Bar Up or Bar Down? A Complicated Question for Skiers

Bar up? Or bar down? Every skier chooses the latter, right? Not quite.

Regionally and from skier-to-skier, there is no consensus on using chairlift safety bars, even as they’re simple, uncomplicated safety measures. These metal chairlift restraints are found at ski resorts across the country, but they aren’t universally loved or used. Some skiers might even detest them. 

Here’s why the safety bar equation is a bit more complicated than you would think. 

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Restraint Bar Use: By the Numbers

A handful of states in the Northeast legally require that a restraint bar be used on the chairlift. That measure could be called draconian by some, but Northeasterners seem more appreciative of the bar than their counterparts out West. 

The data bear out this cultural and legal divide. Research published in JSAMS Plus sought to find out how often restraint bars are used across the U.S., by region. To do so, the scientists surveyed 6,343 chairs carrying 16,286 passengers. Then, they broke their results down regionally.

The study found that, in the Northeast, restraint bars were used a whopping 80% of the time. That percentage plummeted to 39% in the Rocky Mountains. The region with the lowest restraint bar use? The Midwest. It only hit 9%.

There was an interesting caveat to the data. 

Alongside cataloguing the overall percentages, the researchers also divided their results by chairlifts that were and weren’t carrying children. Those lifts that had children on them saw higher rates of restraint bar use. For instance, in the Rocky Mountains, the percentage jumped from 36% to 84% when kiddos were on board. The Midwest’s bump was far more modest. It went from 4% to 21%. 

Another tidbit that may not come as a surprise: snowboarders lived up to their bad-boy reputation. Overall, when only snowboarders were riding the chair, the bar was used 28% of the time. Chairlifts carrying skiers and snowboarders hit 36%. Finally, with only skiers on board, the percentage peaked at 47%, according to the study. 

Why Don’t Skiers Use the Bar?

A great question that likely has more than one answer. 

For one, skiing remains a bro-oriented sport with a bro-oriented culture. As of the 2023-2024 season, men accounted for 62% of skier visits in the U.S. while women accounted for 38%, according to the National Ski Areas Association(NSAA). 

Men, it goes without saying, have a penchant for risk-taking. They also don’t mind looking tough, which, given their outsized presence in skiing, could account for the lack of safety bar use. (What about Northeasterners, though? Are they just more evolved? It’s entirely possible—just look at Donny Pelletier.)

The aversion to the bar could also stem from inconsiderate use. Most skiers have a similar story. You hop on the chairlift. You bend down to adjust your boots. Then—WHAM!—the safety bar slams into the back of your head. What happened? Some yahoo next to you opted to lower the bar, but they didn’t tell you first. These common encounters may have given safety bars a bad rap. 

The final hypothetical mark against safety bars is comfort. If you’re a skier in one of the places where safety bar use is uncommon, that’s what you’re unaccustomed to. You likely prefer feeling free and unhindered. Safety bars often have metal dividers that can make the lift seem cramped. Similar to the bonk problem, those dividers can also catch an unaware skier right between the legs—ouch. 

In the end, though, rationalizing against using the bar is silly. Like ski helmets (which have seen widespread adoption, by the way), these are simple, convenient safety measures. And in the mountains, an extra layer of protection never hurts.

Bar Use or Not, Chairlifts Are Largely Safe

Despite the prevalence of skiers riding the chairlift without the bar, fatal accidents involving falls from chairlifts are uncommon. According to the NSAA’s 2024 lift safety fact sheet, there have only been 14 fatal falls from chairlifts at resorts in the U.S. since 1973. And almost half of those deaths involved medical incidents that occurred on the chairlift. For the most part, according to the NSAA, chairlift falls happen in the unload and load areas and don’t result in serious injuries.

Combine those numbers with the fact that the U.S. saw 61.5 million skier visits during the 2024-25 season, and the picture is clear: you don’t need to live in fear of chairlifts, but you should probably still put the bar down.

Bar Up or Bar Down? The Poll

Now, dear reader, it’s time to make your voice heard. Chime in with our poll below.