Image Credit: SUBMITTED/Big White Ski Resort
December 15, 2023 - 4:30 PM
A new tracking device made especially for parents and caregivers to track their kids at ski resorts is now available at Big White.
skiKrumb is a GPS-tracking device that was made to provide peace of mind to parents on the ski hill and to be available to track kids in case they get lost on the mountain. It also allows users to see replays of their runs at the end of their ski day and it is now available at Big White Ski Resort near Kelowna.
“One of the first times my son was skiing, he wasn’t paying attention and he took a wrong turn, everything was fine, but riding up the chair lift wondering if he was scared, hurt or worse was not pleasant so I invented skiKrumb and ever since parents have told me that it really offers peace of mind,” Keith MacIntyre, founder of skiKrumb says.
READ MORE: New tech allows parents to track their kids at Penticton area ski resort
The product was launched earlier this year at Apex Mountain Ski Resort and, as of today, Dec. 15, is available for purchase at the Mountain Lifestyle Outlets on Highway 33 in Kelowna, for those who want to rent it for the day or the season to use at Big White. It won't be available for sale at the resort.
The unit is designed with a long-lasting battery and a technology that reaches users where cell phones and other GPS trackers cannot. It is a GPS tracking device that can offer live tracking which is updated every ten seconds.
“I have a friend who lost his kid once in the trees and he had bought Airtags but he found that you only get pings on the chairlift or village but not on the mountain, so they can’t be relied on because you need to be within 30 feet of an iPhone which is difficult on a mountain the size of Big White. With the skiKrumb that is not an issue,” MacIntyre says.
The tracking device has already been used at the Big White ski and board school. Every student gets a tracker so they can always be found on the mountain.
“Fortunately, no kid has been lost on the mountain this season, so we haven’t had to recover a child yet, but it’s a matter of time, and we have been able to see that the live tracking works so when the time comes it will be helpful,” he says.
“The kids love to watch the replays and see where they were on the mountain during the day which is also fun to see.”
Apex Mountain Ski Resort and Big White Ski Resort are currently the only ski hills with access to this technology.
“I’ve talked to about 30 resorts in the last few months but Apex and Big White were our priority. In January and February, we’ll start doing demos and hope to expand to be available to as many as 30 to 40 resorts next year,” says MacIntyre.
For more information you can check out the skiKrumb website here.
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