Everyone likes to get away to the freedom of the mountains
to escape city life. It's great to escape from
the morning and evening train commutes where you now
spend your journey listening to people tell other
people on their cell phone that they're 'on the train'
. So it's been somewhat depressing to see the
encroachment of mobile phones on to ski lifts - especially
gondolas and cable cars.
On
the other hand it's difficult to argue against carrying
them with you as safety devices - used to good effect
after the Kaprun avalanche when a survivor reportedly
called for assistance on her mobile.
And
how many times have you lost your buddies on the mountain
or failed to make a rendezvous when a quick phone
call could have sorted the situation. Perhaps
the ideal is to carry a phone with you, but to leave
it switched off and only call out on it when you're
away from other mountain users.
Although America, and particularly Colorado, is one
of the worst offenders for mobile phone use (Vail
even has a trading room at the base of its slopes
so that their customers can keep directly in touch
with their investments), Aspen has won praise from
its purists by 'requesting' its customers not to use
cell phones on the Silver Queen gondola accessing
Aspen mountain. The resort hasn't actually banned
cell phones (unlike snowboarders still not permitted
on Aspen Mountain) but has at least drawn attention
to what for many is one aspect of city life too far
for the mountain.
Should
mobiles be banned from the mountain? Have
your say in this month's You
the Jury.
