According to a study recently released in the Journal of Wilderness and Evironmental Medicine, snowboarding tops the list when it comes to outdoor recreational injuries, accounting for nearly 25% of all non-fatal injuries annually, followed by sledding (11 percent); hiking (6 percent); mountain biking, personal watercraft, water skiing or tubing (4 percent); fishing (3 percent) and swimming (2 percent).

The researchers looked at data on nonfatal injuries from outdoor activities treated at 63 hospitals in 2004 and 2005. They calculated that almost 213,000 people annually were treated for such injuries nationwide. About half of those injured are young, between ages 10 and 24 and half of the injuries are caused by falls. The most common problems were broken bones and sprains, accounting for half of all cases. About 7 percent of ER visits were for concussions or other brain injuries. Males are injured at twice the rate of females, which shouldn't surprise anyone that's grown up with a brother or three in the house.

Although this study has received a fair amount of attention from the ski industry (it was featured in the Vail newspaper "The Vail Daily," as well as the homepage of Future Snowboarding, the study itself requires some careful reading to properly understand the findings. Because of anomalies in the data, skiing related injuries were lumped into the "other" category alongside surfing, horseback riding, mountain climbing, scuba diving and snowmobiling. Further investigation reveals that skiing, not sledding, actually has the second highest rate of injury. The total injuries from the snowboarding sample numbered 1,457; total skiing injuries came in right behind at 1,234.

No matter how the data is viewed, the fact remains that skiing and snowboarding are dangerous sports. The best way to stay in one piece during the winter is through a combination of proper instruction, fitness, and safety equipment.

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Photo by Garth Milan/Red Bull Photofiles
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In case you didn't get the memo - the whole skier vs. snowboarder thing was unceremoniously put to rest sometime back in the late '90s, which was great timing, because the late '90s were also when the action sports scene made its way into the mainstream consciousness, thanks in large part to ESPN's X-Games. Ever since then, skiers have been supporting snowboarders, snowboarders have been supporting skaters, skaters have been supporting bmx riders, and on and on it goes. These days, whenever someone in the action sports world does something big, the whole industry stops to watch and give props.

Enter Ronnie Renner, freestyle motorcross rider and apparent all-around nut. On his sixth jump Friday night, Renner threw down a jaw-dropping hit of 59 feet, 2 inches. On a motorcycle. The hit is believed to be a world record, and has been submitted to the Guinness Book of World Records for verification. There's not much to get stoked on in the snowboarding world in the middle of July, or at least there isn't unless you're living Down Under, so you might as well watch the video of Renner's feat and give the man his due respect - use it as motivation to nail a new trick on snow next season, or to shred that one trail you've always wanted to ride but never had the confidence to attempt.

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