Many winter sports involve a certain level of risk. However, some are considerably more dangerous than others. Here are five of the top most dangerous winter sports that are out there. Be very careful if you participate in these winter sports.

Ski Aerials

Ski aerials are the sport in which skiers fly down an extremely steep hill and launch themselves vertically as high as twelve meters, doing a series of flips and spins before landing. The danger of this sport should be very obvious.

Ski Basing

Ski basing is the sport in which skiers literally ski off cliffs with parachutes strapped to their backs. They pull the parachute to give themselves a safe landing. However, if they fail for some reason, then they die. This sport is very risky and should only be done by master skiers and master base jumpers.

Snowboard Cross

With snowboard cross a number of snowboarders race down the mountain going over a series of jumps and turns at incredibly fast speeds. Crashes are very common with snowboard cross which is why it is so dangerous.

Downhill Skiing

The main reason why downhill skiing is so dangerous is because skiers go very, very fast. In fact downhill skiers commonly travel at speeds of over 90 miles per hour during races. Crashes are also very common with downhill skiing, making this a very dangerous sport. Be very careful if you attempt to do downhill ski racing.

Hockey

Hockey may not seem quite as dangerous as the other sports on this list, but it is very dangerous in its own right. This is because hockey involves a lot of physical contact and players constantly slamming each other into the boards and trying to knock each other down. Fights also commonly break out, increasing hockey’s danger level.

Image is courtesy of Shutterstock