Ski & Safety Tips

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 We’re now in the heart of the ski season. We’re out there doing our thing. But there’s still something out there that remains a point of confusion as we move from one ski area to another ski area. How in the world do we know which trails at a specific resort are appropriate for our level and style of skiing? We know that in the US most trails are marked with green circles for the easiest, blue squares for the ones a little more difficult, black diamonds for the more difficult, and double black diamonds for the most difficult. But what are the differences between them?

Where did these classifications come from in the first place? You might be surprised to find out that they originated with the creator of Mickey Mouse and his array of friends. Yes. It was Walt Disney. In 1961 he was already a successful cartoonist, and Disneyland was in full swing, but he wanted to build a ski mountain. He was an avid skier and even invested in the Sugar Bowl resort in the Sierra Madre mountains that exist today. He tried to obtain permits to build the Mineral King Ski Resort in Sequoia National Park in California. He began researching people’s reactions to colors and shapes. He then came up with the green circle, blue square, and black diamond symbols. In typical Disney fashion, he wanted to create a comfortable, family friendly environment for skiing which he felt these colors and shapes gave. Unfortunately, his dream of a ski resort never happened due to difficulties obtaining permits and availability of access roads. In 1968 ski resorts adopted his color and shape standards and used them to classify their trails.

But what criteria is used to distinguish the differences? While there’s no governing body that sets the rules and there can be wide variations, it’s basically these things. First is the degree of steepness at the steepest part, if the trail is groomed or not, and the number of trees and other hazards, sharp turns, width and fall lines on that trail.

A green circle trail is the easiest with a steepness at 0% to 15%. These trails are usually wide, groomed, and perfect places to learn turns and stopping. They are perfect places to give a lesson, practice, or just warm up.

The blue square is an intermediate trail with steepness at 15% to 23%. There are a few hazards, trees are widely spaced and if bumps are there, they are usually small. Blue trails are good places to carve beautiful turns and cruise along. Blue cruisers are many skiers’ favorites. 4

The black diamond is for the more advanced skier with the steepness at 23% plus. These trails have lots of character, can have trees and mogels, are narrower, and have more hazards and tighter turns. Sometimes there’s very small differences between some blue runs and black runs that may be determined by time of day or snow conditions. They may be marked with a black diamond in a blue square.

There’s also double black diamond trails with steepness at 35% with unmarked hazards, cliffs and cornices. These are definitely only for the most expert skier. For the really insane there are sometimes triple black diamonds. They may not be marked and are only for the most extreme skier or one who is willing to risk death for a thrill. These aren’t very common at most places.

Generally speaking, although there is no hard rule, smaller ski resorts may call what might be a blue trail somewhere else a black diamond to promote more diversity of their terrain. Larger places may have a bigger number of blue trails that truly are blue by criteria. Many feel that the black diamond trails in the US west have more difficulty than the ones in the eastern US. But that’s a matter of opinion. Every mountain range is a different shape so what may be one rating at one place may be different at another. It really is confusing. The best way to approach these designations, especially at an unfamiliar mountain, is to go slowly and work your way up. Just enjoy the trails as you find them. Pay attention to weather and snow conditions and have a great day on the mountain.