VAIL - There are so many life lessons to be learned from the Toby Dawson story that the whole thing practically screams "book deal and made-for-TV movie."

Dawson, 28, was lost by his birth mother in a crowded market in Seoul, South Korea, when he was 3. He was adopted from an orphanage by a pair of ski instructors, grew up in Vail and went on to win a bronze medal in mogul skiing at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.

Dawson grabbed more headlines Feb. 28 when DNA tests reunited him with his birth father at a tearful news conference in Seoul. But for me - and probably for Toby - the glaring question remains: How do you lose a 3-year-old?

In today's day and age of milk cartons, Amber Alerts and the 24-hour news cycle, it seems almost inconceivable, but in South Korea in the early 1980s, one presumes losing a toddler was more than possible.

I found out the other day losing a 6-year-old on the very ski mountain where Dawson trained for Olympic glory for two knee- grinding decades is also quite possible, and even probable if the 6-year-old (in this case, my son Nick) is an aggressive skier with a mind of his own.

During race training at Vail, Nick went up for one more NASTAR run while his coaches and the rest of his team got on another lift. When he came down, everyone was gone, so Nick skied to the bottom and checked at ski school.

When he didn't find his team, he rode two more lifts and skied two more runs solo before finally asking another instructor for help, at which point he reunited with his squad without really even realizing he was lost. Six, in my mind, is a little young to be free skiing Vail Mountain.

The day before, my 3-year-old, Max, was bumped up to a BC (Beginner Chair) 3, meaning his next step is Mountain 3 (all- mountain access) if he can just improve on getting up on his own after a fall.

I talked with his instructor about making that move this season, and we agreed there's no need to push it. Max might be able to ski down from the top of the mountain, but his slope awareness and decision-making in an emergency situation aren't nearly developed enough.

And slope awareness has become a critical topic at Colorado ski resorts with weekend and peak-season crowding and increasing speeds because of equipment improvements. Kids don't know how to watch out for others and maintain their space.

The local paper in Vail recently ran an article and a couple of letters to the editor from ski instructors complaining about more aggressive and dangerous skiing in recent years, with several of them saying they had been struck multiple times by out-of-control snow riders.

I lay some blame at the feet of those instructors, who, in my opinion, don't do an adequate job of drilling skier safety and slope awareness into the heads of young skiers. But the industry as a whole has blinders on when it comes to the increasing dangers presented by overcrowding.

And those dangers can be terrifying when you're skiing with young kids.

It's one thing to lose your 3-year-old in a crowded market, or get separated while skiing the trees, but to lose them forever to a collision caused by an irresponsible young snow rider who has never heard of the Colorado Skier Safety Act would be an inexcusable tragedy.

One that might prompt legislative intervention and stiffening of the laws if the industry doesn't wake up and spend more money to increase enforcement and promote safety awareness.

Arming children with awareness

• Dress children in distinctive, bright clothing you can keep an eye on.

• Talk to them at the beginning of each run about what they should do if you get separated.

• Tell them what chairlift you're riding and pick a meeting spot. Then come up with a fall-back spot at the bottom of the mountain if the first plan fails.

• Point out the uniforms of various mountain personnel and tell your kids to ask for help if they get lost or hurt. Also point out emergency phones and find out what numbers to dial.

• Make sure your kids know the names of their instructors or everyone in the group they're skiing with if they get separated and have to ask for help.

• Carry your cell phone and have your kids memorize the number or write it down and put it in their pocket if they're too young for their own phone.

• Preach slope awareness until you're blue in the face: Maintain defensive space, watch out for other riders, look uphill when merging trails, don't ski too fast on crowded runs and always stay in control.

David O. Williams, a Colorado resident and avid skier since 1979, lives in Edwards with his wife and three sons.

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