't connected to them in any way, and then off goes the board zipping down the hill.


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

Michigan still has a leash _law_ on the books for snowboards. But I've only been to one resort that actually made me buy & use a leash. And that was years ago. (...needless to say, I haven't been back to that resort.) ??

As for skis not needing them,.. Even with their so called "_Brakes,.._". I've seen plenty of skis scooting down the mountain sans skier! ?‍♂

I have yet to see that with a snowboard. (...I'm sure it's happened. Just haven't seen it myself.) ?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

tanscrazydaisy said:


> Their skis have brakes on it to catch into the snow (not necessarily ice) to keep them from sliding down The mountain.


Which don't work a lot of the time. I've seen skis flying downhill, brake and all.


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## neni (Dec 24, 2012)

Donutz said:


> Which don't work a lot of the time. I've seen skis flying downhill, brake and all.


Yeah.. the funniest one I witnessed was in Alaska, heliskiing/boarding. One guy's unattached snd unattended ski begun to splip at the gathering spot, cought speed, and was off... byebye down a cliff. Never to be seen again. Guy spent the day flying IN the heli, up AND down. Bet he'd have loved to have those leashes?


What's the story behind those leashes anyway? I buyed bindings since years and wondered about those funny things which come in the box, why they are still added. Initially I had though they are key chains, or some sort of mount to carry the board. Seriously, lol. Until one day I saw someone wearing one of those funny thingies around the leg . 
But WHY? If you're too inattentive to mind your board unstrapping the binding, why should you be more attentive unbuckling the leash? So... how about another safety buckle which secures the leash to another carabiner, in case you dont mind your board unbuckling after unstrapping? Just to be sure... And then another sling which backups that carabiner? 

Those leashes are like our tailbones, or a snake's legs... meanwhile unnecessary rudiments from a long past time.


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## Snowdaddy (Feb 2, 2018)




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## kalev (Dec 17, 2013)

Years ago I was riding at Blue Mountain in Ontario (Canada), and the lifty wouldn't let my buddy on the chair without a leash.

He had to go buy one at the pro shop in order to keep riding


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## smellysell (Oct 29, 2018)

My son's binding came unstapped on the chair this year and he lost his board down the mountain, and the ski patrol made him get a leash. Up until that point, I didn't see any point in them. That being said, he was riding with his buddy and guaranteed they were fucking around, though I still have not gotten a straight answer about it. 

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## Mike256 (Oct 13, 2013)

Haha that’s pretty funny they made him get a leash. Seems more a funny way to shame him into not stuffing about on the lift trying to undo each other’s bindings.


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## smellysell (Oct 29, 2018)

Mike256 said:


> Haha that’s pretty funny they made him get a leash. Seems more a funny way to shame him into not stuffing about on the lift trying to undo each other’s bindings.


I relentlessly give him shit about his leash now, as do all my buddies, so at least it provides entertainment.

One of my buddies bumps chairs at our local hill and makes him show him his leash every time he gets on. [emoji23]

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## Mike256 (Oct 13, 2013)

Hahahaha that is gold. The punishment worked - he will remember this the rest of his life no doubt.


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## mojo maestro (Jan 6, 2009)

U know.......how i know..........u'r a gaper...............u b wearin a leash.......


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## TooNice (Feb 7, 2014)

neni said:


> What's the story behind those leashes anyway?





Donutz said:


> Which don't work a lot of the time. I've seen skis flying downhill, brake and all.


I imagine that it can happen, but quite honestly, I can't say with confidence that I've seen it happen with my own eyes despite seeing many skis coming off.

Snowboards on the other hand, I am not exagerating when I say this, I've seen it 10+ times this season (I probably have those on videos ome of the time). And probably just as many times last season. And I am being quite conservative. I remember a week where I saw at least 5 boards flying down the hill. Once, a board missed my nephew by half a meter, but went off the ground right into the knee of some small kid a couple meters further down (he was somehow fine). 

Now, I should note that of the 10+ times I saw this season minus once or twice, it all happened in Niseko. And it is always a beginners/noob (*) who hasn't had good guidance and decide to try things by themselves. In less internationally popular resorts (popular resort like Niseko get a lot of visitors from neighbouring countries who are still relatively new to snowsports and therefore has a disproprotionate high number of beginners) it is less of an issue, so I can imagine that it's not a common issue where you all ride. I am not saying that I am in favour of mandating leashes, but I can understand what the leashes are there for.

