European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 12, 1980, Darmstadt, Hesse Alpine trekking risky for children by j. King Cruger staff writer Arents who haul their children along on High Altitude activities May be seriously risking their youngsters health says a famed Mountain Eer. s ii scr. Proprietor of the world s larg est Mountain climbing school the Alpin Schulz. Had apart Rcd in Innsbruck Austria deplores the idea of ragging Young children along on High Alpine treks or taking them skiing at High Elevation resorts especially to can Lars offering summer Glacier skiing. Gasser bases his beliefs upon his own experience and medical experiments with children and adults conducted by the University of Innsbruck. He said the experiments included people who cd car Cisco regularly in the mountains and those who did t. Children and those who Seldom participial cd in sports in the mountains encountered circulation problems at High to said when interviewed in Innsbruck. The damage May not turn up until years later but the experiments showed immediately that Young children should not go above the Altitude of 2,000 meters. The scientists could Tell that immediately just by he physical reactions of the he said that because children s organs Are immature possible damage to heart valves May result from oxygen do privation caused by activity at High Altitude. Just How High should youngsters go in the mountains it s of for them logo As High As 2,000 meters. Up to thai Altitude they can be acl ivc All Day. Bui for anything above 2.000 meters children should be Al least 11 years old if icy arc going to be Active up there All Day. Younger children should be acl ivc Al that Altitude for no More than iwo or Ihrck Gasser says children who gel a great Deal of exercise can tolerate High Altitude activities better than children who get Little exercise. It makes a difference whether the child participates much in sports or not. Children five or six years old can stay All Day and ski at 1.500 meters providing they arc normally Active. However if children Don t want to ski or walk any longer then you should immediately Stop and operating throughout the year the Al Pinsch ulc Innsbruck has 146 instructor Sand is the largest mountaineering schooling the offering a full Range of mountaineering programs everything from week Long hikes to courses in technical climbing the school also offers High Altitude ski Louring and Mountain wandering in summer months. The events Lake place in a variety of spectacular settings in several countries. An extensive hiking program is held on eight islands around the world Cyprus Ireland Corsi Ca Crete Madeira Mallorca Tenor if and sri Lanka Ceylon. The school also runs a 14-Day sur Vival training course in Alaska. Last year More than 9,000 people took part in its programs. Normally participants must speak some German it proprietor Hanics Gasser says 80 percent of his ides speak English and that the school will to but Gui Giac Spca engus a main try and place americans who Don t speak German with u guide who Speaks their language. Alpin Schulz Innsbruck. Mueller str 27, a-6010 Innsbruck Austria can be reached by calling 05222 36130 from Germany 0043-5222-3610. Rest. Never Tell children thai icy must continue skiing or Cassor believes it is a mistake to Lake children on Long hikes. Children Don t have a relationship with nature and inc Beauly of inc mountains. In no other sport do parents do such senseless thing As when they walk Wilh their children in the mountains. The children have no interest they arc just being drag cd along. The most important thing to remember is that Chil Drin like to play. You have to turn inc walk into play so that it becomes easy for the children. If you happen upon water then you should use in for play. Splash throw stones in in do anything that makes walking More fun for the Gasser says every fifth person who Dies in the mountains of Austria is a Don t have a feeling for danger. When hiking in mountains Wilh Ihm Lake along a 25-meter rope. Then when you reach a danger Point even if it if. Only for a space of a few meters secure the child Wilh the " rope until you be passed Gasser emphasizes that besides taking along a Good lunch for children in is even More important that Chil Dren have lots to drink. They need to drink More than grownups because they lose fluids faster. They gel very tired if icy Don t get something to drink. It s much More important than eat ing. Carry a bottle with something to drink in your Ruck sack. Tea is the Besl thing Wilh sugar and although Over the years there has been a dramatic increase in accidents and fatalities in the Alps his school sports an excellent safely record. We Haven l had a fatality in the 15-year history of .1 the soaring popularity by John Noble Wilford new York time Page 14 with a Bucko Insler Fuller once said. I child can reach the is the season when Many children and older Folk Wise enough to resist actin their age. Lake to lawns and Parks beaches and Fields and reach the sky with kites of All sizes and shapes. Some Are As Small As a Butterfly or Bird. Others arc Large and geometrically varied achievements of the scientific mind applied to a Pursuit both playful and serious. Kite flying is so popular in America that the number of shops around the country catering exclusively to the enthusiasts has almost doubled in three years to More than 150. And a month ago an estimated 50,000 people showed up at the great Boston Kite festival. For the Humble Kite which dates Back to China More than 3,000 years ago is enjoying i Renais Sance of soaring proportions not Only Are More people coaxing and cursing them into flight but they seem to be outdoing each other in devising Clever colourful and whimsical variations on the three Basic configurations the Flat cellular or Box and flexible kites. Some of the dives and loops and Fig ure eights that arc the repertoire of the stunt Tilers these Days would be the envy of the most intrepid acrobatic pilots of old. The classic two stick Diamond shaped Flat Kite the source of knowledge for Benjamin Franklin and fru Stra the stars and stripes lion for Charlie Brown is still the everyday favorite but design innovations in recent years Laking advantage of inc Maic nals and a More understanding of aerodynamics have transformed Many kites Inlo incredible and some limbs expensive flying devices for fun Der Reg do and science. In is in a sense Only fair if today s Kile flicks bin Ceil from science and technology. For several centuries the " " Usu or los for Sci acc and Basic configurations although the chinese made Early use of kites for military signalling and in religious ceremonies it was apparently the europeans and americans who first discover los i Lons in implements of Scien Lif in 1749, Alexander Wilson of Scotland deployed a Maiure of tr"1" " a "8 k los my Asur Tern Fri Cut f v1T0T1" we released by . Franklin s famed Experiment in june 1752 in i i?.,11" Farl i9lh Mury sir George Cay lev of in Tallinn Damp Lujo relationships Between the shapes and sizes a the ability of inc Birds to Fly. His sex 1804 to inc construction of five foot Long aeronautical historians consider the first plane. ?22 an en8lish schoolmaster rigged kites to a Carriage and went Ca sometimes off the country roads at specs mics an hour. He Drew a lot of comment put any blacksmiths out of business. U one of the first major innovations in l a made by Lwrence Margrave i whose work earned him Olace $20 Bill. Place who c lt"8 to do vol a � it lie r of the. This Kivic provided More surface and 1
