Opinion ID: 1237820
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: were the posted signs insufficient as a matter of law to satisfy as 09.65.135?

Text: The superior court found that a genuine issue of material fact existed as to whether the signs were posted at prominent locations in the ski area. Hiibschman contends that the posted signs were insufficient as a matter of law, for they were not trail signs nor were they posted at prominent locations as required by statute. We find Hiibschman's arguments without merit. The superior court left for the jury the general issue of the adequacy of notice and signing. The issues of the size, content, number, location, and prominence of the signs were all tried by the jury, and the evidence in the record supports the verdict. Steven Weber, who was the Director of the Parks and Recreation Department in Valdez at the relevant time, explained that he had posted the signs so that the average skier  or the skier participating in the activity could stop and read the sign. It was typed in bold letters with some underlining. While there were no inherent risk of skiing signs on the hill itself, Weber stated: [W]e felt ... the best place to do that was at the bottom of the hill where most of the activity took place, where ... the skiers had to initially go by to get to the ski lift. Posting signs throughout the hill ... didn't really meet that requirement in my eyes. I felt that the intent or the spirit of this statute here was to inform the skiers, and I felt the best way to inform them was prior to skiing and not after skiing. And, skiers would traditionally normally use the restroom prior to skiing, use the warm-up hut prior to skiing to put their boots on and then ... by the nature of the way they travelled to the ski lift ... we had a couple of signs posted there they would have to go by in order to get to the ski lift and actually load on the lift. Although no trail signs were posted, Salmonberry Ridge is just one small open hill; there are no real, designated trails as such. After skiers get off of the lift, they have the option of going to the right or going to the left, skiing each respective side of the hill. While others, including Hiibschman, said that they saw no signs, the jury found that such signs were posted. John Wiland, the mountain manager when Salmonberry Ridge opened, testified that signs were posted in each of the outhouses, going into the warming hut, on the lift shack, and at the top of the lift shack. Theresa Day was skiing on the day of Hiibschman's injury and recalls seeing signs posted in the outhouse and in the ski tow area. Aaron Kelly, who also was skiing with Hiibschman, saw the signs posted on the inside of the outhouse and on the front of the warming hut. Therefore, we affirm the superior court's ruling that genuine issues of material fact existed as to whether requisite signs were posted at prominent locations in the ski area. [18]