(*) Now, I don't like to use this derogatory term lightly, I remember at least one instance where the board that flew down the hill came from the highest lift accessible location (right in front of the gate that lead to the peak). Meaning that someone who couldn't hold on to his/her board probably contemplated heading off to the sidecountry (since they probably unstrapped for the hike). And having pointed directions for groups with small kids outside the gate how to get back to the resort (last season), or saw parents shove their crying toddler out the gate hiking towards the peak, there are quite a lot of people who make some choices unsuitable for their abilities or the people they are taking with them. Just can't approve that. And one of the consequence of that, is that is that I've seen people who haven't figured out how to hold on to their board lose their board at all level of the mountain.


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## Snowdaddy (Feb 2, 2018)

Honestly, I don't see why wearing a leash is such a big deal. The main problem has been that I tend to step on it and break the plastic buckle. I've taped it together, but the Burton leash I have is pretty horrible.

I was annoyed my first season when I was stopped from getting onto the chair and had to go buy one. Even more annoyed when I stepped on it and it broke. I wore it but it wouldn't have made any difference since it was broken.

I still have my taped up old one in a pocket and if I was told to wear one I wouldn't whine about it.


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## WigMar (Mar 17, 2019)

TooNice said:


> I imagine that it can happen, but quite honestly, I can't say with confidence that I've seen it happen with my own eyes despite seeing many skis coming off.
> 
> Snowboards on the other hand, I am not exagerating when I say this, I've seen it 10+ times this season (I probably have those on videos ome of the time). And probably just as many times last season. And I am being quite conservative. I remember a week where I saw at least 5 boards flying down the hill. Once, a board missed my nephew by half a meter, but went off the ground right into the knee of some small kid a couple meters further down (he was somehow fine).
> 
> ...


This still doesn't make any sense to me. 

Let's say you're walking around holding your snowboard, and the leash is dangling off the bindings. You put the board down to hook up the leash, and off it goes down the mountain. How is a leash helping you? It's just an extra step, and having one to rely on probably makes it more likely you'll loose your board; otherwise you'd just put a foot on it like the rest of us do. 

If I was patrol and I saw someone's board flying down the mountain, I'd stick them back on the magic carpet instead of insisting they use a leash- which is just another piece of gear to figure out. In over twenty years of riding, my friends and I have never lost a snowboard to gravity. In Colorado, I can't say I've ever even seen an errant board flying down a mountain by itself. I think I'd tell someone to get lost if they told me to wear a leash. I don't ride a snowboard so people can tell me what to do! Why should I be penalized for mistakes total noobs make? If anything, we should have skills testing to be allowed out of beginner areas.


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## cjaggie123 (Oct 21, 2018)

The only time I've ever used a leash on a snowboard is back in the late 90's with the old Burton step-ins. I've never seen it with regular bindings (or at least never noticed).


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## lab49232 (Sep 13, 2011)

Imagine leashes on skis when someone has a high speed yard sale. You're falling and flipping down the mountain with your skis off your feet but tied to your ankle just whipping around and bashing you up.... Oooffff


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## eelpout (Mar 1, 2009)

leash requirements seemed to more of a thing a decade or so ago. not sure what changed at those resorts where it use to be posted as mandatory. maybe the declining numbers in our sport. 

I still use one, if anyone thinks it's complicated, please stay away from cutlery around me. 😄

(and mostly I still have one for being able to throw my board over my shoulder at end of day by looping it between bindings)


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

eelpout said:


> leash requirements seemed to more of a thing a decade or so ago. not sure what changed at those resorts where it use to be posted as mandatory. maybe the declining numbers in our sport.
> 
> I still use one, if anyone thinks it's complicated, please stay away from cutlery around me. 😄
> 
> (and mostly I still have one for being able to throw my board over my shoulder at end of day by looping it between bindings)


Someone correct me if Im wrong, but I'm guessing in the days of "klickers, step ins?" Maybe they were prone to coming disconnected?

Now once you're strapped in, it would take a MAJOR equipment failure to have your board get loose, (...or a couple kids fucking around on a chairlift!) 😉😂


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## eelpout (Mar 1, 2009)

chomps1211 said:


> Now once you're strapped in, it would take a MAJOR equipment failure to have your board get loose, (...or a couple kids fucking around on a chairlift!) 😉😂


most of the runaways I've witnessed were due to people sitting on their butt mid-slope, who had unstrapped their board for whatever reason and losing them when trying to strap back in.


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## brout (Apr 25, 2020)

I have one just in case but I've never used it. I've never seen a board go down a hill but I've seen a few skis do so.


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