The risks are stated in no uncertain terms: "WARNING: UAF Sledding Hill Users…Risks of Injuries and Death include High Speed Collision with Users, Trees, Fencing, Fixtures, Ice, Rocks, Rough Terrain, Animals, Sleds, Skis, Snowboards."

For years, Fairbanks and university locals have used the area next to the Student Recreation Center as a sledding haven. It is an extremely popular winter attraction, yet there are many risks as the signs that are posted in various locations attempt to warn.

Fairbanks native Kevin Sevier, 35, grew up sledding this area and often brings his family to play on the hill. He only read the signs for the first time this spring. Throughout his years of use he has never suffered any injuries, though he has witnessed a few of his friends get hurt.

"This is one of my fonder memories," he said, but "there's very little control, if any, on a sled as there is, I think."

Sevier takes precautionary measures. He makes sure his family has adult supervision while sledding on the hill, and limits the "little ones" to using the bottom third of the icy slope.

As his daughter, Jaimie Sevier, 11, and nephew, Justin Bollaert, 11, descended the hill on separate sleds with linked arms, they hit a mogul and caught a large amount of air. Each lost control in the flight, and Sevier tumbled to the bottom, while Bollaert's head bashed into the ground.

"Daddy, I feel like my butt is broken in three places!" Sevier exclaimed as she stood up, laughing. "That was the stupidest thing I ever did!"

"Ow…pain" were the only words out of Bollaert, who took the worst of the fall, as he lay motionless on the ground. When he was able to recover, he joked, "Next time I'm getting a helmet and bring some Tylenol."

Both children walked away from the crash without any lingering injuries, yet no one would deny, wearing a helmet in the future would be a wise decision.

Other crashes on the hill have rendered significant damage, leaving lives permanently affected.

According to court papers, on the night of Dec. 21, 1987, three people riding one inner tube smashed into the trees. John Govednik, then a UAF student in his late teens, suffered a severely broken arm and other injuries, which resulted in permanent disability of his left arm. One of the other riders broke her arm, while the other broke her back.

Less than one year later, the ultimate catastrophe took place.

On Oct. 30, 1988, Barbara Dix Patten, age 33 at the time, Doctor Shanti, and Scott Wright came to the hill with one sled and two inner tubes. They took a couple of runs without any problems, but the third run turned disastrous. According to lawsuit papers, Shanti and Patten were holding a puppy while riding on one inner tube, when they lost control "as a result of the steep embankment and snow pack." Shanti tossed the puppy out, but they could not turn or stop the tube, and smashed into a large tree.

Patten suffered severe injuries as a result of hitting the tree, but initially regained consciousness, stated Wright in the Dix lawsuit papers. She endured a coma, an operation, and a hospital transfer before she died from these injuries on Nov. 9, 1988, leaving behind an eight-year-old daughter and other family. This horrible accident became the first of at least three lawsuits against the university over injuries suffered on the sledding hill.

The university began to make safety improvements following Patten's death. They closed off the upper part of the hill, which had previously made it necessary for sledders to attempt to maneuver around a section of dangerous trees. They constructed fences, obstructing access to the hill. A number of different warning signs have been posted; the most recent language, partially quoted above, was crafted in the fall of 2003.

Talks about completely closing the hill have come up, Julie Baecker, statewide director of risk management said, but her office does not want to shut down something that is so loved and actively used by the community.

But that doesn't mean they aren't worried. She reminds students that "there have been accidents, there are inherent dangers in this kind of an activity, and to take care and use caution."

"We don't want to see someone's fun disintegrate into tragedy," she said.

Despite all of these changes, injurious incidents still occur. During their first winter in Fairbanks in December 2002, Tom Deters, 38, and his family came to sled the area for the first time. The evening was uneventful, until Deters went for one last run.

He grabbed the child-sized sled and hiked as high as the fences would allow him to go. He took off, gained a lot of speed, began hitting bumps and flew out of control. Deters' lower back collided with the sled's backrest, and he realized he was unable to move. His son had to help him get up and to the car, and his wife took him to the hospital. There was initial fear of him having a broken back, but the x-rays showed a severe bruising of the lower back instead. He was given a morphine drip, prescribed pain medication, and was bed-ridden for almost a week.

Although he has not been sledding since, Deters has not ruled out another run down the hill. "When I find a big, sturdy sled. I mean it's there, it's gotta be ridden. It's Mother Nature telling you to come give it a shot," he said.

He does not limit his children's use of the hill, either. "It's not anything I would blame on the hill itself," he said, "I would blame the person who went down unprepared."

Yet, Deters does recommend bringing a friend along: "Don't do it by yourself; someone's gotta be able to take you to the hospital."

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Photo by Stephanie Taylor/ Sun Star
Sledders enjoy the UAF sledding hill on an unusually warm March weekend.

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