But what does this have to do with a skier falling down. I rarely do a time, speed distance computation when I fall while skiing. However, based on some personal experience, the hill's slope has a significant impact on the dynamics of the fall. Also the forward velocity (or more correctly the velocity along the skiing surface) influences the the dynamics. Unless this is associated with jumping, the velocity normal to the surface, which is typically at a significant angle to the horizontal, is fairly low.